Jay Sachetti joined Jeff O’Brien, partner at Husch Blackwell and Dyanne Ross-Hanson, president of Exit Planning Strategies talked about the market for mergers and acquisitions, exit planning opportunities for companies that don’t end up for sale and how companies can maximize their eventual sale price during an early October panel at the first Upsize on Tap event at Summit Brewing Co. in St. Paul.
Focus
Hit the books
Cannabis-based products have been increasingly available in Minnesota over the last six years. The opportunities in that space became even more prominent last year when the state legislature voted to become the 23rd state to legalize adult recreational use of marijuana for Minnesotans over 21.
Make it happen
When Super Bowl LII was played at U.S. Bank Stadium in February 2018, Alex Tittle didn’t play a down on the field, but he had more than three-years of impact on the experience.
Not so bad
Unemployment in Minnesota sits below 3 percent. Labor market participation is high. Airport traffic counts across the country are approaching and even surpassing pre-pandemic levels, so consumers are still spending money.
Consumer confidence, reportedly spurred by the strong labor market, also seems at least cautiously on the rise.
Chatting with ChatGPT
The use of artificial intelligence (AI), such as ChatGPT, can be confusing or even scary to some. But users swear by it. We decided to go to the source itself. Upsize Editor Andy Tellijohn spent a few minutes chatting with ChatGPT about its experiences working with small business owners. Here’s what it had to say.
All onboard
F3 Wireless employs a team of engineering experts that partners with clients on anything from wireless technology certification test plans to complete device development. It’s been set up from the start where people can work remotely because such engineers tend to work best if they have long stretches of quiet time.
Until recently, the company was small enough where staff could collaborate or have questions answered through Google Chat or other online tools. But often times, information most new hires would get early in their time on a job fell by the wayside due to the lack of formal processes.
“There was no process associated with ‘How do I find someone, how do I document.’ There was no process for the job description,” says Chris Anderson, chief technical officer.
He would find someone interested in a new role, they would negotiate compensation, he’d send them a letter and refer them to the company wiki, which contained information about how to punch in to work, access the time tracking system and start getting paid and fill out the paperwork for getting paid.
Once that was filled out, he’d hand the new hire off to a project manager and they’d get to work.
Unlocking a second chance
Music producer and environmental innovator Mike Martin started r.Cup with the idea of partnering with cities to reduce trash and reuse the cups attendees use when attending sports, concerts and other events.
The company has wash hubs active via partnerships in Denver, Seattle and Los Angeles with San Francisco beginning operations this month. Headquartered in Minnesota, he hopes to begin operations here this year too.
Questions & Answers
Dorothy Bridges retired from her last job at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis in 2018 after four decades in banking and financial services. She was serving on a few boards, most notably those of U.S. Bancorp and the Metropolitan Economic Development Association (MEDA), while pondering whether there were jobs out there that might lure her back into the workforce.
Supply chain strain
For years, many companies have given their supply chain little thought. They had their suppliers, they had the product they needed and if they needed it more quickly, they might just have to pay a little bit more to get it fast.
The COVID-19 pandemic blew up the reliability of those shipments, however, making it harder for everyone to get what they needed. Global strife in China and Ukraine followed by heavy inflation and a potential recession has furthered the strife to a point where many companies have closed and others have struggled.
Be vigilant, don’t panic
The U.S. inflation rate in May hit its highest mark since 1981, reaching 8.6 percent. And economists are projecting that the country will head into recession in 2023. It’s not the recipe most were hoping for coming on the heels of supply chain shortages and pandemic-related uncertainty. But is all lost?