County Breakfast Series Kicks off the New Year

The Fourth Annual County Breakfast Series, presented by the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce and Select Greater Philadelphia and sponsored by Wachovia, kicks off the New Year with two events in January- the Bucks County Breakfast on January 16 and the New Castle County Breakfast on January 31. Come hear prominent CEOs from each county discuss the advantages of doing business in the region and challenges for continued growth.

The Bucks County Breakfast, co-sponsored by Pen Ryn Catering and US Steel Real Estate, will take place on Wednesday, January 16 from 8:00-10:00 a.m. at Pen Ryn Mansion in Bensalem. It will feature Joseph Cahill, CFO, Gamesa Technology Corp., Inc., and Donald C. Rhule, Global Corporate Account Leader, GE Water & Process Technologies.

The New Castle County Breakfast, in partnership with the New Castle County Chamber of Commerce, will take place on Thursday, January 31 from 8:00-10:00 a.m. at the Chase Center on the Riverfront in Wilmington. It will feature Lou Honick, CEO, HostMySite.com, and another panelist yet to be determined.

Each breakfast will include informal interviews with the featured executives, moderated by WHYY Host Tracey Matisak, followed by a question and answer session with the audience. In addition, partnering organizations and local officials will discuss recent public policy issues within the county and how they relate to the overall progress of our region.

These events are part of the County Breakfast Series which throughout the year is visiting eight counties in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware to highlight the region's significant economic progress. In the fall, this series brought together more than 150 business executives, policy makers, and civic leaders at breakfasts in Southern New Jersey, Montgomery County and Chester County to hear firsthand from local business leaders about their companies’ success and investment in Greater Philadelphia.

The fall breakfasts highlighted diversity and quality of the region’s workforce as among the greatest assets to doing business in the region. “We benefit from the mixed labor pool in the area,” said Michael Hagan, Chairman & CEO, NutriSystem, Inc., located in Horsham, PA. “Without our proximity to this pool, we wouldn’t be as efficient or productive.”

The breakfasts also identified the region’s institutions of higher education as excellent resources for drawing qualified employees and stressed the importance of partnerships between businesses and colleges and universities. “There needs to be a tighter linkage between employers and universities so that they develop curriculum to reflect dynamic market needs,” said John C. Carrow, Senior Vice President, Unisys Corporation, located in Blue Bell, PA. “We need to encourage graduates to stay in the area,” said William Loftus, President & CEO, Gestalt, located in Camden, NJ. “There are many exciting jobs and opportunities for growth in Greater Philadelphia; it is critical that we keep the talent here.”

To register for the Bucks County Breakfast click here. To register for the New Castle County Breakfast click here. For more information on upcoming breakfasts, click here or call 215-790-3607. The breakfasts are free for Chamber members.

Technology Logistics for all breakfasts are provided by FutureSys Meeting Support Services.

Select Greater Philadelphia is an affiliate of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with teh Chamber of Commerce Southern New Jersey and the New Castle County Chamber of Commerce.