Morgan Cooper, Communications Coordinator, Arlington Chamber of Commerce

This past May, I found myself feeling slightly defeated searching for a job as a recent graduate in the midst of a global pandemic. If you had asked me what I would be doing post-graduation six months prior, I would have most certainly given you a concrete answer along the lines of “working in a new job at an office full time”. Although I couldn’t quite see an end in sight, resiliency has always been one of the strongest ingredients in my personality. Right as I was about to pivot my search to job titles I didn’t quite love, I came across the Arlington Chamber of Commerce. In a sort of cliché, “stars aligning” moment, I knew I found the perfect balance of my passions in a challenging and fun environment.

Manny Cosme, President & CEO, CFO Services Group

As of the writing of this blog post, we are neck deep in COVID-19 land.  The novel coronavirus has taken our health and our economy hostage.  Literally every day, we are fighting to not only keep ourselves physically safe, but keep our small businesses and non-profits afloat.  Never in our modern history have we faced a challenge so great, and one that will have as long-lasting impact as this.

Alexis Golkin, Vice President, Paul Davis Restoration & Remodeling of Suburban VA

Operating your business in a COVID-19 world can be extremely stressful. We get bombarded by information from all directions and the information we get seems to change every day. So what can you do to keep you, your employees, and your clients safe? While there is never a 100% effective safeguard against viruses like COVID-19, there are many preventive measures you can take.

By ​Mary-Claire Burick, President, Rosslyn Business Improvement District
How do you reopen a neighborhood in a safe and engaging way during a global pandemic? At the Rosslyn Business Improvement District (BID), we couldn't have imagined this challenge a few months ago. However, as a community organization with a mission to enhance, grow, and connect the neighborhood, we knew we had to step up and figure it out!

By Rally Kamenova and Andy Powell, Sikich LLP

During times of uncertainty, understanding your organization’s cashflow becomes a valuable tool so you can better navigate your options, manage cash, and direct management decisions. One way to understand your cashflow is to prepare a cashflow projection. It is intended to provide a prediction for the organization’s cash inflows and outflows, which will help identify shortages in funding an organization. This type of information is always better to address in advance. When preparing a cashflow projection, here are few things to consider: 

1. The granularity of the data elements (how detailed the cash inflows and outflows need to be to accomplish any set goals; for example, outflows mapped to vendors or in totality by expense category) 
2. The period and frequency of data (daily, weekly, monthly?) 
3. The assumptions and number of scenarios (how to add uncertainty to the projection?) 

By Jelena Kecmanovic, Ph.D., Arlington/DC Behavior Therapy Institute (ABTI)

We all face unprecedented uncertainty right now, with limited control over many factors influencing our business and personal lives.  Psychologically, worry and anxiety flourish during uncertain times. In an attempt to resolve the tension of not knowing, our minds get stuck in a loop of repetitive thinking, often going down the rabbit hole of worsening “what if” scenarios. This process of filling up the gaps of uncertainty with potential negative outcomes, often called “catastrophizing,” leaves us feeling anxious, unmotivated, and pessimistic.

By Mike Rosenow, Senior Membership Director, Arlington Chamber of Commerce

​One of the most overlooked, yet important aspects of membership here in the Arlington Chamber of Commerce is your business being listed on our members-only Business Directory page. Since that is a staple feature of joining the Chamber, a member might think that all they need is their basic contact information to be listed and they are done. While this is true, and the listing can contain just your address and phone number, I want to let you know about how to get the most out of your listing. 

By Eshauna Smith, Urban Alliance

Yesterday, George Floyd was laid to rest, more than two weeks after his death rocked the world. Yet the pain is still fresh. 

As a black woman and the mother of two black children, as the CEO of an organization that works to increase economic and workforce opportunity for black and brown youth – I am heartbroken for the next generation. I am angry that they are forced to grow up in a world in which the color of their skin can be a death sentence.

COVID-19’s disproportionate and devastating impact on communities of color has laid bare pre-existing racial and socio-economic disparities across the country. Today, our black and brown students are fighting on two fronts: they are fighting against the systemic racism they experience every day, while fighting for their own and their families’ health and stability in the midst of a pandemic. 

By R. Doug Taylor, Bean, Kinney, and Korman

​Virginia’s governor recently signed into law nearly two dozen bills that provide significant new rights for Virginia employees, to combat wage theft, prohibit non-compete covenants for low-wage workers, and expand the scope of the ban on workplace discrimination. Also signed into law were enhanced employee whistleblower protections against retaliation for reporting suspected violations of state law or cooperating with law enforcement.

By Joseph Appelbaum, Potomac Companies, Inc.

Many employees do not understand the benefits that their employers work hard to offer them. According to a 2018 report, 50 percent of employees surveyed said they understand their benefits, compared to 77 percent understanding in 2015. In the 2018 State of Employee Benefits survey, 37 percent of respondents indicated their employer provided no education on benefits. Granted, benefits and health insurance has become more complex in three years, with regulatory changes, increased high deductible health plan (HDHP) implementation, and the changing individual mandate. This increased complexity, however, can be mitigated through rigorous employee education and judicious use of human capital management technology. When employees do not understand benefits (and perks, such as career development and recognition programs), they tend not to “appreciate their value” and are more likely to seek employment elsewhere.