For many ABI members, participation in Iowa’s largest statewide business organization pays dividends far beyond supporting the association’s business advocacy to government policy makers.
Through its varied leadership development and issues awareness programs, annual conferences and participation on its board of directors and advisory council, ABI provides members and other participants opportunities to build an impactful and ever-more valuable network of partners, allies, clients and friends.
‘People You Know, Like and Trust’
As long-time ABI Board of Directors member Mike Espeset, president of Story Construction, puts it: “People want to do business with people they know, like and trust. ABI membership and continued involvement and participation puts related parties in position to know, like and trust each other. It’s gratifying, through ABI to get over the know, like and trust hump and really get after making a difference for someone.”
Mr. Espeset, who started at Ames-based Story as a part-timer while majoring in construction engineering at Iowa State University, attended his first ABI conference in Okoboji in the summer of 2000, then really plugged into the organization after participation in its Leadership Iowa class.
He took a leadership and ownership role at Story in 2004 with the retirement of President Dick Johnson and gladly accepted the invitation to join ABI’s board.
“I need to be where are customers are and understand what their needs are,” he explained. In 20+ years at the helm of Story, he’s helped guide it to full employee ownership and through its first acquisition, L&L Builders of Sioux City, last year. The connections forged at ABI have helped the business, now 200 employees-strong, to grow, he said.
Many fellow ABI members have become valuable clients.
“We’ve enjoyed serving Bob Wersen at Interpower Corporation, Tassel Ridge Winery, Agri-Industrial Plastics projects in Fairfield, doing a plant expansion for UEA (United Equipment Accessories) in Waverly, and some work for Kreg Tool in Huxley, to name a few of many,” he said. “There’s a number of ABI members that have employed us to figure out facility solutions, facility construction, or planning and thinking.”
The Sioux City acquisition developed through an ABI connection with business broker BCC Advisors. “BCC approached us as a candidate to look at that business. I had known the broker for years. It was not a hard conversation to have. At the end of day, we’re very much in the relationship business, and the business of serving each other. I can think of no better organization and group of companies to do that with,” said Mr. Espeset.
‘Those Connections are Amazing’
Drew Larson, who represents Des Moines-based, business-focused law firm BrownWinick on the ABI Advisory Council, praises the “unbelievable amount of variety” he finds in connections he makes through ABI. “It is a great place to meet other professionals. There are financial advisors, clients, manufacturers, other people doing all kinds of things, from all across the state,” the University of Iowa College of Law graduate said.
BrownWinick, “affiliated with ABI since the mists of time” according to Mr. Larson, has a number of clients that are active ABI members. Association involvement “has given us a better understanding of their businesses … a better idea of the problems they face,” Mr. Larson said.
“It makes us better lawyers when we understand their businesses and the environment they are operating in.” ABI connections can pay off in varied ways, said Mr. Larson.
Through participation in Leadership Iowa, Mr. Larson met the director of Trivium Life Services, a Council Bluffs nonprofit, and was invited to serve on its board. Networking on the Advisory Council enabled him to recommend several businesses as partners to the West Des Moines School
Board, on which his spouse serves, for its registered apprenticeship program.
ABI’s Advisory Council is a select group of members who advise ABI on trends and critical business issues in the
marketplace to deliver the best possible programming for its members. “Advisory council members have the opportunity to mee t other leading service providers in the state, including lawyers, bankers, financial advisors, valuation firms, insurance and healthcare providers and others who want to hear from us what are we seeing broadly in the industry,” Mr. Larson said.
Among Mr. Larson’s co-members on the Advisory Board is Jack Carra, a partner in AssuredPartners, a Florida-based business insurance brokerage with regional headquarters in West Des
Moines. Mr. Larson and Mr. Carra have found their connection on the board mutually rewarding.
“It is always nice to see a strong ABI member, like Assured Partners, working with one of my clients. It gives me a high degree of confidence that they are getting good advice and will be able to get things done on the next transaction,” said Mr. Larson.
“Having a mutual client with an ABI member like BrownWinick gives me piece of mind as I know my clients are receiving expert advice and that they have their best interests at hand,” said Mr. Carra.
‘An Opportunity to Give Back’
Mr. Carra, a 17-year veteran of the insurance business, took over an ABI board seat for a retiring predecessor upon joining Assured Partners in 2011. The firm is ranked among the fastest growing insurance brokerages in the U.S., with revenues exceeding $1 billion.
He serves on the ABI board and has been on the Advisory Council eight years. A designated Commercial Insurance
Counselor (CIC) and Commercial Lines Coverage Specialist (CLCS), Mr. Carra holds a B.S. in marketing from Iowa State University and serves on both ABI Board of Directors and the Advisory Council.
“Our company has been a member of ABI as far back as I can remember, a more than two-decade relationship. I had a predecessor who was on the board of directors. When he retired, I took over his board seat and position. The connections have been outstanding,” he said. “One of
my specialty niches is working with manufacturers. ABI is well known for its best in-class manufacturing membership.
We’ve been fortunate enough to meet a lot of really good people who run some great manufacturing organizations and do business with quite a few members.
“It’s also been great for us to connect with other professional industry peers like banking and legal. Been able to get some really knowledgeable folks we can refer into our clients w hen a need occurs. That’s been really beneficial as well. It’s a fantastic network.”
Opportunity to serve on the Advisory Council has “been great,” he said. “That’s where we’ve been able to develop some of those great professional connections with different folks to put in touch with our customers to help solve a problem.”
Those connections can be legal, human resources, financial or other, he said. “It al lows us to be a resource to the members. It allows an opportunity for us to give back.”
‘All You Have to do is Show Up’
It’s not hard to realize the benefits of membership, say these three ABI veterans. As Mr. Espeset, who serves on boards of many organizations, puts it, “All you have to do is show up. That’sthe magical part of it. Anybody that participates in an ABI program is there expecting to connect with you. If you show up, you’ll be rewarded.”
“I routinely tell people by virtue of my role in our industry, I get to go to a lot of great places and participate in a lot of great conferences. There is none better than ABI. It’s the perfect blend of content and connection. You won’t find a better forum than the ABI conference. You can get terrific content somewhere and not get connected, or get great connections and no content. ABI blends both of them fabulously.”
Mr. Carra echoes Mr. Espset’s comment, advising new or prospective ABI members: “Attending as many of events as they possibly can would be fantastic.” Networking opportunities abound, he said. “A lot of really well-known industry leaders are in these groups. ABI does a nice job in terms of breakout sessions, with a lot of informative opportunities to learn about the business climate in Iowa.”
One of the biggest payoffs from ABI membership: “I really appreciate the reciprocal relationship that ABI members have, the opportunities. The return on investment in ABI has certainly been fantastic. If there’s anybody interested in joining the association, I would welcome their questions and encourage them.”
“ABI has given a lot back to us as a firm and to me, personally,” Mr. Larson said. “I like to try to give back when I can. It’s important to maintain strong business community networks. ABI does top-notch work to make that happen.”
He joins the chorus on the showing-up issue: “Be present. It sounds simple but it takes a little bit of time. You don’t know when that connection you made will be really valuable, but I promise that it will.”
New members may find “it’s lonely sometimes at the top,” he said. “It’s nice to be around people who might be facing the same issues you are. Sitting around the table, it becomes obvious very quickly at ABI, someone has dealt with it before.”
Bottom-line, said Mr. Larson, “ABI participation has paid off professionally and personally. I would do it again in a heartbeat.”
