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Virtual Voice of Business
September 29, 2009
Your Chamber - Right Now
Last week the GSCC participated in a forum on the proposed Built Environment Standards as part of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. Close to fifty representatives from private and public organizations in Thunder Bay and Greater Sudbury met to offer their thoughts on the legislation. There are four common standards which apply broadly to all persons and organizations in Ontario; Customer Service, Built Environment, Employment, Information and Communications. Transportation is one standard that applies to a single sector. Each criterion was developed by a Standards Development Committee (SDC) appointed by the Government of Ontario and made up of disabled persons and groups representing the disabled, construction and design experts and business and public sector representatives. The SDC set implementation targets and requirements to be phased in over the first five years and then subsequent with full compliance across all sectors by 2025 when every business and organization in the province will have to identify, remove and prevent barriers to accessibility in all buildings – new and existing. The GSCC offered these concerns and suggestions regarding the proposed standard and its impact on our members: - While supportive of the push to make Ontario more open and accessible, the timing, scope and potential high costs on businesses is worrisome;
- Anticipated capital costs required to retrofit existing businesses ranges from 5% to 10% of operating revenue, making it extremely prohibitive for businesses currently experiencing financial challenges;
- Capital cost investment will divert funds away from businesses who are considering hiring or participating in research and development projects;
- Exemptions should be made for businesses with 5 employees or less.
Check back with us for updates.
Calendar of Events
Click here to see what we have planned for the coming weeks! A.C.C.E – Executive Livecast SessionsThe Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce, through its membership in the American Chamber of Commerce Executives, is offering Executive Educational Livecast productions to our members. In the series of four livecasts, America’s top business thought leaders, who are also New York Times bestselling authors, will share key insights into: leadership strategies, spearheading change, igniting innovation, and achieving greater influence in your personal and professional life. Please note, the first of the series will take place on October 13, 2009 with Vijay Govindarajan. The last in the series is scheduled for January 19, 2010. Click for detailed information or to register.
Business to Business TradeshowThe chamber is hosting a Business to Business Tradeshow on November 5th, 2009. For more information or to register. Christmas Party!
Remember to mark your calendars for our 2009 Chamber Christmas Party!
WHEN: Saturday, December 5th, 2009 at 6:00pm WHERE: Caruso Club - 385 Haig Street WHO: Entertainment will be provided by Absolute Entertainment COST: $45.00 + GST (Members), $65.00 + GST (Future Members) Menu: sit-down Italian To order tickets and for further information contact Erin Newell .
Last week, the GSCC hosted a reception at its offices for approximately 40 new members. The evening featured refreshments and hors d'oeuvres and was an opportunity for the Board of Directors and staff to greet the latest businesses informally. Pictures from this event can be viewed on our Facebook account.
2010 Budget Last week, the city council finance committee began budget deliberations with community groups. Citizens and organizations will have an opportunity to provide input directly to council on September 30 at 5:30 at Tom Davies Square. This week the Greater City of Sudbury reached out to its citizens for input regarding the budget. Click here to participate in the poll. Grace Hartman Amphitheatre Late last week, the city unveiled the proposed design for the re-development of the Grace Hartman Amphitheatre in Bell Park on the shores of Lake Ramsey. The $5 million project is being designed by Castellan, Davis and Partners. The new amphitheatre will be designed to accommodate a variety of acts and allow for easy access for performers and the public alike. Plans call for the current amphitheatre to be razed and the land restored to parkland. The new amphitheatre will be built to the north of the existing facility in the area that used to be the centennial gardens. The number of seats has yet to be defined, but it would be a combination of permanent seating, a grassy area and an area in front of the stage for general admission or wheelchair access.
Traffic and Construction Report What’s happening this week?
Ontario Chamber of Commerce
Last week the Ontario Chamber of Commerce joined a group of non-partisan business leaders to demonstrate the broad-based support for sales tax harmonization. The ‘Smart Taxation Alliance’ includes the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, AGS Automotive Systems, Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Canadian Council of Chief Executives, Canadian Manufacturer’s & Exporters Ontario, Certified General Accountants of Ontario, Ontario Road Builders’ Association, Ontario Trucking Association, Retail Council of Canada, TD Bank Financial Group, and the Toronto Board of Trade. The group released a package that detailed the positive business impacts related to the HST. These include: - Cutting the marginal effective tax rate on new investment in half;
- Encouraging business investment in Ontario and the creation of jobs;
- Cutting in half the red tape suffered by businesses in Ontario in the collection, remittance and auditing of sales taxes, for an estimated annual savings of $500 million;
- Removing layers of embedded taxes in goods and services throughout Ontario valued at roughly $5 billion;
- Leveling the playing field with all goods and services in the economy so that all sectors contribute equally to revenue generation in the province; and,
- Increasing competitiveness of Ontario business.
Click here to read the release
Canadian Chamber of Commerce
Last week, as the rhetoric concerning a looming election reached its peak, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce released a report highlighting the high level of voter apathy among Canadians of voting age. According to the report, politicians of all parties ought to think about how many Canadians will actually turn out to vote since there have been three elections in the last five years, the last of which cost the taxpayers $288.2 million and only attracted 58.8% of eligible registered voters - a historic low. The report entitled, “The Economics of Elections” looks at the reasons behind the falling turnout and contrasts them with last year's American Presidential election, where the highest percentage of US voters in the last forty years exercised their franchise. Top of the list is apathy about the process. Young Canadians in particular have the lowest voter turnout rate among all age brackets. Unless we reverse this decline, the leaders we elect, and the policy positions adopted, will be determined by a declining percentage of the population, the report concludes. To read the report, click here. It’s Canada vs. the World – Are you in? Not only will the economic edge feature Canada’s top private and public sector leaders discussing the issue of Canada’s global competitiveness, but we are bolstering this stellar line-up of event speakers with a compilation of 16 foward-looking pieces from Canadian CEOs across a wide swath of academia and industry. Click here for more information.
KUDOS!
This week we congratulate Science North for being selected for the Giant Screen Cinema Association’s Best Theatre Launch 2009. The award honours organizations that implement best practices and ideas in their effort to promote giant screen films and theatres. Science North recently re-opened their IMAX theatre after extensive renovations. The $1.3 million renovations included an installation of technology required to show IMAX 3D films, theatre upgrades including new seating, screen and atrium. Congrats!
Red Tip Click here to check out Gerry Visca’s Red Radio Audio casts featuring his 10 Creative Laws. Beware of Barketing
Check your marketing for signs of barketing. Does your competition say "Buy from us. We have the best service, best price, best quality, blah, blah, blah..." Now compare your marketing. Are you echoing the same message? If you are sending the same message as your competition, then what your prospects hear is, "Woof, woof, woof, yap, yap, yap, bark, bark bark.". Barketing ~ any form of marketing that looks and sounds like "me too" to your prospects. It feels to your market like you are competing for attention by shouting louder. The best you might do is to confuse your prospects. Duracell and Energizer batteries did this to each other with their too similar TV ads. A barking dog is probably not your friend. Maybe your customers conclude the same thing when you bark at them. Whether you are a big dog or a small dog barking is just plain annoying. People will ignore or shut out the noise. Often that's what prospects do when you annoy them with your barketing. It's not their job to educate you so they just shut you out. If your marketing is only appearing to send the same message as your competition you are only annoying your prospects with your noise. An Alternative ~ When all the other dogs in the pound are barking, trying to bark louder will only get you noticed for the wrong things. When everyone else is barking you need to do something other than bark. Perhaps you should "meow". For a good example of how to say "meow" watch the recent TV ads for Mac computers. The one with the two guys, "Hello I'm a Mac, Hello I'm a PC". These ads focus on the differences between the competition. They are bold, direct, and memorable. George Torok Power Marketing
Bridges to Better Business
Bridges to Better Business is an annual event held in celebreation of Small Business Week. THis year's 10th Bridges to Better Business Conference will be taking place on October 20th, 2009 at the Radisson Hotel. For more information, please click here. Sudbury Discoveries Menu
Sudbury Discoveries menus is now offered monthly at sudburydiscoveries.ca, with lots more adventures to take you through the fall and into the winter. Know of an event, activity, show, program or other great ways to spend the day in the city? Send details to us here. Big Brothers Big Sisters ~ Voluteer OpportunitiesThere are currently 45 boys in Sudbury waiting for a Big Brother. Big Brothers Big Sisters need your help!! Click here for more information about volunteer opportunities. Gore Bay Rotary Club
The Gore Bay Rotary Club will be holding a Fall Produce Auction, October 10, 2009. For more information, please click here. |
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