Monthly Archives: January 2011

Exciting Times at The Chamber

What a crazy last couple of weeks. Of course I broke my New Year’s resolution to blog every week the second week of 2011… At least I’m jumping back on the horse and trying again this week.

It has been a bit of a whirlwind these past couple of weeks as The Chamber hosted the first Women Excel Bloomington luncheon of 2011 on Tuesday, January 18, there was a snow storm later that week that delayed the hYPe Launch, but we were finally able to have the launch event on Monday, January 24. Last week we also had the first Business After Hours of 2011 at the Monroe County Building Association Home Show the evening of January 27, and an ABC: About Business Connections that focused on credit card processing with Infintech on Friday, January 28. This week, we host our first Healthy Business Bloomington Breakfast of 2011 on Wednesday, February 2, another ABC on February 8, and the first hYPe professional development event on February 9. Then, on February 23, we host the first BizLink event of the New Year focusing on website optimization.

Whew, just typing all of those events made my fingers tired, but we think it is important to offer a variety of different events so that all business, small and large, for-profit and not-for-profit all benefit from their Chamber membership. We also encourage non-members to attend many of our events, get a feel for what we are all about, and explore the many benefits that come with Chamber membership.

Do you have a suggestion for a new event or ideas to make current events better? We want feedback from you so that we are meeting our member’s needs. If there is something we are not doing, or something we could do better please let us know so that we can discuss as a staff your suggestion and possibly make changes to improve our service.

New Year’s Resolutions in a Digital World

With the new year come New Year’s resolutions. People tell themselves that this will be the year they go to the gym three times a week, or this will be the year they stop smoking. As with many things in our world, resolutions have changed with the times, and now many of the resolutions I’ve been hearing about relate to the internet and social media. Whether it is a pledge to not check Facebook during work, or to learn how to use Twitter, the internet has altered what we place importance on and what we want to change about ourselves. This fad has rubbed off on me, and I too am making a resolution that I wish I could take credit for thinking of, but in fact WordPress proposed. I am going to do my best to write a new blog post at least once a week. Anyone else want to join me?

So what will I write about? For the most part, your guess is as good as mine. Since this is Chamber INsider, basically everything I write will be related to Bloomington, The Chamber, or a business issue. My goal is to give readers a peek into how things work here at The Chamber, what we are focusing on, and how what we do can help your business. When what’s going on in the office isn’t very exciting I’ll spice up the blog with some posts about great things going on in Bloomington, and occasionally I’ll discuss a new website or piece of technology that I think will have a profound effect on how people do business.

Want to join me in my weekly blogging? Have a suggestion for topics? Any questions about The Chamber that you always wanted to ask? Let me know in the comments below or e-mail me at drose@chamberbloomington.org and I’ll be happy to discuss anything and everything (within reason of course).

Chamber to Debut New Young Professionals Program

The Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce is excited to announce the creation of “hYPe: Helping Young Professionals Excel,” a new program for young professionals between the ages of 21 and 40 in Bloomington, Indiana.  Slated as one of The Chamber’s new programs for 2011, hYPe will facilitate professional and personal development while encouraging networking for young professionals who live, learn, work, or play in Bloomington.

“As a community, Bloomington has taken positive steps to define and nurture business growth opportunities, and we see hYPe as a great way to help retain the immense talent that our local universities and organizations produce,” says Christy Gillenwater, President and CEO of The Chamber. “By connecting our young professionals to others and providing paths to continued professional development, The Chamber is actively creating our next generation of leaders.”

The hYPe program officially launches on January 20, 2011 with a special kick-off event at KRC Catering and Banquets from 5:30-7:30 p.m.  The event is free and is open to individuals between the ages of 21 and 40 years old.

The event will feature networking activities and a special presentation by Scott Wise, founder and owner of Scotty’s Brewhouse, who will discuss being a young entrepreneur and share business advice with attendees. Steve Bryant, Executive Director of the Gayle and Bill Cook Center for Entrepreneurship at Ivy Tech Community College in Bloomington, will emcee the evening’s activities.  Hors d’oeuvers will be served throughout the event and a cash bar will be available.

“The Chamber plans to hold future hYPe events on the second Wednesday of every month,” explains Gillenwater. “Events will alternate focus on professional development and personal development, and all of them will include ample time to network and meet other young professionals in Bloomington.”

The Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce extends its thanks to professional development series sponsor Solution Tree, and event sponsor KRC Catering and Banquets for their generous support of this new initiative. More sponsorship opportunities are still available for this year’s calendar of events. Contact DeJohn Rose at drose@chamberbloomington.org or (812) 336-6381 for more information.

To register to attend the first event visit http://tinyurl.com/hYPeLaunch, or sign up to be added to the mailing list by filling out a participant information sheet and returning it to hype@chamberbloomington.org. You can also find more information about hYPe on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/hYPeBTOWN, or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/hYPeBloomington.