Happy 2021. And welcome to our transformed weekly Sit Rep.

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Welcome to our transformed weekly Sit Rep.  Moving forward, I’d like to stay better connected on the topics I think most impactful to the Chamber community, and on news items I think our members will find interesting.  We don’t get to talk as much as we like, so let’s check in. After all, It’s Our Business!
At the Table today….

We are in a season of strange dichotomies. Some companies had a fabulous 2020; others will not recover. More people voted in the 2020 election than ever before, and yet we have seen insurrection. No matter the topic, the battle is not yet won. 2021 will be a year of transition, no doubt.

McKinsey’s analysis of the Next Normal ahead is linked below in the Economics section; I found it to be a fascinating read about the trends that will shape our near-term future. Among them: pent-up demand to re-engage, get out, spend; wave of innovation and entrepreneurs/new businesses; digital nature of work and productivity will remain; supply chains with more sophisticated risk management, moving from “just in time” to “just in case.” Take the time to read the report; you’ll find yourself in there somewhere.​

See you in the trenches,
B

 

• PPP is open to all participating lenders. If you are seeking a lender, they can find one on this PPP Lender Lookup Map or via Lender Match.
  
  New state tool launched to connect all Minnesotans to COVID-19 vaccines: COVID-19 Vaccine Connector: COVID-19 Vaccine Connector
  
  Vaccine Info Hub: Minnesota Department of Health’s COVID-19 Vaccine information hub
  
  Governor Walz Executive Order 21-07 is the next, albeit small, step towards reopening.
  Click here to read Executive Order 21-07.
  Click here to see updated capacity limits.
  

• Global Economy:  How the COVID-19 crisis and the recovery are shaping the global economy
  
• US Economy:  Fed officials see economy ‘far from’ where it needs to be, meaning easy policy won’t change soon, minutes show
  
• Minnesota Home Sales Up 16.2 Percent
  
• Twin Cities banking experts don’t predict a quick return to offices​

• First Committee Deadline – Friday, March 12th – Policy bills must pass all relevant policy committees in one body or the other to remain alive
• Second Committee Deadline – Friday, March 19th – Policy bills must pass all relevant policy committees in the other body to remain alive
• Easter/Passover Break – Close of business on Friday, March 26th through Monday, April 5th. Legislators go home to their districts for this break (or, this year, they stay home, as it were), and there are no committee hearings or floor sessions, though work behind-the-scenes continues
• Third Committee Deadline – Friday, April 9th – all major appropriations/finance bills and tax bills must pass out of the Finance/Ways & Means and Tax Committees
• Adjournment of the regular 2021 session – Monday, May 17th
  
  View our 2/18 Public Affairs Newsletter for details on the following bills we are following
  • PPP taxing conformity
  • Election of Met Council members
  • Preemption
  • Assignment of transportation and public safety costs
    

• An Exit Interview with Doug Baker
  
  
• Toni Carter’s measured diplomacy credited for major Ramsey County reforms
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• MSPBJ Executive of the Year: Andrea Walsh, HealthPartners

• Be a mentor, not tormentor as a business leader
  
  
• How to Lead When Your Team Is Exhausted — and You Are, Too (hbr.org)
  
  
• U.S. Bank pledges $25 million to back minority entrepreneurs
  
  

• Projects to watch in 2021 (including Highland Bridge, STEAM at UST, and Riversedge downtown St. Paul)
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• Medical Alley to launch initiative for growing startups
  

• St. Paul Chamber rebrands, launches equity collaborative