Author: meganjansick

President’s Report: 2020 in Review

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I’ve asked myself the question several times about how such a strange year could be such a good year. While the Development Foundation has experienced the same challenges as most in 2020, I have been proud of the way City, State, civic and business leadership has stepped up to the challenge. Despite the environment, many of our businesses and our city have seen significant growth and the Development Foundation has moved forward with several key initiatives while also responding to the business community and the challenges of COVID. While I certainly understand that several sectors of our economy including retail, restaurants and hospitality are still feeling the pain, I believe recovery and renewal is on the way.

In 2020 the Development Foundation continued to market, promote and develop Sioux Falls and has been successful in selling over 165 acres in our industrial parks, creating over 1,300 jobs and expanding the tax base of the region. Work continues on grading of additional land to create build-ready sites and working with our partners to finance and construct needed infrastructure. Our work with Corson Development Park has concluded and we now look to begin the development and build out of North Foundation Park. In addition, we have worked with our existing industries to assist with expansion plans and in accessing assistance through the PPP program, the CARES Act, and State programs to get through these difficult times.

Our talent and workforce development efforts continue as we have adapted to virtual recruitment strategies gaining access to over 80 universities, colleges and tech schools to recruit new talent. In addition, we have created a talent pipeline through STEM Initiatives in our area middle schools, Career Connection in our high schools, and various talent recruitment for our higher education contacts. Over 6,000 contacts have been engaged through our Talent Development programs connecting with over 80 businesses.

We will continue to respond to the needs of the business community in building Sioux Falls and look forward to a great 2021. Thank you to all our Forward Sioux Falls investors, Foundation members and community partners for making our progress possible. Your commitment is appreciated.

Bob Mundt
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Bob Mundt

President/CEO

Chairman’s Report: A Salute and A Vision

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It is a great time to be taking the chair position with the Sioux Falls Development Foundation. Despite the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the decisions of past chairs, board members and Development Foundation leadership have set the table for our continued success. We have much to be proud of when reflecting on 2020, and we are in a position to capitalize on significant economic opportunities in 2021.

Thank you to Todd Ernst for his leadership as chair during 2020. The board and Foundation staff have had to respond to many unique challenges, and Todd was an excellent resource. Whether helping to shape office protocols related to the pandemic, overseeing personnel changes, or his continued management of our financial model, the Development Foundation would not be in the position of strength it is today without him.

Thank you also to Pam Hanneman, Paul Hanson and Jay Rasmussen, who retired from the board in December. These board members, along with Tom Kelley who we lost in October, helped guide the Development Foundation through an extremely exciting and somewhat risky time. They made the decision six years ago to move forward with Foundation Park and initiated one of the biggest and most complicated investments in our history coordinating with several partners and investors to provide what we have today. It is because of their vision and foresight that we have Foundation Park and are now seeing the product of their vision. Thank you to all board members, past and present, that have paved the way for where we are today.

As we move into 2021 with a focus on recovery and growth, the Foundation is poised for success and is laying the groundwork for next level development. Working with the City and our partners, we will expand our efforts to ready Foundation Park North and Sioux Empire Development Park VIII for new development and opportunities while focusing on our mission of job creation and property tax base expansion. Our workforce development efforts will continue to expand to meet the growing needs of our employers through the recruitment of professionals, skilled laborers, and production workers. New programs will strive to connect our employers with the employees they need, the resources needed to get them here, and will help accommodate them when they arrive.

I am predicting 2021 will be a great year for Sioux Falls and I look forward to leading the Development Foundation as we capitalize on our opportunities. As always, thank you for your membership in and support of the Foundation. We could not accomplish great things without you, and I sincerely appreciate your involvement and dedication.

I wish you all the best in 2021 and Happy New Year.

Pat Costello

Pat Costello

Board Chairman

Talent Draft Day Draws High School, College Students from 11 States

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Talent Draft Day 2020

They logged in by the hundreds from Missouri and Michigan to Ohio and Illinois – and left learning more about the career opportunities available in Sioux Falls.

This was the 2020 version of the annual Talent Draft Day, an event organized by the Sioux Falls Development Foundation to connect middle school, high school and college students with education and training paths that lead to rewarding careers.

“It’s very powerful because students get exposure to different careers and different companies and businesses in Sioux Falls, and the options are great,” said Vickie Donohoe, a school counselor who brought a group of students from New Tech High School.

If there’s a company out there doubting they want to come, just do it. It’s a great opportunity for your company.

About 2,000 students tuned in for the morning session, which featured 10 training camps and gave an up-close look at opportunities at Southeast Technical College – everything from residential construction to HVAC and welding.

“Southeast really does a good job of keeping up with the times and offering programs that are applicable to what the workforce needs right now,” Donohoe said.

Then came a series of employer panels, where students in high school and college could learn about key industries in Sioux Falls, from health care and biosciences to business, engineering, energy and technology.

The Development Foundation did a strong marketing effort using Handshake, an online network used by college students, and it showed.

“Last year, we had 12 school participating; this year, we have 81,” said Denise Guzzetta, vice president of talent and workforce development for the Sioux Falls Development Foundation.

“They’re from places like Wisconsin, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota in addition to throughout South Dakota. So we’re really rounding out and just giving the taste of Sioux Falls.”

Altogether, thousands of students participated during the day. Employers enthusiastically lined up for it too.

“It’s definitely a great event,” said Michelle Bermudez, a recruiter for Muth Electric. “You get to expose your company to students that don’t know what they want to do when they graduate and talk to them about apprenticeship programs, tuition reimbursement, scholarships. If there’s a company out there doubting they want to come, just do it. It’s a great opportunity for your company.”

Want to get connected to this and more workforce development opportunities in Sioux Falls? Click here to learn more.

CJ Foods USA to Build World-Class Asian Food Production Facility in South Dakota

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Major project to bring 600-plus new, full-time jobs to Sioux Falls, S.D.

(Los Angeles, Calif. — Jan. 11, 2021) CJ Foods USA Inc. (CJ Foods), a U.S.-based affiliate of global lifestyle company CJ CheilJedang (CJCJ), today announced its plans to build a new 700,000-square-foot Asian food production facility in Sioux Falls, S.D.

The new facility, planned for Foundation Park in Sioux Falls, will result in more than 600 new full-time jobs by 2025 and include automated state-of-the-art food production lines, a warehouse and distribution center, shipping and receiving docks, and office space. The project will represent an overall investment of several hundred million dollars over the course of construction and will be funded through operating cash flow. Further investments in the facility’s capabilities will be made as demand increases over the next several years.

All foods made at the production facility will be sold and distributed by CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company, a fellow U.S.-based affiliate of CJ Foods. Once complete, people working at the facility will focus on making a broad range of Asian-style meals, sides, snacks and appetizers in the shelf-stable and frozen categories. The new South Dakota facility will represent an expansion of CJCJ’s Asian food production capabilities in North America, with CJ Foods already operating five Asian-style food plants in California, Ohio, New York and New Jersey and Schwan’s Company operating two in Texas.

“This strategically important new investment represents an extremely exciting time for both CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company,” said Executive Chairman of CJCJ Food, Americas and Schwan’s Company CEO Dimitrios Smyrnios. “Adding this world-class Asian food plant in South Dakota will help us lead the fast-growing Asian food category in North America and achieve our long-term growth plans. Ultimately, this plant will meet the increasing needs of our retail and food-service customers by creating significant production capacity, fueling Asian food category growth, and enabling future innovation.”

“We thank state and local officials in South Dakota for helping to bring this project to Sioux Falls. We look forward to building a long-lasting relationship that will be mutually beneficial for CJCJ’s family of businesses and the residents of South Dakota,” added Smyrnios.

 

This strategically important new investment represents an extremely exciting time for both CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company

Dimitrios Smyrnios, Executive Chairman of CJCJ Food, Americas and Schwan’s Company CEO

Investing in Asian Food Marketplace Growth

CJ Foods is investing in the new Asian-food facility to support it and Schwan’s Company’s growth initiatives in the retail and food-service markets in North America. The two companies offer several Asian-style brands in both the food-service and retail sectors, including Bibigo®, Pagoda®, Kahiki®, Minh® and Annie Chun’s® foods.

Asian food is extraordinarily popular in the United States alone, representing a more than $38 billion industry across retail stores and food-service venues, which includes 70,000 Asian-style restaurants. Worldwide, the cuisine’s popularity is growing rapidly as consumers increasingly embrace more global flavors. In a recent study by Technomic®, a leading consulting and research firm, 23 percent of global food consumers say they are preparing more global flavors at home than two years ago. This rate was at 39 percent with millennials, according to the study.

“The growth and popularity of Asian cuisine is something we expect to continue unabated over the coming years, especially as consumers have the opportunity to increasingly experience high-quality, authentic global foods when dining out or preparing meals at home,” said Smyrnios. “We are excited to work with our retail and food-service customers to expand the Asian food category and create great consumer experiences.”

Working with South Dakota Public Officials

To help facilitate the project, company leaders from CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company worked with state and local public agencies and officials in South Dakota, including: Gov. Kristi Noem; Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) Commissioner Steve Westra; Sioux Falls Development Foundation CEO & President Bob Mundt; and Sioux Falls Mayor Paul TenHaken.

“South Dakota is open for business, and we’re excited for this tremendous investment in our state. The Sioux Falls community will benefit greatly from the new full-time jobs that this facility will provide,” said South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem. “I want to thank Dimitrios and everyone at CJ Foods and Schwan’s who worked with us to make this happen.”

Groundbreaking Event in Sioux Falls Planned for Spring 2021

More details about the specific products and brands that will be made at the facility, as well as renderings and more specific construction timelines, are expected to be shared at an event at the Sioux Falls site of the future plant in the spring. Event attendees will include CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company leaders as well as South Dakota public officials.

Foundation Park

About CJ Foods

CJ Foods USA Inc. is a U.S. affiliate of global lifestyle company CJ CheilJedang. Since its opening in 1978, CJ Foods has quickly become a major manufacturer and distributor of Asian food products with a focus on Korean food. Through brands like Bibigo® and Annie Chun’s®, the company offers an extensive range of packaged food products, including dumplings, noodles and sauces. Backed by a global company with more than 60 years of experience in the food industry, CJ Foods’ mission is to drive awareness of Asian food, especially Korean food, and provide only the best quality products to U.S. households across the nation. To learn more about CJ Foods, visit www.cjfoods.com.

About Schwan’s Company

Based in Minnesota, Schwan’s Company is a leading U.S.-based manufacturer and marketer of quality foods offered through retail-grocery and food-service channels. Its many popular brands include Red Baron®, Tony’s®, Big Daddy’s®, Villa Prima™ and Freschetta® pizza, Mrs. Smith’s® and Edwards® desserts and Pagoda® Asian-style snacks. The company is an affiliate of global lifestyle company, CJ CheilJedang. To learn more about Schwan’s Company, visit www.schwanscompany.com.

About CJ CheilJedang

CJ CheilJedang is the core subsidiary in charge of the food and bio business sectors of the CJ Group. It has led the development of the Korean food industry for the past 60 years and contributed to the development of the bio industry as the nation’s top food company. Launched in 1953 as a food ingredient company, CJ CheilJedang has expanded its business to processed foods. CJ CheilJedang has achieved outstanding growth, quantitatively and qualitatively, in food processing and food ingredients in the food business sector, as well as in the bio business sector. The company is striving to go beyond being the No. 1 in Korea to becoming a global leader in each business sector. CJ CheilJedang will continue to grow and evolve in the food & bio sectors by practicing the spirit of OnlyOne and develop into a global lifestyle company. To learn more about CJCheilJedang, visit www.cj.co.kr.

Media Contact: Mike Smith, VP of PR & Communications, 507-537-8550, questions@schwans.com

Statement Regarding the CJ Foods Announcement

Statement Regarding the CJ Foods Announcement

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The Sioux Falls Development Foundation is very pleased that CJ Foods USA Inc., a global market leader in food production, has chosen Sioux Falls and South Dakota for their next major expansion and we welcome them to our corporate community. We are excited to continue working with them to finalize their project here in Sioux Falls.

This is the latest example of the vision that elected and community leaders had when they created Foundation Park in 2015 and the concept of a mega site for large scale development. We will continue to diversify our economy with clean, high tech manufacturing generating new high skilled living wage jobs in the region. CJ Foods’ announcement is yet another indication of our city’s strong outlook for 2021 and beyond.

Bob Mundt
Contact

Bob Mundt

President/CEO

Sioux Falls No. 4 in Ease of Doing Business Ranking

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The Doing Business North America (DBNA) project annually provides objective measures of the scale and scope of business regulations in 130 cities across 92 states, provinces, and federal districts of the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. It uses 111 data indicators spread over six categories to score and rank cities in regard to how easy it is to set up, operate, and shut down a business.

Focusing on city-level regulations, this study provides measurable benchmarks; objective measurements of regulatory conditions publicly-available to researchers and policymakers allowing them to track the improvement or decline in local regulatory conditions, providing context for potential policy reform.

For more information, visit: dbna.asu.edu

Source: Arizona State University – Center for the Study of Economic Liberty

Talent Thursday with Marsh & McLennan Agency

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Talent Thursday with the Sioux Falls Development Foundation is a LIVE Facebook event at 3 PM Central every Thursday. During this 30-minute program, we share the career journeys of Teagan Molden and Kira Kimball from Marsh & McLennan Agency, about their experiences working in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, for a global insurance provider.

Talent Thursday with First PREMIER Bank

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Talent Thursday with the Sioux Falls Development Foundation is a LIVE Facebook event at 3 PM Central every Thursday. During this 30-minute program, we share the career journey of Kimberely Munoz of First PREMIER Bank about her experience working for a community-oriented, nationally recognized financial services leader headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Talent Thursday with ISG

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Talent Thursday with the Sioux Falls Development Foundation is a LIVE Facebook event at 3 PM Central every Thursday. During this 30-minute program, we share the career journey of David Doxtad, president and leader of a nationally recognized engineering firm, ISG, headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Sioux Falls Area Ranks Among the Top Places to Get Physically Fit in 2021

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In its seventh annual study, SmartAsset crunched the numbers to find the most fitness-friendly places nationwide.

The Sioux Falls area cracks the top 25 places to get physically fit in 2021, out of the 301 metro areas analyzed.

The full report, including methodology and key findings, can be found here: https://smartasset.com/checking-account/most-fitness-friendly-places-for-2021.

Secure Safe and Open for Business

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Cybersecurity will continue to grow as technology becomes digitally connected. In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor predicts that the demand for cybersecurity jobs will continue at 31% until 2029. Based on the Internet of Things and cloud computing, learn from nationally recognized experts the best pathways forward to develop, attract, retain this competitive talent to grow and expand your organization’s footprint.

Based on the Internet of Things and cloud computing, learn from nationally recognized experts the best pathways forward to develop, attract, retain this competitive talent to grow and expand your organization’s footprint.

This content was originally recorded from our 2020 WIN in Workforce Summit.

This video is approved for SHRM Educational Credits.

Talent Retention 101 Dinosaurs Deficits or Diversity

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Earn SHRM Recertification credits by watching “Talent Retention 101. Dinosaurs, Deficits, or Diversity.” with Avera Health, Marsh & McLennan, and Smithfield Foods. This video highlights the substantial diversity and inclusion initiatives leading health, financial services, and manufacturing companies have implemented to increase operational and organizational efficiencies.

This content was originally recorded from our 2020 WIN in Workforce Summit.

Innovation SF: How Today’s Talent is Solving Tomorrow’s Greatest Challenges.

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Watch this to appreciate how generational technical skills and abilities are enabling growth within the bio, life, and health sciences communities of Sioux Falls.

This content was originally recorded from our 2020 WIN in Workforce Summit.

Zero to Seven Days: The New Talent Recruiting Playbook

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“Zero to Seven. The New Recruiting Playbook,” shares turnkey talent management efficiencies involving recruiting, on-boarding, engagement, and exiting employees. Discover interesting tips and best practices from experts in the biotech, health, and manufacturing sectors.

This content was originally recorded from our 2020 WIN in Workforce Summit.