Leadership Columbia County Cultivates Connections, Volunteerism in the County

A county, just like a business, can't operate without people willing to step forward and take leadership roles, whether they are in the private sector, government or non-profit arenas. And although some people are born leaders and gravitate toward such roles naturally, it's also important to cultivate leadership.

Leadership Columbia County has been doing just that for 16 years. The program was originally started by a collective of county organizations and is now run by the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce.

Each year, all employers in Columbia County are notified about Leadership Columbia County . They can submit candidates for the year-long program, which provides leadership training and a behind-the-scenes look at the county. Businesses nominate middle management or other interested employees, who are interviewed to determine if they are the right fit. Program fees are paid by employers, with a few sponsors offering financial assistance, said David Colby, Chamber President & CEO.

Larger county businesses like First Niagara Bank, Kinderhook Bank and Columbia Memorial Hospital usually send applicants every year, but smaller businesses and sole proprietors participate as well.

“It's a large cross section of businesses in the county,” explained Colby.

This year's class, for example, has employees from the aforementioned entities, plus COARC, Beth's Farm Kitchen, Hudson Area Association Library, Hudson-Catskill Newspapers, Chatham Bowl and more. The 18 participants this year started by attending a two-day overnight retreat where they got acquainted through leadership training exercises.

Every month from September until ‘graduation' in June, the group will participate in a collective activity, each designed to either teach them leadership skills or give them an up close and personal look at Columbia County's different entities.

Leadership Columbia County 's agenda this year includes a day each spent looking at and learning about: county agriculture and business; education facilities; tourism history and the arts; Columbia Memorial Hospital ; and not-for-profit organizations. Participants will also spend one day either with the local Habitat for Humanity building a home or at the Salvation Army serving lunch.

“This is our way of getting them to realize volunteerism is a real good thing,” Colby said. “There's a definite need in the county for volunteers, and the type of volunteers that will make a difference.”

In fact, cultivating volunteerism at all levels is another major aspect of Leadership Columbia County . Besides the hands-on help needed by many organizations, there are boards who need trustees, and government entities like planning and zoning boards that need volunteers.

“We hope the program prompts these people to join boards,” Colby said. “And of course the employers win, also, because the participants come back with leadership knowledge to implement at work.”

Recently the Leadership class spent the day touring businesses and farming operations in the northern end of the county. At Tierra Farms, owner Gunther Fishgold showed how his company roasts, packages and ships organic fruit and nuts from its deceptively small-looking facility on Route 203 in Valatie. Tierra Farms is in its second year of doing business in Columbia County , and continues to grow. The county provided a great location and employee base for his business, Fishgold said. Difficulties included dealing with the local planning board.

At Golden Harvest Farm in Valatie, Derek Grout showed the group a brand new copper still that will produce vodka made from the farm's excess apples. Grout and business partner Tom Crowell have found a way to create a “value-added” product they hope will help Golden Harvest compensate for declining apple sale profits. They hope the ever-growing popularity of buying local will make the product a tourist draw as well.

At larger companies like Novapak in Philmont and American BioMedica in Stuyvesant, Leadership participants learned that one of their biggest difficulties is finding hourly employees. Novapak, which makes plastic packaging for a host of companies from L'Oreal to Kodak, began offering monetary incentives for employees who meet certain goals, and has created an employee-friendly atmosphere in other ways. This has helped the company become profitable and reduce employee turnover by half.

At American BioMedica, the only publicly-traded company based in Columbia County , attracting employees is a hit-or-miss prospect that seems to run in cycles, said Melissa Waterhouse of American BioMedica. The company makes drug testing kits and employs about 80 people at its county site, in assembly packaging as well as human resources, accounting, legal, sales, marketing and finance.

Over lunch, the Leadership group heard about planning and zoning, and the difficulties in trying to balance rural landscape with growth. Speakers Sean Nolon of Pace University Land Use Institute, Todd Erling of the Columbia Hudson Partnership, and Roland Vosburgh of the Columbia County Planning Board, advised using collaboration and consensus building when a potentially unpopular or contentious zoning issue rears its head.

The day concluded with a tour of Chatham village given by Kathy Stumph, owner of Welcome Home on Main Street in Chatham . Stumph spoke about how businesses plan to cope with the impending road construction project next spring. Columbia Land Conservancy Executive Director Peter Paden also spoke about the CLC's challenges.

All Chamber employees and members of the Leadership Columbia County Task Force are graduates of the Leadership Columbia County program, noted Colby. “We have seen firsthand how the program develops new connections and identifies opportunities to become more involved in the community.”

This experience also helps the task force and Chamber determine what works and what doesn't, so they can keep tweaking the program as it continues. Colby promises the Leadership Columbia County experience will change every year.

Leadership Columbia County is supported by many local businesses throughout the year. The Columbia Hudson Partnership and Taconic Farms are Lead Sponsors of the program for 2007-08. A. Colarusso & Son, Inc. and Crawford & Associates Engineering, PC are Program Sponsors for 2007-08. The October Leadership Session was sponsored by Sneeringer Monahan Provost Redgrave Title Agency.