In this issue:

• From the President
• 2006 Annual Meeting
• MGTA Members Participate in Global Skills Survey
• Early Notification of BNSF Rail Storage/Free Time Change Effective May 1, 2006
• MGTA Brochure Contest
• Calendar of Events

Welcome to a new year at MGTA! Those of you who attended our Annual Meeting at the Doubletree received an overview of 2005, along with our goals for 2006. We recognized the dedication and efforts of our outgoing president, Darcy Pouti, along with outgoing board members Larry Matthews, Roger Prestwich and Jack Ryan.

The Board of Directors is looking forward to making this year another productive year of education and networking. We welcome our newest members to the board: Yvonne Ecklund, Anthony Hetzel, Chad Laden and Brooks Pavilack.

In December, I met with LJ Taugher, our Director of Client Services at the MGTA administrative offices, to outline priorities for 2006. With the help of a great group of volunteers and input from members, the following basic blueprint for the year has developed:

• Continue to excel in providing relevant education programs.
• Continue to develop networking opportunities for our membership.
• Enhance communication and services through a job board and updated newsletter.
• Empower individual committees to grow MGTA through their contributions to our mission.

We are moving forward with great optimism in our commitment to quality programming and outstanding member services. As we continue to grow, we need to hear from you, our members, about what MGTA can do to provide the maximum value of membership.

I would like to thank all of the members of the Board of Directors and committees that are busy working to make 2006 a year of renewed excellence for MGTA.

Sincerely,
Mike Miklas

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The 2006 Annual Meeting was a huge success, with 261 people registering—an increase over the previous year. The evening gave MGTA members an opportunity to network and hear about the successes of 2005 and plans for 2006.

A special thanks to all our sponsors for the event! Without you, this event is not possible.

3M, APL, Associated Bank, Barole, Bremer Bank, Canada Maritime, CH Robinson,
D&H, Dakos, DC Williams, Evergreen, Expeditors, Freightmasters,
Hapag Lloyd, Hyundai, Medtronic, MMT, MOL America, Murphy Warehouse,
Neville Peterson, Nippon, Norman Jensen, North Star, Polaris,
Roanoke, Schenkers, Stonepath Logistics, US Bank, William L Griffin

These companies combined for $3000 in event sponsorships!

Also, a special thank you to those who donated door prizes, as these make the event fun and memorable for all. We received 60+ door prizes, plus the additional tabletop prizes, resulting in a prize for one in four in attendance.

Special door prizes were given by: Manhattan Toy, a stuffed animal for each table; Petters; a flat screen LCD 20' TV; Toro, a Personal Pace Lawn Mower.

Additional prizes were provided by: Associated Bank, Barole, Best Buy, CH Robinson, Chart Industries, CP Ships, D56, DFDS, Eagle, Evergreen , Expeditors, Fed Ex, Freightmasters, Hyundai, Katun, K-Line, Kuehne Nagel, Maersk, Medtronic, MMT, MOL, Neville Peterson, North Star, Northern Tool, Panalpina, Phoenix, Polaris Industries, Port of Seattle, Safco, Stonepath, Tennant, Trade Acceptance, US Bank, VIT, William Griffin.

MGTA is searching for a new venue for next year’s event—possibly the Embassy Suites on 494 and 34th Avenue in Bloomington.

Don’t forget that the Annual Golf Outing is changing venues! This year, it will be held at Stonebrook. Details for the event will be in upcoming mailings.

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In the summer of 2005, some of the corporate members of MGTA were invited to participate in a major survey of Minnesota companies doing business internationally—importing, exporting (or both), or investing, all in goods or services. The survey was a joint project between the state Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) and the College of Management of Metropolitan State University.

The primary purpose of the survey was to determine the specific international knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) required by companies of new hires and of internal promotions or re-assignments, and the level of financial support made available to employees for them to be able to enhance their professional development by attending the necessary training programs.

The total list of companies with at least 20 employees—who were apparently “internationalized,” according to the sources used—was 1,210, comprising 1,014 from the Minnesota Directory of Manufacturers, 154 from MGTA, and 42 others obtained from printed publications of importers and exporters. The response rate to the mailed survey was 24.5%, and statistical analysis showed that we could have high confidence that the survey sample accurately represented Minnesota’s industrial and employment structure.

Interestingly, half the respondents said that they were not involved in doing business internationally, which seemed odd, given that all the companies surveyed were derived from published lists indicating that they were! The answer may be simply either that the individual answering the survey (usually someone in the HR department) was not aware of the company’s international activities, or that whoever in the company was dealing with international issues was doing so part-time and therefore not classified as “international” in HR’s records.

The 147 respondents who were very actively involved in doing business “overseas” (including Canada and Mexico!) were predominantly exporters (42%) and importers (28%), and most of them had been so doing for more than ten years.

The implications of the results are largely twofold: (1) Whether the various providers of international business education and training programs are covering the topics required of employees by companies and, if not, what needs to be done to prepare individuals appropriately; and (2) whether the companies are financially supportive of their employees’ continuing education in both the short and longer term, which is significant, of course, for MGTA’s education program planning.

The full report is available online at www.mgta.org as well as at www.deed.state.mn.us. Highlights of the survey findings are as follows:

• About half of the respondents had hired an employee into a professional international business position within the past year.
• Many respondents required Bachelor’s degrees in international business, particularly for management and experienced positions, but many others had no such requirements.
• New employees in experienced or management positions were more likely to possess an international business background than reassigned employees.
• In terms of language skills, Spanish, Chinese or French are the most sought-after.
• The five most frequently mentioned essential skills needed for hire were writing skills, teamwork, computer software skills, presentation skills and project leadership.
• Many companies were willing to provide and pay for training related to international business KSAs.
• Current employees were more likely to be eligible for training than new employees.
• Almost 60 percent of respondents fully paid for or reimbursed tuition and fees for international business-related professional development in the form of job-specific training. More than 40 percent also fully paid for or reimbursed costs of continuing education or professional qualification.
• Over the next five years, many respondents expect to increase their training budgets, particularly in job-specific training and continuing education.

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The BNSF shortening of free time is greatly affecting importers. There are four new locations that many Minnesota importers go through.

Below you will find notification of change in free time policy for the BNSF at these four locations.

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MGTA wants to hear from you!

The Membership Committee is in the process of creating outreach tools for new members, and we want to know what makes your MGTA membership valuable to you and your organization. Share your MGTA experience with others!

In 100 words or fewer, please tell us how your career or business has grown by participating in MGTA. Upcoming publications and membership pieces could include your quote, your name and the name of your company. Best of all, if we select your quote for our upcoming membership drive brochure, you will receive a $50 Visa gift card. In addition, all participants will be entered into a drawing for a $50 Visa gift card.

Submissions should be sent in e-mail format to office@mgta.org with "MGTA Contest" in the subject line. The deadline for submissions is March 15, 2006.

Submissions become the property of the MGTA for use in publications. Submissions must include author’s name, employer and daytime phone number for verification. Open to current MGTA members only.

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