Good Strategic Planning Starts with a SWOT

• Jeff Eckhoff

Usually, when you’re trying to take a cold, hard look at your future, it’s best to do it with fresh eyes.

That, according to Greg Ervin, is partly why Marion-based Timberline Manufacturing Co. has been working with CIRAS to plan the company’s best path to growth. Timberline, a maker of wire harnesses, control panels, and custom electronics that is now in its fifth year as an employee-owned business, approached CIRAS roughly a year ago seeking help with mapping the next portion of its future.

Iowans Enjoy Manufacturing Day

• Jeff Eckhoff

For Eric Cook, national Manufacturing Day is a chance to show 40 high school vocational students what the future may hold.

“Number one, they get exposure – just seeing what’s out there, seeing what the job takes, what it’s really like out on the shop floor,” Cook said. “They’re high schoolers. They haven’t been exposed to a lot of that.”

CIRAS Networking Helps Express Employment Make Good Matches

• Jeff Eckhoff

Connections created through CIRAS networking events and hands-on assistance have helped a Cedar Rapids-based recruitment company grow during the past year.

Express Employment Professionals is a full-service staffing agency specializing in the industrial, administrative, IT, and engineering fields. Michele Oswood, owner of the Cedar Rapids franchise, said her company’s client base has doubled since she purchased the business in February 2016.

Faces of Iowa Industry: Jim Long (Cline Tool)

• Jeff Eckhoff

From time to time, CIRAS likes to tell you a little bit about some of the people who make Iowa business better.

Jim Long worked his way up from a regional salesman to become the president and CEO of Cline Tool in Newton. He believes in hiring good people, and he’d like to see more good businesses coming to Iowa.

GOVTALK — Meeting With Government Agencies

• Jeff Eckhoff

Many government contracting professionals operate at arm’s length so they can remain unbiased and avoid the appearance of impropriety. But building relationships is critical to securing government business, especially on smaller-dollar purchases that don’t require public bidding. Face-to-face meetings are the perfect way to establish a relationship with an agency.

Food Companies Seek CIRAS’ Help Analyzing Gaps in Food Safety

• Jeff Eckhoff

Ron Petersen thought he had it right, but he wasn’t sure.

Petersen, owner of Summertime Potato Company in Des Moines, sought CIRAS’ help last year to make certain that his company was in compliance with the U.S. Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), a sweeping 2011 law that gave the FDA new powers to prevent foodborne illness.

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