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Tuesday AM Daily | October 22, 2024
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BUSINESS RECORD EVENT
Last call to attend Thursday’s Power Breakfast
How to thrive with a multigenerational workforce
Earlier this year, the number of Generation Z employees surpassed baby boomer employees in the U.S. workforce, according to Glassdoor. Millennials will likely be the most represented generation in the labor market until sometime in the 2040s, and the Generation X employee count will rank second for some time yet. What does this mean for leadership, organizational culture and the future of business? Our discussion will focus on generational trends and demands leaders should know for the future. Register here
Event details:
Oct. 24 | 9-9:30 a.m. Networking; 9:30-11 a.m. Program | Des Moines Heritage Center
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Rural mainstreet index sinks to four-year low in October
By Business Record Staff
Iowa’s rural mainstreet index dropped to 37.1 in October from 44.0, staying below growth neutral for a 14th consecutive month.
The state’s farmland price index sank to 38.6 from 45.7 in September, but the new hiring index increased slightly to 52.8 from 52.4.
Regional exports of agricultural goods and livestock for 2024 year to date dropped to $1 billion from $1.1 billion from the same period in 2023, according to trade data from the International Trade Association.
The 10-state region’s overall reading dropped to 35.2 from September’s 37.5, the lowest reading since the start of the pandemic in spring 2020. The index ranges from 0 to 100, with a reading of 50.0 representing growth neutral.
"Weak agriculture commodity prices, sinking agriculture equipment sales, elevated input costs and falling farmland prices pushed the overall reading below growth neutral for the 14th straight month," Ernie Goss, Creighton University’s chair in regional economics, said in a prepared statement.
The region’s farmland price index fell to 38.5 — a six-year low — from 43.8 in September. "Elevated interest rates and higher input costs along with below breakeven grain prices have significantly reduced farmer demand for ag land," Goss said.
The farm equipment sales index for October decreased to 18.8 from 19.0. "This is the 15th straight month that the index has fallen below growth neutral," Goss said. "Higher borrowing costs, tighter credit conditions and farm income losses are having a negative impact on the purchases of farm equipment."
Other regional findings from the report include:
- The loan volume index improved to 73.1 from 68.8 in September; the checking deposit index increased to 63.7 from 41.3; and the index for certificates of deposits and other savings instruments climbed to 63.5 from 56.5.
- The new hiring index for October rose to 50.0 from 43.5.
- The October confidence index increased slightly to a weak 29.6 from September’s 22.9. "Weak agriculture commodity prices and negative farm cash flow, combined with downturns in farm equipment sales over the past several months, continued to constrain banker confidence," Goss said.
- The home sales index rose to 46.3 from 43.8.
- The retail sales index also increased slightly to 36.0, up from 30.4.
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NEWS BRIEFS
ISU business college adds Trinity Health partnership for health care management internships
North Dakota-based Trinity Health has agreed to a partnership with Iowa State University's Ivy College of Business to create internship opportunities for students pursuing a degree in health care management. According to a news release, Trinity is the fourth medical institution to sign a health care management pathway agreement with ISU’s business school. The others are UnityPoint Health in Des Moines; Mary Greeley Medical Center in Ames; and McFarland Clinic in Ames. "Trinity is an outstanding organization with an excellent national reputation. We know that experiential learning opportunities are essential in preparing our future health care leaders," Natallia Gray, assistant dean who leads and teaches in the health care management program, said in the release.
Iowa community colleges, private college network enter agreement to streamline transfer process
Iowa’s 15 community colleges have entered into an admission agreement with the Iowa Private Transfer Collaborative (IPTC), a group of 19 private, nonprofit colleges and universities across the state. The Iowa Private Transfer Guarantee admission agreement will provide Iowa community college and qualifying high school students guaranteed admission to any IPTC member college, a news release said. The presidents of Iowa’s community colleges met Sept. 25 in Des Moines to approve the agreement. The IPTC received a $350,000 grant to support this initiative from the Arthur Vining Davis and Teagle Foundations. The release said the funding will be used to help community colleges and four-year institutions ensure seamless transfer of academic credits and place a greater emphasis on the retention rate of transfer students. The grant will also be used to help private institutions adopt existing statewide transfer majors and redevelop iowaprivatecolleges.org to centralize student transfer information for private colleges and universities. The two nonprofit organizations facilitating distribution of the grant money are the Iowa Higher Education Loan Authority and the Iowa Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.
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MEMBERSHIP EXCLUSIVE CONTENT
Competing for talent in era of NIL
Drake coach Ben McCollum leans on fundraising, culture as name, image and likeness policy reshapes college athletics
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Since the NCAA approved a policy in 2021 permitting student-athletes to receive compensation for their name, image and likeness (NIL), non-Power Four programs like Drake University have had to get creative to stay competitive.
Under new men’s basketball head coach Ben McCollum, that meant establishing a strong culture and relying on the DU Great Collective — an independent, nonprofit organization — to raise funds to pay players in the form of NIL agreement payouts.
Before coaching his first game for the Bulldogs, McCollum has seen firsthand the influence that NIL, in addition to the easing of transfer rules, has had on shaping the current college basketball landscape. Read more
MORE INSIDER CONTENT: See all Business Record Insider content and become an Insider.
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NEWS BRIEFS
Des Moines City Council approves agricultural code changes to protect urban farming
Des Moines Register: In a victory for urban farmers and growers, the Des Moines City Council approved code changes Monday to make the city friendlier to those who want to transform unoccupied land into community gardens and farms. The City Council also unanimously OK'd allowing a beloved garden, the Woodland Realm, to reopen after city officials shut it down about a year ago due to code violations. Both items were up for preliminary votes, but council members waived a second and third reading for final approval.
Private equity firm buys 29 Iowa nursing homes in massive $85 million deal
Iowa Capital Dispatch: The sale of one of Iowa’s largest nursing home chains has reportedly been completed, with 29 care facilities now in the hands of a private equity firm. According to Skilled Nursing News, the real estate brokerage firm of Marcus & Millichap says the $85 million transaction represents the largest nursing home sale ever recorded in Iowa. The 29 facilities represent 7% of the 410 nursing homes operating in Iowa. The sale involves the transfer of care facilities previously owned by one of Iowa’s largest employers, ABCM Corp. of Hampton, to the Chicago-based private equity firm Cascade Capital Group.
Disney names Gorman to serve as next chairman, anticipates naming new CEO in early 2026
Associated Press: The Walt Disney Co. is tapping Morgan Stanley executive James Gorman to serve as its next chairman, beginning early next year. The entertainment giant also announced that it anticipates naming its new CEO in early 2026. Gorman will become chairman on Jan. 2, 2025. He will succeed Mark Parker, who is leaving after serving on Disney’s board for nine years. Gorman is currently chair of Disney’s succession planning committee.
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ONE GOOD READ
Native American cultural site forgotten in Iowa, preserved in South Dakota
Iowa Capital Dispatch: In the far northwest corner of Iowa, a mown trail winds among burial mounds and artifacts of the Oneota people, a cultural grouping of Native American nations who lived, farmed and traded along the Big Sioux River for centuries. Despite the well-documented, significant history of the place, most Iowans would be hard pressed to find the Blood Run National Historic Landmark, or even know it exists. The site is dotted with large earthen mounds known to hold Oneota remains and artifacts. About 200 of the estimated over 1,000 acres of cultural significance are protected by the state, and marked with brown and yellow signs from the Department of Natural Resources that read, "Removal or disturbance of any cultural resource is prohibited." But, just beyond the sign and a barbed-wire fence, the same mounds can be seen on private property, under the stubby remains of a just-harvested corn field. Jim Zangger, who voluntarily mows the paths in the site and is part of a group of Iowans advocating to better preserve Blood Run, looked across the fence on a windy, October afternoon. "You could probably walk over to that mound right now and find artifacts," Zangger said.
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KCCI TOP STORIES
ACLU renews legal battle against Iowa book ban law
The American Civil Liberties Union and Lambda Legal are asking a federal judge to block an Iowa law that bans some books and discussions about sexual orientation or gender identity in schools. "I am a good teacher who happens to be gay," said Daniel Gutmann, a fourth grade teacher in Des Moines and one of the new plaintiffs in the filing. "In 2023, after Senate File 496 became law, I was told by my administrator that I was prohibited from mentioning my husband in the presence of students. This was the hammer coming down on me. All LGBTQ+ educators feared that we would be forced to choose between leaving our calling or returning to the closet." Gutmann said his administrator eventually told him he misunderstood the law. He believes the law is dangerously vague and confusing for schools, teachers and kids. This is why he is part of the renewed effort to ask for an injunction. Read more
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Today:
Slight chance of an early shower, then clearing skies. High 79. Winds shifting from S to W at 10 to 15 mph.
Tonight:
Mostly clear. Low 51. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph.
Get the latest KCCI weather.
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BUSINESS RECORD IOWA INDEX
The Iowa Index is an unweighted average of all Iowa-based public companies. Below is a live look at those Iowa companies, plus additional companies with large operations in Iowa.
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