Mainebiz

V I E W P O I N T S W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 3 JA N UA R Y 7 , 2 0 1 9 Featured @ Mainebiz.biz For a daily digest of Maine's top business news, sign up for the Mainebiz Daily Report at mainebiz.biz/enews Get Maine's business news daily at mainebiz.biz and on Twitter (@Mainebiz). Below is our top content from the weeks of December 3–31. 1. Five Maine companies receive 2018 Governor's Award for Business Excellence 2. Specialty foods store takes over Angelone's East Deering location 3. Brady eyes spring 2021 opening for proposed Portland hotel with rooftop bar 4. N.H. town gives chilly reception to Shipyard's ambitious brewery plan 5. Seven Maine hospitals recognized as 'top' rural hospitals nationally 6. What do millennials want? How a younger generation is influencing the workplace 7. Vets First Choice announces new name, leadership team, when merger is completed 8. Software company expands into Maine with Portland office 9. Lafayette Hotels purchases fifth Boothbay Harbor property 10. Northern Light Mercy Hospital expands cancer care services with new partnership P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y S A P P I N O R T H A M E R I C A 1 bernsteinshur.com Be smart. BE SHUR. When you need a lawyer who thinks like an executive and speaks like a human. From the Editor G oing into 2019, there's been a lot of talk about the economy and where it's headed. With the stock market taking a rocky ride, forecasts of doom- and-gloom abound. In Maine, the last recession is still a fresh mem- ory, and the real estate market continues to lead our economy. Are there storm clouds on the horizon? We turn to 19 business leaders to answer the question about what's ahead. e "19 on '19" feature includes leaders from construction, retail, tourism, manufacturing, financial services and the nonprofit industries, as well as a couple of economists. Reading the stories, there's an air of caution, cer- tainly, but the day-to-day reality is that many Maine companies are running at capacity. ey're still ham- pered by the lack of qualified workers. But read the stories and make up your own mind about where the economy is headed. Starts on Page 10. Mainebiz looks back over 25 years When Mainebiz launched in 1994 (as Biz), Bill Clinton was president, the internet was a foreign concept and office-to-office communication was accompanied by the whirr of a fax machine. In the April 29 issue, Mainebiz will look back on the past quarter century at who shaped Maine's economy, what trends changed how we do business and which industries emerged and which declined. We will also, with this issue, launch "A Look Back," where we dig through the Mainebiz archives to look at what's changed. is item looks at another company that started in 1994, Shipyard Brewing Co., and its pioneering efforts to clean up a corner of Munjoy Hill — now one of Maine's hottest real estate markets (see Page 9). Peter Van Allen pvanallen@mainebiz.biz As a business owner focused exclusively on the career transitions of Maine professionals, I read with inter- est the Dec. 10 Mainebiz cover story, "What's Next for Maine's Labor Shortage?" e statistics on Maine's workforce shortage across industries and positions are alarming and, as you reported, employers are struggling to find effec- tive strategies to attract or retain talent. One of your quotes included strategies on being "more flexible in considering non-traditional types of hires, such as veterans, people with disabilities, Maine's immigrant population and workers with prison records." While we may need all the help we can get from a variety of populations, we seem to be overlooking experienced boomers — a significant group, 36% of Maine's population. e topic has received recent attention in a Harvard Business Review article, "When No One Retires," by Paul Irving. It's one of six articles in an HBR series addressing the work- force shortage solutions. Barbara Babkirk Master career counselor and founder Heart At Work Associates, Portland To the Editor For 2019, predicting the unpredictable Baby boomers can help ease workforce shortage

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