December 13, 2007
The Chamber is Relocating!
Dear Chamber Member:
With the holidays upon us and our plans for 2008 in the final stages, I wanted to take a moment to brief you on an important logistical announcement. I also want to remind you about our last major program of the year, and update you on a few research reports we will be working on early in 2008.
The Chamber is Relocating!
On January 2, 2008, the Chamber will officially open our new offices at
265 Franklin Street
, 12th Floor. All phones, faxes, and email addresses will remain the same.
Final Program of 2007: AIG CEO Martin Sullivan on Tuesday, December 18.
Martin Sullivan will be the featured speaker at our Leading Industries Executive Forum on Tuesday, December 18, at the Boston Harbor Hotel.
Sullivan is president and CEO of American International Group, Inc. (AIG), the world’s leading global insurance and financial services organization. Just the third CEO in the 88-year history of AIG, Sullivan has brought an open and inclusive management style to the company, and helped quell unease among regulators and investors. He has focused on governance reform and disclosure, transparency, and refining the corporate culture. Sullivan has now refocused one of the world’s
first global companies on international expansion, and is working to open new markets in
China
,
India
,
Russia
, and
Brazil
.
To register for this event, click here.
Also remember to check bostonchamber.com for more information about our outstanding programs throughout 2008.
Research Reports: Financial Services Report Implementation Continues, Gaming and Workforce Studies Planned.
On the research front, we are continuing to implement the recommendations of our financial services report released earlier this year, which Mayor Menino referenced in his speech to the Government Affairs Forum earlier this week. The Chamber’s Financial Services Committee met recently with state Economic Development Secretary Dan O’Connell to discuss permitting, regulatory and workforce strategies outlined in the report. In addition, the Chamber has met recently with
Attorney General Martha Coakley (Executive Committee meeting) and her top deputies (Government Affairs Committee Meeting) on a regulatory reform initiative she and the Governor have launched. We have recommended that financial services regulatory streamlining be a major focus of the initiative, and will work with state officials towards that end.
The casino gaming issue has moved to the forefront of public debate in recent weeks, with the Governor’s proposal to authorize three destination-style resort casinos in
Massachusetts
. This issue has major significance for both the regional and state economies, given the importance of the leisure/visitor industries here as well as trends in other states. To help inform public debate on the issue, the Chamber is commissioning an independent study of the impacts, economic and otherwise, that resort-style casinos would bring to
Massachusetts
. The report will be completed in the first part of 2008.
Workforce development issues continue to be critical to the region’s future economic growth. A working group which includes Chairman Ralph Martin, Workforce Development Committee co-chairs Ann-Marie Levins (Microsoft) and Jim McCaffrey (Mercer), and Executive Committee Members Dr. Joseph Aoun (
Northeastern
University
) and Ted MacLean (Microsoft) has been meeting to discuss strategies for raising worker skills and helping companies meet their personnel needs. As part of this effort, we are planning to conduct a survey of area companies that will map their staffing needs several years out, identify workforce skill gaps, and form the basis of a report which recommends policies to close those gaps.
All of us at the Chamber want to thank you for your support in 2007, and look forward to working with you in 2008. From our organization to yours, have a wonderful holiday season and a Happy New Year!
Paul Guzzi
President & CEO