VENTURA, CALIF. (May 14, 2012)–The Workforce Investment Board (WIB) of Ventura County announced the addition of four new members to the board. They were officially appointed by the Ventura County Board of Supervisors on April 24.

Joining the board are Sandra Werner, director of human resources and employee health for Simi Valley Hospital, Tavi Udrea, director of human resources operations at Haas Automation, Inc. in Oxnard, Kimberly Collins Nilsson, president and owner of Solid Waste Solutions, Inc. in Thousand Oaks and Carla Castilla, government relations political coordinator for Service Employees International Union Local 721 in Ventura.

Werner is also a member of the WIB Allied Health Committee. “Our efforts on the committee are to find out what needs to be done in education so students are prepared for county health-related jobs,” says Werner. “As a WIB board member, I hope to continue this work. It’s important for the community to seek ways to sustain itself by keeping its citizens working.”

“Our new board members come from the business and labor sectors. As part of their jobs, all address workforce issues every day,” says Alex Rivera, WIB chair. “We welcome the high level of expertise and dedication they bring to the board.”

“Business and labor must work together to get the economy and employment rolling again,” says Cheryl Moore, WIB executive director. “Fortunately, our board members believe strongly in this type of collaboration as they work together to find solutions to workforce issues.”

Members of the WIB include leaders from business, economic development, education, labor, government and community-based organizations.

About the Workforce Investment Board

The Workforce Investment Board administers federal funds that help to support Job & Career Centers (JCCs) and other adult, youth, and employer programs and services in Ventura County. With additional resources from the County of Ventura Human Services Agency, the JCCs provide employment assistance, career training and education services to job seekers, and employee recruitment, customized training and employer consulting to local businesses. JCC services are provided at no cost to job seekers and employers. For more information, call 800-500-7705 or visit www.wib.ventura.org.

]]> http://www.vceda.org/2012/05/workforce-investment-board-of-ventura-county-adds-four-members/feed/ 0 http://www.vceda.org/2012/05/ventura-county-star-military-expo-touches-on-range-of-issues/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ventura-county-star-military-expo-touches-on-range-of-issues http://www.vceda.org/2012/05/ventura-county-star-military-expo-touches-on-range-of-issues/#comments Mon, 14 May 2012 17:10:12 +0000 diane http://www.vceda.org/?p=1608

By Rachel McGrath
May 8, 2012

Dennis Biddick, deputy assistant secretary of the Navy, on Tuesday emphasized the need for total force integration that brings together military personnel, reserves, civilian employees and contractors in a more efficient system.

With the end of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, he noted that a new baseline is
being drawn. He made the observation during his keynote speech at the fifth annual
Military Business and Community Expo in Camarillo.

“The resources we’ve consumed over the last decade are not sustainable,” said
Biddick, a former Seabee who helped oversee the formation of Naval Base Ventura
County. “We are definitely an effective fighting force. Now we must do it efficiently,
as well.

“The challenge now is to create the right tools and systems and end processes so we
can make timely and effective decisions for our workforce.” Biddick said innovation is key to the future of the Navy and to creating a leaner structure and retaining talent. “Insourcing is also something we are doing now and bringing stuff back in-house,” he said. “We’re under tremendous pressure to reduce the size of our service contract workload. But we have to do it hopefully in a smart way.”
The expo and job fair, held at the Ventura County Office of Education Conference
Center, featured a number of presentations, as well as exhibitors and military booths.
The event was sponsored by the Ventura County Economic Development
Association, TRIAD, the Consortium for National Defense, Security and Disaster
Preparedness, and the Regional Defense Partnership for the 21st Century.

Bill Buratto, president and CEO of the association, said he hoped attendees would
learn about new military strategies and “where Naval Base Ventura County fits into
the future of national defense. We think there’s a broader role Naval Base Ventura
County can play in future security.”

Break-out sessions included information on how to become a Navy contractor, how to
get a job on the base and ways to go about offering employment to military
job seekers.

© 2012 Scripps Newspaper Group — Online

Oxnard, Calif.–(May 9, 2012)–Laura S. Withrow Esq., Employment Law Partner at Nordman Cormany Hair & Compton, LLP, will be interviewed on “The Stars of P.R. with Cindy Rakowitz” on Thursday morning, May 10, 2012, at 7:00 a.m. PST. The show airs live on the VoiceAmerica Variety Channel and can be accessed on-line at http://www.voiceamerica.com/show/971/stars-of-pr

Ms. Withrow will discuss the significance of the recent California Supreme Court decision in Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court, the importance of devising a comprehensive Employee Handbook for crisis prevention, and social media in the workplace.

The show will be uploaded and archived 24 hours after the live broadcast, so if you miss it on Thursday morning, tune in thereafter, or download the broadcast from iTunes.

Please tune in for an informative and entertaining discussion.

Laura S. Withrow is an Employment Law Partner at the law firm of Nordman Cormany Hair & Compton LLP -www.nchc.com

Representatives of Harrison Industries, Agromin, Albertsons and the City of Ventura's Environmental Sustainability Division at the opening of the pilot food waste program

Oxnard, Calif. (May 9, 2012)–Harrison Industries and Agromin have joined forces with the Albertsons supermarket chain in a pilot program that will all but eliminate food waste at its Ventura and Camarillo stores.

Previously, food scraps from Albertsons’ meat, produce, deli, dairy, bakery and floral departments ended up in the trash. Since early April, Harrison has delivered special barrels to all departments at the Ventura store that its employees will fill with everything from meat fat and bones to pineapple tops and corn husks. The same goes for liquid food wastes like yogurt, cottage cheese and mayonnaise; bread and baked goods; and eggs and dairy products.

Albertsons will continue to donate recoverable food to feed the hungry through its Food Rescue program.

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, Harrison trucks collect the food waste and deliver it to Agromin, an Oxnard-based organics recovery company. Employing a Covered Aerated Static Pile System, Agromin mixes the food waste with yard waste that Harrison collects from its residential and commercial customers to create an enriched compost and alternate fuel.

The food waste program began at the Albertsons store in Camarillo on April 30.

Symposium highlights businesses solving environmental and community problems

Camarillo, Calif. (May 7, 2012)–CSU Channel Islands (CI) will host a symposium examining how businesses can help solve environmental and community problems on Thursday, May 31, from 7:30 a.m. to noon in Malibu Hall.

The event, “Emerging Business Models for Social and Environmental Sustainability,” is a joint presentation of the California Institute for Social Business (CISB) at CI and CAUSE (Coastal Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy) Triple Bottom Line Business Network.  The two organizations are working together to educate the business community about the benefits of social business – often described as “enlightened capitalism” – which emphasizes the importance of social and environmental sustainability in achieving profit and financial goals.

The symposium will highlight groundbreaking examples of social business and offer new and existing businesses insight into how they can use the power of business to alleviate problems in our community and environment.  Participants will have the opportunity to learn about cutting-edge social business models and engage with panelists and other participants.  Speakers from Patagonia, B Corporation, Grameen Caldas, Montecito Bank and Trust, Women’s Economic Ventures, CAUSE TBL Network, and the CISB will be featured.

Participants may register online at http://causenow.org/.  Registration before May 15 is $30 and includes parking and continental breakfast.  After May 15, the cost is $40.  Sponsors include CI’s MVS School of Business & Economics, David M. Angress, B&B Premium Ins. Solutions, Inc., the City of Ventura, EDC-VC, Hacia Salud Health Insurance Co-Op, Reiter Affiliated Co., USA Staffing, and Women’s Economic Ventures.

CI launched the CISB in 2010 to help promote social business as a way of alleviating social ills such as poverty, environmental degradation, gaps in health care and education.  Developed in collaboration with Nobel Prize-winning Professor Muhammad Yunus, the CISB addresses the need for students to participate in local and global experiences and learn new methods to address serious social problems.

“We’re working to get local business owners to realize that their businesses are unsustainable if they don’t exist in ways that renew human and environmental resources,” said CISB Faculty Director Dr. Andrea Grove.  “At CISB, we want to bring sustainability to the creation of social good.  This symposium will educate students and the broader community about tools with which to do so.”

For more information on the CISB, visit http://socialbusiness.csuci.edu or contact Dr. Grove at 805-437-3124 or andrea.grove@csuci.edu.  For more information on CAUSE, visit http://www.causenow.org.

Agromin's Greg Jackson

Oxnard, Calif. (May 2, 2012)–Greg Jackson has been named Southern California Sales Manager for Agromin, one of California’s largest producers and distributors of bulk and packaged mulch, compost and value-added specialty organic products.  In this newly-created position, Jackson is responsible for establishing and growing Agromin’s name presence and customer base in southern California counties including  Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino. Jackson is based in Agromin’s Huntington Beach office.

In 2011, Agromin processed over 385,000 tons of organic material and distributed the resulting soil products to growers, landscapers and consumers throughout California. In his position, Jackson is reaching out to businesses and governmental entities needing soil products including landscape supply yards, nurseries, landscape contractors, cities, parks and recreation districts, school districts, golf courses, Cal Trans and agriculture.

Jackson was previously product sales manager with Synagro Composting Company of California where he was a member of a team headed by current Agromin Vice-President of Sales Tom Kelley that effectively marketed, sold and distributed 550,000 cubic yards of recycled organic material annually in Southern California. As Synagro’s government liaison, he helped establish procedures and agreements with cities and school districts for adopting compost use programs.

Jackson has over 40 years of direct sales experience, beginning at the young age of eight when he sold flowers . Today he is a dedicated gardener with more than 50 fruit trees in his yard. “Greg’s sales experience and appreciation for gardening and the soil from which all things grow makes him an excellent advocate for Agromin products,” says Bill Camarillo, Agromin CEO.

Contact Jackson directly at greg@agromin.com or 714-475-8672.

Camarillo, Calif. (May 2, 2012)–When the Ventura County Lodging Association (VCLA) formed to bring business and leisure travelers to the cities of Camarillo, Oxnard and Ventura, it knew it would first have to “brand” the area as an attractive destination spot since its research showed most travelers  typically drive through the area without stopping on their way to and from other tourist locations. For guidance, it turned to theAgency, a Camarillo advertising agency whose experience includes the extensively researched and compatible “Ventura County Grows Business” economic development initiative. theAgency branded the three cities with the theme “VenturaCountyWest–Inspiring Choices.”

A critical element of the branding effort was the VCLA website. theAgency had a vision for the website that included the elements of the best destination sites while solving the challenge of combining three diverse areas into one cohesive and alluring location. SOHO Prospecting was brought in by theAgency to create a website that was not only eye-catching, but also easy-to-navigate and well organized, allowing visitors to quickly get the information they need.  There was a catch, however: the site had to be built in six weeks, a challenge that might have made most web companies balk, but not theAgency/SOHO team.

VCLA Chairman Victor Dollar was impressed, “In our industry, every regional destination has to do their very best to attract visitors to resorts and hotels. Ventura County West is no different.  This project had a tight budget and a very tight schedule that our original vendor was not able to accommodate, but SOHO Prospecting leapt into the breach and executed theAgency’s design within six weeks start to finish.”

Added president of theAgency, Heidi Hayes, who worked closely with SOHO to implement the design and made sure it stayed true to the brand, “The web development team at SOHO Prospecting was a pleasure to work even with the time pressures. The end result matched our vision for VenturaCountyWest.com.”

About theAgency

Founded in 1989, theAgency is full-service advertising agency, providing in-house creative, branding, research, media and public relations services to both private and public sector clients. For more information on theAgency’s services, call 805.383-4550 or visit www.agency2.com.

About SOHO Prospecting

Dale DeHart founded SOHO Prospecting in 2001 after more than 25 years in management at several private and publicly traded companies. SOHO Prospectng provides internet marketing, search engine optimization, and web design, among other services  for various clients in Ventura County and Southern California. For more information, call (805) 482-2170, or visit www.sohoprospecting.com.

Camarillo, Calif. (May 1, 2012)–Ventura County entrepreneurs have a host of free workshops they can attend hosted by the Economic Development Collaborative-Ventura County’s Small Business Development Center of Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties. All workshops are held at EDC-VC, 1601 Carmen Dr., Ste. 215, Camarillo.

Introduction to International Importing and Exporting is presented by SBDC director Ray Bowman and is a practical introduction to the business basics of importing and exporting. The next workshop will be 3-5 p.m., May 16 and will be offered the third Wednesday of each month.

Consultant Support Group is presented by SBDC advisor Joe Huggins and is an ongoing group for established consultants and those who are interested in entering the field. The next workshop will be 8:30-9:30 a.m., May 18 and meets the third Friday of each month.

Entrepreneurial Academy, also presented by Huggins, is an introduction to the entrepreneurial mindset, the planning stages, products and pricing, marketing practices, managing sales, operations and HR, legal considerations, financing and funding sources. Pre-approval is required for participation. The next workshop is 1-3 p.m., May 18 and will meet the third Friday of each month.

Starting a Small Business Workshop is a monthly workshop presented by SBDC advisor Mary Anne Rooney and is an overview of the steps needed to establish a business. The next workshop will be 3-5 p.m., May 21.

Introduction to International Shipping and Logistics is presented by Bowman and is a basic overview of international logistics, including definitions, regulations, documentations, transportation, warehousing and pricing, as well as emerging issues in today’s economy. The next workshop is 3-5 p.m., May 23 and will be offered the fourth Wednesday of each month.

To register or for more information, contact EDC-VC at 805-384-1800 x21 or kelly.noble@edc-vc.com.

Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Reserve Affairs Dennis Biddick

Camarillo, Calif. (April 30, 2012)–Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Reserve Affairs Dennis Biddick will be the keynote speaker at the 5th Annual Military Business & Community Expo, May 8, at the Ventura County Office of Education Conference Center (5100 Adolfo Rd., Camarillo). As part of his duties, Biddick is principal advisor on policy and program matters relating to Navy and Marine Corps Reserve personnel and programs. He oversees manpower and personnel issues that impact the balance between the military, civilians and contractors.

Biddick has roots in Ventura County. In the mid-1990s, he was executive officer for the Naval Construction Battalion Center at Port Hueneme, heading the efforts to regionalize the installation with Naval Air Station, Port Mugu to eventually form the current Naval Base Ventura County.

Other presentations at the conference include “Your Navy in Ventura County – NBVC” luncheon presentation by Captain Lawrence R. Vasques, United States Navy, commanding officer, Naval Base Ventura County, “How to Become a Navy Contractor”, “Employing Military Job-Seekers,” “Interactive Briefing on Future Training Techniques” and a panel discussion on “The Future of Unmanned Systems: Military and Civilian Uses.” Nearly 30 exhibitors will also be on hand.

The expo is hosted by the Ventura County Economic Development Association (VCEDA),    TRIAD, Santa Barbara & Channel Islands Navy Leagues and the Regional Defense Partnership for the 21^st Century. Sponsors are the Ventura County Community College District, Workforce Investment Board of Ventura County, Ventura County Star, Pacific Coast Business Times and Signs Pacific.

A simultaneous free job fair will feature local employers, staffing services and Navy base employment opportunities. The job fair is designed to align potential candidates to positions open on base and throughout the community. Veterans who are currently looking for employment are encouraged to attend but all job seekers are welcome.  Job fair hours are 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Those who participate can attend a free seminar, “How to Get A Job On Base” from 10:30 a.m. to 11:55 a.m. and again at 1:30 p.m. to 2:55 p.m. The speaker is Ed Vicuna, director of human resources for Naval Base Ventura County.

“The Navy base is Ventura County’s largest employer with over 18,000 military and civilian personnel,” said Bill Buratto, president of VCEDA and chair of the Military Expo Planning Committee. “It also supports thousands of off-base jobs. It plays a critical role in our county’s economy.”
Expo and job fair hours are 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Admission to the expo and conference is $50. Admission includes access to all exhibitors, presentations, workshops and expo continental breakfast and lunch. To register online, go to www.militarybizexpo.com.

Ventura, Calif. (April 24, 2012)–Fausset Neely, Inc has acquired Waters Ridge Tech Center IB, II and III, a three-building, single-story office flex project. The multi-tenant office flex buildings are located within the Waters Ridge Business Park, a 160-acre, master planned office and industrial park in the North Texas suburb of Lewisville, Texas.  The buildings total 199,390 rentable square feet on 16.2 acres and are currently 65 percent occupied.  They reportedly sold for $20.7 million in 2006 and were acquired by a Fausset Neely from a special servicer for $12.25 million.

Counting this purchase, Fausset Neely has invested $30 million to acquire six Texas office properties totaling 671,000 square feet since December 2009.  Since its start in 1992, Fausset Neely has raised over $112 million in capital to acquire 3.425 million square feet of office, industrial and retail space, along with 274 acres of land.  To date, Fausset Neely has sold more than 2.2 million square feet of buildings and 165 acres of land for over $140 million.

Fausset Neely, Inc. is a boutique, full-service real estate investment company based in Ventura, California.  For further information, please contact Dick Fausset at (805) 643-9358, Extension 12.