On November 3, the Traverse City Area Chamber of Commerce held their annual Economic Outlook Breakfast at the Grand Traverse Resort and Spa. This also served as stop number one of six for Michigan Business Network’s Annual Economic Forecast Series. This year’s event featured an energy related panel discussion with David Mengebier, SVP of Governmental and Public Affairs and Chief Compliance Officer, for CMS Energy and its subsidiaries. Mengebier is responsible for managing all of CMS Energy’s corporate and community-based government relations and public affairs activities in Michigan, and in other states where CMS Energy has investments. As chief compliance officer, he has oversight of regulatory, Code of Conduct and corporate policy compliance. Mengebier also is president of the CMS Energy and Consumers Energy charitable foundations.
The panel also included Valerie Brader, executive director of the Michigan Agency for Energy. Her service with the administration began in 2011 and prior to this role, she served as deputy legal counsel and senior policy advisor to Governor Snyder, including work on the City of Detroit bankruptcy case. Before her service in state government, she was a member (partner) at Bodman PLC, practicing primarily environmental and corporate law (with a specialization in assisting new or expanding businesses, from incorporation to securing permits and tax credits). Coordinating the panel was Doug Luciani, CEO of TraverseConnect. Luciani provides executive and strategic leadership for TraverseCONNECT, the parent company of the Traverse City Area Chamber of Commerce and the multi-county economic development corporation, Venture North, as well as multiple collaborations. TraverseCONNECT was formally adopted in 2015 to maximize the resources of the state’s third largest chamber of commerce and the substantial regional economic development entities (Traverse Bay EDC and Traverse City Area Chamber Foundation), with more than $5 million in available capital, previously under the governance of the Chamber. In addition, it provides a path for entrepreneurial ventures and new, for profit partnerships, to address bottlenecks in the region’s economic growth and provide for the long-term sustainability of the overall enterprise. It brings together multiple entities, services and programs to create important opportunities for individuals and businesses in Northwest Michigan.
Each fall, the Chamber presents the Economic Outlook Breakfast to highlight trends, speak to issues affecting the economy, and garner wisdom from economic experts to look ahead at the emerging business climate. In addition to this premier event in northern Michigan, research and reports from the breakfast are available through the Chamber’s website for further review, or for sharing with your business partners and employees. The Record Eagle of the Traverse City Area published that region’s Economic Outlook, Click here to find out more about what they expect in 2016.
