Colorado Business Roundtable’s Statement on Deal with Canada and Mexico to Lift Steel and Aluminum Tariffs as well as Retaliatory Tariffs

Colorado Business Roundtable applauds our administration’s announcement that United States, Mexico and Canada have come to a resolution that lifts steel and aluminum tariffs as well as corresponding retaliatory tariffs. This important step helps clear a major hurdle in finalizing the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

“The announcement is viewed as a significant step toward ultimate passage of USMCA, of which Colorado Business Roundtable (COBRT) has played a key role in garnering support from our congressional delegation, as well as the business community, states Jeff Wasden, COBRT President. “Trade with Canada and Mexico is critical to growing business and putting more Coloradans to work.”

Trade in North America has reached $1.4 trillion and supports more than 12 million American jobs. Passing implementing legislation for USMCA this year will help broaden and expand trade opportunities with our closest neighbors.

President Donald J. Trump is Strengthening America's Cybersecurity Workforce to Secure our Nation and Promote Prosperity

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 2, 2019

“America built the internet and shared it with the world; now we will do our part to secure and preserve cyberspace for future generations.” – President Donald J. Trump


STRENGTHENING OUR CYBER WORKFORCE: President Donald J. Trump is supporting a strong cybersecurity workforce to defend our country and promote quality job opportunities.

  • President Trump has signed an Executive Order directing the creation of programs to grow and strengthen our cybersecurity workforce to meet the challenges of the 21st century.

  • The Executive Order will promote cybersecurity work within the Government, including through a new President’s Cup Cybersecurity Competition.

  • The Administration will develop a rotational program where Federal employees can expand their cybersecurity expertise through temporary reassignments to other agencies.

  • The Executive Order encourages widespread adoption of the cybersecurity workforce framework created by the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE).

    • The NICE Framework is a helpful reference for identifying, recruiting, developing, and retaining cybersecurity talent.

  • The Executive Order aims to close cybersecurity skills gaps for the cyber-physical systems that our defense and critical infrastructure rely on.

  • Federal agencies will identify cybersecurity aptitude assessments that they can use to reskill employees with potential in the cybersecurity field.

  • The Administration will establish the Presidential Cybersecurity Education Awards, recognizing excellent elementary and secondary school educators teaching cybersecurity-related content.

GROWING THE WORKFORCE: Training and hiring cybersecurity workers is vital to protecting our Nation’s defense systems and critical infrastructure.

  • Government and private-sector action is urgently needed to grow and sustain our cybersecurity workforce, which is a strategic asset to our country.

    • Our cybersecurity workforce is made up of dedicated individuals in the public and private sectors who operate the critical systems needed to run and defend our country.

  • More than 300,000 cybersecurity job vacancies exist in America and it is critical for our economy and security that they be filled.  

    • The cybersecurity field offers well-paying jobs that provide incredible opportunities for Americans.

  • An inadequate cybersecurity workforce jeopardizes our critical infrastructure, national defense, and modern economy.

PROTECTING OUR SECURITY: President Trump has committed his Administration to protecting and strengthening our Nation’s cybersecurity.

  • The President released a National Security Strategy that highlighted cybersecurity as a priority.

  • Last year, President Trump unveiled our Nation’s first cyber strategy in 15 years, which included the priority to develop a superior cybersecurity workforce.

  • Multiple agencies have also released strategies emphasizing the importance of cybersecurity.

  • In 2017, President Trump released an Executive Order to strengthen the cybersecurity of Federal networks and our critical infrastructure.

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From Incarceration to Entrepreneurship

Defy Colorado is in the business of transforming lives of people with criminal histories. It can be hard to get a grasp on the power of Defy Colorado without making a visit to prison, but on April 24th, Defy Colorado set out to change that by hosting their first ever “Demo Day” at Boulder’s iconic Dairy Arts Center. The event offered a glimpse of how Defy Colorado  brings people with criminal histories together with community members to create change as they walk through an entrepreneurial journey together.

During the Demo Day, two recently released graduates of Defy Colorado’s in-prison entrepreneurship program pitched their business ideas to a panel of experts. Buck Adams is seeking to develop an e-commerce website similar to Etsy to sell prison art. Ronnie Madrid hopes to launch a taco truck. Both Entrepreneurs in Training (EITs) received praise and feedback from an esteemed panel of judges including Jason Mendelson, Partner, Foundry Group; Beth Walker, Dean, School of Business at Colorado State University; and Lauren Lambert, Head of Public Policy and Government Relations, Google. The event also featured a panel discussion in which representatives from the Colorado Department of Corrections, EITs, family members and volunteers shared the impact Defy has had on them.

Defy Colorado’s eight-month training program provides life and business skills to people who are currently incarcerated. In its first full year of operations, Defy Colorado graduated nearly 90 EITs, and has plans to graduate another 90 men and women in 2019.

Defy’s Demo Day raised more than $70,000 for Defy Colorado, but their need is still great! Learn more by tuning into our recent interview with Defy or visiting their website at: defycolorado.org.


Proud to be part of a business that leads in sustainability practices

By: Stefano Casadei, Purina Denver Factory Manager

As we approach the 49th Earth Day, I’m reminded of how we’ve made efforts to protect our planet and yet, how far we still need to go. In Denver, we are fortunate to be surrounded by like-minded individuals who value our pristine outdoors and regularly take steps to protect our environment for future generations. From a business perspective, Denver is home to many companies that also value, and protect the outdoors, factoring in environmental impact when making business decisions.

As Americans value a commitment to sustainability from the companies they buy from, it’s no surprise businesses are adopting practices that minimize their impact on the global environment. In fact, according to a 2018 Nielsen report on Global Corporate Sustainability, 81% of consumers feel strongly that companies should help improve the environment. Millennials are the most supportive of corporate social responsibility efforts, but the growing passion is evident among all generations.

I’m proud to work for a company committed to being good stewards of our planet. Since last spring, I have been the factory manager for Purina’s Denver operations. Our sustainability efforts are factored in at every stage of the product life cycle – we strive to use resources efficiently from the time we source ingredients for the pet foods we make here in Denver and across the U.S., to how we make and package our products, and all the steps in between.

As the city of Denver works toward a goal of reducing its carbon emissions, we at Purina are doing our part to place sustainability at the heart of our business strategy in Denver and across the U.S. Recently, Purina in Denver was honored to be named a finalist for the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce’s Green Business of the Year award.

A few highlights for the Denver facility include reducing water consumption in our clean-up process by 20 percent; continuously promoting responsible water use and making significant strides in water efficiency; maintaining zero waste for disposal status since 2017; and transitioning to ozone friendly refrigerants.

Additionally, in 2009, the Denver Purina factory became the first-ever U.S. pet food factory to utilize solar energy. Since then, the company has been increasing the use of clean, renewable energy to help power our facilities where we make our pet care products.

Packaging is critical for a variety of reasons, from preserving the safety and quality of our pet food, treats and cat litter, to preventing food waste, maintaining shelf life and providing information for pet owners. It’s also critical that our packaging doesn’t end up in landfills or as litter. That’s why we’re committed to making 100 percent of our packaging reusable or recyclable by 2025. Today, packaging for 80 percent of Purina’s products in the United States are already recyclable.

What’s best for pets and the planet means being able to make healthy and high-quality nutrition that dogs and cats love while also helping protect the environment and precious natural resources. We know that making our pet food sustainably today is critical to ensuring people and pets share a healthy world tomorrow – we make sure that every ingredient has a healthy supply, that it’s sustainable long-term and that the supplier is implementing safety and environmental practices that align with our standards. We invest with farmers and organizations that preserve soil and promote sufficient, clean water, biodiversity and other factors that create healthy ingredients and a healthy ecosystem.

All these actions are an investment in our future, so we can continue making high-quality and nutritious pet foods for many years to come; it’s also an investment in a healthy planet, healthy people and healthy pets.

We’re a company of full of passionate pet lovers. Our pets serve as a constant inspiration to relentlessly pursue breakthrough innovations and are what drives our team in Denver to make high quality, safe and nutritious products, while being responsible stewards of the natural resources we use.

On Earth Day, I am proud to work for a company that believes in being good to its employees, its consumers (especially the four-legged ones) and the planet.

The Future is Now: Three Critical Imperatives for Success

There are profound shifts facing organizations today that are causing business leaders to take pause and rethink how they operate in the Digital Age.  Waves of change, from emergent and adaptive technologies, customer expectations, and ever increasingly diverse work environments, are forcing companies to prepare for these types of changes, as well as others, in an accelerated timeframe.  The paradox, however, is that we still are unable to anticipate the impact of these shifts, leaving many of us feeling unprepared and unsure what actions to take.  The good news is that there is a way to move forward. Start by thinking about these three critical imperatives for future success and how they show up in your work environment.

1.     Be deliberate about your change culture

Organizational research has suggested that around 2/3 of organizational change efforts fail.  Yet, in today’s business climate, we have a historically high number of change management practitioners, thousands of books on the subject, and consultants who promise a fail proof approach to achieving change.  So, what is the disconnect between the change management expertise and organization success or failure? Since starting my career in 1996 as a change management consultant, I have learned that change can’t be managed. We can’t expect to go into an organization and manage -which essentially means plan, direct, delegate and control -our way through the complexities of change.  Successful approaches for strategic change should allow organizations to become change capable while promoting agile processes. As abstract as that sounds, it works! We know that change isn’t easy but it is inevitable and focusing on a change capable culture is a more sustainable approach.  A great place to start is to find out your organization’s readiness for change while evaluating your business processes to see which one’s support or hinder your change culture.

2.     Prepare your leaders for the future

For leaders to thrive in this dynamic, hyper turbulent connected environments, new ways of approaching their roles should be evaluated. In slower and less complex times, a traditional hierarchical approach was the norm.  However, in a world of intense complexity and distributed organizational models, it isn’t conceivable for a few at the top to inspire, motivate and effectively lead.  Consider that one of the key roles for the future of leaders is to be digitally savvy.  What do emergent technologies mean for our business?  How does AI enhance or impede our strategies?   What can we now do with big data?  These are the types of questions digitally savvy leaders need to be thinking about in the near term. Additionally, leaders need to have fine tuned their emotional intelligence-drawing on self-awareness, empathy, people development and respect for diversity.  Finally, future leaders need to be connectors-recognizing the interconnected nature of the work that leaders do at all levels. They need to be able to see contradictions and work in the white space while understanding about systems and patterns of work behavior.

3.     Start now to upskill your workforce

All organizations will need to redefine roles as automation is introduced into your work environments.  Recognizing that there might be some displacement of fringe work tasks, automation provides an opportunity to maximize gains and minimizes losses.  The Worldwide Economic Forum suggests that by 2022, the skills needed to perform most jobs will have shifted.  Each company has a unique context so understanding the impact to your roles is critical.  Begin now to understand what is that impact. Are there new skills that will be needed to effectively perform in a future state?  Can those skills be developed internally and if yes, how will you go about upskilling?  These are the types of questions that should be asked with the goal of creating a Learning and Development roadmap that will essentially be your compass for the Digital World.

If you are contemplating these issues or others, Dr. Armatas has been working with organizations for over 20 years and can support you in these efforts.  Connect with Armatas Advisory Group to discuss any problem or organizational need. 

 

In Manufacturing, the Future Is Hiring Now

By Jay Timmons

“Co-bots” are collaborative robots engineered to work alongside and in concert with human workers. Like augmented reality and artificial intelligence, they are just one example of the stream of technological breakthroughs that are transforming the modern manufacturing shop floor—allowing manufacturing workers to accomplish tasks once thought impossible and to do so more safely than ever before.

Yet, the emergence of such technology has led some to wrongly assume that jobs for manufacturing workers are in short supply. In reality, the opposite is true. Last year was the best year for manufacturing hiring growth nationally since 1997. In Colorado, manufacturers had roughly 47,500 job openings in 2018, especially in the beverage, computer and electronic products, food, machinery and transportation equipment sectors.

Modern manufacturing is high-tech, but it’s people that make it all possible—the 12.8 million men and women who make things in America. Prospective employees can be skilled and ready for many of these jobs after months of training, and on average, Coloradans working in manufacturing out-earn those in other professions. According to the most recent data, Colorado’s 142,000 manufacturing employees—from coders to craftsman to designers—had average annual pay and benefits of $74,629, compared to $47,313 across all industries.

Manufacturing jobs will continue to open for the foreseeable future. A recent study from Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute, the workforce and education partner of the National Association of Manufacturers, reveals that manufacturers will need to fill 4.6 million jobs in the next decade. They predict that we will only have enough qualified workers to fill less than half of those jobs if more people don’t start joining our industry.

And they should. Modern manufacturing jobs give people the chance to build something that matters—from the fuel that powers our lives to lifesaving medicines, from the latest smart devices to the rockets that will take humans back to the moon and onward to Mars.

So today, in Colorado, the NAM is launching our 2019 State of Manufacturing Tour. We will travel the country over the next two weeks telling the story of modern manufacturing, saying “Creators Wanted”—and promoting the promising opportunities that Americans of all ages have to build a rewarding career in our industry.

We will also be calling on our elected officials to ensure that nothing holds back manufacturing’s progress. We know there will be economic headwinds. But we can reach our full potential by advancing policies that uphold the values that have made America exceptional: free enterprise, competitiveness, individual liberty and equal opportunity.

For example, manufacturers want to see final approval of the U.S.–Mexico­–Canada Agreement, as well as a trade deal to hold China accountable and secure relief from costly tariffs.

Americans deserve 21st-century infrastructure, so manufacturers are advocating major investments in our roads, bridges, ports, waterways, pipes, pipelines, electric grid and airports—as well as development of communications infrastructure like 5G technology.

We want to help find a real solution to the humanitarian crisis that is the immigration situation. We need a permanent and updated legal immigration system—to protect families, Dreamers, our economy and our national security.

And we are calling for an end to baseless lawsuits against manufacturers from trial lawyers and municipalities, including some in Colorado, who are trying to get rich quick on the backs of manufacturing workers.

When we make progress on these fronts, it will set manufacturers up for even greater success—and allow us to continue keeping our promise to hire more workers, raise wages and benefits and invest in new operations, just as we said we would with tax reform and regulatory certainty. It will empower us to weather any economic disruption that comes our way.

Manufacturers will always be the backbone of a strong American economy. After all, a country that builds things is a secure and prosperous one. Technology has transformed our industry. But at our core, our mission is the same as it has always been: building our nation’s future. And the future is hiring now.

Jay Timmons is president and CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers, the largest manufacturing association in the United States.

Bringing Colorado’s renewable energy expertise to Bolivia – Campaign Launched

By: Michelle Zimmerman

I am proud that Colorado has become a leader in renewable energy. Both public and private entities have invested in wind, hydropower and solar to provide sustainable benefits for Colorado. In a state that values our pristine environment and reaps economic benefits from the ample tourists that visit, it makes sense that we strive to be a leader in the renewable energy movement. 

Coloradoans have poured over $2.5 billion into solar investment and more than 200,000 homes are currently powered by solar. This has created over 1,000 megawatts of capacity in solar energy in the state, producing enough energy to eliminate over 6,500 railcars of coal.

From home installations of solar panels to community solar farms and large-scale solar generators, I have worked in various segments of the solar industry over the last decade. I met our co-founders, Nick Killen and Lou Fabian through the MBA program at the University of Denver. The three of us have been working in renewable energy in Colorado for the last 12 years.

Recently, we decided we wanted to bring our expertise to less developed areas.

Across the globe, there are 1.2 billion people that don’t have access to electricity. People are using fossil fuels to generate electricity, or simply do not have access to consistent power - neither are sustainable. Additionally, many remote communities don’t have Internet, which limits their access to information, educational tools, healthcare, and more.

We believe that power and access to information are two essential tools that children should have available to empower them and their future. Thus, we created Pidola.

Pidola, which means leapfrog in Spanish, is committed to bringing solar electricity and satellite internet to South and Central American schools. After two years of initial site visits, we installed pilot projects in Pampa Jasi and Torotoro, two remote villages in Bolivia, thanks to our original connections with existing nonprofits that were working locally to build schools, community gardens, and teach citizens about clean water and basic healthcare. With a school and gathering area to build upon, adding electricity and internet provided numerous benefits including improved studying, cooking, refrigeration, and water filtration.

It is amazing to see people communicate across the greater region with the use of internet and leapfrog into new opportunities. The ability to leverage that original schoolhouse and amplify the learning is exponential. Previously, some of these Bolivians had to walk 1 to 2 days to access power and communications and many were leaving their villages for work and school - resulting in a diminishing economy for these already underproducing communities. 

Electricity and internet give life to the learning process. Imagine our schools without light or electricity; imagine our students without internet. Pidola is changing the course of education for children in rural villages who are very eager to learn. We are providing these Bolivian kids the “miracles” of electricity and internet that most students in America take for granted.

Thanks to the donations from our initial supporters, in 2017 we made solar electricity and satellite internet a new reality for 84 rural Bolivian schoolchildren! Success was quickly acknowledged by local officials, and now the Ministry of Education, Bolivian Space Agency, and local nonprofits are working with us to identify recipients for dozens more projects and contribute to our success as much as possible.

In the spirit on Colorado Gives Day last week, we launched a campaign to raise funds to bring electricity and internet to carefully selected villages.

We have a short-term goal of three village installations by June 2019, consisting of building a solar electricity system (panels, batteries, charge controller, inverter) for the school that will power the satellite internet antenna and components as well as covering the monthly internet costs. Looking to the future, we would like to demonstrate the value of these projects to local officials and donors in order to duplicate the impact at a larger scale. 

Our current and primary focus is on providing improved and exciting opportunities for children to learn and communities to thrive!

BIO: Michelle Zimmerman

With a passion for providing clean, reliable energy to customers throughout the West, and in rural developing areas of Latin America, Michelle expanded from a career in nonprofit management to focus on responsible solar development in 2008. Beginning in residential and off-grid projects, she became vice president of Innovative Energy, a solar installer in Summit County, CO and helped grow the company to include design-build-service for commercial solar projects. In 2014, Michelle worked with Clean Energy Collective to expand community solar across Colorado and has been developing large-scale solar facilities with Cypress Creek Renewables since February of 2017.With over 300 megawatts (MW) of solar development and two small solar+storage+satellite internet systems in rural Bolivia, Michelle has a proven record to navigate new terrain and successfully deliver projects. Michelle completed an MBA from Daniels College of Business (University of Denver) and serves as Vice Chair of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission.  For more information on Pidola please visit Pidola.org.

HIT Tax

On behalf of Colorado’s business community, I am writing to encourage you to take a leadership role on the health insurance tax issue. As you are probably aware, the HIT tax directly raises the cost of health insurance. It’s so damaging, Congress suspended it for 2019, which is helping local businesses afford a quality health plan for their employees. Unfortunately, the tax is scheduled to automatically return in 2020.

Congress can protect companies and working families again from this Obamacare tax, but it must happen fast. Without a bill passing by the end of this session, the HIT tax will be “locked in” for 2020.

A new analysis from Oliver Wyman highlights what the HIT tax would mean for Colorado: a total of $205 million in added healthcare premiums in our state. Small employers and their employees would see premiums go up an average of $422 per family covered, and large employers and their workers about $434. Self-employed people and others who purchase their own health insurance will also see a price hike.

Members of the Colorado Business Roundtable concerned about these potential cost increases, which can easily add up to tens of thousands of dollars for a single company’s workforce. It’s important to note that the HIT-specific price increases will fall on top of any other market-driven cost increases that could arrive in 2020.

Local businesses are struggling with unpredictable healthcare costs, and the HIT tax—which is gone one year and back the next—is adding another layer of uncertainty. What’s more, a 2020 HIT tax comeback could be especially painful. Some economists are predicting economic slowdown over the next 18 months, and businesses are taking a more conservative view on costs, expansion, and hiring. We shouldn’t put more downward pressure on the economy starting next year.

The HIT tax isn’t just about employers, either. Working families will be affected by more healthcare cost-sharing in the form of bigger paycheck deductions and higher deductibles and co-pays. Many companies will be forced to offer less generous health plans or cut back on other benefits, bonuses, or wage increases. These aren’t the results Colorado’s middle class wants or needs.

It is a shame the Obamacare HIT tax remains on the books, but the issue will not be resolved in time to help businesses for 2020. That’s why it’s important that Congress pass a HIT moratorium for 2020 before the end of the current session.  We need a leader to push a solution forward. I hope you will consider taking up that mantle on behalf of Colorado’s businesses and working families and make a 2020 HIT tax suspension a top priority for your next few weeks in Washington.

Sincerely,

Jeff Wasden

Denver's Purina factory committed to veterans and their pets, too!

By: Michael Downs

As we approach Veteran’s Day on November 11, I’m reminded of how proud I am to work at Purina – a company that has a long history of supporting the U.S. military and veterans, like me.

In fact, Purina’s origin is strongly rooted in military history. The company’s founder and WWI volunteer, William H. Danforth, named the first Purina dog food “Dog Chow” in 1926 as a nod to the “chow lines” that sustained American service members during the war. During the 1940’s, Dog Chow was a major supporter of the Dogs for Defense program, which encouraged dog owners to enlist their dogs in the military to be trained to assist the Army, Navy, Coast Guard and Marines.

Here at our factory in Denver, we have proudly manufactured Purina Dog Chow since 1957, and the company continues to regularly demonstrate our commitment to veterans by partnering with organizations that help unite veterans with pets. All of us at Purina are pet lovers and many of us have pets at home. This summer, Purina Dog Chow launched the Service Dog Salute campaign, partnering with Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) to donate up to $500,000 to ARF’s veterans program, which matches veterans with rescue dogs who are then trained to become their own skilled service companions.

Dog Chow also partnered with BuzzFeed to share stories of veterans and rescue dogs who have been brought together through ARF. These stories touch close to home for me and many of my co-workers at the Denver factory.

I know many veterans who have been supported by a pet during a time of need. From personal experience, I can attest to the comfort and calming presence a pet’s unconditional love can provide. I have three dogs and two cats; and, not that I play favorites, but my rescue dog Charlie is like my lap dog. If I ever need to get something off my chest, he is there to listen.  He is my adventure buddy too – we’ll head west up the I-70 corridor and go hiking in the gorgeous mountains, which is one of the reasons we love living in Colorado.

I was originally drawn to working at Purina not just because my passion for pets lines up perfectly with the company’s values, but they value my service and the traits gained during my military service. After spending 12 years in the Army, Purina was one of the few places that recognized that the leadership skills and training I gained in the military made me a great fit, not only for their organization, but in a role with a high level of responsibility. They appreciated my skill set and strong sense of mission as some of the many characteristics that apply to civilian life.

My veteran coworkers at the Purina factory in Denver echo the sentiment of appreciating how our company extends career opportunities to those who have served in the U.S. Military as part of a larger career acceleration initiative, #ProjectOpportunity. My coworker at the Denver factory, who served in the National Guard, tells me how he always felt supported during deployment; he says Purina routinely checked in on him and even sent him care packages. He had the option to keep all his benefits with Purina while deployed. The benefits are amazing.

For over 90 years, Purina has a track record of supporting the U.S. military, veterans, and their furry friends. To find out how you can help support our veterans, visit www.dogchow.com/service, or, if you are a veteran, consider joining Purina’s military talent network to experience the benefits first hand. Happy Veteran’s Day!

 

Michael Downs is a Maintenance Technician at Purina in Denver. The Purina factory has had a longstanding presence in Denver since 1930, creating high-quality and popular Purina pet food brands, supporting the local community and employing 280 people.

New health and wellness services can offer Colorado small businesses a competitive advantage

By Grant Snyder, Vice President of Small Business, UnitedHealthcare of Colorado

Small-business owners often tell me that some of the biggest barriers to success are costs, time, and the inability to attract and retain talented employees.  

A recent Small Business Optimism Index showed that 21 percent of small-business owners cited “the difficulty of finding qualified workers” as their single most important business challenge.

One way small businesses may improve their workplace and make it more appealing to employees is to support employee health and wellness. Doing so may not only lead to a healthier, productive and more engaged workforce, but also may help attract and retain talented employees.

Small-business owners can now obtain comprehensive wellness programs that not long ago were available only to large employers.

For example, some offerings include wellness coaching, biometric screenings, smoking-cessation programs, and even complimentary fitness trackers. Also, programs may include incentives that enable employees and spouses to earn reductions to their premium contributions, or receive merchant gift cards or gym reimbursements. And these programs are often administered by the health plan, so there is no additional time taken away from a small-business owner’s busy day.

Other health and wellness services may also be available. For example, Real Appeal, is an online weight-loss program offered by UnitedHealthcare in Colorado and across the United States.

Real Appeal uses personal coaches and online tracking tools to help motivate people to adopt healthier behaviors, which may help reduce obesity-related conditions such as Type 2 diabetes and heart disease. 

Participants are matched with a transformation coach who helps them create a step-by-step personalized program that is designed to work with their lifestyle and includes:

·       online group classes designed to help build camaraderie and accountability;

·       weekly health tips from celebrities, athletes and health experts;

·       a personalized dashboard to keep track of calories, fitness and goals; and

·       resources such as workout DVDs, quick and simple recipes, and a nutrition guide.

Real Appeal enables small businesses, even those strapped for time and resources, to offer employees weight loss services at no additional cost to the employees who participate. Typically, four out of five participants have lost weight with Real Appeal, with 10 pounds lost on average per participant.

Attracting and retaining the top talent in the market is ever more challenging for small businesses in today’s diversified and demanding workforce. These types of programs and services may help them do that and help their employees live healthier lives.

For more information about small business plans in your state, visit UHC.com.

How Employers Can Help Curb Health Care Costs During Open Enrollment

By Marc Neely, CEO, UnitedHealthcare of Colorado

Technology continues to reshape how employers select and offer health care benefits to employees, putting access to information at our fingertips and creating a more seamless and interactive health care experience. At the same time, these advances may help employees become savvier users of health care, helping simplify and personalize their journey toward health and, in the process, help curb costs for employers.

The revolution can be important to remember during open-enrollment, which occurs during the fall, when millions of Americans select or switch their health benefits for 2019. With that in mind, here are five tips employers in Colorado should be aware of during open enrollment and year-round:

Make Sense of Big Data: Big data is a buzz word, but the applications are only meaningful if employers can make sense of that information. To help with that, employers are gaining access to online resources to help enable them to more easily analyze and make sense of health data, taking into account aggregate medical and prescription claims, demographics, and clinical and well-being information. This can provide an analytics-driven roadmap to help employers implement tailored clinical management and employee-engagement programs, which may help improve health outcomes, mitigate expenses, and help employees take charge of their health.   

Help People Understand Their Options: More than three-quarters (77) percent of Americans say they are prepared for open enrollment, yet most people struggle to understand basic health care terms, according to a recent UnitedHealthcare survey. In fact, only 6 percent of survey respondents could successfully define all four basic health insurance concepts: plan premium, deductible, co-insurance and out-of-pocket maximum. To support employees during open enrollment, employers can adopt online platforms designed to personalize and simplify the experience to help people select a health plan based on their personal health and financial needs, while encouraging them to select a primary care physician and enroll in programs such as smoking cessation or weight loss. Employers can also promote to employees resources such as JustPlainClear.com, which provides definitions for thousands of health care terms.    

Encourage Your People to Move More: An estimated 35 percent of employers now integrate wearable devices into their well-being programs, helping employees more accurately understand their daily activity levels. As these programs become more common, there may be opportunities for cost-savings for companies and their workforces. For instance, some wearable device wellness programs may enable people to earn more than $1,000 per year by meeting certain daily walking goals, while employers can achieve premium renewal discounts based on the aggregate walking results of their employees.  

Incent and Help Employees Comparison Shop for Care: More than one-third (36 percent) of Americans say they have used the internet or mobile apps during the last year to comparison shop for health care, up from 14 percent in 2012, according to the UnitedHealthcare survey. To encourage employees to participate in this trend, some employers are offering financial incentives – such as $25 or $50 gift cards – to employees for using health care transparency resources. Health care quality and cost varies widely within a city or neighborhood, so encouraging the use of online and mobile transparency resources may yield savings for employers and employees.

Integrate Medical and Ancillary Benefits: Open enrollment is also the time for people to select important ancillary benefits, such as vision, dental and disability coverage. While some people may overlook these plans, offering this coverage as part of an employee's menu of benefits options may maximize the effectiveness of a company's health care dollars, provide families with added peace of mind and help build a culture of health. Combining medical and ancillary benefits under a single health plan may enable for the integrated analysis of a wide range of data that can facilitate proactive outreach and clinical support for employees, including for people with chronic conditions such as diabetes or to help prevent the development of such conditions.

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NAFTA Statement by Colorado Business Roundtable

Colorado Business Roundtable (COBRT) strongly urges the U.S., Canada, and Mexico to continue negotiations toward an improved and enhanced North American trading agreement.

Canada and Mexico are Colorado’s largest trading partners, and an updated, fair agreement would continue to drive sustainable growth and greater economic prosperity that benefits business owners, workers, and all Coloradans.

“Maintaining a strong and beneficial trilateral partnership with Canada and Mexico is critical to many Colorado businesses that have built relationships and strong business ties with our North American neighbors,” states Colorado Business Roundtable President, Jeff Wasden. “Our current NAFTA agreement creates jobs, drives economic development & job growth, and benefits consumers. A strong, trilateral partnership among the U.S., Mexico, and Canada is a key driver for expanding trade and economic opportunities, and we implore all three governments to continue to negotiate in good faith until an agreement is reached.”

Ongoing negotiations have led to strengthened intellectual property protections and increased promotion of e-commerce and digital trade in goods and services. We remain concerned about reported provisions that would weaken investment protections, limit access to dispute settlement procedures, and would require a sunset clause.

Business Roundtable believes forfeiting this three-nation partnership would destabilize North American supply chains, jeopardize U.S. jobs and undermine economic growth.

How social media marketing helps small businesses

By: Iffat Tafseer

Social media marketing helps build your brand and drive revenue. Brands that neglect social media can crumble!

Social media marketing is a tool to elevate your business by approaching directly to your potential customers. It is a conductive way to drive significant traffic towards your website.  It extends the road to link building, engage traffic, improves your brand awareness, promotes your brand to a considerable extent and builds an honest relationship with the customers. 

Today, about 82 percent of small business owners are using social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Instagram to leverage their businesses. According to a survey conducted by Hubspot, the statistics show that 92% of marketers think that social media marketing is imperative for their business and bring about an increased 80% traffic to their websites.  Social media has now become a standard way of communicating for individuals as well as businesses. According to eMarketer, the Customers spend 20% to 40% more on products to those companies who engage with them on social media.

Let’s dive more into it and get to know how social media marketing is helping small businesses to earn massive revenues.

· Boosts brand recognition

To make your business Standout in the competent digital market is the most laborious task these days. Social media helps you in bringing your distinct identity on the internet. It is a powerful networking tool that aid in building brand awareness. According to a study conducted by Social media today, it was found that about 83% of customers connect to the brand on Facebook while 53% on Twitter. Social media networks help broadcast your brand’s voice and content to your target audience thus elevating your brand's identity.

· Improve brand loyalty

Apart from offering discount coupons to your customers in developing your brand’s reliability, social media marketing is the next milestone to achieve. Make loyal customers by reaching them via social networking platforms. A report published by Texas Tech University revealed that brands that are active on social media channels could engage more customers and enjoy greater loyalty from them. When you engage the public on social media, you will build connection and rapport by providing useful information, entertainment, and help your followers without asking for anything in return. In this way, you will gain the trust of your customer, and they start considering you as an entity that cares about them which can make a huge difference in a competitive market.

· Build connections with like-minded business professionals

Building better relations is very important in this social media world. Whether you are LinkedIn building your professional network or responding to your tweets, it’s imperative to manage some time to connect with like-minded professionals. But, how will you do that? I have got an idea. Create the content you want and set it up for the whole week. Pop onto social media 15 minutes in the morning and at night to respond to comments and reach out to like-minded business professionals. It will allow you to make reliable connections.

· Amplify sales and generate leads

Sales are incredibly vital to the growth of any business. The sales process begins with getting to know your buyers and building strong relationships with them. Social media is an ideal platform to create new, trusting relationships with your potential customers. If you execute them well, your social media page will elevate your sales and give you a better shot at gaining your customer's attention. Moreover, social media can help you collect more leads and improve your e-mail list. Publishing and posting relevant content to both your brand and audience is a way to generate new leads and illustrate what your business has to offer.

Social media marketing has now become the basic necessity to run a successful business. If you are not active on social media platforms, then you will hardly survive in this competent digital world.

Stay updated!

Author’s bio:

Iffat Tafseer is a computer system engineer. She works as a content writer at Perks logic for a site PennySaviour. She has many of her blogs published on divergent topics including Tech, lifestyle and traveling.

Colorado’s Wildfire Season Places Spotlight on Mobile Connectivity

This summer’s wildfire season in Colorado continues to place a spotlight on the state’s communications infrastructure and the need for consistent, capable and reliable networks.  As residents and first responders have found time and again, dependable connectivity via mobile device is the key to more reliable emergency response. Whether it’s calling for help or sending evacuation alerts, all-clear signals and traffic advisories, mobile networks have proven essential to sharing critical safety information efficiently. 

Over the past decade, mobile connectivity has become paramount to public safety, specifically disaster mitigation and response. Today, 80 percent of 911 calls to police, firefighters, and other first responders are initiated on mobile phones. Further, “mobile alerts” have become the default method for first responders to notify the public of critical real-time safety information – these alerts are now utilized for everything from active shooter to weather to missing child emergencies.

The most obvious example of connectivity being at the heart of emergency service is the Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) system, which enables government officials to target emergency alerts to specific geographic areas – Denver’s LoDo, for example. Since its launch in 2012, the WEA system has been used more than 33,000 times nationwide to alert Americans of potential dangerous situation via mobile phone.

It’s no secret that the demand for mobile connectivity is growing exponentially in Denver and across the Unites States.  According the Centers for Disease Control, over half of American households are wireless only and the average household has 13 connected devices – and this is just the tip of the iceberg. As smartphones, tablets, and wearable devices become more advanced and new technologies like 5G enable lightning-fast data speeds, the appetite for mobile will only continue to grow. According to Cisco, in North America alone mobile data traffic will reach 6.4 Exabytes per month by 2021 (the equivalent of 1,599 million DVDs each month).

Understanding the reality that we are only going to become increasingly reliant on mobile connectivity for safety, the natural question becomes, what must be done to ensure these systems don’t fail? While there is no silver bullet to make these systems fail-proof, there are common sense upgrades to our communications infrastructure that must take place to minimize the likelihood of a breakdown.

To deal with the increased data traffic, we must modernize our existing infrastructure to handle more capacity by supplementing existing infrastructure with small antenna or nodes known as small cell solutions or just “small cells” for short. Small cells are exactly what they sound like, small low powered antennas located near the end user, usually on a utility pole or streetlight, that add much needed capacity to our existing networks.

While small cell networks will certainly make videos, texts and games download faster which has broad economic implications, the real value of creating a robust and resilient wireless network is in times of crisis. The ability to call for help or to reach a loved one to make sure they are safe during a disaster is unquantifiable.

A recent example of small cells at work during in a disaster can be found in Houston, Texas. Houston upgraded the city’s wireless infrastructure for the February, 2017 Super Bowl, however that network also helped with emergency communications just seven months later when Hurricane Harvey hit the city. Metrics show that the long-term investments in permanent infrastructure improvements made by the wireless industry increased both network resiliency and performance.

The good news is that companies are already deploying small cell infrastructure in Denver. Major wireless carriers and communication infrastructure companies alike are deploying nodes across the city.

Another benefit of small cell infrastructure upgrades is the technology will serve as the backbone for future networks such as 5G, which promise to turn innovations including IoT (the Internet of Things), autonomous vehicles, and citywide data sharing into reality.

Finding better ways to employ mobile technology that ensures Coloradoans remain safe during an emergency needs to be a top priority for our community leaders. But we need the infrastructure to take advantage of that. Our communities deserve access to the best communication tools available when they need it the most.

Dan McVaugh

President, Colorado Wireless Association

Mindfulness May Be the Answer to Help Lower Employee Stress and Improve Productivity

By Sandra Crews, Health Strategist, UnitedHealthcare of Colorado

In the workplace, a modest amount of stress can be normal. But sustained levels of stress can be harmful and may lead to numerous health issues, affect professional and family relationships, and contribute to poor work performance.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “40 percent of workers say that their jobs are very stressful, and more than 26 percent say they are ‘often burned out or stressed’ by their work.”

According to United Health Foundation’s most recent America’s Health Rankings, people living in Colorado experience between 3.5 and 3.6 poor mental health days each month. That’s the number of days in which an adult reports that their overall mental health was not good and during which they may not be able to fully participate in work or other activities.

Balancing work, family life, and financial and health concerns may be taxing for many employees; however, according to a recent UnitedHealthcare survey, almost 90 percent of employees said meditation, or mindfulness, has a positive impact on a person's overall health and well-being, including 41 percent who believe such activities can have a “significant impact.”

Employers that foster a workplace culture that prioritizes well-being, including mindfulness programs, can help their employees cope with challenging times whether at work or at home that may lower stress, reduce health risks, improve health decisions and focus, and sense of well-being. 

ABC’s of Mindfulness

“Mindfulness” is the practice of being fully present in each moment with an open and curious attitude. To some, mindfulness is a hard topic to grasp, but the goal of mindfulness can be very simple. Just imagine a workplace filled with positive energy, where working relationships and communications are optimized, and challenging situations and distractions give way to focus and self-awareness. These are some of the goals of mindfulness programs.

With practice, mindfulness may free employees of habitual patterns of thinking, judging, feeling and acting, and may help them perform better, ignore distractions, and make better decisions throughout the day. 

For example, the following “mindful breaths” exercise may be helpful, especially when noticing that twinge of tightness, anxiety or stress many of us experience during the day:

·       Step 1: Bring awareness to your body and the sense of the natural breath in the body.

·       Step 2: Inhale through the nose, and exhale either through the nostrils or through the mouth as if breathing out through a straw.

·       Step 3: Repeat the inhale, and then the exhale. Notice the air entering the body, the pause after the in-breath, and the air leaving the body on the outbreath. 

·       Step 4: One more time – slowly inhaling, and then slowly exhaling.

Mindfulness can be practiced while sitting in a quiet place, while walking, or even during normal workplace activities, such as attending a meeting or replying to an e-mail. When distractions come into mind, practicing this technique may help people let those distractions go and come back to the present moment.

Employees are not the only ones who may benefit from a mindfulness program. Employers also may benefit by experiencing more productivity, with an enhanced sense of culture and connectedness that can drive more creativity and innovation while reducing absenteeism, burnout and turnover.

Following a solid body of research by universities and institutions, mindfulness programs are now offered by some health plans, including UnitedHealthcare, and medical centers, hospitals, schools and businesses. 

For more information about employee well-being programs, visit UHC.com.

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Summer is here, but are you staying "sun safe?"

 
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Written by Sasha Campbell and Susan Barney

Summer 2018 is well underway, and we can imagine many of our fellow Coloradans are taking advantage of the beautiful weather and longer days by engaging in a variety of outdoor activities and attending myriad local festivals. While everyone is out enjoying the sunshine, however, it is important to ensure your skin is properly protected – especially given our community’s higher altitude and average UV index of 9. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, a UV index of 9 poses a “very high risk of harm from unprotected skin exposure.” [i]

That is why we want to provide our neighbors with the following tips to ensure you stay “sun safe” all summer long:

  • Use Sun Protection Daily with SPF 30: Given the higher altitude and UV index, Denver residents should use sun protection of at least SPF 30 every day, making sure to apply at least 30 minutes prior to sun exposure and reapplying every two hours thereafter. For use in daily creams, products with SPF 15 to SPF 30 are ideal for protecting your skin. For parents, you may want to consider sunscreen spray to protect your child. If possible, try to minimize exposure to the sun between 10:00am and 4:00pm given the high UV index.
  • Speak with Your Pharmacist About Skin Sensitivity: It should be noted that certain medications, like some antibiotics, antidepressants and antihistamines can increase the skin’s sensitivity to the sun. Be sure to speak with your pharmacist about additional precautions you may need to take to ensure your skin is properly protected in the sun if you’re taking certain medications.
  • Apply Water-Resistant Sunblock for Outdoor Activities: If you participate in a high-intensity outdoor activity like biking or running where you’ll be sweating excessively, use a sunblock that is water-resistant. In general, look for products that include ingredients such as zinc and titanium in mineral-based sunscreens, and avobenzene, homosalate, and octisalate in chemical-based sunscreens.
  • Treat Sunburn with Aloe and Healthy Hydration: If you do get a sunburn, get out of the sun immediately. Drink plenty of water to keep your body hydrated, take a cool bath, and blot your skin dry. Then apply an aloe-based gel to help cool and ease the painful burning of the skin. There are also cooling sprays available to help moisturize your skin. If your skin is severely blistered, seek help from a medical professional
  • Avoid Exfoliating Products to Prevent Skin Infections: As a sunburn begins to heal, the skin will begin to peel. During this time, avoid any exfoliating products, gloves, puffs and wash cloths, which can carry bacteria or mold and potentially cause skin infections. To keep your skin moisturized, use gel-based moisturizers and hydrating mists. Ultimately, patience is the name of the game – you need to allow time for your skin heal. During this time, it’s best to avoid re-exposure to the sun over extended periods of time. 

Ultra Violet rays can be very damaging to the skin if proper precautions are not taken. In as little as 10 minutes, UV rays can cause skin to redden, lose moisture and thicken. Prolonged exposure to the sun can lead to permanent changes in skin pigment and even some forms of cancer. Remember to protect your skin with SPF every time you go outside and you’ll be “sun safe” the entire summer.

Sasha Campbell, Walgreens Beauty Consultant in Highlands Ranch

Susan Barney, Walgreens Pharmacist in Highlands Ranch

Walgreens, a trusted provider in communities since 1901, has joined The Skin Cancer Foundation on the road this year in support of its Destination: Healthy Skin mobile education program – a national effort to educate consumers about the importance of effective sun protection for skin cancer prevention, and the importance of early detection. During the nationwide tour, consumers will have the opportunity to enter an innovative, customized RV with private exam rooms where trained dermatologists will provide FREE full-body skin cancer screenings. The RV will be in Denver Tuesday, July 17 and Wednesday, July 18. For more information on Destination: Healthy Skin visit: https://www.destinationhealthyskin.org/tour-schedule/    

[i] Sun Safety Monthly Average UV Index, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Last accessed: July 10, 2018. https://www.epa.gov/sunsafety/sun-safety-monthly-average-uv-index#tab-7.