MAGNET Evolves

The Cape Girardeau Area MAGNET recently announced it has not only expanded its investors and board of directors, but there is much more on the horizon. As a reminder, MAGNET is a regional organization charged with several aspects of economic development. To accelerate economic momentum and devise a plan for a unified vision in the future, MAGNET will create a strategic plan with the help of Ernst & Young Economic Development Advisory Services. This is in preparation for the transition to new leadership with my upcoming departure.

The planning process promises several steps including a competitive assessment of the area and an analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. A diverse group of stakeholders will comprise a Steering Committee to provide input through surveys, interviews, and focus groups. The strategy will include recommendations for talent recruitment and retention, image and marketing, business climate, and more. The final product will incorporate performance metrics.

For area businesses and residents alike, this is a critical time moving forward in a post-pandemic economy. Business leaders will be asked to engage in one or more ways with the process. The timeline shows anticipated completion in December 2021.

Area governmental entities and private investors are showing their commitment to the future of economic development. That is good news.

It may not be crystal clear when tourism will get back to “normal”; but Cape Girardeau will be well positioned to appeal to travelers when that time comes. Many things are taking place that will enhance our community and offer a pleasant experience for those who travel here. The new I-55 diverging diamond will offer an ease of entry to our city. Interstate 55 is a major cross country/north-south route, connecting the Gulf of Mexico and the Great Lakes. We can be a stop regardless of the destination.  The new intersection will be busy carrying over 23,000 vehicles through that interchange and all potential visitors to Cape Girardeau.  

Through the youth sports program we have been able to attract the interest of more promoters and we are encouraged by their interest in hosting basketball, volleyball, pickleball, softball, baseball, fishing and more to the area. Our next hurdle will be getting the meeting and group conferences onboard with in person meetings and events. The horizon looks clear and some of the large events are taking the lead and offering up their convention opportunities. The many safety protocols and care that is being placed on the events will be useful for us to duplicate as we open our venues and build the confidence of the attendees. As it is demonstrated time and time again feelings will translate into actions. Research shows that there are some 83.5% of American travelers have a tip planned! We want to get positive ads in front of them and help to increase their readiness for travel all reports indicate that we are moving in the right direction. 

Tourist travel will return, and we may move from the masks wearing and physical distancing but, the traveler may have some lasting expectations for our venues in making them feel safe. This will be not only important to our visitors but, also to the residents. The goal is to timely and responsibly ease the travel restrictions to help ensure the many social and economic benefits that tourism guarantee will return in a sustainable way. Some reports indicate a strong spike in rural places for tourism. The Tourism Lexicon gives us the strong words for change, and they are: community, need, help, people, care, and support. Tourism knows that we must offer our community, the help, support, and care that it needs by doing these simple things we become a valued asset. Let us continue to support our small businesses and shop local as we remain diligent in investing in the hospitality of inviting individuals to VisitCape! Based on the recent experience with the Great Race and Mini Chase 2021 is a go!  

Welcome to the 2nd half of 2021!  Crazy how time flies. Hopefully you have been enjoying your summer, and have taken some time to hit the pause button and re charge the batteries for the second half of the year!

Things are only heating up here at the Chamber and the team continues to work on delivering relevant, and timely programs to our membership and community. One of these programs kicked off this week, Show Me Careers. This is one of many initiatives at the Cape Chamber geared towards workforce development. Show Me Careers is a program developed by the Missouri Chamber and designed to bring awareness and exposure to career opportunities available locally for High School graduates, high school counselors, teachers and administrators. For more information on the work being done within this program, check out this link. 

I would like to thank all the other sponsors who are making Show Me Careers possible in Cape Girardeau. Including,

Program Sponsors- Cape Girardeau Career and Technology Center and HAVCO

Business Partners- Alliance Water Resources, Ameren Missouri, Century Casino Cape Girardeau, Codefi, Drury Hotels, P&G, Saint Francis Healthcare, and SoutheastHEALTH

I encourage you to take a look at a recent blog post to learn more about the other programs our Chamber is offering. 

As promised, I would like to provide an update on the ongoing search process for our new President and CEO of our Cape Chamber.  The search committee has been hard at work meeting and conducting interviews with a number of search firms who will run alongside us on this journey. I am pleased to share that we have selected a firm by the name of Waverly Partners. Waverly Partners is an experienced firm that specializes in executive searches for Chambers across the country. We are excited to be working with them and are confident they will be great partners in the process. 

The process officially begins next week when the search committee will meet with Waverly to begin shaping our ideal candidate profile. This is a critical step in the entire process and one that will engage more than just the committee members. Over the next couple of weeks, the team at Waverly will be reaching out to many from across the community, the Chamber staff, and John, to help build the perfect candidate profile that represents what we as a Chamber community need to take our organization forward.  

If you have questions or would like to provide your thoughts on the process, I would encourage you to reach out to myself or any of the committee members. We are all committed to making sure our Chamber is set up to continue the momentum John and his team have created!  

One of my favorite quotes comes to mind as I write this article.. “It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future.”― Yogi Berra. I won’t make any predictions about the future, but I KNOW our future is bright here in southeast Missouri!

Be Well!