U.S. Chamber of Commerce1615 H Street, NWWashington, DC 20062-2000

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

Presorted StandardU.S. Postage

PAIDLebanon Junction, KY

Permit #60

Spring 2014

The U.S. Chamber is helping companies like Zippo Manufacturing Co. reach new overseas markets.

Pages 6 and 7

To change your address or for other customer services, call 800-638-6582 or email custsvc@uschamber.com.

Free Enterprise is published quarterly by the United States Chamber of Commerce at 1615 H Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20062-2000. Copyright © 2014 by the United States Chamber of Commerce. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form—print, electronic, or otherwise—without the expressed written permission of the publisher.

If you have any comments on this publication, please write us at the address above or send an email to editor@uschamber.com.

Spring 2014 At A GlAnce

Publisher Thomas J. Collamore

Executive Editor Kevin Ganster

Senior Writer Sheryll Poe

Editor Laurie S. Frankel

Sr. Graphic Designer/Art Director Miyoung Yoon

Graphic Designer Jennifer Fetzer

Sr. Production Director Heidi Sakai Gioseffi

Photographer/Photo Editor Ian Wagreich

Sr. Manager, Production Brian G. Miller

Free Enterprise1615 H Street, NW | Washington, DC 20062

www.uschamber.com

2 www.uschamber.com

In Case You

Missed iT

Chamber Goes WestThe Chamber established the Center for Advanced Technology & Innovation, with offices in Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C., to better meet the needs of its tech members around the country and to tell the story that America’s economic future can be brighter than in the past with the right policy choices. David Chavern, who was COO of the Chamber for the past seven years, is president of the Center.

HappenIng In and Around the U.S. Chamber

Read Women-Owned Businesses: Carving a New American Business Landscape, a report on the 10 states with the most women-owned firms. http://uscham.com/Q6LoxM

eVenTs

CALeNdARMay 6 Accelerating Sustainability: Energy and

Water in Your Operations and Supply Chains, hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Center

May 8 Global Supply Chain Summit

May 9 Health care event: Realizing Greater Value: Building on Private Sector Successes

May 12–16 National Small Business Week

May 12–16 Infrastructure Week

May 16 U.S. Chamber hosts the Startup Government Conference as part of the weeklong Challenge Cup Festival in Washington, D.C.

June 1–5 Midwest Institute, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, Institute for Organization Management

June 11–13 America’s Small Business Summit

June 11 Study Release: Enterprising States 2014

June 18 U.S. Chamber board meeting

June 22–26 Southeast Institute, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, Institute for Organization Management

Visit uschamber.com/events for more information.

“We’re going to continue our work across the country to raise that drumbeat and ensure that more and more members of Congress start hearing about the importance of trade and trade agreements and TPA.”

—Chamber Vice President for International Affairs John Murphy quoted in the Financial Times,

February 6, 2014

“Thanks to the extreme politicization of the review process by the Obama administration and its allies, the coming decision on Keystone XL will be about much more than just a pipeline. It will have far-reaching implications on the relationship between the United States and its top trading partner, Canada, as well as on future capital investments in our economy from around the world.”

—Karen Harbert, president & CEO of the Chamber’s Institute for 21st Century Energy, wrote in an op-ed for The Hill, February 27, 2014

Heard iN ANd ARouNd The u.s. ChAMbeR

Veterans Initiative Helps Military Spouses The Chamber’s Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) launched the first-of-its-kind online resume building tool for military spouses, Career Spark, at a HOH job fair for military spouses at Camp Pendleton. Hundreds of military spouses attended and learned about the tool, built by HOH and Toyota. The tool helps spouses overcome the roadblocks they face in starting and building a career by leveraging the skills they’ve gained from military life.

Chamber Kicks Off Primary Season With Florida Victory

Republican David Jolly won a special election for the 13th Congressional District of Florida. The Chamber endorsed Jolly and ran several ads for him. The Tampa Bay Times quoted the Chamber’s Rob Engstrom saying, “The Chamber is proud to have supported David Jolly” in the race, noting that Jolly “understands the importance of American free enterprise and is fighting to get regulations, taxes, and spending under control.”

New Global IP Index Is ReleasedThe Chamber’s Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC) released its 2014 International IP Index, a survey of 25 countries with diverse economies reflected in varying market size, level of development, and geography. The United States received the highest overall score. Similar to the inaugural 2013 GIPC Index, India scored the lowest, mainly in the categories relating to patents, copyrights, and international treaties.

Chamber Launches New Middle East InitiativeOn February 26, the Chamber formally launched a new Middle East Commerce Center (MECC) at the Dead Sea in Jordan—with more than 300 business leaders and government officials from nearly 20 countries on hand to back the initiative. The private sector-led alliance promotes greater trade and investment to address economic challenges and opportunities across the region.

Watch a video on Common Core by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Center for Education and Workforce. BusinessForCore.org.

Find your legislators’ voting record in the Chamber’s annual How They Voted scorecard. Senate: http://uscham.com/1hiagNP House: http://uscham.com/1hc9nDn

www.uschamber.com/accreditation

ACCREDITATION STATISTICS AS OF MARCH 2014

Of the nearly 7,000 chambers of commerce in the United States, 204 chambers are Accredited. These elite chambers represent the top 3% of all chambers in the United States. The national Accreditation statistics are as follows:

• 15 are Accredited – 7% • 29 are Accredited with 3 Stars – 15% • 73 are Accredited with 4 Stars – 37% • 81 are Accredited with 5 Stars – 41%

Of the 204 Accredited chambers, six are state chambers. • Association of Washington Business – Accredited State Chamber with Distinction • Kentucky Chamber of Commerce – Accredited State Chamber • Michigan Chamber of Commerce – Accredited State Chamber with Distinction • Puerto Rico Chamber of Commerce – Accredited State Chamber • South Carolina Chamber of Commerce – Accredited State Chamber with Distinction • The State Chamber of Oklahoma – Accredited State Chamber with Distinction

For a complete list of all Accredited chambers, as well as a detailed list of Accreditation statistics by state, please visit our website, www.uschamber.com/accreditation.

See which nine local chambers received Accreditation at this year’s board meeting. http://uscham.com/R3zNRr

OpiniOn | I n Y o u r C o r n e r Spring 2014In

Y

ou

r C

or

ne

ry

ou

r

tu

rn

OpiniOn | Y o u r T u r n

Andy Peterson

President and CEO, Greater North Dakota Chamber

Thomas J. Donohue

President and CEO, U.S. Chamber of Commerce

North Dakota is a great place to do business. The U.S. Chamber’s Enterprising States study rates it as extremely business friendly. We have an excellent legal climate, a functional state government, and a populace that values the free enterprise system. North Dakota ignored and conquered the nation’s recent economic downturn. The state’s unemployment rate moved up nominally to around 4.5% but quickly returned to its prerecession levels between 2.4% and 2.6%. To residents and those who do business here, this was no surprise.

Much of North Dakota’s success is due to a history of state leadership that values business. Our state has enacted reforms that make it more attractive to business, including reducing taxes, ensuring that our workforce safety program provides adequate and fair benefits for injured workers at a low premium to employers, and bolstering economic development programs for

attracting new business and growing those already in the state. We are fortunate our leadership recognizes that business is an asset to be fostered and a means to a good life for our citizens, instead of another source of government revenue.

Furthering our success is the state’s development of energy. North Dakota ranks 10th in coal production and 2nd in oil production. We are producing about 1 million barrels of oil each day. This is not only a game changer for North Dakota, but it also contributes to our country’s quest to become energy independent. North Dakota production has helped lower our nation’s oil imports from 66% to less than 50%. This energy boom is not the result of some government initiative but, rather, a free enterprise system that values competition and reward.

North Dakota has produced untold numbers of jobs as a result of energy

development, with thousands of additional jobs remaining unfilled as we search for qualified and willing workers. The energy industry has contributed $3 billion to our economy, was instrumental in the state’s 12.4% economic growth spike in 2012, and has helped the state government realize more than $6 billion in revenue, resulting in consistently large surpluses.

However, Obama’s regulatory war on coal—via an emboldened EPA with no congressional oversight—and mixed messages regarding oil development threaten private investment. This could lead to higher electricity rates and a less reliable energy stream. This should concern and engage citizens to demand a transparent national conversation that leads to a clearly defined path forward.

Energy has been a large part of North Dakota’s success. It is time that the nation seriously considers our example.

The United States is on the verge of an energy revolution that will help transform our economy.

Today, thanks to abundant resources, new technologies, and American entrepreneurship, our nation is poised to join the world’s energy superpowers and become largely self-reliant. This previously unimaginable opportunity will help invigorate our sluggish economic recovery, speed job creation, spur new investment, address our trade imbalance, revitalize manufacturing, and reduce our deficits.

It’s hard to believe that just five years ago America was in a very different position. We were sending billions of dollars overseas to import foreign oil. Despite the dramatic reversal of U.S. energy fortunes, our national policies remain stuck in the

past with the disproven belief that we are an energy-poor nation. We need policymakers at all levels to stop throwing up roadblocks and start working to ensure that our nation’s best economic opportunity comes to fruition. We will only reap the benefits of America’s new energy abundance if our leaders choose to seize this historic opportunity and put the right policies in place.

The U.S. Chamber’s Institute for 21st Century Energy has devised a new plan to

put America’s energy resources to work for the good of the nation. Earlier this year, the Energy Institute released Energy Works for US, a set of specific, actionable recommendations in nine key areas to put America on a path to energy self-reliance.

The plan calls for lawmakers to take full advantage of American oil and natural gas resources by

expanding homegrown energy production both offshore and onshore. Currently, 87% of offshore and 80% of onshore resources remain off limits to exploration and development.

Recognizing that America is the Saudi Arabia of coal, the plan highlights the importance of coal resources to our energy mix and calls for investment in technology to make coal cleaner. We recommend expanding emissions-free sources like nuclear and renewable energy and continuing to pursue energy efficiency.

The plan also urges lawmakers to streamline permitting and reform the regulatory process so that we can move forward on vital projects like the Keystone XL pipeline. It provides a framework for building essential energy infrastructure and protecting the reliability of our electricity supply from cyber attacks and other threats. And it recognizes that the United States needs to invest in developing a 21st century workforce with skills to unleash our energy potential.

Private industry knows what to do; it just needs policy leaders to stop working against it.

Energy Drives N.D. GrowthNation Should Follow State’s Example

A New Era of Energy AbundancePlan Tackles Antiquated Policies

We need policymakers at all levels to stop throwing up roadblocks and start working to ensure that our nation’s best economic opportunity comes to fruition.

—Thomas J. Donohue

www.uschamber.com 3

Spring 2014 Chamber @ Work

Fueling the Discussion on InfrastructureU.S. Chamber Program Goes at Full Throttle

A well-maintained infrastructure system isn’t the result of economic growth—it’s the framework for it. It facilitates trade and commerce, drives travel and tourism, enables personal mobility, and spurs economic growth, productivity, and job creation.

The U.S. Chamber’s Transportation and Infrastructure team has been at the forefront of the fight to build a modern and safe infrastructure system for the 21st century.

Led by Janet Kavinoky, the Chamber’s lead infrastructure lobbyist, the team educates, engages, and activates Chamber members to advance solutions to ensure that the American infrastructure and logistics system enables seamless transportation of goods and people.

Through initiatives like Let’s Rebuild America (LRA) and the Americans for Transportation Mobility (ATM) coalition, which brings together labor, construction, and transit supporters, the Chamber is pursuing three critical goals.

First, Kavinoky and her team at the Chamber, including Drew Preston, manager, Congressional and Public Affairs, educate the public, the business community, policymakers, and government at all levels about the benefits of investing in infrastructure and the cost of failure.

Toward that end, the Chamber published The Transportation Performance Index in 2010. The Index proves—for the first time ever—a direct relationship between transportation infrastructure performance and GDP. It shows that the steady decline in the quality of surface, air, and water transportation systems costs the U.S. economy $1 trillion a year in lost economic growth. (An updated Index as well as the new Transportation Blueprint for Economic Growth will be released this year.)

The Transportation and Infrastructure team also created Waterways Work for America—an interactive website showing how waterways and ports support local jobs and economic growth.

In addition, the Chamber partnered with the National Association of Water Companies to create the Water Is Your Business campaign to engage public leaders, businesses, and citizens at the local level and to spark conversations—informed by facts—about the universal and critical importance of investing in the nation’s decaying water infrastructure.

Most recently, LRA held its second annual Transportation Infrastructure Summit, which brought together representatives across industries as diverse as labor, health care, energy, and retail. The theme was how hundreds of thousands of good-paying jobs could be created if Congress and the administration modernized highways, transit systems, airports, seaports, waterways, and rails.

Second, the Chamber is working to foster an honest, national dialogue on how and where we are going to find the money to meet critical infrastructure needs. The current funding and authorization bill for federal surface transportation—MAP-21—expires September 30, 2014. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the Highway Trust Fund will not have enough resources to support its obligation levels as early as summer 2014. Even now, states are pulling back on projects as uncertainty grows over a potential lack of federal funding.

All funding options must be on the table, Chamber President and CEO Tom Donohue says, including eliminating wasteful spending, preventing the diversion of infrastructure money to other causes, and increasing the federal gasoline user fee, which was last increased in 1993. “A moderate increase in the gas tax phased in over time would

provide the necessary funding, preserve the important user pays principle, and provide needed stability,” Donohue told a Senate committee earlier this year.

But public money is only part of the equation—private investment must be unlocked as well. The private sector is prepared to pump as much as $250 billion into public-private partnerships, or P3s, if certain barriers are removed.

That’s why the Chamber’s third priority is to remove regulatory and legal barriers to investment and project approval. Although 33 states have passed legislation allowing P3s, only a handful have taken full advantage of them. Governors and mayors need to embrace P3s as a way of doing business.

In addition, the administration needs to streamline the approval process and put an end to lawsuits and Not In My Backyard opposition, which delays or blocks infrastructure projects and drives away financing. Barriers to private investment, such as needless regulations, lawsuits, and administrative processes, must be removed or reformed.

The Chamber has been a driving force in the battle to streamline the approval process, eliminate needless and burdensome regulations, and get the country building and moving again. The Chamber and its allies, for example, have supported H.R. 2641, the Responsibly And Professionally Invigorating Development (RAPID) Act of 2013, which would provide a streamlined process for developers, builders, and designers to obtain environmental permits and approvals for their projects in a timely and efficient manner, enabling jobs to be created and the economy to grow.

By making the country’s infrastructure more efficient through technology and better planning,

preventing burdensome and costly regulations, insisting on government transparency and performance standards, and advancing funding and financing, America can save money and grow the economy, increase U.S. competitiveness, and create much-needed jobs in the near term.

E n g a g E w i t h Transportation & Infrastructure

USChamber.com/Transportation

@JanetKavinoky

youtube.com/uscc

The Chamber’s Janet Kavinoky is a nationally recognized expert in transportation policy, funding, and finance.

Photo: Ian Wagreich

4 www.uschamber.com

www.uschamber.com 5

By David C. Chavern President

Center for Advanced Technology & Innovation U.S. Chamber of Commerce

The U.S. manufacturing sector is on the cusp of a historic revitalization—not because it’s returning to the glory days of the past, but because it’s shifting toward a bright, new future of rapid advancement and innovation and even stronger productivity and growth.

To realize the full potential of this renaissance, we are going to have to do some things and overcome some challenges.

Keep the Knowledge HereOne of the most important steps to maintaining

our lead is keeping the knowledge here, on U.S. soil. The U.S. semiconductor industry learned this the

hard way. The industry first emerged in Silicon Valley, but many U.S. consumer electronics manufacturers decided to move production to Asia because, at one point, the labor cost differential was so great.

At the time, it didn’t seem like a big deal to offshore some consumer electronics production as it wasn’t considered “knowledge work.” But because we shipped much of our chip fabrication overseas, we forfeited our lead in silicon-processing skills from semiconductors. As a result, we let go of a lot of the electronic supply chain and lost out on emerging technologies, including flat panel displays, solar panels, and energy efficient lighting.

The good news is that it’s never too late to turn things around. The U.S. semiconductor industry is poised for a rebound—and it’s happening on U.S. soil. Intel is leading the way with $3.5 billion in investments last year on new chip fabrication facilities in Arizona and Oregon. Samsung, TI, and Micron are also expected to make robust investments in equipment and material for U.S. operations.

Close the Skills Gap To keep the knowledge on how to make things,

we need a qualified workforce with the advanced skills and training to do knowledge work.

U.S. manufacturers have added half a million new jobs since the end of the recession, but they are having a hard time finding qualified workers to fill these jobs. Fifty-two percent of midmarket manufacturers using advanced techniques have unfilled jobs, and 74% of these employers cite deficiencies in STEM skills—science, technology, engineering, and math—as a major concern.

We can do a much better job of preparing young people for advanced manufacturing jobs by adopting customized certification programs and working with trade schools and community colleges.

Our nation needs to fix our public K–12 schools, which are failing to produce students proficient in science, math, and reading. Without that foundation, it’s difficult to build strong skills in technology and engineering as well as in problem solving and critical thinking.

Reforming our immigration system would also help us attract and retain more of the world’s best talent and hard workers.

The Federal Role in Fostering InnovationThere are other crucial ways that our leaders and

lawmakers can help promote innovation in America.One way would be to address our fiscal crisis—

driven by unsustainable entitlement spending. As long as every dollar of federal revenue goes toward mandatory spending, we won’t be able to invest in national priorities. No money will be left for things like science and technology—even though the public sector has traditionally supported the basic research that lays the groundwork for much of our innovation.

Our leaders must get serious about a national energy policy that will enable us to fully leverage our domestic resources. As part of comprehensive tax reform to make the United States a more competitive place to do business, we need a permanent extension of the R&D tax credit.

To keep innovation flowing, we also need strong intellectual property protections. We must crack down on IP theft, piracy, and rogue websites; fully fund IP enforcement; and negotiate strong IP protections in trade and investment treaties.

These are just a few of the policy areas that can make or break innovation—there are many others that contribute to a business environment to enable manufacturing to thrive or decline.

INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT Spring 2014

Advancing the Future of Manufacturing

Photo: George Frey/Bloomberg

“Fretting over the loss of the kinds of factory jobs our parents and their parents held will not bring

those jobs back. Instead, we need to win the jobs of the future.”

—David C. Chavern

Photo: Ian Wagreich

6 www.uschamber.com

Spring 2014 COVER STORY

Ambassadors for TradeU.S. Chamber Puts Made in the USA on the Map

It’s an American icon made in Bradford, Pennsylvania (population 8,000)—a family company started more than 80 years ago. It’s a product that’s been seen in more than 15,000 movies including Rebel Without a Cause, Ocean’s Thirteen, and Die Hard. But these days, the familiar click and sizzle of a Zippo lighter is just as likely to be heard on the streets of Beijing.

That’s because more than 60% of Zippo’s annual sales come from overseas, according to CEO Greg Booth. And with more than 1.3 billion potential customers, China is one of Zippo’s busiest markets, despite a 25% tariff on each lighter. “Sometimes you have tariffs that make it challenging or an aversion to American products. It’s a small barrier, but not huge because we’re growing,” Booth says. “You look at where you can sell your products, where your brand is strongest, and where you have importers capable of getting you where you want to be.”

Nevertheless, Booth and Zippo would like to enter even more markets. “Anytime we have a formal trade agreement that is beneficial to the United States, sure,

it helps Zippo. If you don’t have any opportunities with lower trade barriers and tariffs, you just wind up spending more time, effort, and money trying to penetrate markets. Then you have less money to bring back to the business; there’s less money to invest. It’s an ROI thing no matter what you’re doing.”

Zippo represents the new reality and opportunity that is trade—a singular chance for American businesses to expand into new markets around the globe.

Groups like the U.S. Chamber that stand up for U.S. business can make a difference, says Booth. “We all know that if it’s one voice in the wilderness it’s not going to be heard or it’s going to be ignored. If it’s hundreds of voices, it’s going to be heard.”

The U.S. Chamber’s David Chavern (left) welcomes Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird to a luncheon highlighting the importance of leveraging trade and investment in North America to create growth and jobs.

The U.S. Chamber’s Tom Donohue (left) greets French President Francois Hollande before a roundtable discussion at Chamber headquarters.

The U.S. Chamber’s Tami Overby escorts Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (center left) to an event hosted by the Chamber and the US-ASEAN Business Council.

The U.S. Chamber’s Myron Brilliant (left) looks on as Israeli Finance Minister Yair Lapid speaks at a roundtable discussion with leading American businesses during a visit to the Chamber.

Photos: Ian Wagreich

01_Header > 01_Header01_Header > 01_Header: Sub

www.uschamber.com 7

COVER STORY Spring 2014

Chamber Expands Its Trade TeamToday, U.S. companies of all sizes are looking

to the international marketplace for growth. This makes a world of sense. Outside U.S. borders are markets that represent 80% of the world’s purchasing power, 92% of its economic growth, and 95% of its consumers. While small and medium-size companies account for 98% of U.S. exporters, only 1 in every 100 such firms is exporting today. In other words, there’s huge potential for more small businesses to go global.

As the world has changed, so has the Chamber. “Increasingly, the Chamber is representing its members’ interests around the world, and we’ve established a presence in critical global markets to extend its reach,” says Myron Brilliant, executive vice president and head of International Affairs at the Chamber. “From Beijing to Pretoria, from Brasília to Ankara, from Tokyo to Brussels, we are actively engaged in shaping the international business environment.”

In 2009, Brilliant assumed leadership of the Chamber’s International Affairs Division and greatly expanded the organization’s global footprint. Since then, he has directed successful advocacy campaigns for congressional passage of trade agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea, as well as the first multilateral trade pact in two decades focusing on trade facilitation. “Our aim is to make the case for the United States to reach out and seize the benefits of international engagement for all of America’s workers, farmers, and companies,” he says.

Today, the International Division has 70 policy experts and advocates based at Chamber headquarters in Washington, D.C., as well as staff in Belgium, Brazil, China, Ghana, India, and Korea.

In addition, the Chamber hosts 10 business councils that work to enhance trade and investment

ties to Brazil, Egypt, Japan, Korea, and South Africa, among other nations. The U.S. Chamber Federation also includes 116 American Chambers of Commerce in 103 countries around the globe.

The Chamber’s influence is also felt in the nation’s capital. The Chamber hosts 16 to 20 heads of state and 75 ministers each year. Last year, the Chamber hosted leaders from South Korea, Vietnam, Turkey, Myanmar, Chile, Peru, Pakistan, Colombia, France, Ireland, and Tunisia. As the D.C. publication Politico noted: “When world leaders visit the United States, it’s often a good bet they will stop at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a sign of both the business group’s influence on foreign governments and its growing global ambitions.”

The Chamber’s 2014 Trade AgendaThe Chamber’s top trade priority on Capitol Hill

this year is renewal of Trade Promotion Authority (TPA). “TPA is a vital tool to help Americans sell their goods and services to the world’s customers living outside our borders,” says John Murphy, the Chamber’s vice president of International Affairs. “In today’s tough global markets, we need our trade negotiators to create a level playing field for trade and investment. The most direct way to do this is through new trade agreements, but we can’t reach these new accords without TPA.”

TPA allows Congress to set negotiating objectives for new trade pacts, requires the executive branch to consult extensively with Congress during negotiations, and reserves for Congress the final say on any trade agreement in the form of an up-or-down vote. It also reassures foreign governments that they won’t have to negotiate twice with the United States—once with the White House and then with Congress.

The debate over TPA got under way in January with the introduction of a bipartisan bill. The Chamber, on its own and with the Trade Benefits America coalition (www.tradebenefitsamerica.com), is mounting an ambitious advocacy campaign for TPA renewal. Over the past year alone, the Chamber organized more than 300 meetings with members of Congress to press for TPA. These efforts are ongoing.

Passage of TPA is the first and necessary step toward securing approval of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP),

which would help open up one of the world’s most dynamic and fastest-growing regions to American goods and services. Twelve Pacific Rim nations, including Japan, Malaysia, and Canada, are taking part in the talks. The Chamber has been active in these negotiations, attending every round of talks since they were launched four years ago. Specifically, the Chamber has pressed the negotiators to secure a comprehensive, high-standard agreement with state-of-the-art rules on intellectual property, investment, digital trade, and other key areas.

Similarly, the United States and the European Union (EU) are pursuing an ambitious and comprehensive trade pact dubbed the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). While total U.S.-EU commerce tops $6.5 trillion annually, there is ample room for improvement, Murphy says. In fact, the flow of U.S.-EU trade is so large that eliminating even today’s relatively modest barriers could bring big benefits.

In April, Chamber President and CEO Tom Donohue delivered the keynote address at Hannover Messe, the world’s largest industrial fair. He urged European and U.S. business leaders to agree to significantly ramp up education, communications, and lobbying on behalf of the TTIP.

In addition, Spanish President Mariano Rajoy and French President François Hollande visited the Chamber this spring, providing two other opportunities to rally support for TTIP on both sides of the Atlantic.

Through it all, the International Affairs Division provides Chamber members like Zippo unparalleled advocacy on member issues in Washington and abroad; customized business development and high-level government relations support; access to heads of state and government and other senior foreign and U.S. officials; and regular updates on trade and investment developments globally.

Brilliant says that he expects the Chamber’s global footprint to expand in the years to come. “Increasingly, policy battles are not just fought in Washington but around the world. And certainly the companies know that their growth depends on gaining a foothold in markets overseas. The Chamber will do whatever it can to help our members and advocate for a level playing field.”

The U.S. Chamber and the Association of American Chambers of Commerce in Latin America (AACCLA) host a gala dinner in Washington in honor of Peru’s President Ollanta Humala. Photo: Ian Wagreich

Paragraph Styles > 02_Body > 02_Body: Copy

8 www.uschamber.com

Spring 2014 DREAM BIG AwARD FInAlIsts

The BesT of the BesTThe seven regional finalists for the U.S. Chamber’s 2014 DREAM BIG Small Business of the Year Award,

sponsored by Sam’s Club®, are each shining examples of the power of free enterprise and the opportunities it can create for America’s dreamers and doers.

The award honors businesses that excel in the areas of strategic planning, employee development, community involvement, and customer service. One finalist from each of the seven regions was selected out of the 100 Blue Ribbon Award winners.

The national winner will be announced on June 12 during the 10th annual America’s Small Business Summit in Washington, D.C., and will receive a $10,000 cash prize, courtesy of the U.S. Chamber.

Sanderson StewartBillings, Montana

Sanderson Stewart is a multidisciplinary community development services firm whose core purpose is to plan and design enduring communities. Since 1969, the firm has provided professional engineering, landscape design, land surveying, and construction management services that have shaped the region. In 2002, long-time employees Michael Sanderson, Rick Leuthold, and Dennis Randall purchased the firm and expanded its geographic reach and service offerings. To find “cool, smart, talented people” (CSTP), Sanderson Stewart created a multimedia recruiting campaign around the qualities it values in employees, including effective communicators, positive attitudes, and continuous learners. As a result, the staff has grown from 45 employees to 64, and the company is ranked No. 52 on The Zweig Letter Hot Firm List.

No

rt

hw

es

t R

eg

ion

al

Fin

al

ist

Modernizing Medicine, Inc.Boca Raton, Florida

Modernizing Medicine, Inc. believes in saving time and improving patients’ medical outcomes. Its product, the Electronic Medical Assistant®—EMA™ is a cloud-based electronic medical record system that adapts to each provider’s preferences, reducing documentation time and improving medical coding. Located in the growing South Florida tech hub, the company recently received a $14 million equity investment and plans to add 50 team members in 2014. Co-founders Daniel Cane and Dr. Michael Sherling support youth development programs, partnering with local STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) magnet schools and the Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!), a program that helps students launch a real business over the course of an academic year.

so

Ut

he

As

te

rN

Re

gio

na

l F

ina

lis

t

Cuisine Unlimited Catering & Special EventsSalt Lake City, Utah

Maxine Turner began her catering career in 1980 when a local charitable group asked her to work as chair of catering operations at fundraising events. In 1990, she took the leap, opening Cuisine Unlimited Catering, a corporate and social catering operation and small international deli. Since founding the company, Turner has expanded into a 20,000-square-foot facility and now employs more than 150 full- and part-time staff, with sales in excess of $5.3 million. Turner, working with corporate sponsors, will expand her business into the international sporting events market when she debuts a U.S. Welcome Pavilion at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

we

st

er

N R

eg

ion

al

Fin

al

ist

Photos: Ian Wagreich

DREAM BIG AwARD FInAlIsts Spring 2014

www.uschambersummit.com

www.uschamber.com 9

American Custom Exteriors & InteriorsRochester, New York

American Custom Exteriors & Interiors began as a one-man siding company in 1986 but quickly expanded to include services such as roofing and window installation. President Kevin Goodwine has since added “Interiors” to the company’s name, and today it has 35 employees who receive continuous training and certifications to keep them on the leading edge of their trade. American Custom is an active member of the Rochester community, working with the Rochester Housing Authority, nonprofits, and grant programs to renovate houses, a school, and a senior living facility in low-income areas. The company was recently honored as the Greece (NY) Chamber 2013 Small Business of the Year.

eA

st

er

N R

eg

ion

al

Fin

al

ist

Xylo Technologies, IncRochester, Minnesota

Founded by Indian-born CEO Dharani Ramamoorthy in 2000, Xylo Technologies is an information technology consulting firm specializing in staff augmentation, applications, systems development, and testing. Its clients include Fortune 500 companies and government agencies. Xylo is active in the community, sponsoring an annual STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) summit and the GATEway Science Fair for children in grades three to six. The company is adding new clients in the health care and government sectors and plans to hire 100 more staff by the end of 2015. Xylo has received numerous regional and national awards, including the Sloan Award for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility in the greater Rochester area for two years in a row.

MID

we

st

Re

gio

na

l F

ina

lis

t

Quality Float Works, Inc.Schaumburg, Illinois

The mission at Quality Float Works has stayed the same for nearly a century under the leadership of its third- and fourth-generation family owners—to remain the premier float ball and valve assemblies manufacturer in the world. CEO and Design Engineer Sandra Westlund-Deenihan and her son, President Jason Speer, have grown Quality Float Works nearly 200% over the past decade, in part, by aggressively expanding into international markets, from Australia to Vietnam. A third international distribution center is scheduled to open in Singapore this spring. Westlund-Deenihan and Speer treat their employees like family, and they say that if the company wins the DREAM BIG Small Business Award, they will share the winnings (a $10,000 cash prize) with their 21 employees.

Gr

eA

t L

AK

es

Re

gio

na

l F

ina

lis

t

Renfro Foods, IncFort Worth, Texas

One employee benefit of working at Renfro Foods—free Mrs. Renfro’s salsa and lots of it. Founded by George Renfro in 1940 and now run by second- and third-generation Renfros, the business is known for its exceptional employee practices, including access to an interest-free loan program, an education allowance, and a 401(k) plan with 3% matching. Renfro Foods is a long-standing civic leader, donating time and money to local, state, and national organizations, such as the American Heart Association, the Miss Texas Contest, the Fort Worth Opera, and Cook Children’s Hospital. CEO Bill Renfro is also a founding member and past chair of the Tarrant Area Food Bank, which serves 13 counties, and President Doug Renfro was the 2012 chair.

so

Ut

hw

es

t a

nD

so

Ut

h C

eN

tr

AL

Re

gio

na

l F

ina

lis

t

JUnE 11–13, 2014 • WASHINGTON, D.C.

Spring 2014 profile

10 www.uschamber.com

MEMBER BENEFIT

FedEx Connects Customers and Their Residential Packages

You can do the following with FedEx Delivery ManagerSM:• View package status in a calendar or list view and receive notifications via email,

text, or call without a tracking number.• Request to deliver to another address.• Request different delivery time/date.• Sign for packages ahead of time.• Give specific delivery instructions.To get started, go to fedex.com/delivery.

Like many kids, Susan O’Malley had to write a paper in junior high about what she wanted to be when she grew up. But unlike many kids—and some adults—O’Malley had a very clear idea about what she wanted to do.

“I knew I wanted to run a sports franchise. And my teacher wrote on the paper, ‘nice but not really realistic,’” says O’Malley.

Good thing she didn’t listen to that teacher. O’Malley is a sports pioneer. She joined the NBA’s

Washington Bullets (now the Wizards) as director of advertising in 1986. Her father was a real estate lawyer who helped Bullets owner and Washington Sports and Entertainment CEO Abe Pollin build the Bullets’ first home, the $18 million Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland. At 29, O’Malley became the first female president of an NBA franchise.

O’Malley admits that she wasn’t very good at sports. “My gym teacher was inspirational. When

she saw me play basketball, she said I should get a desk job,” O’Malley quips. “That might have been the defining moment in my sports career.”

While not a great basketball player, O’Malley loved being around the game. “I was kind of an arena rat. I grew up there,” O’Malley says of the old Capital Centre. “It was the overall atmosphere, the excitement, the whole process. It’s kind of nerdy, but I was just as taken by the sponsors and giveaways as I was by what was happening on the court.”

At Mount St. Mary’s college, her father’s alma mater, O’Malley zeroed in on marketing and spent every summer interning. “I interned for the Caps [hockey team], the Bullets, and the Baltimore Orioles. Every minute I had free I wanted to be around sports teams.”

In her first season as president, the team experienced the largest ticket revenue increase in the history of an NBA franchise to date and the highest renewal rate of season tickets ever by the franchise, including the year

following the 1977–1978 championship season. Under O’Malley’s guidance, the Verizon Center,

formerly known as the MCI Center, opened in 1997 with a then-record naming rights deal of $50 million over 10 years. The $220 million facility helped revitalize downtown Washington.

And the 2005–2006 Wizards season saw the franchise tally 14 sellouts and average more than 17,000 fans per game en route to its second consecutive trip to the NBA playoffs.

By the time O’Malley stepped down from Washington Sports and Entertainment in 2007, she estimates that the team was worth $500 million. “It was a big business at that time,” O’Malley says.

It was also a very male-dominated business. O’Malley was often the only woman in the room. “At my first board meeting, there were 26 men and me. [Former NBA commissioner] David Stern welcomed us by saying, ‘Welcome gentlemen and lady.’”

O’Malley remembers receiving hate mail during her tenure as president of the Wizards. “Sometimes you’d get ugly fan mail urging you to ‘go back where you belong,’ or saying ‘you’ve ruined the last male bastion.’ But to me that was always a motivation and not just about me. I felt that if I screwed up, I slowed the process for the next woman.”

Today, O’Malley teaches sports marketing and sports law at the College of Charleston and says that she often receives fan mail from men. “I get a lot of letters about being the first woman. Matter of fact, I just got one the other day. A father hunted me down. He had been a ticket holder, and his daughter is turning 16 next year. He’s writing to people who he thinks can write to his daughter and be influential in her life,” says O’Malley. “He’s trying to find strong women who’ve made a difference. I get letters like that all the time, from women who are encouraging and positive, and from dads, which is always nice.”

O’Malley is speaking at America’s Small Business Summit on June 13 where she will discuss her remarkable career, the importance of building teams, and “life lessons from being raised in a large Catholic family with rules and discipline, which are transferable to business.”

She’s a Very Good SportO’Malley Blazed Trail for Women

Photo: Courtesy Susan O’Malley

Member Discounts and ServicesChamber of Commerce of the United States® discounts and services are offered to members ONLY.

Members also have access to a variety of Chamber programs, information, and services by visiting www.uschamber.com/member.

Save on FedEx Shipping

www.uschamber.com/fedex

FedEx—U.S. Chamber members are eligible for reduced rates—up to 26% on select FedEx Express® services and up to 12% on select FedEx Ground® services. The FedEx Express discounts include a 5% discount when you create a FedEx Express shipping label using FedEx Ship Manager® at fedex.com and other FedEx® electronic shipping solutions. Save on the benefits that make a difference to your business, including easy access to shipping tools.

800-345-6227

Member Benefits From Sam’s Club

www.uschamber.com/samsclub

Sam’s Club®—Discover exceptional savings on merchandise and services for your business and home. As a U.S. Chamber member, when you join or renew at Sam’s Club as a Plus member, you’ll receive a $25 gift card (new or renewing Savings and Business members receive a $10 gift card).

Additional benefits:• No minimums, no contracts• Early shopping hours for Plus and Business members• Expanded assortment on samsclub.com• Online ordering, pickup in club• 100% satisfaction guaranteed

888-746-7726Download your

certificate online.

Save on FedEx Freight

www.uschamber.com/fedex

FedEx Freight—U.S. Chamber members can save up to 70% on FedEx Freight® services. For on-time reliability and for careful handling of your LTL (less-than-truckload) freight needs, count on FedEx Freight. You can rely on FedEx Freight® Priority when speed is critical to meet your supply chain needs or FedEx Freight® Economy when you can trade time for savings. FedEx Freight is committed to delivering an easier way to ship LTL.

800-636-2377

Save on FedEx Office Business Services

www.uschamber.com/fedex

FedEx Office—Double your savings at FedEx Office! As a U.S. Chamber member, you can save up to 20% on the materials you need most with FedEx Office® copy and print services. It’s the perfect time to save big on color copies, posters, signs, banners, direct mail services, and much more. Go to www.uschamber.com/fedex to learn more.

Chamber members save on:• Copying and printing• Signs and graphics• Other select services

800-345-6227

Introducing the

From Obamacare to the Keystone XL pipeline, find timely policy analysis at uschamber.com/blog.

SIGN UP

READ

SHARE

U.S. Chamber Blog