Clarkston Chamber eNews Connection

October 1, 2009

Welcome to the Electronic Newsletter of the Clarkston Area Chamber of Commerce

Take 5 (Five Fast Facts) 

1. Taste of Clarkston 2nd best EVER! An estimated 16,500 people attending.

2. Chamber makes front page Oakland Press 2 days in a row! Monday with Taste of Clarkston and Tuesday with Congressman Mike Rogers luncheon. Please note that the online links include Video extras!

3. Clarkston News front page coverage of Taste of Clarkston

4. See more photos of Taste of Clarkston on the Chamber's Facebook Fan Page. Photos by Penny Shanks, Tom Lowrie and John Meyland

5. SAVE MONEY when you take advantage of early bird pricing! Register early for BOBs, Mixers, EXPO and BullsEye and you will save $$!

Upcoming Networking events

BullsEye Small Business Conference

Presented by Clarkston Area Chamber of Commerce in Collaboration with Waterford Area Chamber of Commerce and Pontiac Regional Chamber of Commerce

Thursday October 22, 2009 7:30 a.m.-Noon Registration opens at 7:30 a.m. Full Breakfast Buffet Oakland Intermediate Schools MAP 2111 Pontiac Lake Rd. Waterford, MI REGISTRATION: $79 Save on registration by signing up and paying in advance EARLYBIRD REGISTRATION $40 (deadline October 16, 2009)

Featured speakers:

Event format

Plan to arrive at 7:30 to take advantage of the full breakfast buffet and networking opportunities before the program begins.

All presentations will take place in the large meeting room with breaks between speakers to allow you to get up, mix and mingle.

Exhibitors will find that this year, we are placing your tables/exhibits inside the meeting room (along the perimeter, so you are ALWAYS part of the action)

This event is open to everyone.  Chamber members are encouraged to take advantage of the nearly 50% in savings when you sign up with our early bird pricing.  (Early bird rates end October 17, 2009)

FLU SHOT CLINICS

at Clarkston Specialty Health Care Oct 14; Nov 18; Dec 9  INFO  Must call to pre-register for your shot

Chamber and Community Events

• OCTOBER 8, 2009 Chamber BOB at Al Deeby Dodge REGISTER HERE
• OCTOBER 8, 2009 LaFontaine Automotive Group Business Mixer  5-7 p.m.  $5 at the door  RSVP
• OCTOBER 10, 2009 Davisburg Heritage Festival  8 am-1 pm 
• OCTOBER 10, 2009 NOHLC Wild Night Out (see link at right)
• OCTOBER 10, 2009 Clarkston Area Optimist Club Road Rally 4:30 p.m. MUST PRE-REGISTER
• OCTOBER 15, 2009 Chamber Luncheon Mixer at Stir Crazy Guest Speaker: Dan Elsea, President- Brokerage Services - Real Estate One   REGISTER HERE
• OCTOBER 20, 2009 Lion's Club Fundraiser at Pete’s Coney Island II, 6160 Dixie Hwy in Clarkston.  4:00-8:00pm.  The purpose of this event is to raise money for “The Vision and Hearing Impaired” in the Clarkston Area. 
• OCTOBER 21, 2009 Oakland Chamber Network (OCN) Business card mixer 5:30-7:30 Avis Ford, Southfield
• OCTOBER22, 2009 Bullseye Small Business Conference 7:30-noon
• OCTOBER 24, 2009  Trunk or Treat 5k/1 mile fun run Clarkston United Methodist Church Flyer  Registration Sponsorship  About Emily
• OCTOBER 30, 2009 THE 8TH ANNUAL WORKPLACE DIVERSITY FORUM 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. (Troy)

• NOVEMBER 3, 2009 The Auburn Hills Chamber of Commerce is inviting all Chamber members from Oakland, Wayne and Macomb Counties to join us for a  November 3rd  “Bounce Back” networking opportunity at the Palace of Auburn Hills.  The $35 price includes networking from 5:30 – 7:30 PM and the Pistons vs. Orlando game tickets.  Hors d’oeuvres will be served during the networking session with a cash bar available.  Everyone is welcome.    FLYER
• NOVEMBER 5, 2009 Rotary Wine Tasting at Bordines
• NOVEMBER 12, 2009 Chamber EXPO at Clarkston High School 6-8 pm  (5:00 Exhibitors' B2B Hour)

SCAMP

Designer Showcase HouseCLICK Photo for more info!

Tickets on sale at the Chamber

NOHLC Wild Night Out

CLICK Logo for more info!

Improving Business Performance

(A series of articles designed to help you improve employee / business performance)

Start Using these NOW! Best Practices of Best-in-Class Companies 

In this series of articles, Best Practices of Best-in-Class companies, I share the Best Practices that are used by the best companies in the world.  You can use these Best Practices to IMPROVE sales, customer service, employee job performance and profitability – FAST!  I study Best-in-Class Businesses and Superstar Performers, I find out what they are doing that makes them so successful, then, I share those techniques and approaches with you.  Use these Best Practices and you can start Making More Money and Saving More Money!    Quick Review:  In past articles, I explained …Best Practice #1:  Provide Top-Notch Employee Training and Lots of It! Best Practice #2:  For each job title in your company, create Aligned, Integrated, specific and complete listings of job tasks (job descriptions) with corresponding performance standards for each task.  Best Practice #3:  Be dedicated to EXCELLENCE in EVERYTHING and Measure, Measure, Measure! Best Practice #4:  Continuously Improve Everything!  You are NEVER done improving!  This month, we examine Best Practice #5:  Hire only the best employees!   Many employers make the mistake of hiring someone fast and, essentially, they wind-up throwing a body at an open position.  This is a sure way to get mediocre or poor business results!  Best-in-class companies take a different approach – they put a lot of time and effort into hiring only the best candidates!   If you need an employee, you need one who will perform at a high level.  This means your goal should be to hire someone who is in the top 10-15% of the talent pool.  And here’s some good news:  Given Michigan’s economic climate, the talent pool in Michigan is filled with very talented, very motivated people, who want to produce!     Don’t assume that these talented people will not work for your business.  Many talented people are looking for a whole new career, a more meaningful career, a job closer to home, etc.  I helped one of my small biz clients find a dynamite employee who had worked at a billion dollar company previously.  This new employee has become the best employee my client has ever had (and my client has employed hundreds of people over the years).    So, how do you find great employees who work hard and contribute to your success?  Try these steps - they work for my clients!  

• Write a detailed Job Description for the position you are trying to fill (Best Practice #2).Set very high standards – you don’t want a “body,” you want a superstar.  Resolve to hire only the best (Best Practice #5).  Cast a big net.  Advertise the job everywhere possible.  Talk to your business contacts (and friends at the Chamber) and ask for their assistance in finding the right person. Observe employees at other companies – do any of these people meet your needs?  If you see a superstar at another company doing a job similar to what you need, consider contacting that employee…maybe he/she is interested in making a move.Create and use interview questions that are “behaviorally-based.”  Behaviorally-based questions ask applicants to describe their successes, challenges, strengths, etc. based on past work experiences.Don’t hire too quickly.  Waiting for the “right” person is better than quickly hiring the wrong person. Consider altering your compensation package to include “incentives” for achievements (this appeals to the high-achievers you are trying to attract).The high-achievers you are trying to attract expect to be trained well and treated well.  Now is the time to develop high-quality on-boarding and job training programs (Best Practice #1) and to amend your business and management practices (Best Practices 3 & 4) to ensure that high-achievers want to stay at your company.
• Great employees are like pure Gold coins:  They are rare, they are very valuable and once you have some, you don’t want to lose them.           

 Need help with Job Descriptions, Interview Questions, Job Training programs or Incentive programs?  I can help!

Contact Ron DeLorme, Manage Max Perform. Improve., 248.396.5031 or training_pro@hotmail.com.

Chamber members receive a BIG DISCOUNT! 

Clarkston News launches a Virtual Clarkston Shopping Experience.  

NoMall -- where local retailers can list (with pictures) inventory items to sell with e-commerce. This will be up and running by the end of October, in time for the Christmas shopping season.

The idea being, locals want, can and will shop locally if given more opportunity. They can now shop online locally from their home or office computers . . . save money on shipping, etc., by arranging a pickup time if they want.

Check out this flyer which includes an introductory offer, first come first serve. Once you look at what we're giving to launch this, you'll see why we can only offer it for a short while!

Churches, schools to offer career transition series

A group of local churches, in partnership with Clarkston Schools, will present a series of five sessions called “Take Charge of Your Career Transition.”

The series, sponsored by Clarkston Schools and Steeples, covers several aspects of career transition, ranging from job search to finances to inventorying one’s skills and interests. Experts in the various areas will lead the sessions.

The weekly sessions, which begin Tuesday, Oct. 6, are open to everyone at no charge. Each session will be held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Clarkston Junior High School, 6595 Waldon Rd., Clarkston, Mich., 48346. CJHS is located behind Clarkston Elementary School.

The following sessions are scheduled:

Oct. 6 – Networking/Job Search

Oct. 13 – So You’re Thinking About a Career Change?

Oct. 20 – Utilizing Recruiters in Your Job Search

Oct. 27 – Your Finances in Transition

Nov. 3 – Basics of Résumé Writing & Marketing Material

Clarkston Schools and Steeples is a partnership of Clarkston Community Schools, Church of the Resurrection, Clarkston Community Church, Clarkston Free Methodist Church, Clarkston United Methodist Church and St. Daniel Catholic Church.

For more information, call (248) 625-1611, ext. 226.  FLYER

Paint Creek Country Club Golf & Networking Day

As members of the Clarkston Chamber and long term participants in our local community, Paint Creek Country Club will be hosting a Golf & Networking event on Monday October 5th. More information here: FLYER