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The Insider Notebook

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NOTEBOOK: Certifiable in Norwalk

The city of Norwalk had good reason to cheer last week when state and local officials who hold significant titles gathered at the city’s certified industrial site on the south side of town. Folks were …

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NOTEBOOK: Industrial market slowed in second quarter; vacancies still low

The hot, but maybe not sizzling, Greater Des Moines industrial market turned a touch tepid in the second quarter, with 237,581 square feet of space opening up as the result of several buildings experiencing move-outs …

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NOTEBOOK – One Good Read: Hot item for sale at small companies: The business itself

Another consequence of a tight labor market and the need for skilled workers like we have in Greater Des Moines: Small businesses are getting snapped up. Our neighbors to the north at the Minneapolis Star Tribune took …

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NOTEBOOK – One Good Read: Maybe we all are from Mars


As you know, it’s important in the boardroom to know where your business came from. Which turns out to be Mars, possibly. The buzz in the science world this week is about a lake found…
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NOTEBOOK: Top tips from Mr. Civility, Michael Josephson

Michael Josephson and I chatted the other day at the Robert D. and Billie Ray Center at Drake University. It wasn’t long after the death of former Gov. Bob Ray, whose life modeled and was …

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NOTEBOOK: In case you missed it…

In case you missed it…
A brief look back at news from the past week on BusinessRecord.com.

Principal top employer for women
Principal Financial Group Inc. has earned the No. 1 spot on Forbes’ list …

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NOTEBOOK: Police station another Vatican?

Technicians from the German-based company Kärcher cleaned the Des Moines Police Station with a steam process meant to take some grime off the historic riverfront building. For those of you who don’t know Kärcher, the …

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NOTEBOOK: DMACC executive supplies added horsepower to Iowa parades

People have gotten used to seeing DMACC President Rob Denson deftly steering one of the community college’s training semitrailer trucks around tight town squares during parades, as we’ve documented in one of our photo issues. …

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NOTEBOOK: Appreciating what you have

John Twardos, the president and CEO of statewide human services organization Lutheran Services of Iowa, is a seasoned traveler. While working with a Wisconsin company, he was often heading to places outside the U.S. The …

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NOTEBOOK: Survey: What you don’t know about insurance could hurt you

Being on the insurance beat, I see a lot of press releases — many unsolicited but a few self-inflicted by subscription — detailing survey results about every imaginable aspect of insurance. One that caught my …