Beatrice and Gage County are home to a diverse group of manufacturing companies, both homegrown and branches of large international firms. These companies are major employers, contributing to the strength of our economy while also creating opportunities for smaller companies and vendors to open up in the county. October wa...Continue Reading

The last several years of corporate site selection have been influenced by many trends. Among these are corporate tax cuts, a red-hot industrial real estate market, the explosion of e-commerce, increasing trade protectionism, record economic growth and, in a stunning reversal, a global health pandemic and recession. It seems th...Continue Reading

While APP involves a modest amount of additional upfront time for planning, the investment pays significant dividends throughout the project — and at the most critical times. Detailed planning is executed in advance, enabling the project team and stakeholders to discuss project objectives, prioritize needs, and examine costs from th...Continue Reading

As corporate decision-makers develop their business strategies for the future, the markets they consider are rapidly changing. This dynamic trend was already in place before the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic as businesses sought to alleviate concentration risk. With the unprecedented impacts on the global economy of the curren...Continue Reading

The global pandemic has upended the labor market and dramatically and suddenly reversed U.S. economic expansion. COVID-19, especially, has caused U.S. manufactures to face unprecedented labor challenges. With COVID-19 and the need for social distancing, these shortages are escalating. Many factories have shuttered to protect workers and prevent COVID-19’s spread. Eve...Continue Reading

Newly dispersed work teams are facing new challenges. During the early months of the global pandemic, more than three-quarters of organizations reported 80 percent or more of their employees were working from home, according to a global survey on workplace re-entry. While workplace mobility isn’t new, the scale of remote work has accelerate...Continue Reading

AD: Will more companies be re-shoring or near-shoring as a result of the global pandemic? Jensen: For certain, most companies are closely examining the options available to them to avoid future supply chain interruptions. Part of the challenge of making a decision on a future sourcing direction is that this story isn’t over...Continue Reading

In times of economic struggle — such as the recession that abruptly arrived with the COVID-19 pandemic — analysts and advocates promote an array of options as effective tools for stimulating the economy. One of the most frequently suggested options is infrastructure spending. Proponents of infrastructure spending during dire economi...Continue Reading

As the coronavirus pandemic disrupted global supply chains, a new report released in April by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) urged the U.S. government to develop a national industrial strategy to strengthen the competitive position of advanced, traded-sector industries that are “too critical to fail.” “Even before this pandemic...Continue Reading

Few implications of the COVID-19 pandemic are as consequential to global manufacturers as disruptions to their supply chains. For many, this is the most consequential by far. Supply chains are always a work in progress as such market variables as transportation costs, tariffs and trade agreements force logistics managers t...Continue Reading

The Brookings Institution hosted a webinar on June 10 titled “Mitigating the Economic Impacts of COVID-19 in Rural Areas.” Moderator Tracy Hadden Loh, a Brookings Institution Fellow, engaged three experts on rural economies in looking back at the pandemic’s effect on two small towns and across rural America, and ho...Continue Reading

Somewhere between your umpteenth Zoom meeting of the month and the latest webinar on the economic impacts of COVID-19, this thought probably crossed your mind: “How long will I be working from home?” While an exact answer to that question still eludes most companies, the effects of remote working are startin...Continue Reading

Beset by the COVID-19 pandemic and its recessionary shocks, companies across the globe are paring workforces at alarming rates. In the United States alone, some 40 million workers had filed jobless claims by the end of May, with the biggest losses occurring in the leisure and hospitality, professional business services...Continue Reading

A gift shop that recently opened in Beatrice’s Mercantile Building is aiming to offer something for everyone. Blue Bulldog opened earlier this year in the building that also houses a clothing boutique, cigar shop and brewery. Owner Kelly DeBoer said the idea to open the store, which offers many locally-sourced items, cam...Continue Reading

Effective hiring and retention practices are key to effective leadership. The reality is that managers that hire well and that are able to keep talented employees produce better results. Replacing employees is time-consuming, expensive, and disruptive. Plus, when an employee leaves, it can impact the entire team and cause a rippl...Continue Reading

Community Players is a live theatre and performing arts organization that draws visitors to Beatrice from 40 different communities.  As a regional entertainment destination, individuals and families come to the theater for their six-show regular season, three-show family/youth series, and additional events throughout the year. “We are a source o...Continue Reading

Generating the support and funding to bring a community betterment project to fruition isn’t easy — splash pads included. But if anybody knows how it’s done, it’s Allen Grell. Born and raised in Beatrice, Grell — retired after 32 years in the Army National Guard — has spent most of hi...Continue Reading

If you or your clients have incentives contracts, now is the time to examine your incentive agreements to understand the potential risks if your company is unable to perform key obligations. The first step in any crisis is to determine exactly what the problem is. Review your incentive agreements to confir...Continue Reading

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the risks inherent in the global supply chain, particularly the worldwide reliance on China for medical supplies. The supply chain turbulence experienced during the pandemic undoubtedly will impact future business decisions, extending beyond medicine to other industries, including electronics, aerospace, automobiles, defense, consumer products, and technology. Incentivizin...Continue Reading

As the U.S. economy begins to dig itself out of a deep hole caused by the COVID-19 crisis, many businesses now face the stark reality of a substantially reduced pool of working capital along with credit lines that will likely not thaw out anytime soon. Yet despite those challenges, retailers...Continue Reading

Governor Pete Ricketts announced Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing Corp., USA; CLAAS Omaha; and Nucor Detailing Center as the recipients of the Developing Youth Talent Initiative (DYTI) grants for 2020.  Launched by the Governor in 2015, DYTI introduces middle school students to careers in industries such as manufacturing, information technology, engineering, an...Continue Reading

What’s still moving forward and what’s not in the pandemic era? You’d think data center growth would be stronger than ever, if only to support the stay-at-home shopping and Zoom calls alone. Read full article.Continue Reading

The year 2020 has undoubtedly been one of the most difficult in recent memory. As the world navigates the coronavirus pandemic, businesses are struggling to find their way in an uncertain environment. In fact, a June survey of 330 U.S. finance leaders by PwC found that many senior managers feel challenged by th...Continue Reading