Archive: Business & Technology

Last Friday community leaders met at Ithaca Country Club to honor this year's Large Employer of the Year and Not-For-Profit of the Year.  This year Borg Warner Morse TEC was named Large Employer of the Year, and Challenge Industries is the 2007 Not-For-Profit of the Year.  "These organizations are quite different, said keynote speaker John Neuman, who is President and C.E.O. of the 1492 Consulting Group and former C.E.O. of eCornell.  "In one respect they really are quite similar, and that is in their values and their commitment to their employees and their communities."

"We're here to honor two great companies," Neuman said.  "They are great in so many ways -- what they have accomplished in their market places, they're great in their relationship and the personal wellbeing to their employees, and they're also great in their contributions to and their involvements in our community."

Chamber Board President David Isles MCed the event, and gave plaques to the recipients.  The first award went to Challenge Industries, which will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year.  The not-for-profit business offers employment and placement to people who face barriers to employment.  Among the services they offer are light assembly and packaging, custodial services, microfilm archiving, digital scanning and film conversion, and mail processing services, as well as employer and participant services.  "It really is a wonderful staff that makes Challenge work," said Challenge Industries President Patrick McKee.  "The range of staff is quite extraordinary."

McKee sketched the history of Challenge Industries. "The change has been great, but we're not stopping," he continued.  "We have a lot of things we're working on for the future.  We hope to have a building project underway.  We're expanding Fingerlakes Fresh -- you'll be able to get some new products and the ones you already love, and we'll be able to employ additional people.  We're adding services.  We're also looking to increase our collaborative efforts with other agencies.  One thing that will not change is our central mission."

McKee also attributed the company's success to community buy-in and the company's investment in the community.  "That is part of our culture," he said.  "In return we see the community invested in us."

Borg Warner was in the news last week because it is investing $47 million to, among other things, create 174 new high paying jobs in their Lansing facility.  The company's headquarters are in Ithaca, and they have two manufacturing plants in Lansing, a Cortland plant.  The company has world wide operations with 64 locations in 17 countries that generated $4.6 billion last year.  They employ over $17,000 workers.  "Giving back to the community is an important piece of the business for Borg Warner," Isles said.  "And give they do."

Vice President of Human Resources Cal Organ was on hand to receive the award.  He recognized Michael Stamm and Tompkins County Area Development (TCAD) for their role in helping Borg Warner grow.  "Our success is largely due to the work that our employees do," he said.  "The vision at Morse Tech is that we link power train performance, environmental responsibility, and driver satisfaction better than anyone in the world, and that we accomplish this as an entrepreneurial and agile global organization that anticipates the changing world."

He noted that if you have a car it probably has at least one of the companies products in it.  "We're dedicated to supporting our communities where we live, work, and operate," he said.  "We're grateful for the recognition that the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce has bestowed upon us."

The next major Chamber of Commerce event is the Chamber Auction on October 25.  Isles says they are hoping to raise about $30,000 to help support the Chamber.

----
v3i40