The Ames Chamber wants to showcase what makes Ames an A+ community. Learn how they’re meeting their goals by partnering with Livability to tell talent everywhere about one of America’s best mid-sized cities. We also cover other successful talent and workforce efforts happening in Ames.
Can you tell us about what you do at the Ames Chamber and a bit about Ames?
I serve as a Senior Vice President for our organization and my primary responsibilities include leading our economic and community development team. And in addition to leading that fabulous team of seven, I get the opportunity to work directly with some targeted communities as well. We’re the Ames MSA, so really two counties and Ames is really the more or less population center within that region. It’s home to Iowa State University. But really our work extends across and beyond Ames to the counties of Boone and Story. Most of our efforts are around economic development, supporting our communities, and really in the last eight years, we’ve put a laser focus on workforce and that’s really where our paths crossed, Amanda, because we are very focused on doing things that assist our communities and our businesses in their efforts to retain and recruit.
How do you distribute the Livability print publication?
We still mail out relocation packets, you know, the Chamber of Commerce is where folks call for that. So we distribute a number of those every day. It’s a great tool for our employers. I’ll use the Iowa State University as an example. I mean, they compete for talent not just nationally, but worldwide. And having a publication that they can put into the hands of folks that are applying to be deans of the colleges or the recruitment for some of those high-level positions at the university … is invaluable. We always joke we’re a company town. Our company just happens to be Iowa State University. So you also look at some of the world-class companies that call the Ames region home … the ability to have a piece that they can share with executives.
We wanted a piece we could feel proud about, put our name to, as well as a tool not only for us to recruit the general public, but really some of those key roles in our lead industries is important. So they can be found in our hotels, they can be found in our libraries, they can be found in every one of our major employers. It’s pretty key in our effort. As we’re recruiting new business and industry to the region with our economic development efforts, it’s nice not to have to worry about a quality of life piece because we have one of those already that we’re underwriting and goes out with all of our proposal packets as well.
What other results have you seen from our program? Not only print, but of course there’s also digital exposure at Livability.com.
It’s increased visibility. We continue to receive a number of accolades, and it’s a great place and we do a lot of things to ensure that we’re a great place to work and live and a great place for business. But I think the national exposure we get through Livability also helps us catch the attention of firms that are recognizing areas for various types of quality of life things. Helps us get the word out about the outstanding programs and degrees that are available at Iowa State. Helps build the story of the companies that call the Ames region home or have a presence here. So again, I think it helps us get attention for those types of things as well.
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Brenda [00:00:05]: The national exposure we get through Livability helps us catch the attention of firms that are recognizing areas for various types of quality-of-life things. Helps us get the word out about the outstanding programs and degrees that are available at Iowa State. Helps build the story of companies that call the Ames region home or have a presence here.
Amanda [00:00:34]: That’s the voice of Brenda Dryer, Senior Vice President of the Ames Chamber of Commerce in Ames, Iowa. They’ve been a client of ours at Livability for over five years now, so it’s a special episode for me as Brenda shares about partnering with Livability on print and digital content marketing and how it’s helping Ames reach their workforce goals. We’ll also hear about the many ways in which Ames is punching above its weight when it comes to talent strategies. I’m Amanda Ellis and you’re listening to Inside America’s Best Cities, a podcast for Chamber economic development and talent attraction professionals. You can learn more about this podcast at livabilitymedia.com, and with that, let’s jump in. Welcome, Brenda to Inside America’s Best Cities. Super excited to have you today.
Brenda [00:01:23]: It’s good to be here, Amanda.
Amanda [00:01:25]: I’m excited to delve into some fun workforce topics and talk about some of your work with us at Livability, but to kick us off, can you tell us a little bit about what you do at the Ames Chamber and a little bit about Ames in general?
Brenda [00:01:39]: So I serve as a Senior Vice President for our organization and my primary responsibilities include leading our economic and community development team. And in addition to leading that fabulous team of seven, I actually get the opportunity to work very directly with some targeted communities as well. We’re the Ames MSA, so really two counties and Ames is really the more or less center, population center within that region. It’s home to Iowa State University. But really our work extends across and beyond Ames to the counties of Boone and Story. And so again, most of our efforts are really around economic development, supporting our communities, and really in the last eight years, we’ve put a laser focus on workforce and that’s really where our paths crossed, Amanda, because we are very focused on doing things that assist our communities and our businesses in their efforts to retain and recruit.
Amanda [00:02:58]: It is, it is. I know that you all have had a super low unemployment rate for quite a while, even before the Pandemic. Can you share about that and the good parts of that and the challenges of that?
Brenda [00:03:09]: So, you’ve heard me talk enough that you know that I say it’s a blessing and a curse to lead the country in terms of unemployment. So, prior to the Pandemic, you could jump onto the National Bureau of Statistics and find that the Ames MSA led the list in terms of the lowest unemployment of the whole country. And so as the Pandemic hit having so much of our commerce really tied to the university, it hit our region hard when 36,000 bodies decide that they’re not coming back to the region because of the pandemic and courses are moved online. And so what we have found is we still have fairly low unemployment as you look really to the state or if you compare us to other areas, but instead of leading the list at the top, we’re generally in the top five. As I look at our industry sectors, manufacturing, healthcare have probably come back stronger post-pandemic, but our hospitality and our retail and service sectors, quite frankly, we just don’t have as many jobs in those sectors any longer. Not unlike larger metro areas, we’re all getting really good at scanning our groceries and placing our restaurant orders on tablets. So, there are just some jobs I don’t think that we’re going to see back. And we had a lot of service and hospitality jobs, but we still have very low unemployment. And I suppose there will be a day that I celebrate moving back to the top just because that will say that we’ve really fully recovered from the pandemic that plagued us over the last few years.
Amanda [00:05:11]: Yeah, and you’re so right about that being a blessing and a curse. That’s a really good perspective. Talk about, Brenda, I feel like Ames is punching way above its weight in terms of a lot of the workforce and talent efforts that you all are engaged in. Can you just tell us about a few of those that you’d like to talk about?
Brenda [00:05:27]: So, you know, I always joke about gosh, I’ve never met a workforce attraction or retention idea that I didn’t like. And so I believe that if we’re going to be helpful across our industry sectors, it really does need to be a multifaceted effort, and it has to be one that carries ideas that are short-term and those that are longer-term in nature. So we have the obvious things. We have a job board, we have an internship program, we go to every career fair for high school, for college, for the general public. We have a recruiting effort that looks at non-traditional workforce, whether it be folks with disabilities, folks coming out of the military, folks that have been formally incarcerated. What do we do about employing folks that retired? And how do we challenge our employers to look differently at work schedules and how do we match work schedules with harvest and planting and all sorts of things? And I feel like we’re constantly pushing the envelope with our school districts and our businesses. Matter of fact, I started my day bright and early today with an advisory board at one of our rural school districts, trying to advise them and work with our businesses about how do we engage students. How do we get over the fact that just because they are 18 years old, they can’t work in a manufacturing business if they’re not working in partnership with education and apprenticeships and things like that? So we have a multifaceted effort. We’re constantly looking to other ideas. A good example of that was at the ACCE conference when somebody mentioned how a pop-up was reviving their job board and their job website. And so we implemented that, went live yesterday and got our first pop-up and our submission into that. So we’re always looking for ideas to make it better, and it’s really a puzzle that we’re constantly trying to find those missing pieces to complete the picture.
Amanda [00:07:46]: Well, no wonder you didn’t have time for lunch today. Brenda was telling us before we hit record that she couldn’t remember what she had. So that makes sense because it sounds like you all are doing a whole lot. So part of what we’re here to talk about today is we at Livability have had the pleasure of working with you all at the Ames Chamber for 5+ years now, helping accomplish a lot of the goals that we’ve been talking about so far. So you all are engaged with our print publications, which also, of course, give you digital reach from Livability.com and our targeted reach of people thinking about relocation talent, et cetera. So could you talk a bit, Brenda, on what led your team to work with us and what has the experience been like?
Brenda [00:08:27]: You know, for years, most Chamber of Commerces, we developed a relocation guide in print, and then most of the distribution involved about sticking it in our hotels and making sure our employers had it, our school districts had it. We had it at our front counter. It got sent out in relocation packets, and I think we had a critical look at that. And as the newspaper world has changed, we used to rely on our local newspaper to assist us in that matter. I think we felt like, gosh, we’re leading the top of the list in unemployment. We thought everybody knew where Iowa State University was and Ames, and felt like we needed to reach out beyond our borders and identify a partner that would meet our standards in terms of publication quality. We believe in the art of storytelling. And what better way to get our message across than to tell the great stories of folks that went to Iowa State, graduated from Iowa State, stayed working here, left for 20. Years came back finding homes in rural communities, starting businesses, and all of the things that we believe are some of our strengths and really look to partner with somebody that could help us push our stories and our messages out on a more national basis. And so, again, knowing that print isn’t the end all and the opportunity we had to have a digital presence with our publication, I think really was what led us to Livability and why we continue as an organization to make an investment and asking those across our region to also assist us in that partnership.
Amanda [00:10:29]: Well, and the online version of your all’s publication has really been thriving. I know this year we saw your reading time on those almost double. So, you went from almost six minutes on average to almost twelve minutes on average, which I think really speaks to the interest people are taking in that part of the country right now.
Brenda [00:10:47]: Well, I’ve been working in economic development 30 years, and I don’t know that we’ve seen the pace of change that I’ve seen in the last three to five years. And I think in the Midwest, and we are located right smack dab in the middle. I don’t know that we’ve ever had a better opportunity to keep our workforce and keep people in our communities and attract new. While we don’t have every ounce of every mile covered with broadband infrastructure, certainly we have some outstanding providers and options that are covering a great amount of the region’s area in terms with really high-speed Internet. We have award-winning schools. You have choices of small, private, large. Your dollar goes a long way. We have low crime as compared to other places. And probably more important is how quickly we can move. We can quickly go north to Minneapolis; we can go south to Kansas City. We’ve got an international airport in our area. But if we even want to open up more options for direct flights, Kansas City, Omaha, Chicago, Minneapolis are all just a couple hours’ drive away from us.
Amanda [00:12:15]: That is very true. It’s interesting because yeah, I feel like the Midwest is so hot for people right now and the Southeast has been too. But we did an interview recently and I’ll link it up in the show notes with Chris Fair. He’s with a group called Resonance that also does some place marketing and things like that. And he was saying with some climate change that he sees people heading more toward the Midwest even than the South in the coming years and decades. As it’s getting so warm down here, then you’ll have a lot more climate variety. I think it’s going to be really interesting to see what happens.
Brenda [00:12:44]: I like the idea of calling it climate variety. Yeah, I’ll remember that in January.
Amanda [00:12:53]: So can you share a bit more, Brenda, you talked a little bit about how you used to utilize your former print publication, but what kinds of ways do you distribute the livability print publication?
Brenda [00:13:03]: We’re still in the mode of where we need to mail out relocation packets, you know, Chamber of Commerce is where folks call for that. So we distribute a number of those every day. It’s a great tool for our employers. I’ll use the Iowa State University as an example. I mean, they compete for talent not just nationally, but worldwide. And the ability that they have a publication that they can put into the hands of folks that are applying to be deans of the colleges or the recruitment for some of those high-level positions at the university. We always joke we’re a company town. Our company just happens to be Iowa State University. So you also look at some of the world-class companies that call home to the Ames region the ability to have a piece that they can share with executives. Again, that’s where, as we were looking, we wanted a piece that we could feel proud about, put our name to, as well as a tool not only for us to recruit the general public, but really some of those key roles in our lead industries is important. So they can be found in our hotels, they can be found in our libraries, they can be found in every one of our major employers. It’s pretty key in our effort. Well, and I would be remiss if I didn’t say as we’re recruiting new business and industry to the region with our economic development efforts, it’s nice not to have to worry about a quality-of-life piece because we have one of those already that we’re underwriting and goes out with all of our proposal packets as well.
Amanda [00:14:50]: Yeah, I was just on a panel at the IEDC conference about quality-of-life components and how that’s kind of a lost economic development metric in a way, but yet it’s so big a part of a lot of people’s decisions about moving to a new community or taking a new job, especially at this time, where people have more options career-wise. With the nationwide unemployment rate being low all around, so you’re right, it’s definitely something to showcase, too. What other results have you seen from our program? Not only print, but of course there’s also digital exposure at livability.com and how’s all that helped you meet some of your goals?
Brenda [00:15:26]: I think it’s increased visibility. We continue to receive a number of accolades, and it’s a great place and we do a lot of things to ensure that we’re a great place to work and live and a great place for business. But I think the national exposure we get through Livability also helps us catch the attention of firms that are recognizing areas for various types of quality-of-life things. Helps us get the word out about the outstanding programs and degrees that are available at Iowa State. Helps build the story of the companies that call the Ames region home or have a presence here. So again, I think it helps us get a little attention for those types of things as well.
Amanda [00:16:17]: What are some of your favorite stories, Brenda, that we’ve done?
Brenda [00:16:19]: You know, I love the cover of this particular know we joke about that bridge and we don’t have pro teams in the state of Iowa. And so for us, our Regent University programs at Iowa State, the University of Iowa, and the University of Northern Iowa are also important to and so I love the brand of Iowa State University and that fabulous bridge and the investments that are being made. But I love the fact that we’ve been able, through the Livability publication, to talk about some of the entrepreneur success that some of our smaller communities are seeing. So, it’s not a publication just full of stories about Ames, it’s actually recording today in the community of Nevada, so, sitting in some co-working space called Copper Spaces, which again was featured in Livability there in this issue or the last issue. So, enjoy that. I love when we can talk about the national recognition of a Mary Greeley Hospital and the great story of Mary Greeley being a municipal hospital but never, ever taking taxes because it’s been ran so efficiently and the national recognition it’s received for nurse recruitment and lead and like I said, the smallest of businesses. I love the focus on women and their success and I feel like what a great story there is to be told that anybody can grow up and do anything and that our region is ripe for innovation and there’s outstanding support to support any number of folks that want to do business. And of course, telling the story of some of our largest companies as well. So, hard to pick.
Amanda [00:18:27]: Well, there’s certainly no shortage of storylines to choose from that makes our jobs even easier.
Brenda [00:18:31]: Yeah.
Amanda [00:18:33]: So as we head toward wrapping up, I have a crystal ball question for you and then a fun question. So the crystal ball question is, you’ve been in this line of work for a while. What do you think will be the biggest talent challenges in the coming decades?
Brenda [00:18:47]: So I sit here and say, I have three grown children and not one of them had any interest in information technology and we’re just not producing enough of those folks at our universities. And the truth of the matter is we’re just not churning out enough software engineers, enough software analysts. And I feel like we’ve got to be ready in equipping our children at the youngest of ages to understand. Yeah. We have got to balance screen time with really understanding where our world is headed and are we ready for making sure that we have enough capacity to be able to meet those jobs of tomorrow. And I wonder about how do we handle the jobs that can’t be done remotely and the balance of remote jobs versus things that have to be done in person and how’s all that going to shake out. And again, where will automation go as we look into the future? And how are we going to make sure that we’re aligning the workforce training with really those jobs that we don’t even know exist here in 2023 and even as early, probably as 2030, it’s going to be here before we know it.
Amanda [00:20:16]: Yeah. And those are big questions. And you’re right, I think it’s going to be pretty soon. It seems like the more time goes on, the quicker new technology is adopted and the quicker it changes things. So, it’s going to be interesting.
Brenda [00:20:29]: Interesting, yes.
Amanda [00:20:30]: All right, the fun question and I’m very curious because your colleague Nikki has also been on our podcast. So, I’m curious how your answer will compare. Bucket list item in Ames. If someone’s visiting your area for the first time, what should they make sure they do?
Brenda [00:20:47]: Let’s start in Boone County. So, they have some of the coolest amenities and attractions 12 miles away from the middle of Ames, but there’s something called Rail Explorers, and you get on this little bike contraption, and you get to bike over, like, these very valleys and rivers, and they do it from spring until the snow flies. And it is something I recommend to a lot of folks that they just need to go 12 miles and check out Rail Explorers. And that’s something where you can only do in our region, and it’s not available anywhere in the state. And so, I would also tell you that I don’t think that there’s anything better than the amenities that we have developed and continue to develop. I think I mentioned we don’t have pro sports, so our college sports are everything to the state of Iowa. And I don’t think that there’s any better experience in the world than having an opportunity to be outside of Jack Trice Stadium, which is the only stadium in the entire country named after an African American. And the story of Jack Trice will be 100 years old here in just a couple of weeks. And the tributes that we have around our stadium to him and just the overall environment of 70,000 people really excited to cheer on a football team, just the community spirit, and it’s just such a melting pot and a convergence of so many people from across the Midwest. I’d say if there was one thing I would pick and I had to move away and one thing I’d pick, I’d pick to come back on a Saturday and be a part of that 70,000 people outside of Jack Trice Stadium.
Amanda [00:23:05]: Sounds like fun. Well, thank you so much, Brenda, for hopping on to share a little bit more about Ames and all the things you all are doing and your partnership with us. It’s such a pleasure to work with you all.
Brenda [00:23:16]: Yes. Amanda, good visiting with you again.
Amanda [00:23:23]: Thanks for listening to the Livability podcast, where we take you inside America’s best cities. At Livability, we highlight the unsung awesomeness of small and mid-sized cities across the country. We also partner with communities to reach their target companies and potential residents through digital content and print magazine programs. If you enjoyed this episode, please follow, rate, and review this show. Wherever you listen to podcasts, you can also learn more about us at livabilitymedia.com, have an idea for an upcoming episode? Email me at [email protected]. Until next time, from Livability, I’m Amanda Ellis, sharing the stories of America’s most promising places.
