Growing Together

Alex Ogburn

Chairman of the Board, Cape Chamber

Colleagues,

A few years ago, I was introduced to the book “It’s the Manager, Moving from Boss to Coach”’ by Jim Clifton and Jim Harter. Since reading the book, I have followed the employee engagement data periodically updated by the Gallup organization. Engagement includes how an employee feels committed and identifies with their organization and the degree to which they are satisfied and energized in their work. Engaged employees, as you would expect, perform better, and are retained longer in their organizations. The most recent research reveals the following:



• 30% of U.S. employees were highly engaged, down from 33% last year
• The U.S. now has a ratio of 1.8 engaged employees for every actively disengaged employee (17%)
• U.S. employees are increasingly detached from their employers, with the workforce reporting less role clarity, lower satisfaction with their organizations and less connection to their companies’ mission or purpose. Employees were also less likely to feel someone at work cares about them. (1)

Gallup research has a global reach, with decades of amassed data. They note the best performing organizations have engagement rates twice the average of their peers, meaning they have employees who have “higher wellbeing, better retention, lower absenteeism and higher productivity” (2).

The correlation between organizational high performance and high employee engagement matters. Sound leadership, role clarity, goal clarity, opportunities for development, identification with mission, the sense of support and a variety of other key drivers are involved engagement. Understanding our national trends and those within your own organization matter. If human capital is our greatest asset, fostering a culture of engagement is more critical than ever. As with most critical functions, we can plan to succeed or fail through failing to plan.

Chamber Chat

Rob Gilligan

President & CEO, Cape Chamber

Developing Talent:

At the end of April, the Cape Chamber hosted our second signature event of the year with the Young Professionals of Cape Area (YPC) Summit presented by Wood & Huston Bank. With 130 attendees for this year’s event, Scout Hall was truly a packed house with eager professionals from throughout Southeast Missouri engaged in a variety of ways. The combination of professional development programs, networking, and general inspiration for the attendees was met with great reviews and excitement for upcoming opportunities to connect and grow. Special recognition should be given to the YPC Committee that worked to plan and support the event and Maggie Piper, Marketing and Communications Specialist for the Cape Chamber, who helped orchestrate and manage the event.

Other opportunities for developing and growing our talent continue to happen through a variety of programs and activities of the Cape Chamber. The 2024 Class of Leadership Cape is well underway, as they spend their fourth session together at Communicating in Cape today. This year, the Leadership Development committee has made changes to the program that gave our participants an opportunity to work on projects that were specifically focused on supporting the work of some of our Not-For-Profit organization in our membership. At the September First Friday Coffee our members will get a chance to hear about that work and the impact they can make on our community.

Our women’s networking committee hosted a Lunch and Learn event at the Cape Public Schools CTC last week that gave attendees an opportunity to hear from a panel of experts on financial health and wellness. This sold-out event continues a trend of increased engagement and participation from our members that helps to increase the value and Return on Investment for your support in the Chamber.

I wanted to take this opportunity to highlight the recent activity of our organization, specifically around our Strategic Objective of developing People and Talent. Our goal as a member organization is to respond to the priorities and needs of our members to support their continued growth and success, which in turn, leads to growth and success for Cape Girardeau and Southeast Missouri. Your engagement, feedback, and participation in our events and activities helps us to continue to improve and evolve our work to best serve you. Please be sure to reach out with any questions, concerns, or ideas of how the Cape Chamber can best support our community and region.

Let's Grow!

Tourism Talk

Brenda Newbern

Executive Director, Visit Cape 

Tourism! One of the largest and most dynamic industries in the world. It is something millions of people do across the world for leisure, business, and various other reasons. The industry has an economic impact that has been increasing in growth over the years. The impact on the global economy and its aspects are varied by group, individual, family and just a single getaway; it is a wide range of categories that make it such a unique and important industry. There is the need for structures and places like Fort D, Conservation Nature Center, and Sportsplex and yet the natural amenities like the Mississippi river and trails at the Shawnee Trails, Maple Hollow, and Trail of Tears all are such important tourism assets. How we utilize the things that are available in our community is truly up to us.

There are several major airlines that have reported an increase in business travel bookings. The business travel from corporate travel managers shows that 40% of them reported a complete bounce back! Let’s have that sales meeting for the region right here in Cape Girardeau. Host the annual conference. Stanley Morgan research stated that they want to meet in person.

What cultural experiences are we offering in the area of music performances, heritage days, local cuisine, wellness retreats the list can go on…. Once things are in place and the platform is set to share the experience and allow for the emotional experience to happen in a most organic way. That is what makes the visit memorable and something that will be shared with friends, family and often a stranger in general conversation about travel. When the tangible and intangible are engaged the key to why we all travel is more meaningful, and the door is unlocked.

Let’s do all that we can to offer those visiting Cape activities so they will find themselves immersed in the area and have an experience that creates lasting memories. Imagine something as simple as a mural walk along the Mississippi river and just sitting there indulging in their favorite flavor of ice cream you just got from a nostalgic restaurant window, and it takes you to a time long forgotten! It can be an experience that will last a lifetime one never knows!