May 8, 2017

  • MEDC offers funding to stimulate startups

    When it comes to entrepreneurship, the line from A to B rarely is a straight one. Therefore, the Michigan Economic Development Corp. developed a map to assist entrepreneurs at each stage to stay on track. The MEDC uses a subway map that outlines the path for entrepreneurs at each stage. The subway metaphor uses stops […]

  • Consultants provide tools to cut benefit costs

    In an era when many employers lack the administrative resources to select and manage employee benefits, local consultants are thriving. Ryan Quillan, regional vice president for benefits division at Lighthouse Group in Grand Rapids, said the division saw revenue of $9,958,000 in 2016, up from $9,719,000 in 2015. He attributes the increase in part to […]

  • Change Ups: WMU Cooley Law School associate dean inducted into alumni ROTC Hall of Fame

    Retired Brigadier General and current WMU Cooley Law School associate dean and professor of law Michael C.H. McDaniel was inducted into the alumni ROTC Hall of Fame for the Seneca Battalion of the U.S. Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps at the Olean, New York-based St. Bonaventure University. McDaniel’s vita includes military judge, state judge advocate […]

  • Don’t ‘close the sale’ — all you have to do is ask for it

    Seems too simple: Just ask. In most cases to get the sale, at some point you must ask for it. “Yes, Jeffrey,” you say, “but when do you ask? What’s the perfect time to ask?” How do I know? No one knows that except you. I can only tell you it’s a delicate combination of […]

  • Nonresidential investment surges despite sluggish Q1

    The U.S. economy’s performance slowed in the first quarter of 2017, but nonresidential fixed investment expanded at an impressive 9.4 percent seasonally adjusted annual rate, according to analysis of U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis data. Real gross domestic product (GDP) expanded 0.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted annualized rate during the first three months of […]

  • Public Record

    MORTGAGES Selected mortgages filed with Kent County Register of Deeds MCCALL, Jacob et al, AmeriFirst Financial Corp., Bella Vista Shores No. 15, Lot 639, $218,025 STOCKTON, Terry J. et al, JG Wentworth Home Lending, Albert-Realtors Breton Road Add. No. 1, Lot 30, $242,165 LEE, Kenneth B. et al, JG Wentworth Home Lending, Condo-Tiger Lily Estates, […]

  • Street Talk: The SBA road show

    The new leader of the Small Business Administration’s Michigan district is getting down to business quickly. Constance Logan, who was promoted in January to the position of SBA Michigan district director, based in Detroit, had been working for five years in the deputy district director role, which she compares to the role of chief operating […]

  • Take my advice: Be a good client or customer

    I don’t know what the statistics are, but apparently, a lot of people don’t follow their doctor’s advice. In February, I found myself in miserable discomfort from a condition that plagues 50 percent of men over 50. It got so uncomfortable that I was about to call the doctor. Then it struck me. What would […]

  • Work to reverse the Great Decoupling

    The need for Michigan to adopt a new economic agenda is clear. In the seventh year of a national economic expansion — and an even stronger rebound from near bankruptcy of the domestic auto industry — too many Michigan households are struggling. Michigan’s substantial economic challenges clearly are structural. After 25 years of analysis of […]

  • Ferris programs help Latinos hone business skills

    (As seen on WZZM TV 13) Throughout her 10 years in educational leadership and her work in the nonprofit sector, Lorena Aguayo-Marquez has worn many hats. Now, she wants to focus on the work that truly motivates her. That’s why Aguayo-Marquez, program assistant for adult education programs at Grand Rapids Community College, signed up for […]

  • ‘High value on people’ is solution to recruitment, retention

    The battle for employers to recruit and retain is a now too familiar refrain in West Michigan, and competition for employees throughout the country (and the world) has been of immense concern to local business owners. Windquest President and Grand Action leader Dick DeVos reiterated those national concerns during a presentation to the 101 Best […]

  • Script flips for trade contractors

    To understand the state of the construction industry in West Michigan, a check-in with trade contractors is a necessity. Trade contractors are responsible for much of the actual construction portion of a building, so the trends those companies experience are crucial to understanding the struggles that lie ahead, even in good economic times. Nearly all […]

  • Law firm adds office managing partner to GR staff

    Bob Sikkel has practiced labor and employment law for more than 30 years. In that time, he has come to understand the responsibilities and challenges human resources professionals face. He said it was a natural fit when his longtime firm, Barnes & Thornburg, appointed him to the nationwide management committee and selected him as the […]

  • Consumers Energy opens leadership center

    Consumers Energy celebrated the opening of its new leadership center at the downtown campus of Grand Valley State University recently. The John G. Russell Leadership Center, 120 Front Ave. SW, is the latest training “hub” for Consumers Energy and will focus on leadership and professional development. Stacy Mowrer, director of learning and development with Consumers […]

  • Client needs spur data expansion

    As demand for connectivity grows, Southfield-based 123Net will invest more than $15 million in West Michigan data infrastructure in the near future. The company is finishing up a $5-million, 45-mile expansion of its fiber network in metro Grand Rapids. Along with the fiber network, 123Net’s Byron Center data center is nearing capacity, necessitating a planned […]

  • GE Aviation soars in Muskegon area

    GE Aviation’s recently opened $14.5-million, 35,000-square-foot facility in Norton Shores is part of its efforts to double down on new technology. The newly opened “brilliant factory” — one of seven across the broader company — incorporates various technologies to improve efficiency and increase production. “A brilliant factory is one where lean manufacturing is embraced and […]

  • Inside Track: Trials prepare attorney for dual career

    Some people might look at Elizabeth Rosario’s life and see hard work overcoming tough luck. But Rosario likes to keep the focus on a higher power. “I think the Lord above has blessed me in more ways than one,” she said. “I am who I am and where I am because of him.” Rosario dropped […]

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