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NewsletterJanuary-March 2017 Highlights

HealthX - Career Fair & ExpoWednesday, April 19, 2017

The Valley Economic Alliance (TVEA) and Los Angeles Valley College present HealthX - CareerFair & Expo on April 19th at Los Angeles Valley College.

HealthX from 9:30am-11:00am will be taking place at the Main Stage Theater and feature TED talk style presentations and demonstrations on the latest and most innovative health and wellness practices. Presentations by Valley Presbyterian Hospital, Dr. Sean Younai, Dr.Ronald Belczyk and Concorde Career College. Topics to be announced. The Career Fair and Health Expo from 8:30am-12:30pm will be taking place at the Student Union Plaza and will feature employment opportunities, free health screenings, health activities, premier health providers, health services and business resources.

Visit www.tinyurl.com/HealthX-Expo for complimentary general admission tickets, exhibitor tables,employer tables and sponsorship opportunities!

TechX & Expo Recap

The Valley Economic Alliance hosted it's second annual TechX & Expo on March 16th at TheSportsmen's Lodge Events Center.

A TVEA Board of Governor's meeting kicked off the eventful day. Newly appointed Board memberswere recognized including Roschell Ashley of New Horizons, Frank Miller of Hollywood BurbankAirport, Thomas Priselac of Cedars Sinai, David Tedesco of IMT Residential and Christine Purse ofIgnite Strategic Communications.

TechX included educational tech talks and tech demonstrations, followed by networking with exhibitorsand learning about services and resources available to businesses at the Expo.

Erik Rasmussen, Cyber Practice Leader at Kroll Cyber Security shared cyber security tips andbusiness solutions.

Veronica Gonzalez, Kenia Shi, Daniela Orozco and Wendy Samayoa with DIY Girls InvenTeam fromSan Fernando High School demonstrated their homeless shelter prototype tent made from waterresistant insulation. The tent utilizes solar energy to power electronic devices such as cell phones andLED lights, and included a device that sanitizes the tent's interior,

Kjell Nesen, Chief Operating Officer of Alltemp Solutions; shared how to lower energy costs by anaverage of 25% with Alltemp; an eco-friendly, energy saving, affordable, sustainable, and universalrefrigerant alternative to ozone depleting HCFC's and highly regulated Freon.

Heath Patton, Vice President ofMarketing at The MerchantSource shared ways to build,manage, and market customersales and sales database withFanCONNECT, a platform thatservices retailers, restaurantsand professional businesses.

Event sponsors included LosAngeles Department of Water andPower, Van Nuys Airport, KrollCyber Security, So Cal GasCompany, VICA, AlltempSolutions, FanCONNECT, Chase,Daily News, San FernandoValley Business Journal,WCOBM Hollywood, SanFernando Sun, and LargestMixer.

Photo 1: TechX presenters,TVEA staff, and Mistress ofCeremonies, Kecia Washingtonwith LADWP. Photo 2: Panel question andanswer session with TechXpresenters.Photo 3: Event sponsor, VanNuys Airport exhibiting.

"Housing our Workers" Forum Recap The Valley Economic Alliance, Southland Regional Association of Realtors, Inc., Biz Fed Institute, andNational Association of Realtors hosted the "Housing our Workers" Forum on February 8th at theAirtel Plaza Hotel. The goal of the forum was to educate attendees regarding Los Angeles' housingsupply shortage for workers and to motivate policy makers to activate a solution oriented plan of action.

The event included exhibitors and breakout groups on labor partners, social benefits, governmentpartners, neighborhood advocates, public-private partners, and traditional and creative financing.

The event concluded with a luncheon where breakout group findings were shared. Ben Metcalf,Director of the California Department of Housing and Community Development was the luncheon'skeynote speaker.

Photo 1: Kenn Phillips with Mel Wilson, GAD, SRARPhoto 2: Break panel discussion.

Lifetime Leadership Award at Entrepreneur AwardsKenn Phillips received the Lifetime Leadership Award at The World Networks' 3rd AnnualEntrepreneur Awards on February 22nd at Allure Banquet Hall in Van Nuys. Kenn was awardedfor lifetime achievement in leadership and community enrichment.

The black tie gala was hosted by Lousine Karibian, Founder and President of The World Networks whois currently in TVEA's accelerator program. The World Networks is a network for entrepreneurs whosemission is to connect entrepreneurs to opportunities worldwide while giving back to the community.

"I would like to thank The World Networks for thisrecognition and to Lousine Karibian for continuingto support our entrepreneurial human spirit. It ismore powerful than any drug and needs to benourished every day," said Phillips.

The event recognized local and internationalentrepreneurs that were selected among top

nominees for being highly recommended, offerunique products/services, are involved in thecommunity, and make a difference in the worldby impacting their industry, and empoweringother entrepreneurs by creating opportunities.

Photo 1: Pictured with Kenn is Randy Witt,Secretary on The Valley Economic Alliance'smanagement committee and President ofRandy Witt Productions, who introduced Kennto receive his award. Photo 2: Kenn Phillips with Lousine Karibian,The World Networks' Founder and President.

Economic Alliance Initiatives Rebooted!

Economic development, workforce and education investment, livable communities, and marketing areThe Valley Economic Alliance's core initiatives. TVEA hosted a meeting on February 23rd with eachinitiative's co-chair who also serve on The Alliance's board.

The purpose of the meeting was to coordinate and communicate projects and programs within eachinitiative, work closer with board members, recommend changes, expansions, and new ideas pereach co chair's expertise.

The Workforce and Education Investment Initiative works in partnership with the DevelopmentInitiative, private sector agencies, and government agencies to provide educational programs andsuccessful business hiring solutions including: hiring tax incentives and credits, identify critical longterm job skill needs, recognize outstanding school-to-career partners and national students, schoolsand educators. The Workforce and Education Co-Chairs are Dr. Erika Endrijonas of Los Angeles Valley

College, Carmen Bowen of Concorde Career College, and Kim Guard of Express EmploymentProfessionals.

The Economic Development Initiative fosters economic growth and prosperity for businesses in theSan Fernando Valley.The Economic Development Co-Chairs are Paula Bahamon of Bank of America,Paul Palkovic of Bolton & Company, John Parker of Parker Brown Inc., and Kecia Washington of LosAngeles Department of Water and Power.

The Livable & Sustainable Communities Initiative develops objective research, providesinformation to add value to and create change on determined challenges that will assure the livability,sustainability and economic vitality of Valley communities.The Livable and Sustainable CommunitiesInitiatives Co-Chairs are Mark L. Levinson of Law Office of Mark L. Levinson, Winston Stromberg ofLatham & Watkins, Darnell Tyler of NBC Universal and Keith McPherson of A Cool Nerd.

The Marketing Initiative markets TVEA as the economic development and marketing organization forthe region, and brands and markets the San Fernando Valley as a unique region to live, work, learn,and play. The Marketing Initiative Co-Chairs are Randy Witt of Randy Witt Productions and MeleneAlfonso of Los Angeles Daily News.

New Business Accelerator Program Members Start in EconomicAlliance OfficeThe Valley Economic Alliance's Business Accelerator Program welcomed new members this quarter!

Daniela Lima is Founder of For You By You Fashion; custom made clothing for you, designed byyou. A consultant will assess your sizing, style and vision, recommend fabric, show you your idea in3D, and manufacture your custom garment. Visit www.foryoubyyoufashion.com for more information.

Kedra Dawkins assists production companies who need crew at a moment's notice to save time andbudget by connecting them with qualified filmmakers. She is creating a culture of hiring in the filmindustry and actively seeking reputable clients to work with expanding her network exponentially.Contact Kedra at ksdawkins@gmail.com for more information.

Tammy McCrary founded Artistology and helps artists powerfully connect with their fans andmonetize that connection by using a step-by-step program specifically designed to empower them.The Artistology Academy is set to launch in June.

Abbi Yeboah founded Pinkshoe Marketing and empowers women entrepreneurs to build aprofitable online presence for their brand that directs traffic to their website, connects and engagesthem with their target audience, and establishes a fanatic customer base. She also assists women inidentifying, developing, and successfully marketing their brands online, by aligning their brand story totheir marketing efforts. Visit www.pinkshoemarketing.com for more information.

Michelle Lockert is Founder of Mimi's Naturally and produces raw and gluten free snacks and

skincare products including body oils,body butters, lip balm, body buffers and bath bombs. Hermission is to create pure and natural products with minimal ingredients and maximum healingproperties. Visit www.mimisnaturally.com to learn more.

Airbag Recall The Valley Economic Alliancehas partnered with TheDolpin Group to assist andeducate businesses in theSan Fernando Valley regionabout defective Takataairbags and a vital recall.

Pictured is John D. Buretta,Independent Monitor forTakata and the CoordinatedRemedy Program at a pressconference on March 27th atLos Angeles Trade TechnicalCollege.

Nearly 70 million defective Takata airbag inflators, in approximately 42 million vehicles, are or will beunder recall in the United States by 2020. The airbag inflators in certain 2001-2003 Hondas andAcuras pose the most urgent threat, with up to a 50% chance of exploding upon deployment. Defectiveairbag inflators blast shrapnel into the passenger compartment during exploding, resulting in seriousinjury or death.

Through our business assistance and layoff aversion program, the TVEA team has been visiting autorepair and auto body shop owners in the Pacoima region and informing them about how critical it is tocheck whether a vehicles airbag inflator is under recall, inform them about next steps to take and howto schedule a free repair.

Contact Ken Broderick at kbroderick@economicalliance.org to learn more.

Out and About

Kenn Phillips was featured onWCOBM TV; a network thatstreams live from Hollywoodand Las Vegas with host andCFO Bruce Garrett.

The Valley Economic Alliance's Kenn Phillips,Erica Gass, Jacqui Matsumoto, AngelaAmirkhanian and Ken Broderick completedIntegrity Solutions ' 8 week seminar ondeveloping coaching skills and helping peersimprove their productivity and performance.

Facilitated by Johnny Walker, the objective ofIntegrity Coaching behavior changeprocess is to help managers:

Increase their competence, confidence andcommitment to coaching.

Gain awareness of their leadership stylethrough self-assessment.Implement a goal achievement system withtheir people.Learn how to strike a balance between goaldirectedness and sensitivity to people.Understand the different Behavior Styles ofpeople in order to increase coachingeffectiveness.Increase their ability to diagnose areas ofneeded improvement, ask effective questionsto help guide discussions, and coach specificactions for improving performance.Build the self-confidence of their team toachieve more than they believe they arecapable of achieving.

Meeting with JuniorChamberInternational, a nonprofitorganization of young activecitizens age 18 to 40 whoare engaged andcommitted to creatingimpact in theircommunities.

Go CSUN!

Union Bank invited theEconomic Alliance andinvestors including ParkerBrown, Inc., Squar Milner,and A Cool Nerd to theirsuite for a Cal StateUniversity, Northridgebasketball game on March3rd.

Workplace Safety & Workplace Violence SeminarThursday, April 6, 2017The San Fernando Valley Employer Advisory Council invites you to an informative seminar thatwill cover services and resources available to promote safety in the workplace, and prevent workplaceviolence on April 6th, from 8:00am-11:30am, at New Horizons.

Cal/OSHA Consultation Service Area Manager Dan Leiner will present on Workplace Safety;Business and Employment Attorney Richard Grey from Law Offices of Richard Grey will present onWorkplace violence from the HR and policy perspective; and Los Angeles Police DepartmentSergeant Kyle Campbell will present on what to do in the case of an active shooter.

The following topics will be covered in this seminar:

Reducing the likelihood of Workplace ViolenceEconomic ConsequencesPractical Prevention ActionsWorkplace Restraining OrdersThe New Workplace Violence Prevention in Health Care Regulation going into effect on April 1,2017 and its Main RequirementsThe Injury and Illness Prevention Program [IIPP] and Workplace ViolenceCal/OSHA Enforcement and Consultation ServicesCal/OSHA Frequently Cited RegulationsActive Shooter Preparedness

Visit www.sfveac.org/events/mail-seminar-reservations to register.

The Valley Economic Alliance | 818-379-7000 | information@economicalliance.org | www.thevalley.net

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The mission of The Valley Economic Alliance is to elevate the economic vitality of our five-city region byassisting the San Fernando Valley in business, education, & government.

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