Author Archives: Tim Brewer

Chamber Gets Fiscal AND Physical: Here are Some Tips Related to Wellness Programs

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A corporate wellness program (learn more about wellness at the Chamber’s Business of Health web site) is a great tool to improve employee health/performance, reduce health insurance costs and recruit/retain young talent.  At the Indiana Chamber, we are in the second year of our program.  I’d like to share a few of our initiatives for you to consider at your workplace:
 
1. Annual health screenings and flu shots
2. Walking Club – Tuesday, Thursday at 11:30
3. Yoga – Monday during the lunch hour
4. Guest speakers – motivation, nutrition, healthy cooking and exercise
5. Wellness Wednesday – free healthy snacks for staff members
6. Corporate health club membership – educational material and discounts for staff members
7. Chamber-sponsored kickball team
8. After hours functions – bike ride on the Monon Trail, hiking at Brown County and basketball games
9. Monthly wellness newsletter
 
Our wellness points rewards system offers up to two additional wellness days each year if the employee reaches a certain point threshold every six months. The top point recipients receive wellness days and gift cards to health food outlets.
 
If you find these to provide great returns for your company, feel free to buy me lunch.  And, no, a deep-fried Snickers from the State Fair is not acceptable.

Pacer Proud Again: Draft/Trade Overhaul Could Mean More than Victories

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Like most of you, I’ve been disappointed with the Pacers’ off the court troubles in recent years. Larry Legend must be a believer in Barack Obama’s slogan of "change," because that is what the Pacers are trying to do.
 
The Pacers are important to downtown Indianapolis’ economy (not to mention state pride). Downtown business booms on Sundays when the Colts play well and they have played well consistently for nearly 10 years. Winning creates a great trickle down effect — more hotel rooms are reserved, more parking garages are full, more money being spent at restaurants and more dollars being spent at the Circle Centre Mall. This all equals more tax dollars, as well. The Pacers’ optimism of winning again and employing good characters should improve their low attendance numbers and boost business downtown on game nights. 
 
Their roster moves in the last two days will make me give them another shot. They likely won’t hold up the NBA Finals trophy at the end of next season, but they will be in the mix for the playoffs and they will represent our state with better citizens. Let’s get behind them like we did when "Boom Baby!" was said more often than "going green."  Entertain your clients at one of their suites. Take your kids out for a quick drive around Lucas Oil Stadium, a bite to eat downtown and a Pacers game. 

I’ll be back in the stands at Conseco Fieldhouse, one of the greatest athletic facilities in the country. I hope you will do the same.

Breakfast, Brinegar and Boilermakers

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Our Breakfast with Brinegar program will make the trip north on I-65 to visit our Tippecanoe County members on Tuesday, July 8, from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. Kevin Brinegar, president of the Indiana Chamber, will discuss Chamber programs and services and you will have an opportunity to network with other local Indiana Chamber members. Dr. France Cordova, president of Purdue University, will kick off our breakfast. A Q&A session will be held for Kevin, as well. 

We considered hosting the event inside of the world’s largest drum; however, we decided to choose the Holiday Inn Select City Centre for acoustic purposes. We hope to see our members from surrounding communities, like Crawfordsville, Delphi and Frankfort.
 
The breakfast is free for Indiana Chamber members and $19 for non-members. Please contact Abby Hamilton at (317) 264-3793 or ahamilton@indianachamber.com to RSVP.
 
I was hoping I could offer a set of game-used Brian Cardinal knee pads as a door prize, but I haven’t had any luck to date.

Chamber Throws a (Help)line to Small Businesses

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One of the best resources for a small business owner is access to expertise. Access to FREE advice for an Indiana small business owner from some of Indiana’s most respected issue experts is as cool as me finding a ready-to-use and already refined oil pocket in my backyard in Broad Ripple. In other words, being able to pick up the phone or send a quick e-mail to get your difficult business questions answered at no cost is a big deal and can save you cash. Membership with the Indiana Chamber provides you with this free HELPLINE system. Questions on human resources, OSHA, tax, environmental and workforce development will be answered for you without getting some attorney’s meter running. 
 
Our HR HELPLINE receives the most questions of all of our services. George Raymond is the Indiana Chamber’s VP for Human Resources, Labor Relations and Civil Justice and he’s in charge of the HR HELPLINE and may be reached at graymond@indianachamber.com or (317) 264-6884.
 
This is a tremendous tool for small business owners wearing multiple hats looking to reduce costs, stay in compliance and take advantage of another membership benefit. As for me, I’ll let you know when I can heat my house with that Texas Tea behind my garage.

Research Among Many Benefits of Chamber Membership

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Indiana Chamber membership offers a valuable resource for members trying to kick up more business. Our Business Research Center provides business lists to members at no cost. You may select any six of the 33 specialty lists available in your membership year. The most popular lists include Largest Indiana Employers, New & Expanding Businesses and Indiana Companies with Foreign Ownership. In addition, you may receive up to 1,000 customized lists based on SIC codes, ZIP codes, employee range and sales volume. For more information, click here.
 
Here’s the really cool aspect of the Business Research Center: One e-mail to our research experts or a quick phone call will get your request started. Cindy Monnier, the director of Business Research, may be reached at cmonnier@indianachamber.com or (317) 264-7511. Melissa Sederoff, the research assistant, may be reached at msederoff@indianachamber.com or (317) 264-6870. 

You don’t have to spend hours at the library or online to find prospect names and numbers to call. Instead, you can spend those hours playing online Boggle or searching Wikipedia for those weird facts you’ve been wondering about since you were a kid.

Indiana Chamber Makes Pit Stop at Indy Motor Speedway

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We call it "Breakfast with Brinegar," but for this first time event at the world’s most famous racing facility, we just might call it "Bacon at the Brickyard" for a day. Local Indiana Chamber members are encouraged to join us Tuesday, May 13, from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. Joie Chitwood, President of the IMS, will speak briefly about the excitement of this year’s Indianapolis 500. With the IRL and Champ Car merger, along with Danica Patrick’s first IRL win, the buzz is as hot as ever regarding the 2.5 mile oval. Kevin Brinegar, president of the Indiana Chamber, will discuss Chamber programs and services and you will have an opportunity to network with other Indiana Chamber members. A Q&A session will be held for Kevin, as well. 

The breakfast is free for Indiana Chamber members and $19 for non-members. Please contact Abby Hamilton at (317) 264-3793 or ahamilton@indianachamber.com to RSVP for this fun and educational event.
 
Sounds like a great way to start a Spring day in the month of May in Indianapolis. You may even be lucky enough to bump into A.J., Mario or Little Al. But I promise you won’t have to listen to me sing "Back Home Again in Indiana."

Chamber Offers Tools for Small Businesses

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Membership with the Indiana Chamber offers a number of great resources for small businesses. Two of our most popular benefits, the HR Helpline and the Business Research Center, are offered at no cost to members. We encourage our members to use these cost-saving tools. The HR Helpline will answer your employment law and human resources-related questions at no charge. The Business Research Center offers customized business lists and welcomes even the most difficult business research questions. These benefits are perfect for the business owner wearing multiple hats, office/HR managers with HR questions and sales managers/representatives working to generate business.

ChamberCare Could Aid Your Health Care Woes

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ChamberCare

In a shaky economy, most small business owners are searching for new avenues to be more frugal and to cut costs. The Indiana Chamber recognizes the need to save in these rollercoaster times. We’ve introduced a number of value added tools in recent years to help your bottom line. Health insurance continues to be at the top of the spending list for Indiana businesses. We encourage you to consider our ChamberCare health insurance discount program. Members of the Indiana Chamber have the opportunity to save 5% off of Anthem Blue Cross & Blue Shield health insurance just by keeping their Indiana Chamber dues current. The program applies for new Anthem accounts with 2-99 employees who are located outside of Marion County.

The savings from ChamberCare could allow you to reinvest the money in a variety of areas. Numerous members have mentioned the savings with ChamberCare allowed them to offer salary increases, Christmas bonuses and reinvest the money in equipment and training.

Membership with the Indiana Chamber also provides you with a number of free services like the HR HELPLINE and the Business Research Center. A discount on health insurance, questions answered on HR topics at no charge and free lists from our Business Research Center can provide a strong ROI to your company in just a matter of days.

Contact Abby Hamilton at the Indiana Chamber – 317-264-3793 or ahamilton@indianachamber.com to learn more about ChamberCare. If you do not have an insurance agent, we are happy to connect you with the appropriate regional contact at Anthem.