The fact that Ian Rolland received the Sachem Award from Gov. Mitch Daniels at a Wednesday ceremony at the Statehouse was no surprise. You can read, listen and see more about the honor and the recipient courtsey of the governor’s office.

When such events take place, it reminds me how fortunate I am to have the opportunity to meet and speak with so many of these distinguished Hoosiers. Rolland was the 1998 winner of the Indiana Chamber’s Business Leader of the Year award.

On the unfortunate side, I had only been with the Chamber a few months at the time and, quite honestly, had not figured out these annual awards and exactly how we should communicate about them. My time with Rolland for an interview at the Fort Wayne offices of Lincoln National, where he had just retired as CEO, was limited. I’ve learned since to invest more time to do a better job of telling such interesting award winner stories.

But in looking back, there are a couple of nuggets that Rolland shared that day that do epitomize his role as not only a business but community leader who is still making a difference in Fort Wayne and beyond. From the November/December 1998 BizVoice magazine (the third issue of the publication; our 84th issue will debut at next week’s Best Places to Work in Indiana awards event):

Rolland: "I’ve come to believe very strongly in community involvement. It’s a responsibility of citizenship — whether individual or corporate. I think it’s really in the best interest of the organization, too. If we can help make those communities better, it’s a better place for our employees and a better place to market our products."

Rolland had a 42-year association with Lincoln National, becoming president in 1975 and CEO two years later. Assets grew from $6 billion to $88 billion under his leadership.

In his understated way that day 14 years ago, he said, "The business has to be successful, growing and profitable before you can do anything else. Once that was accomplished, I think I was able to help make this community a better place."

Indeed. Congratulations, Ian Rolland.

OK, there wasn’t much chance the amendment was going to pass the U.S. Senate and, if somehow it did, it would have been vetoed by the White House. But it was worth the old college try, as they say, and it did shine the spotlight once again on the runaway actions of the National Labor Relations Board.

The amendment was an attempt to overturn new regulations that dramatically reduce the time between union organization efforts and the actual election in that workplace. In other words, unions will still be able to make their case for why their presence would make sense during their organizing effort, but employers will have precious little time to respond prior to a vote taking place.

Currently, worker votes typically take place 45 to 60 days after a union gathers enough signatures to warrant an election. Under the new regulations, those votes could take place within a matter of a few weeks, or even days.

Indiana senators Richard Lugar and Dan Coats supported the resolution to overturn the NLRB action. The 54-45 vote to disapprove, however, was along party lines with the exception of one vote.

Lawmaker reactions were swift, calling the rule an "ambush" on employers:

Senator Roy Blunt (R-Missouri): "By speeding up union elections and removing important safeguards that ensure a fair election process, this unnecessary rule will restrict job creators’ free speech rights and limit workers’ opportunities to hear both sides of the argument to unionize — an issue critically important to their livelihood.

"It’s unfortunate that we have to spend time undoing this administration’s reckless job-killing policies when leaders on both sides of the aisle should be working together to pass common-sense, pro-growth solutions that will boost job creation and get our economy back on track," Blunt continued.

Mike Enzi (R-Wyoming), Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee ranking member: “This vote was an important opportunity to send a message to the NLRB that their job is not to tip the scale in favor of one party or another, but to fairly resolve disputes and conduct secret ballot elections."

Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina): The National Labor Relations Board seems hell bent on changing processes across the board, more for political reasons than for substantive reasons." 

When you’re the poor sucker who gets stuck with the general newsroom phone line at a news organization, you get a lot of weird and wacky calls. Sure, you can be the first one to get the breaking news tips, but you’re also in for a world of crazy requests, silly questions and “great” story ideas.

During my term at the helm when I was a reporter for a local newspaper I got story tips on everything from giant and or oddly-shaped vegetables, to an old tree that got knocked down in a storm (believe it or not, I had to cover that last story). Sometimes it was just acting as a general knowledge base for a population of people that don’t have access to or don’t know how to use Google.

We all lamented our turn with the general tip line, but what I had never considered was that those who work in the IT and technical support field get screwball questions and requests every day as long as they are in the field. I should have realized this – my computer programmer husband to this day still gets funny requests from my family on how to fix their computers.

But it wasn’t until I read over a press release of a survey of chief information officers around the United States about some of the ridiculous requests and questions that I realized reporters have nothing to complain about; never once have I been asked, “How do I clean cat hair out of my computer fan?” or “Can you come over and plug this cord in for me?”

Here are some other doozies:
“How do I remove a sesame seed from the keyboard?”
“I need help drilling holes in the wall.”
“Can I turn on the coffee pot with my computer?”
“I dropped my phone in the toilet, what should I do?”
“How do I pirate software?”

These get even better:
“I’d like to download the entire Internet so I can take it with me.”
“How do I start the Internet?”
“Will you show me how to use the mouse?”
“My computer won’t turn on or off.” (The computer was unplugged in that case.)
“How do I send an e-mail?”
“How do I click on different files?”

Yes – these are all legitimate questions that have been asked by people across the country. It seems like there is still quite a digital literacy gap in the population, which requires patience and understanding by the IT or help desk support staff.

What questions have you heard others ask – or you yourself asked – of your IT staff? Chime in and see if you can beat some of those previously mentioned.

Three Indiana organizations are among 133 semifinalists for the prestigious Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. The award is the highest honor given by the government to employers for providing exceptional support to their Guard and Reserve employees. There were more than 3,200 nominees nationally.

The Indiana employers named semifinalists are Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana, Inc., Princeton; U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration, Indianapolis; and Gary Jet Center, Gary. Freedom Award nominations come directly from Guard and Reserve members, or family members acting on their behalf. The Freedom Award provides service members with an opportunity to recognize employers for going above and beyond what is required by law. 

Employers chosen as semifinalists support their Guard and Reserve employees through a variety of formal and informal initiatives, including developing internal military support networks, providing full benefits to employees fulfilling their military obligations, caring for the families of deployed employees, and granting additional leave to Guard and Reserve employees preparing to leave for or return from deployments.
 
ESGR will announce the 2012 Freedom Award finalists next month after a review board comprised of military and civilian leaders selects the 30 most supportive employers from among the 133 semifinalists. The 15 award recipients will be announced early this summer and honored in Washington, D.C. at the 17th annual Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award Ceremony on September 20, 2012.  

Question: What beats a free day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in May during the middle of the work week?

Answer: A free day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in May during the middle of the work week with a free lunch.

The Indiana Chamber’s Lunch with Brinegar roadshow program makes its first stop of the year at the IMS on Wednesday, May 16. Indiana Chamber President Kevin Brinegar will provide an overview of this year’s Indiana General Assembly, an update on membership benefits and insight into this year’s elections. The event will also provide you with a great opportunity to network with other members. The lunch takes place from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.  After the program, you will have access to Gasoline Alley and the IMS grounds to enjoy the day.

The event takes place in the muddy snake pit, so dress accordingly. And, sorry, Jim Nabors will not be singing at this event because he refused Kevin’s offer to sing "Back Home Again" in Indiana as a duet. (Yes, you will be forced to drink milk at the lunch program.)

Also, the only “new track record” we’ll experience is my numerous failing attempts to make as many bad business/Indy 500 jokes as possible during my five minute presentation. But we hope you will join us to learn more about your membership and to enjoy one of the greatest sporting venues in the world!

Members may attend the event at no cost; please RSVP to Lauren Creamer at lcreamer@indianachamber.com. The fee for non-members is $50.

A rapid expansion of Louisiana’s school voucher program, officially signed into law last week, is the latest in a series of initiatives to expand school choice throughout the country. The Friedman Foundation offers its perspective. Milton Friedman first proposed vouchers in 1955.

Gov. Bobby Jindal signed into law today an expansion of Louisiana’s school voucher program, making it one of the largest such programs nationwide.

Vouchers, which allow parents to use government funding for their children’s private school tuition, were first proposed in 1955 by Nobel laureate Milton Friedman, who believed universally available vouchers were the best way to improve education. In 1990, the first voucher program was created in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, though only for low-income families. Last year, Indiana took historic action by making more than half of its student population voucher-eligible. Now, more than half of all Louisiana students will qualify for vouchers.

“States are realizing that school choice works,” said Robert Enlow, president and CEO of the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice, Milton Friedman’s legacy foundation. “The more that states can move from limited school choice to universal availability, the greater its benefits will be to those in need. Indiana is witnessing this now. So, too, will Louisiana.”

In Louisiana, vouchers have been available since 2008, but only to New Orleans children and students with special needs in eligible parishes. In the 2012-13 school year, the Student Scholarships for Educational Excellence Program will allow low- and middle-income students statewide to receive vouchers if they are enrolled in public schools graded “C,” “D,” or “F” by Louisiana’s accountability system.

Currently, 18 states, including Louisiana, and Washington, D.C., provide private school choice through vouchers or the tax code. In 2011, called “The Year of School Choice” by voucher supporters, 13 states increased the availability of school choice; eight new programs were created and 11 existing laws were expanded. This year, Florida and Arizona have approved increases to their private school choice programs, while Virginia and New Hampshire—neither of which allow private school choice—have passed scholarship proposals.

A union challenge to the state’s right-to-work law was definitely expected. The challenge that has been offered, however, lacks in credibility, according to this excerpted editorial that first appeared in the Lafayette Journal & Courier and has been echoed in other circles.

In a federal lawsuit filed in federal court, attorneys for the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150 argue that the right-to-work law infringes on the unions’ freedom of speech.

How? The right-to-work law, signed into law this year, allows workers to skip paying union dues even if the union bargains for wages and benefits on their behalf. The lawsuit’s contention is that right-to-work limits a union’s ability to build up coffers needed to negotiate beyond the plant floor — namely in Statehouses and other political lobbying settings.

The brief filed last month, according to an Associated Press account, cites the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling, which made corporate campaign spending free from many reporting restrictions. Nice try.

The unions, which are scheduled to get a hearing in federal court later this month, are already being called on the strategy by legal experts. And rightly so. The Citizens United decision, whether rightly or wrongly sorted out by the U.S. Supreme Court, was about spending money to boost political speech without many of the past reporting restrictions. It was not about how corporations or organizations raised that money.

Unions faced those potential fundraising limitations before right to work, with union members able to opt out of dues that were beyond those needed for negotiations.

If unions are serious about bringing down Indiana’s right-to-work law, we’re guessing they’ll have to try another approach.