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V O L . X X I V N O. V I I A P R I L 2 , 2 0 1 8 8 B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S N E W S F RO M A RO U N D T H E S TAT E L.L.Bean to cut 100 jobs L.L.Bean announced March 16 it plans to eliminate 100 positions this spring and will not award perfor- mance bonuses. President and CEO Steve Smith told employees in a memo that 2017 was a challeng- ing year, with a slight drop in sales and shipping problems related to a systems upgrade, the Portland Press Herald reported. Net sales of $1.6 billion were slightly below the previ- ous year. L.L.Bean also plans to stop subsidizing the cost of medical and dental insurance for employees who work fewer than 30 hours a week. In an eff ort to get leaner, the retailer will off er early retirement packages to eli- gible employees. N O T E W O R T H Y S O U T H E R N Leavitt & Sons Deli opened at 200 Kennebec St. in Portland. Easterseals Maine in Portland received a $25,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation's State Giving Program. The grant will allow the organization to hire additional staff for its veter- ans program to provide an increased presence in the Lewiston-Auburn and Augusta-Waterville regions. The Saco School District received $180,000 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to retrofi t the en- gines on seven older school buses. The retrofi t will cut pollutants that are linked to health problems such as asthma and lung damage. Day One, an agency in South Portland dedicated to addressing substance use and mental health needs among chil- dren and young adults, was awarded two, one-year grants from the United Way of York County totaling $24,000. The awards will benefi t the organiza- tion's six-month residential treatment program in Buxton, Hinckley and Hollis as well as its Natural Helpers of Maine school prevention program. Mercy Hospital in Portland announced that Chest Medicine Associates, a specialty physician group in South Portland, is providing inpatient pulmon- ology and critical care services at its State Street and Fore River hospitals. The Maine Sheriffs Association donat- ed $25,000 to Volunteers of America Northern New England in Brunswick to operate Camp POSTCARD (Police Offi cers Striving To Create And Reinforce Dreams), a free, week-long program for Maine children. Sea Run Holdings Inc., a medical labo- ratory in Freeport, said it provided pro- teins purifi ed from salmon plasma to researchers at the University of Illinois that have solved some persistent problems in stem cell culture. The re- searchers chose salmon fi brin as their 3-D stem culture media since salmon fi brin gels "can be easily prepared, are non-toxic, have low immunogenicity, are adjustable in elasticity and rigidity and therefore are highly applicable for use in medicine and bioengineering." AARP Maine in Portland said with the additions of Waldo County, city of Caribou and town of Ogunquit it reached a total of 50 communities in the state that have joined its Network of Age-Friendly Communities. The Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families and the Offi ce of Head Start awarded the York County Community Action Corp. in Sanford $1 million for its Head Start and Early Head Start programs in Sanford. Geiger in Lewiston merges with British rm Lewiston-based Geiger plans a merger with a British distributor, the two companies announced March 19. e combined company, Geiger BTC Group, will provide support for clients in the United Kingdom and across Q: We know that having a diverse workforce adds value, but where do we start? We live in Maine and there's just not a lot of diversity. ACE Advises: Building inclusion and leveraging diversity require a well-informed, structured strategy in tandem with agile, committed leaders and skilled change agents. It's not enough to create an organization's version of Noah's Ark, bringing in "two of each kind." Diversity, equity and inclusion work (DEI) is about culture change. All organizations and institutions have their legacies. The choices made in their formation determine their deep structure and culture. Those early deci- sions are made in service to those who occupy the organizations at the time. Many challenges associated with greater DEI can be linked to the culture, the invisible architecture of the organization or institution. To manage the change: 1. Accept that emotional resistance, especially anxiety and discomfort, goes with the territory. 2. Commit to a long-term change process and not a one-off training program. 3. Form a diverse team to lead the ini- tiative, chaired by a member of the executive team. This work must be done in partnership with members of your organization, at all levels. 4. Provide training and development for the team to position its members for success. 5. Assess your organization's readiness for change; strengthen as needed. 6. Transition to a formal start-up phase, beginning with data collection, analy- sis and feedback. 7. Engage stakeholders in developing the strategy. Repeat this iterative process of acting, collecting data, learning and adapting. There isn't a roadmap on how you change entrenched cultures and systems. But there is a path and a direction. We must build the road forward by walking it. A S K AC E A n s w e r e d b y S u s a n M . G a l l a n t o f S M G a l l a n t The Association for Consulting Expertise (ACE) is a non-profit association of independent consultants who value "Success through Collaboration." The public is welcome to attend its regular meetings to share best practices and engage with industry experts. For more information go to www.consultexpertise.com. Susan M. Gallant can be reached at susan@smgallant.com or www.diversity-i.com Meet the 2018 Mainebiz Business Leaders of the Year Tickets are $45 per person Portland Country Club 11 Foreside Road, Falmouth May 3, 5:00–7:00 pm SP ONSORED BY FOLLOW US @MBEVENTS #MBBLOY18 Joshua Broder of Tilson; Kathie Leonard of Auburn Manufacturing Inc.; Steve Levesque of MRRA For more information and to register, go to mainebiz.biz/BLOY C E N T R A L & W E S T E R N

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