BizTimes Milwaukee is seeking nominations for the 2010 Bravo! Entrepreneur Awards, which salute dynamic company leaders who demonstrate the best traits of entrepreneurship, including innovation, the willingness to take risk and resilience during the Great Recession.

To be considered, the entrepreneur must be part of a closely-held company that has been in business for a minimum of one year and has a minimum of $1.5 million in annual sales.

Other criteria for the Bravo! Entrepreneur Awards includes:

• Entrepreneur must be the founder of the business or have been critical to its growth.
  Company must be based in or have been founded in Milwaukee, Waukesha, Ozaukee, Washington, Sheboygan, Racine, Kenosha or Walworth counties.
• Company must show vision, risk and creativity.
• Company must be profitable.
• Entrepreneur should contribute to the community through charitable or leadership roles.
• Entrepreneur should demonstrate strong corporate culture.
• Company should have demonstrated significant growth and long-term potential.
• Committee may honor a separate individual, in addition to the founder, if deemed appropriate.

The Bravo! nominees also will be considered for the Regional Spirit Award, which includes additional criteria:

• Nominees for this award can be from a private or public company and should demonstrate commitment to the growth and well-being of the region through good corporate citizenship and promotion of regional ties.
• Award may be given to a company, individual or organization.
• Company must have a significant presence in southeastern Wisconsin.
• Company should be active in local business groups.
• Company should demonstrate a commitment to regionalization of southeastern Wisconsin’s economy through strong business activities in the region.
• Company should promote charitable and civic causes.
• Company should work to build the region’s workforce and enhance its quality of life.
• Company should demonstrate commitment to purchase, when possible, significant amount of goods and services from local vendors, thereby contributing to a new level of entrepreneurship.

BizTimes Milwaukee also will consider the Bravo! Entrepreneur Awards nominees for the Lifetime Achievement Award, which includes additional criteria:

• Nominees should have long, demonstrated track records of entrepreneurial success, strong leadership skills and business innovations.
• Lifetime Achievement winner should have contributed greatly to the growth of the southeastern Wisconsin business community for at least one decade.
• Winner should provide inspiration to younger entrepreneurs by examples of risk-taking, community-mindedness and success.
• Winner should have realized outstanding achievements in business or development of the region’s economy.

The winners of the Bravo! Entrepreneur Awards will be featured in an upcoming edition of BizTimes Milwaukee and will be honored at an awards luncheon on Thursday, April 29, at the sixth annual BizTech Conference & Expo to be held at the Wisconsin State Fair Park.

Nominate your entrepreneur today for the 2010 Bravo! Entrepreneur Awards at www.biztimes.com/bravo. Nominations are due March 9. 
The BizTech Conference & Expo is the largest business-to-business conference in the state. For additional information, visit www.biztimes.com/expo.

The 2009 Bravo! Entrepreneur Award winners were: Jim T. Barry III president of Colliers Barry Inc., Milwaukee; Ross Bjella president of DDN, Menomonee Falls; Matthew Buerosse and Jesse Daily partners CORE Consulting LLC, Thiensville; Joe Fazio chairman and chief executive officer of Commerce State Bank, West Bend; Patrick Finger and David Velcheck partners of Velcheck & Finger Roof Consulting & Service, Pewaukee;  John Lauber president and chief executive officer of Lauber CFOs Inc., Milwaukee; Cindy Lu co-founder and president of The Novo Group, Milwaukee; Eric Resch president and founder of Stone Creek Coffee, Milwaukee; and Stuart Schroeder attorney and chief executive officer of The Schroeder Group S.C., Attorneys at Law, Waukesha.

The winner of the 2009 BizTimes Regional Spirit Award was Rich Meeusen, chief executive officer of Badger Meter Inc..

Richard Pieper Sr., non-executive chairman of PPC Partners Inc., received the prestigious BizTimes Lifetime Achievement Award. Previous recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award include Harry Quadracci, George Dalton, Robert Kern and Joseph Zilber.

Moose International has selected Milwaukee as the host city for its 2013 International Convention.
The convention is expected to bring more than 7,000 delegates to the city, take up as many as 18,000 room nights and pump approximately $9 million into the Milwaukee economy.
“The community came together in a big way to win this significant convention for Milwaukee,” said Brent Foerster, vice president of sales and marketing for Visit Milwaukee. “This group will occupy hotels, dine in restaurants and spend significant dollars throughout the greater Milwaukee area.”
Moose International (www.mooseintl.org) comprising the Loyal Order of Moose and the Women of the Moose, is a fraternal and service organization founded in 1888 with nearly 1.1 million men and women in roughly 1,800 Lodges and 1,600 Chapters throughout North America, including four Canadian provinces as well as Great Britain and Bermuda.
William Airey, director general and chief executive officer of Moose International, said Milwaukee will make an ideal destination for its 2013 convention.
“There are a lot of factors that go into our site selection decision,” Airey said. “We were impressed by the community’s desire to host us and the overall quality of the city’s hospitality community. We’re very excited about bringing our members to Milwaukee, for what will be the first time since 1944.”
The Moose organization supports the operation of Mooseheart Child City and School, a 1,000-acre community for children in need, located 40 miles west of Chicago; and Moosehaven, a 70-acre retirement community for its members near Jacksonville, Fla. Additionally, Moose Lodges and Chapters contribute approximately $75 million worth of community service annually.
The 2013 convention will mark the 100th anniversary of Mooseheart.
 “In the past 100 years, Moose International has been a model organization through its significant work with children, schools and communities, and I believe it deserves an anniversary celebration that will be remembered for another 100 years to come,” said Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. “Milwaukee is the perfect choice for a celebration of this magnitude.”
Milwaukee Common Council President Willie Hines is a member of the Visit Milwaukee executive board and participated in a recent site visit by Moose officials that helped close the deal.
“This is a group of people who have a history of doing good deeds and working to improve communities throughout the country and the world,” said Hines. “Like all groups who select to convene in Milwaukee, they will come to experience our warm brand of hospitality and world-class attractions that make us a great visitor destination.”

Social networks are morphing into "commercial networks" for businesses and will transform the world of work with the profitable opportunities they hold for both individuals and prospective employers, according to Manpower Inc. chief executive officer Jeff Joerres.
Organizations can tap previously invisible and inaccessible pools of talent in the form of virtual workforces via the connective power of social media, Joerres said.
"Social networks are really a misnomer because they are turning into commercial entities and changing the way companies do business," Joerres said. "Groups of individuals who, in the past, could not participate in the traditional workforce for religious or cultural reasons, or because of disabilities can now work virtually through social networks. These untapped but highly-skilled workers are critical in the face of an aging global workforce and worsening talent mismatch."
Joerres provided insights from his Milwaukee-based staffing company about the growing power and potential of social networks at the recent World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, during a panel discussion titled "Social Networks vs. the CEO - is the CEO prepared?"
Virtual talent pool Web sites effectively enable companies to access a diverse on-demand workforce and in turn, individuals can offer their skills and services to prospective employers. The beauty of what are becoming commercial networks is that the location is a virtual site and the job can be performed anywhere with an Internet connection, Joerres said.
In future, even more highly skilled jobs will infiltrate these pools with a "plug and play" operational system through which workers offer their services and employers can pay for them to complete a specific task, no matter how great the geographical distance, he said.
With the rapid evolution of technology has come the advent of what Manpower has termed "Net Taylorism," whereby projects can be parced into modules without giving the complete picture, to avoid intellectual property concerns, and resourced virtually. Companies can take all of the pieces of the puzzle that are individually worked on virtually and fit them together for later replicable use, simply paying royalties to the module creators, Joerres said.
Through sites such as Facebook and Twitter, employees can connect to their CEO, whose access to their unfiltered ideas can inform their view of the business in exciting new ways, he said.
Manpower's new Fresh Perspectives paper, “Social Networks vs. Management? Harness the Power of Social Media,” explores how companies can harness the popularity and business value that social media can garner to drive employee engagement, boost organizational performance and further corporate goals.
According to Manpower research, 75 percent of employees say their company does not have a formal policy around the use of social networks. Most organizations that have instituted a policy have done so in order to avoid productivity loss, mirroring the corporate reaction to the growing popularity of the World Wide Web in the 1990s, when it was feared that employees would waste too much time idly surfing the Web.
"The focus of company efforts should be to channel use of social networking in directions that benefit organizations and employees alike, rather than trying to control employees' social networking behavior," added Joerres. "The key is to equip your employees with a framework for what's on-message and the tone of your company, and then empower them to be ambassadors of your brand."
In Davos, Manpower announced the launch of MyPath.com, the world's first social network dedicated to improving skills and advancing the careers of professionals in a trusted new way.
Social networks are one facet of the technological revolutions - one of the four World of Work Mega Trends identified by Manpower - that are changing where, when and how individuals and companies work. Manpower believes that these trends should be top concerns for business leaders across the globe when planning their workforce management strategy throughout the recovery. An executive summary of the trends and their implications is available at: http://www.manpower.com/worldofwork.
A full copy of the Manpower paper Social Networks vs. Management? Harness the Power of Social Media, is available at http://www.manpower.com/research/research.cfm.

Under a new, multi-year agreement, Quad/Graphics Photography Services will become L.L.Bean’s exclusive provider for studio photography.
The agreement, an expansion of an existing Quad/Graphics contract, goes into effect this month and covers photography for L.L.Bean’s catalogs, including the Men’s, Women’s, Kids, Fly Fishing, Hunting, Traveler and Home titles as well as its websites and e-commerce businesses.
As part of the partnership established by the agreement, L.L.Bean will build Studio 1912, a state-of-the-art, 16,000-square-foot all digital photography studio in Westbrook, a Portland, Maine suburb, about 20 miles from L.L.Bean’s Freeport corporate headquarters. The Studio 1912 name reflects the year that L.L.Bean started in business.
Quad/Graphics Photography Services will manage studio operations in cooperation with L.L.Bean’s Photography Operations and Creative Department. The new studio will feature seven shooting bays, which will accommodate dozens of active sets daily. Four bays will have full daylight photography capability. The studio also will include a fully equipped set-building shop, areas for merchandise management, a prop room, production offices, dressing rooms and hair and makeup areas.
L.L.Bean will direct the vision and creative direction while Quad/Graphics will provide staffing and technology support, according to Mark Kozlowski, Quad/Graphics director of photography.
"With this contract expansion, Quad/Graphics will provide the best talent and technology, and together with L.L.Bean’s creative direction we will create a best-in-class photography studio which will be a model for the catalog industry, ” Kozlowski said.
Quad/Graphics is the exclusive printer and premedia provider for L.L.Bean catalogs under a contract that began in January 2008. Quad/Graphics prints and distributes all L.L.Bean catalogs from its gravure printing plants in Martinsburg, W.Va.; Oklahoma City, Okla.; and Lomira, Wis.
“This expansion of our photography partnership with L.L.Bean is exciting news for both companies,” said Joel Quadracci, Quad/Graphics chairman, president and chief executive officer. "Quad/Graphics provides L.L.Bean with efficient and cost-effective production solutions starting with photography and prepress through printing and distribution, and this new photography arrangement is testament to the mutual success we have achieved.”

Google announced today it is getting into the broadband service business with trials to develop fiber networks that will deliver Internet access speeds that are 100 times faster than what most Americans receive today.
The company said in its blog that it will build fiber-to-the-home connections to a small number of locations across the country that will deliver Internet access speeds of 1 gigabit per second.
The company did not specify which areas would be part of its experiment, but said prices would be competitive and that its network would reach at least 50,000 and potentially up to 500,000 people.
“Imagine sitting in a rural health clinic, streaming three-dimensional medical imaging over the web and discussing a unique condition with a specialist in New York. Or downloading a high-definition, full-length feature film in less than five minutes. Or collaborating with classmates around the world while watching live 3-D video of a university lecture. Universal, ultra high-speed Internet access will make all this and more possible,” the company said in the blog. "Our goal is to experiment with new ways to help make Internet access better and faster for everyone.”
To read the full blog, which was titled “Think big with a gig: Our experimental fiber network,” click here.

ABC News reported this morning that  a former top lawyer for Toyota claims the automaker regularly hid evidence of safety defects from consumers and regulators, and fostered a culture of "hypocrisy and deceit."
In an exclusive interview with ABC, Dimitrios Biller says automaker covered up evidence of safety problems.
"You have to understand that Toyota in Japan does not have any respect for our legal system," said Biller, who worked as managing counsel for Toyota's American operations from 2003 to 2007. "They did not have any respect for our laws."
Biller handled product liability suits while with the company. He claims that when Toyota received poor results in a vehicle rollover test, it ordered a new test in order to receive better results. According to Biller, the company also made a practice of concealing proof of safety problems, and did not disclose information it was obligated to produce.
The view the interview, click here.
Meanwhile, American Honda Motor Co. is joining Toyota as the second Japanese auto manufacturer with major recall problems. Honda is recalling more than 378,000 vehicles to replace possibly faulty driver’s side airbags. Honda has confirmed at least 12 incidents with the faulty airbags. The recall applies to 2001 and 2002 Accord, Civic, Odyssey, CR-V and selected 2002 Acura TL vehicles. The company also is recalling the Honda Pilot and Acura CL, each produced in late 2002.

Raising Wisconsin's cigarette tax by $1 per pack would bring in $84.4 million in new annual revenue to help close the state's budget shortfall, while also reducing smoking and saving lives, according to a national report released today by a coalition of public health organizations.
The report comes as states grapple with unprecedented budget shortfalls and face devastating cuts to education, health care and other essential public services. The report details the revenue and health benefits to each state of a $1 cigarette tax increase.
According to the report, in Wisconsin, a $1 cigarette tax increase would also: prevent 38,800 kids from becoming smokers; spur 20,500 current adult smokers to quit; save 17,800 residents from premature, smoking-caused deaths; and save $873.8 million in health care costs.
A nationwide poll released along with the report found that 67 percent of voters support a $1 tobacco tax increase, with backing from large majorities of Republicans (68 percent), Democrats (70 percent) and Independents (64 percent).
The poll found that voters far prefer raising the state tobacco tax to other options for addressing state budget deficits.
"This report shows that raising tobacco taxes is truly a win-win-win for Wisconsin. It is a budget win that will help protect vital programs like health care and education, a health win that will prevent kids from smoking and save lives, and a political win with the voters," said Matthew Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
The report was released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. It is titled “Tobacco Taxes: A Win-Win-Win for Cash-Strapped States.”
Currently, Wisconsin's cigarette tax is $2.52 per pack, which ranks sixth in the nation. The national average is $1.34 per pack.

Milwaukee-based Journal Communications Inc. today announced the sale of its PrimeNet operations in Clearwater, Fla., to PrimeNet Direct Marketing Solutions LLC, a new company owned by PrimeNet president Mark Keefe.
The sale marks Journal Communications’ exit from the direct marketing business.
PrimeNet's mailing service operations in St. Paul, Minn., were sold in a separate transaction last week to Minneapolis-based Impact Proven Solutions.
Financial terms of the transactions were not disclosed.
PrimeNet provides nationwide direct marketing solutions to marketers of automotive, retail, publishing and financial services products.
"We are excited to make this transaction happen with the existing PrimeNet team led by Mark Keefe. As Journal Communications focuses on our core local market media businesses, we are confident this business and its employees will continue to successfully execute their strategy," said Steven Smith, chairman and chief executive officer of Journal Communications, which publishes the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "We appreciate the hard work and dedication of everyone at PrimeNet and are confident the team will continue their focus on excellent customer service."
Keefe said, "We look forward to growing this business and serving our clients in the same way we always have, with our same employee team in place. While we look ahead to this new beginning, we are proud and thankful of our history with Journal Communications."

Russell Investments, a subsidiary of Milwaukee-based Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co., has reached a definitive agreement to sell its Pantheon Ventures subsidiary to Affiliated Mangers Group Inc. (AMG).
Under the terms of the purchase agreement, AMG will pay approximately $775 million in cash with the potential for additional payments over the next five years, contingent on the growth of Pantheon’s business.
Following the closing of the transaction, Pantheon’s management team will own a meaningful stake in the partnership and continue to direct the firm’s day-to-day operations.
Pantheon is a global private equity fund-of-funds manager, delivering private equity investment solutions to a range of clients for more than 25 years. Pantheon currently manages approximately $22 billion for more than 300 global clients, including pension funds, endowments, government bodies and insurance companies.
Sean Healey, AMG’s president and chief executive officer, said, “We are excited to partner with Pantheon, a global leader in private equity fund-of-funds. Private equity is a core element of institutional investors’ overall asset allocation, and we believe that the asset class will continue to produce superior returns and attract new clients worldwide. We view the fund-offunds structure as an especially attractive way to participate in this important asset class, given the stability and consistency of its revenue stream, as well as the scalability of its investment platform. With Pantheon’s outstanding record of outperformance across a broad suite of investment strategies, long history of excellent client service and significant presence in key global markets, the firm is extremely well positioned to grow its business.”
Andrew Doman, Russell Investments’ president and CEO, said, “Russell and Pantheon have enjoyed a productive relationship and we look forward to continuing to offer access to, and distribution of, their products and services for the benefit of our clients.”

Oshkosh Corp. today announced that its Oshkosh Defense Division received another delivery order to an existing contract valued at more than $158 million from the U.S. Marine Corps Systems Command for more than 400 Logistics Vehicle System Replacements (LVSR).
The order brings the total number of LVSRs under contract to nearly 1,300. With the latest order, LVSR production and delivery is extended into July 2011. More than 385 MKR18 cargo variants will be produced under the order. The remaining variants will be MKR16 tractors.
"The Oshkosh LVSR is among the world's most advanced logistics platforms and offers the U.S. Marine Corps a technologically sophisticated, heavy-payload vehicle to answer the call in even the most arduous conditions," said Andy Hove, Oshkosh Corp. executive vice president and president of the Defense Division. "The vehicle's off-road capabilities only make it more versatile when transporting heavy equipment, fuel and other supplies to the front line."

The stock market flattened out today after Tuesday’s strong rally. The Dow Jones clung to stay above the 10,000 mark this morning.
Local stocks in the BizTimes Stock Index were led this morning by the meager gains of Associated Banc-Corp (up 33 cents to $12.72) and Ladish Co. (up 25 cents to $16.53). The largest local decliners this morning were Modine Manufacturing Co. (down 36 cents to $9.04) and Joy Global Inc. (down 36 cents to $45.45).

Burlington Hotel Group LLC, which plans to build a 54-room Hampton Inn hotel in downtown Burlington, has received a $1.5 million loan from the Wisconsin Business Development Finance Corp. The loan is backed by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The city of Burlington also is providing a $1.5 million loan for the project. The hotel will be built in the 400 block of Dodge Street at the Burlington Co-Op site. The hotel is part of a larger redevelopment project for downtown Burlington. In addition to the hotel, the project includes a 45,000-square-foot building with office space and retail space and a parking structure. For more, read the latest edition of the BizTimes Real Estate Weekly bulletin.

The Council of Small Business Executives (COSBE) recently hosted a forum with business publication editors, including the editor of BizTimes Milwaukee. To view a photographic slideshow of the event, visit the latest edition of BizTimes Around Town. Send photos of your southeastern Wisconsin business or community event for consideration in BizTimes Around Town to art@biztimes.com.

Will Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. ante up to help a Drexel Avenue interchange along Interstate 94 become a reality? Plus, Milwaukee may soon be on the market for a new mayor or a new county executive. The editor of BizTimes Milwaukee spills his notebook in today’s edition of the Milwaukee Biz Blog.