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This episode of StrictlyBusiness is sponsored by the 2022 Made in Elk Grove Manufacturing & Technology Expo on October 17th. Save the date and make plans to join other innovation forward companies there.

This episode of StrictlyBusiness is sponsored by Shop Elk Grove, a free online resource highlighting and celebrating the restaurants, retailers, and service providers that are woven into our community. Meet Chicago Northwest is the convention and visitors bureau that serves Elk Grove Village as well as seven other communities in Chicago’s Northwest suburbs. President and CEO, Heather Larson, recently joined us on the StrictlyBusiness podcast to discuss a variety of current economic development drivers impacting restaurants, attractions, and the hospitality industry. Learn more about where to eat, shop, play and stay in the area by visiting Meet Chicago Northwest today.

With 41 million square feet and 43% of all the building inventory in the O’Hare area, Elk Grove Village is leading its unprecedented vacancy rates. Once 13% a decade ago, vacancy rates are now under 2%. Find out why when Josh Grodzin sits down with Chad Buch, Brian Carroll, and George Cutro of Jones Lang LaSalle in the first Strictly Business podcast episode of 2022. Their conversation touches on the following topics: -The leading role Elk Grove Village is playing in the all-time low vacancy rates in the O’Hare market. -How the pandemic has created an increased need for warehousing manufactured goods. -The impact of international supply chain issues on regional economic development. -Examples of the public and private sectors working hand-in-hand.

In the 2021 End of Year ‘Strictly Business’ podcast episode, Nick steps in to interview Mayor Craig B. Johnson about the exciting initiatives accomplished during the past year. Mayor Johnson recaps the ways in which the Village helped residents and businesses adjust and adapt to the ongoing pandemic by hosting two vaccination clinics in partnership with Jewel-Osco, two very successful job fairs, and the eighth annual Manufacturing and Technology Expo. Mayor Johnson also talks about Elk Grove’s support of the young workforce through grants to the local high school as well as its global support for three USA Olympics teams competing in Tokyo.

In this ‘Strictly Business’ podcast episode, our hosts Josh and Nick sit down with HR Source CEO Mary Lynn Fayoumi. HR Source has been working with Illinois companies for over 120 years on becoming better employers and an ideal destination for top industry talent. During this conversation, you will hear Mary Lynn talk about what it was like to offer HR services to companies during a pandemic. She also talks about what HR looks like moving forward for those companies who choose to make remote work permanent.

In this episode, Josh speaks with Olympic Gold Medal winner Mike Conley about what it’s like to train for the Olympics, including maintaining the motivation and discipline needed to work towards an event that is years away. Mike also shares stories about his life after sports. As CEO of both MMG Sports Management Group and HTWO, and as a registered NBA agent and represents his son, Utah Jazz Forward Mike Conley Jr., Mike shares the value he finds from his “thinking partners” and why he believes you should always surround yourself with people who are smarter than you are.

In this episode of “Strictly Business,” learn how an accident during a snowstorm led Termico Technologies, specialists in highly versatile heating technology, to discover a life-saving solution. And how a chance encounter with Elk Grove Village made it possible to test out their idea in real life.

Thinking about moving or growing your business? In this episode of “Strictly Business” we talk about why now is the time to make moves in Elk Grove Village. Learn how Elk Grove is helping to lead the post-pandemic recovery and how data centers, like the $123 million Microsoft data center that kicked off construction in Elk Grove in February, are helping to impact that growth. Joining host Josh Grodzin for this episode is: Craig Hurvitz, Senior Director of Industrial Market Research at Colliers, a leading diversified professional services and investment management company with operations in 67 countries. He and Josh dive deep into growth numbers and insights for business leaders to plot their next move to Elk Grove Village.

Mayor Craig B. Johnson, who talks about how Elk Grove took community, experience, and solid foundations from old-fashioned ideals into innovative groundworks. From a Microsoft contract to community support during COVID-19 and Olympic sponsorships—2020 has been a tough year, but it’s not stopping the forward-thinking progress of Elk Grove.

Josh interviews … Justin Mayer, Managing Director at F45 Training in Elk Grove, who discusses the creative ways he and team are keeping Elk Grove moving during the coronavirus pandemic. He offers tips for relieving stress and staying fit and healthy in this era of social distancing. Kyle Burritt, Associate Principal at Elk Grove High School, who talks about the school’s brand new advanced manufacturing lab. Made possible thanks to a $500,000 grant from the Village, the lab is just the latest example of the unique partnership between Elk Grove Village leaders and Township High School D214.

Ask local manufacturers what keeps them up at night and you’ll likely hear: “workforce development.” Kathleen Burley, Executive Director of GCAMP—the Golden Corridor Advanced Manufacturing Partnership—sat down with “Strictly Business” host Josh Grodzin for a thought-provoking discussion about the pressing need to fill manufacturing jobs as workers retire. That includes efforts to “lift up manufacturing and make people understand what it truly is right now.”

Empty store shelves were one of the first, most visible signs that the coronavirus pandemic put a huge strain on global supply chains. Now as U.S. businesses race to increase inventories, there’s a lot of buzz about reshoring. That’s why “Strictly Business” podcast host Josh Grodzin sat down with John Hamilton, Industrial Broker at CBRE Chicago, this month. He talks with John about what he’s hearing from clients across a range of industries. What’s the outlook for the rest of 2020? And what would it take for the Chicago area to meet the needs of a higher-demand market? Tune in to find out.

You won’t want to miss this month’s “Strictly Business” podcast. Jeff Taylor, President of Crafts Technology in Elk Grove, shares a gripping story about how his company got an urgent call from an OEM during the height of the coronavirus pandemic. The OEM had an emergency use authorization. They needed a tool to make a precision medical device part critical for new coronavirus testing kits. And they needed Crafts Technology to manufacture the tool in 3 days—not 14 days, which would be typical.

Min Bowler, principal at Lakeshore Title, teamed up with NLNW Coach Jeff Williams during a growth phase for her business. Working mostly virtually to save time, they made some key changes, and business is now up 30%. Bowler says: “We found it to be a huge success and want to continue to develop our strategies together moving forward.”

Manan Joshi, owner of Country Style Donuts, applied to NLNW and was paired with Coach Sybil Ege, who brought fresh perspective to his business. She evaluated everything from marketing and operations to accounting and more. Calling it a “game-changer and an eye-opener,” Joshi says sales are already up 23% one month after completing the program.

Business leaders are grappling with many emotions during the coronavirus pandemic. The right mindset is everything right now, says John R. Dallas, Jr., Co-Chairman, President and CEO of ENCLAVE Foundation for Entrepreneurs, Inc. in Elk Grove Village. John sat down with “Strictly Business” co-hosts Josh Grodzin and Nick Radcliffe to discuss how the ENCLAVE team is helping entrepreneurs develop new ways of thinking, so they can move through denial and fear to solutions and creativity. Making the shift from playing to win to playing “not to lose” isn’t easy, but it can be done.

Tom Cassell, director of the Harper College Small Business Development Center, provides an overview of coronavirus relief programs available for small businesses. Learn about the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Emergency Advance; the Paycheck Protection Program; the Illinois Small Business Emergency Loan Fund; and SBA Debt Relief among others. Kevin Hundal, CEO of Atrend in Elk Grove Village talks about how, after initially laying off staff, this global manufacturer of audio components was able to bring everyone back to work. Now they’re manufacturing face shields and other personal protective equipment (PPE) that are desperately needed during the coronavirus emergency. Learn how he and his team made it happen.

Elk Grove Village is a founding partner of Next Level Northwest (NLNW), a nonprofit business accelerator that supports businesses in the Northwest Chicagoland region with free business coaching and community support. Blink Tees owners Steve Long and Jeff Staten chat about their experience in the program and how business coaching has helped them grow and work smarter.

Elk Grove Village Mayor Craig Johnson joined Josh Grodzin and Nick Radcliffe for a special episode to recap 2019, an exciting year for our business residents on many fronts. They also discussed some big announcements to start the new year.

Elk Grove aims to be among the first communities in our region to deliver a Village-wide 5G wireless technology network by 2021. The platform will make the future possible: autonomous transportation, diagnostic sensors, robotic communication on the shop floor, and more. On this month’s episode of Strictly Business, Ed Barrett, Senior Director & Practice Leader for Fiber and Broadband Services at HR Green, Inc. explains exactly what 5G is and how it will be a game changer for local companies.