Do You Have A Story To Tell?
Go Ahead, We're All Ears!

The West Des Moines Chamber will soon be embarking on a new 2010 Communications Campaign in an effort to showcase the value of being a chamber member.  We are looking for 12 chamber members to share their story highlighting how being a WDM Chamber member has helped them achieve success.  The intent of the stories is to serve as a real-world testament to the many ways the Chamber can help individuals, businesses and organizations meet with success.  Perhaps you received a great referral or better yet obtained a new customer or client.  We want to hear from you!  Maybe your Chamber connections helped you find a key employee, or led you to a new job.  We want to hear from you!  Perhaps you became involved in one of the many Chamber task forces or committees and had the opportunity to develop new and lasting friendships. Or perhaps through your Chamber connections, you were invited to be a guest presenter or to sit on a board of another organization.  We want to hear from you!  We know there are many great stories to be shared and this could be your time to shine!
 
If selected as one of the 12 members to be featured in our campaign, you and your company will receive excellent visibility and recognition.  Each of the selected members will have an opportunity to star in a 60-90 second video, which will be placed on the Chamber website.  In addition you will have the opportunity to recap your story at one of the monthly Chamber lunch meetings in 2010.  Collateral material will be created to capture your story and will be distributed at Chamber functions throughout the year.  We think you will agree, if your story is selected, the good will and public relations generated for you and your organization will be (as Master Card says)....priceless!  Our new communications campaign will debut in January.
 
However time is passing quickly, as the deadline to submit your story is November 1st.  Quick!  Click Here and complete the short questionnaire telling us about your WDM Chamber story.  It costs nothing to apply and the rewards will be big!  So go ahead, tell us your story.  We're all ears!

WDMLA: Back in Session (It's a new year!)

The Second Year of the West Des Moines Leadership Academy (WDMLA) kicked off on Thursday, September 17th with the 32 class members gathering for an orientation session and introduction to leadership.  Melynda DeCarlo and Tammy Rogers with The Meyvn Group facilitated team building exercises, discussions and a training on Situational Leadership.

After informing us that Mickey Mouse is the number 1 recognized image in the world, Tammy instructed us to each draw Mickey on our own.  After the original drawing, Tammy then led us in an exercise in which we drew Mickey through a 5-step process; Tammy was the leader and each member of the Academy was a follower.  This led to an interesting discussion on the needs of the follower and the responsibilities of the leader.

The facilitators then led us through a group exercise to identify traits of effective leaders and what gets rewarded in the workplace.  After showing some of the dichotomy that exists between the two, Melynda and Tammy led us through the Situational Leadership Model.  This model divides leadership into four segments and helps identify how to lead people that are in various stages (S1, S2, S3 or S4) based on a given task.  Each of us left this introductory session with tangible tools that we could take back to our leadership situations in order to become better employees, employers and leaders in and out of the workplace.

This session and the subsequent discussion laid the ground-work for leadership skills for the entire Leadership Academy.  Over the next nine months, we will learn about leadership specific skills such as conflict management and coaching.  In addition, we will learn about the community including the history of the city, health care, education and the culture of West Des Moines. 

Business of the Month - Savannah Homes

It's Time.  The time of year when your West Des Moines Chamber seeks nominations for our coveted Business of the Year award to be given at our annual dinner in January.
 
Business of the Year was launched in 2006 and each year sees ever-growing numbers of nominations by employees on behalf of Chamber businesses. We are continuing the award in 2010 to include one award for large businesses (50 or more employees) and one for smaller businesses (49 or less employees).

What makes a company worthy of this recognition? The criteria is simple enough and there are many companies in West Des Moines who qualify.  The selection committee will consider each nomination's investment into our West Des Moines community - what type of outreach they have made to non-profits and how their employees have stepped up as volunteers for worthy causes and events. The committee will weigh how participative the company is in our West Des Moines Chamber activities and how their professional ethics and work environment assist them in being an employer of choice.  You will recognize these qualities and community contributions in our 2009 winners, LADCO Development and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse.
  
If you have yet to make your nomination for this award, please wait no longer. The clock is ticking! Simply click here to make your business nomination.  Feel free to nominate your own company for that matter. We have much to be proud of in West Des Moines. Let's salute the organization that has earned our respect and admiration! 

WE'RE THANKFUL!

Thanksgiving is the time of year to, well - give thanks!  And that is just what we plan to do at our November Chamber luncheon.  We'll be celebrating and thanking the new members who have joined our growing West Des Moines Chamber over the last 12 months.

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