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Here’s another positive national story about the Fort Collins region. Forbes magazine ranks the area 5^th in the nation as the Best Place for Business & Careers. You’ll note I said ‘region’ and ‘area.’ The population for Fort Collins cited by Forbes is 301,000. This is the Fort Collins-Loveland Metropolitan Statistical Area, basically Larimer County.

As I write this in late June 2011, Leadership Northern Colorado is about to graduate its second class. A joint initiative of the Fort Collins, Greeley and Loveland Chambers of Commerce, the Community Foundation of Northern Colorado and the Community Foundation Serving Greeley and Weld County, this six-month interactive development program focuses on regional issues, regionalism and regional leadership skills.  The program is designed to educate and motivate leaders who want to shape the future of our region. 

So, one might ask, why? Why does it matter that we work together as a region? For that matter, what is a region?*

As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, the cost of government, especially due to the unionization of government employees, is one of the hottest issues of the day. Not surprisingly, it has become a partisan political issue. However, as the public looks at the costs, more and more pressure will be put on elected officials to deal with pay and benefits that exceed those in the private sector and are difficult for taxpayers to sustain. The era of accountability in government is upon us.

Here’s a cliché that I’ve lived by for many years: leaders are readers. You cannot be a leader in your organization or field without being a serious student. So, as you head to the mountains or veg by the pool this summer, take a good book. Better yet, take five or six. Included here are books I've read recently, listed in alphabetical order. They cover a wide range of topics such as personal development, history, economics, politics, poverty, marketing and even non-business topics like Alaska. Why, I even threw in a 40-year old novel, True Grit!

Not being an attorney nor a constitutional scholar, I don't have any special insights on the court cases surrounding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or what is known popularly as 'Obamacare.' Even so, I found today's opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal titled "Why ObamaCare is Losing in the Courts" quite interesting. Granted, it's written by the attorneys representing the 26 states that files suit against the law, so keep that in mind as you read it.

A group in the community is pushing the City Council to increase base electric rates then divert some of the money to support the installation of solar panels. It's a form of what are called 'feed-in tariffs' or FiTs. I wrote about them in today's Coloradoan, which you can read here.

The Chamber is very involved with government. The purpose is to provide constructive input on issues that impact business and the long-term economic health of Fort Collins.

A key tool to guide our actions is a document called 'Where We Stand.' It contains the Chamber's broad positions on a wide variety of topics. When a specific ordinance or statute is being proposed, 'Where We Stand' guides our actions.

As a member of the Chamber, you can help shape the Chamber's policies by providing your opinions about the policies in 'Where We Stand.' WWS is being updated by the Chamber's Local Legislative Affairs Committee right now. You can go here to see the proposed draft. If you have proposed changes drop me an email at davidmay@fcchamber.org.

In an era when technology rules, it's easy to forget the fundaments. You might be able to grow your business by using a variety of social media and social networking tools. Business consultant and #1 best selling author Tony Rubleski says, "I’m often asked by new and existing business owners for a simple, inexpensive way to increase their local visibility and marketing efforts to produce more opportunities and sales. Without a doubt, I always ask a stunningly simple question, Are you a member of your local chamber of commerce?"

Rubleski lists seven ways you can grow your business using your chamber of commerce.

On May 12 I posted an entry titled "The New Dynamics of the City Council." Here are the detailed notes from that session. They give you a sense of the agendas, priorities and views of the various Council Members.

The economic news continues to be mixed, underscoring the high level of uncertainty among businesses and job seekers.

Networking. Beside the fact that it is one of the most over-used words of modern times, it is still important. If you're an extrovert, what could be better than the chance to dive in to a room full of people.?To you, it's a target-rich environment. But if you're an introvert, and many of you are, networking is not your favorite thing and can feel like an obligation. You know you should do it and that it's an important way to grow your business and your career, but you'd rather clean the bathroom than go to an event with a bunch of people! So, if you are introverted, there are some things you can do to network effectively. Even veteran networkers can benefit from refresher tips.

Fort Collins and Hewlett-Packard are like pancakes and syrup – they’re made for each other. It has been that way since 1978 when HP opened on Harmony Road. The company’s presence has had a profound and positive impact on Fort Collins, Northern Colorado and Colorado. The most recent example is the opening of a new lab on the HP campus.