February 2001 NEWSLETTER

• Anchorage 2020 Comprehensive Plan Updates

• Special Olympics

• It’s Election Time Again

• Career Fair

• Business Problems? Tell the Chamber

• Job Postings Free Until March 31

• Member Spotlight: Pegasus Aircraft Maintenance

• ATHENA Society Luncheon

• Volunteer Opportunities

• Business Safety Advice

• Chamber Membership Directory Changes

• Alliance North Conference

• Chamberline: Link to the Business Community

Athletes, coaches, and spectators from an estimated 80 nations will visit Anchorage to take part in the largest international sporting event in Alaskan history, March 4 - 11: the 2001 Special Olympics.

The 2001 World Games Spectator Team Program is an opportunity for your friends, families and co-workers to support Special Olympics athletes. A Spectator Team is a group of five or more individuals who volunteer to become a "personal cheering section" for an athlete or team from a visiting nation.

As a Spectator Team, your duties will include the creation of banners and signs, attendance at your athlete’s events, and the ability to cheer your heart out!

Your participation can make a world of difference. Whether you volunteer for a few hours or a few days, your memories will last a lifetime.

For information, call 277-2860.

Election season is just around the corner. This April, 6 Assembly seats are up for re-election - District 1 – Dan Kendall (Eagle River), District 3 – Fay Von Gemmingen (Spenard, Turnagain, Sand Lake), District 4 – Kevin Meyers and Doug Van Etten (Midtown), District 5 – Melinda Taylor (East), District 6 – Pat Abney (South Anchorage, Turnagain Arm). In addition, 2 School Board seats are also up for grabs – Seat A (left open by Bettye Davis), and Seat B – Tom Anderson.

Get involved and get informed! The legislative process begins here in Anchorage with our local representation. The outcome of this election affects everyone in this city.

The Chamber will hold a two-part Election Candidate series, at the Monday Forum luncheon, Monday February 26 and Monday, March 5, noon, at the Fourth Avenue Theater.

The Chamber Municipal Committee is soliciting questions from the business community for the candidates.

Questions will be sent to the candidates in the form of a written questionnaire and responses will be displayed on the Chamber website and at the forums.

Please send questions or issues to Angeline Fowler at 272-4117 or angeline@anchoragechamber.org.

Time is running out to host a booth at the Chamber’s citywide community career/job fair. Aimed at high school juniors and seniors and college students, the fair is a win-win situation for all, helping local businesses find employees and students find jobs.

Is your business looking for summer help? Are you looking for entry level employees? Or are you looking for talented, promotable individuals? If so, this is where your business should be seen.

If you are interested in hosting a booth, Saturday, April 7, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., at the UAA Campus Center, call Rebecca Hubbard at 677-7114 or e-mail: rebecca@anchoragechamber.org. The cost for a booth is $100.

The Chamber is here to advocate for your business. Bring your business problems or issues to the relevant Chamber committee or Board of Directors. Whether you need education or legislation, the Chamber is here to help. The Chamber has 17 committees each dealing with different business issues, from marketing to human resources and crime prevention to legislation.

A complete list of Chamber committees and committee contact information is available from the Chamber office or on the Chamber website. If your business has a concern or an issue you think we should tackle, either contact the relevant Committee Chair or Chamber President April Jensen. You are also always welcome to fax suggestions and comments to the Chamber at 272-4117 or e-mail: info@anchoragechamber.org.

We are here to serve you. Make the Chamber the first stop for your business issues.

The Chamber Job Posting Site is up and running and waiting for your jobs. Many members have already started using the service. Check it out. Visit the Chamber website at www.anchoragechamber.org. Then click "Jobs" and "Post a Job." All posting can be done through the web.

Because we’ve had some technical difficulties, we are extending the Free Trial Period another 6 weeks.

Now post your employment opportunities and job openings on the Chamber website FREE OF CHARGE until March 31, 2001.

This is a great opportunity to get your jobs seen both throughout Alaska and the Lower 48. The Chamber office receives hundreds of phone calls per week asking about local job opportunities and the website is currently averaging 100,000 hits per month.

In addition to job posting, individuals can post their resumes on-line and apply directly for a posted job position. Companies can also search the resume database for a qualified individual.

Chamber members with frequent and multiple job listings have the opportunity to enhance their job posting capabilities by purchasing an Information Advertising page, which includes a logo, information about the company, and a complete list of jobs offered by that company.

This offer will only run until March 31. After that date, job postings will cost $50 per job. This listing will appear on the website for a one month period. Post today! There is no limit on the number of jobs you can post.

If you need more assistance or have questions about the new system, please call Jane Yi at 677-7105 or e-mail: jane@anchoragechamber.org.

Pegasus Aircraft Maintenance is a new company formed to provide aircraft maintenance and service needs in Anchorage. Pegasus specializes in heavy jet aircraft maintenance, specifically on the B747, DC-10, and MD-11.

Owners Carlos Nelson and Roy D. Ardern have worked in the industry for over 10 years throughout the U.S. and abroad. Unlike many other owners, Carlos and Roy are committed to Anchorage and the community they live in. Every penny you spend with Pegasus stays in Anchorage and helps build our growing economy. Also, because the owners are continually on-site and working with you, a quality job is guaranteed.

Located at 4000 W. 50th Avenue, at the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, Pegasus is F.A.A. certified and insured and fully equipped to handle all your HEAVY JET maintenance needs.

Celebrate Alaskan women in business at the 8th annual Anchorage ATHENA Society Luncheon, Monday, March 19, noon, at the Sheraton Anchorage Hotel.

This luncheon will be held in recognition of new Society members and to honor this year’s ATHENA Award recipient.

Members of the Anchorage ATHENA Society, a program of the Chamber, are nominated by the community and their peers, and are accepted based on their business accomplishments, community service, and dedication to promoting women in business.

The ATHENA Award is then given to one Society member who has encouraged the potential of women as business leaders and has devoted time and energy to improving the quality of life for others in the business community. Past award recipients include: Eleanor Andrews of The Andrews Group, Sharon Richards of YWCA, Jo Michalski of Classic Woman, and Julianna Guy, formerly of Alaska Public Radio, Last year’s recipient, Arliss Sturgulewski will be this year’s luncheon keynote speaker.

Reservations for the luncheon can be made on-line at www.anchoragechamber.org or by calling the Chamber office at 272-2401. The deadline for making reservations is Wednesday, March 14.

Is your company looking for community volunteer opportunities for your employees? Well, look no further than the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce.

Whatever your employees are looking for and whatever their schedules, we can accommodate them. In this day and age, we realize that fewer people want to commit to the never-ending task of serving on a committee. But committees generate projects and tasks that they don’t have the manpower to fulfill without volunteers.

The Chamber offers a range of volunteer projects. Plan an event, track legislation, help with membership, plan the future of the Chamber. If you have an hour, we can use your help.

Each volunteer is recognized by the Chamber for their work and gains points for the number of hours of volunteer work they complete which equate to different levels of recognition.

Help build your community from the inside out.

Please contact Mary Fairbanks
at 677-7110 or e-mail: mary@anchoragechamber.org, for more information.

Every business has to deal with safety issues, whether you have a retail business or your job is sending people into outer space. -

Learn more about safety in the workplace from retired Air Force Space Shuttle astronaut, Col. Mike Mullane, Monday, March 26, noon, at the Governors Health and Safety Conference kick-off luncheon.

This interactive luncheon, co-sponsored by the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce, takes a behind-the-scenes look into the circumstances that brought the pre-Challenger NASA team to disaster. Mullane will delve into the fundamentals of teamwork in safety. Reservations can be made through the Chamber website at www.anchoragechamber.org. Tickets are $15 per person.

That same afternoon, stop by the "Small Business Safety Seminar" from 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. at the Egan Center. Any small business owner or manager that wants to save worker’s compensation dollars and develop an effective safety and health program should attend this free seminar.

All employers are required to have a safety and health plan to protect workers from occupational risk. In some cases, developing a written program can result in worker’s compensation insurance premium cost reductions, lowered injury frequency and severity, and a reduction in the chance of fines and penalties from non-compliance.

Agenda includes issues such as: Why have a safety plan? What is the difference between safety and loss control? How to develop a written safety and health plan? What is the role of OSHA?

For information, contact Kathy Miller at 269-4922.

The 2001 Chamber membership directory is available! This directory is used worldwide to contact local Chamber businesses, and as an information source for Anchorage visitors and those relocating to the city.

It is important that the Chamber has the correct information on file for your company. The Chamber sends out verification forms each August to confirm the information on file for the next directory. But don’t wait until August to correct your company information. If the information we have is incorrect, the referrals we are providing your company are inaccurate and the information listed on the Chamber website is wrong.

Let us know if your company moves, merges, changes staff, or adds a website or new e-mail address. Also let us know if you add or reduce the number of Anchorage full-time, year-round staff because this could affect your dues.

If your company information has changed since the last verification form, contact Jane Yi at 677-7105 or e-mail: jane@anchoragechamber.org.

Additional copies of the 2001 Membership Directory ($5 each) are available from the Chamber office. Call 272-2401 to place an order.

Do you ever feel like your small business is missing a piece of the "government pie?" Are other businesses two steps ahead of you, having obtained government agency contracts that you could have easily had?

The Chamber has the solution. The Alliance North 2001 Conference is targeted to Alaska’s small business enterprises who want to sell products or provide services to government agencies.

Officially hosted by United States Senator Ted Stevens, Thursday, May 17, and Friday, May 18, at the Egan Convention Center, the conference will provide the opportunity for small businesses to learn how to apply for government contracts and to walk away with actual contact information.

The goals of the conference are:

1. To provide networking opportunities for small, disadvantaged, and woman-owned business enterprises;

2. To provide direct access to government ‘buyers’ (staff who actually issue contracts, purchase orders, and credit card transactions);

3. To provide business owners who invest in attending the conference a return on their investment (in the form of contract awards and/or sales for their business).

Emphasis will be placed on providing access to project schedules for upcoming contract opportunities as well as the names and phone numbers of individuals within each agency who purchase the specific products and/or services which each business has to offer. Representatives will be there from local, state, and federal agencies.

In addition to government representatives, major prime contractors for federal government agencies will be represented to answer questions on subcontract opportunities. Prime contractors, operating under mandatory, negotiated, subcontracting plans, are looking for small business enterprises with skill sets to complement their existing business operations.

In many cases, working for a prime contractor provides a level of protection for small businesses just entering the government market and opens the door to opportunities that would otherwise be beyond the capability of the small business operating Independently.

Five training tracks will be available to address all areas of government contract opportunities. Special tracks will be devoted to the U.S. Department of Defense, State and University of Alaska, and Federal Civilian Agencies. A Cybergarden will be also available (hosted by the Bremerton Electronic Commerce Resource Center) to provide an opportunity for hands-on experience in registration into government procurement databases.

Chamber members can attend this conference at a reduced rate of $200 per person. To register, visit www.anchoragechamber.org or call the Chamber office at 272-2401. A conference schedule is available from the Chamber office or on the web.