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Mid-sized metros with the best quality of life
(March 16, 2009) By G. Scott Thomas, BizJournals

They contain only 20 percent of the U.S. population, but mid-sized metropolitan areas can be an appealing alternative to life in the big city. The best of the bunch is Provo, Utah, according to a new bizjournals quality-of-life study. Boulder, Colo., and Madison, Wis., are the runners-up.

America’s 124 mid-sized metros, with populations between 250,000 and 1 million people, have a total of 60 million residents. That puts them in the shadow of the nation’s 51 major metros, those in the million-plus category, which contain 54 percent of all Americans. The study compared the 124 mid-sized metros in 20 statistical categories, using the latest U.S. Census Bureau data. The highest scores went to well-rounded places with healthy economies, light traffic, moderate costs of living, impressive housing stocks and strong educational systems.

These are the top 10 mid-sized metros in terms of quality of life:
1. Provo, Utah
2. Boulder, Colo.
3. Madison, Wis.
4. Bridgeport-Stamford, Conn.
5. Ann Arbor, Mich.
6. Ogden, Utah
7. Fort Collins, Colo.
8. Boise, Idaho
9. Colorado Springs, Colo.
10. Des Moines, Iowa

Provo, which is located 45 miles south of Salt Lake City, earns top marks for its impressive inventory of big homes. Nearly 26 percent of Provo’s houses have nine or more rooms. No other mid-sized metro does better than 20.2 percent. But housing is not Provo’s only strength. The Provo area has enjoyed steady population growth this decade, expanding 31 percent since 2000. Its unemployment rate typically runs two to three points below the national average. And it has a strong educational system, capped by the presence of Brigham Young University.

The runners-up are both college towns, too. Boulder and Madison are respectively the homes of the University of Colorado and the University of Wisconsin. Almost 55 percent of Boulder’s adults have bachelor’s degrees, easily leading all mid-sized metros in that category. Boulder is also noteworthy for its healthy entrepreneurial spirit. Seven percent of its adults are self-employed, twice the national average.

Madison not only has a major university, but also serves as Wisconsin’s state capital, giving it the benefit of a stable and upscale employment base. Forty-four percent of Madison’s workers hold management or professional jobs. The comparable figure for a typical mid-range metro is 33 percent.

The other members of the top 10 took different paths to get there. Profiles of the top 10 mid-sized metros start here.

Bridgeport-Stamford is one of America’s most affluent metros. Its median household income of $80,241 is easily the highest in any mid-sized market.

Ann Arbor, site of the University of Michigan, has the nation’s strongest concentration of adults with master’s, doctoral and professional degrees, 27.7 percent.

Ogden, which is 40 miles north of Salt Lake City, is the only mid-sized metro other than Provo where at least 20 percent of all houses have nine or more rooms.

Fort Collins is another college community, the home of Colorado State University. It’s one of just six mid-sized metros where more than 40 percent of all adults hold bachelor’s degrees.

Boise is one of the fastest-growing places in America, adding 123,000 people since 2000, a growth rate of 26.4 percent. The typical mid-sized metro grew 8.4 percent over the same span.

Colorado Springs has a sizable corps of young adults, giving it a strong foundation for the future. Nearly 30 percent of Colorado Springs’ residents are between the ages of 25 and 44, sixth-best in the mid-range study group.

Des Moines is a joy for commuters fed up with the hassles of big-city traffic. The typical Des Moines adult takes 19.7 minutes to get from home to his or her workplace, compared to more than half an hour in major metros such as New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles.

All 124 markets in the study have been officially classified as metropolitan areas by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. Each mid-sized metro is centered on a city with at least 50,000 residents. Adjacent suburbs and nearby countryside are added to boost the total population into the range of 250,000 to 1 million.

The largest mid-sized metros are Tucson, Ariz., with 967,000 residents; Honolulu, with 906,000; and Tulsa, with 905,000, based on 2007 Census Bureau estimates. At the tail end are Cedar Rapids, Iowa, with 253,000 residents, and Santa Cruz, Calif., with 252,000.

Defy the cold - ride a bike
Register's Editorial, January 30, 2008

The route for the 36th Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa has been announced. Photos in the newspaper from RAGBRAIs past show riders pedaling and smiling and enjoying Iowa.
They look so happy and … warm.
Mile after mile on blacktop during July in Iowa can make a rider feel like a piece of sizzling bacon. After record-low temperatures lately, many Iowans are probably dreaming of that fried feeling.
And they’re also dreaming of getting back in the saddle. They don’t have to wait until July. On Saturday, Iowans can head to Perry for the 31st annual BRR — Bike Ride to Rippey. It’s about a 23-mile round trip to Rippey and back.
The ride, which raises money for the towns, is also called the “Winter RAGBRAI Reunion.” It has attracted thousands of people from all over the country.
It’s not as crazy as it sounds. Riders go back year after year, not knowing what Mother Nature has in store. It could be 60 degrees. It could be 10 below. There might be a foot of snow. The roads might be covered with ice. That’s part of what makes it an adventure.
Snow or shine, people will show up with bike helmets in hand.
The ride has never been canceled. It will be there Saturday. You could be, too.
The following link provides photo of CCC employees Dave Nelsen and Bill Rottger who were on hand in Rippey, cooking up a storm for their friends from Compressor Controls Corporation - John Boorman, Frank Nanne, Steve Miller, Ivan Madson, Ron Ruden, Lora Tsirulnikov and Rick Fausel.

Extract from DesMoinesRegister.com article
Visa battle can strain employers
(June 10, 2007) By BONNIE HARRIS, Des Moines Register Business Writer

... The issue of H-1B visas, which are awarded to highly skilled workers, has become yet another boiling point in the debate over immigration reform in Washington, as well as in Iowa. Employers expect to hire more such workers in the coming years. Critics suggest that employers are abusing the system and Americans are being displaced as a result. Companies in Iowa last year filed initial paperwork to sponsor 2,331 foreign-born workers under the H-1B program, according to the Department of Labor. The average salary of those jobs across the state was about $62,750 in 2006, and the median was $49,920, according to data supplied by the Department of Labor. Not all of those positions won approval for visas.

Yet Iowa employers say they still need more. The state has projected a shortage of 150,000 skilled workers by 2012, according to some estimates, and a growing number of foreign nationals are graduating with advanced degrees in engineering and computer science from U.S. universities - making it more difficult to compete for top talent.

"Companies have been asking for the same thing with regard to immigrant workers for the past 20 years," said Brian Perryman, former director of the Immigration and Naturalization Service in Chicago. "They want a system for hiring that is seamless, accurate and timely. But no one knows how to do that. We certainly haven't yet."
The H-1B program allows highly skilled professionals and their families to live in the United States for up to six years. The actual number of Iowans working under the H-1B visas is unclear because many employers are consulting groups who recruit foreign workers and then outsource them to other job sites or companies, said Marilu Cabrera, spokeswoman for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in Chicago. Cabrera also noted that not all of the 2,331 initial applications submitted by Iowa employers to the Department of Labor would have been approved for H-1B visas by CIS, she said.

... Under the current system, employers don't have to advertise or recruit outside applicants for a position being held by an H-1B worker until that worker begins the process of applying for a green card. At that point, companies must open up the job to other applicants for 30 days, and be able to show they couldn't find a qualified American worker to take the H-1B worker's place.

... In many ways, H-1B visas are regarded as the golden standard in obtaining a green card: Companies sponsor highly educated foreign-born workers - typically for two three-year terms - and those workers can bring their spouses and children to live with them in the United States during that time. But the visa is also considered a "dual intent" visa, which allows the employee to declare his or her intentions of becoming a permanent citizen. Most companies assist their H-1B workers in that process, which can cost nearly $10,000 from start to finish. Employers now must pay $1,500 just to sponsor a worker for an H-1B visa, although it was proposed in a recent bill to raise that fee to $5,000.

... At Des Moines' Compressor Controls Corp., 26 countries are represented among its 220 employees in Iowa, said Julie Sorci, vice president for human resources. The high-tech controls and circuitry firm sponsors 20 H-1B workers in Des Moines and Houston, she said, and counts on spending up to $8,000 on each to help them reach "green card status." That process can take seven years or more, which Sorci and other employers said is frustrating for all involved. "The processing times are quite lengthy," she said. "... I don't want any further delays. We just can't afford it, not in this competitive market." Current H-1B workers say their contribution to the American workforce should be rewarded with a shorter, more certain path to citizenship. "I see so many things being discussed about taking care of illegal immigrants," said Hari Krishnamurthy, a quality manager at Compressor Controls from India. "But we are here legally, we have higher degrees from schools in this country, and we are working and paying taxes and buying homes. We are following the rules. I believe that should count for something."

You may check the whole article text here

Reporter Bonnie Harris can be reached at (515) 284-8247 or boharris@dmreg.com

CCC Engineers Make a World of Difference(February 18, 2007) from Houston Chronicle

Careers with Compressor Controls Corporation are challenging and rewarding with competitive compensation and benefits. We routinely look for quality professionals in many different fields, such as Engineering, Technicians, Drafting, Other related support functions.

As firm's clientele goes global, so does its staff
(November 1, 2006) By JERRY PERKINS Des Moines Register Farm Editor

Compressor Controls Corp.'s 220 Iowa employees come from 25 countries and have a wide range of economic, political and social backgrounds. The Urbandale company makes control systems for industrial machinery and needs experts in engineering, drafting and other fields.

HOW IT WORKS
The company values different views and provides clear goals and objectives to its employees to reduce ambiguity, said Julie Sorci, vice president of human resources. Programs for employees include tuition reimbursement, assistance with workers' visas and green cards, and paid-for English as a Second Language courses, which are held at the workplace twice a week. Company-sponsored employee events include an International Food Festival, a World Cup soccer party, a "friends and family" picnic and golf outing, and recreational sports teams.

WHY IT WAS NEEDED
Compressor Controls needs employees who speak different languages and come from different backgrounds because of its international clientele. The company recruits worldwide and has offices in cities overseas, including Beijing, Abu Dhabi and Moscow.

HOW IT WAS DEVELOPED
Compressor Controls was founded in 1974 by Naum Starolselsky, a Russian immigrant, and has had a diverse work force for years. As the company's clientele became more international, Sorci said, the diversity became central to "our way of doing business."

THE RESULTS
Ildiko Kadar, a native of Hungary, has worked at Compressor Controls for five years, where she is international contract manager. She speaks four languages: Hungarian, Russian, Spanish and English. "I am kind of like a bridge, facilitating business so both parties can get what they want. Differences in culture and business practices can be huge, and there is less chance for misunderstanding when you understand the language. Customers feel more comfortable talking to someone in their own language."

Extract from DesMoinesRegister.com article
Foreign workers fill labor needs
Agricultural and high-tech firms say they need immigrant labor to compete.
(April 15, 2006) By JERRY PERKINS Des Moines Register Farm Editor

220 employees, 26 countries

At Compressor Controls Corp. in Des Moines, Julie Sorci, vice president for human resources, said the company has 26 countries represented among its 220 employees in Iowa.

The company also has offices in Singapore, Brazil, Moscow, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Italy, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, China and India.
"Our growth markets are in the Middle East and Asia-Pacific areas," Sorci said. "Our employees have to represent our customer base." A diverse work force at Compressor Controls also meets the company's need for brain power to make high-tech controls and circuitry.

"Because we have a very unique blend of backgrounds, experience and education," Sorci said, "we have a great generation of brain power." Compressor Controls' foreign-born work force needs some special care and handling to adjust to life in Iowa and the United States. "We actually believe it's part of our corporate responsibility to help our employees integrate into the local community," Sorci said.

The company aids families in finding grocery stores, clothing stores and doctors. It sponsors English classes and hosts potluck dinners where employees can bring food from their native countries. Legal assistance is provided to help employees wade through the bureaucratic maze of U.S. immigration laws that often frustrates them.

Ildiho Kadar, a native of Hungary, has worked for Compressor Controls for five years. She has been waiting for a green card since 2003."I get very frustrated," she said. "I invest in the economy, I pay taxes, I don't ask for it without giving anything back."

Despite the problems with U.S. immigration red tape, Sorci said, Iowans make the newly arrived immigrants feel welcome.
"A couple of things really impress them about Iowa," she said. "First, there is the safety and security they feel here. They don't have to lock their cars in the parking lot. They also appreciate the freedom they have to move around and the lack of crowds in Iowa."

For more information please contact CCC at careers@cccglobal.com

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