Posts Tagged ‘Mark Laliberte’
Tuesday, August 1st, 2017
Mark Laliberte is one of five regional business resource specialists with the New Hampshire Division of Economic Development. He covers the Seacoast.
 Mark Laliberte and Doug Dimes of D.R. Dimes American Furniture, Northwood Reaching out to businesses in all corners of New Hampshire is what I do every day, but I am also here when businesses reach out to me with a question or about how to tap into our business resources.
That’s how I met up with Douglas P. Dimes, president and chief designer at D.R. Dimes American Furniture in Northwood. A few weeks ago, he had a question, I had the answer, and ended up having an opportunity to visit and take a tour of the plant.
He’s the second generation producing 18th century reproduction furniture, incorporating 21st century technology.
“We’ve really embraced CNC machining for the production of our products,” Dimes said. “It’s a passion of mine to make things leaner and more efficient.”
 D.R. Dimes, Northwood He showed NH Economy a process that increased precision to one-thousandth of an inch, while reducing production time dramatically.
 D.R. Dimes American Furniture is noted for its Windsor chairs “The customer cares about product, not process,” Dines said, adding that improving the quality of the product also includes a commitment to Lean manufacturing, which, he said, leads to more productivity on the shop floor.
Some well-known restoration projects are furnished by D.R. Dimes, including the Bridges House; the Edward M. Kennedy Institute, for which it created 100 desks, and Harkness tables for Philips Exeter Academy.
“When we see a furniture line or a product we want to build, we work extremely hard to get up-to-speed,” said Dimes. “I see it as a challenge; to quote Calvin Coolidge, ‘Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.'”
Mark Laliberte
Business Retention
NH Division of Economic Development
Tags: business resources, Mark Laliberte, New Hampshire business resources, town of Northwood
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on Business Meeting: Visit with DR Dimes American Furniture of Northwood
Wednesday, June 7th, 2017
 Groundbreaking on Woodmont Commons~ 6/6/2017 New Hampshire may not be bigger than the average, but it’s never been afraid of big projects. And so it is with Woodmont Commons in Londonderry, which broke ground yesterday (6/6/17).
This project is the first-of-its-kind in New Hampshire. Located on 600 acres, when completed, the planned unit development will have nearly 1 million square feet of retail; 700,000 square feet of office space; 550 hotel rooms; nearly 1,500 residential units, and much more.
Think of it as a community within a community.
Gov. Chris Sununu, civic leaders from Londonderry and across southern New Hampshire, and partners in this project attended the ground-breaking. Sununu noted the benefits this project will have, for not just in Londonderry or the immediate area, but for the entire state. He also cited this as a tool for the state to use to sell outside interests to New Hampshire.
Ari Pollack from Gallagher, Callahan, and Gartrell, emceed the groundbreaking. He discussed the multitude of uses to be derived from Woodmont Commons and said this will be “a true stay, work, play, environment.” This is a concept the state actively markets to promote itself and projects like this only affirm this belief.
The first phase was approved in late-2016; it is expected for this portion of the project to be completed sometime after 2020.
Congratulations to Londonderry on its new development.
Tags: Mark Laliberte, Woodmont, Woodmont Acres
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on Celebrating Londonderry’s Woodmont Commons
Thursday, October 27th, 2016
 Mark Laliberte Becoming unemployed unleashes a series of emotions: Diminishing self-esteem; financial concerns and the perceived stigma of being unemployed. Sure, it’s a setback, but not for long. With one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, New Hampshire is teeming with jobs that need to be filled.
So the question that needs to come at the end of one job should be “What do I do next?” This is where WorkReadyNH, which is paid through the NH Job Training Fund, comes in. This is a three-week course offered at the state’s community colleges, in partnership with NH Works, to help those looking for employment to improve their hard (traditional educational courses such as reading comprehension and math) and soft skills (how to interact with others, active listening, conflict resolution).
WorkReadyNH evaluates existing hard skills and helps people improve, via through online homework, while providing a comprehensive 60-hour classroom course to flesh out and enhance soft skills.
I popped into a WorkReady NH classroom recently, where Christina Wall, the program director for WorkReady NH at Great Bay Community College, arranged for me to go through the course on the day the class was receiving an assessment for reading comprehension and math abilities. Throughout the three week class, the students would learn tips to improve their marketability to potential employers and receive a National Career Readiness Certificate, which is a credential recognized industry-wide to show your strengths in certain subjects.
The first half of the class was about active listening and this is a vital skill employers seek in employees. Both a student and the teacher taught this section, and it generated a great deal of discussion. I used it to evaluate my skills in this area, and found ways I could be more engaged in my approach to conversations.
A subsquent assessment, WorkKeys, evaluated my aptitude in reading, math and research. This was challenging and the results indicated areas in which I can improve, like math. Who knew?
Participating in this WorkReady NH class was enlightening – it made me think how valuable this is to people moving forward from one job into another … and to employers who need the skills these folks now have.
To learn more, check out the WorkReady NH page.
Mark Laliberte
Business Resource Specialist/Seacoast Region
Division of Economic Development
Tags: business resources, job skills, Mark Laliberte, WorkReadyNH
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on Are You Work Ready? WorkReady NH is Ready to Polish Your Skills
Friday, September 30th, 2016
(Business Resource Specialist Mark Laliberte covers the Seacoast region for the New Hampshire Division of Economic Development. This is an occasional feature highlighting our team’s work with industries and communities. Contact us to connect with your regional business resource specialist. – Ed.)
 Mark Laliberte About a year ago, we collaborated with the Department of Environmental Services, which needed data about the 17 communities in its Coastal Zone for a report being prepared for the New Hampshire Coastal Risk and Hazards Commission. Needed for the report were specific questions regarding job creation, largest industries and gross regional product.
In August, this information had to be updated and augmented with additional data. This was accomplished by Emsi, the economic modeling software we use, as well as by using US Census data suggested by New Hampshire Employment Security.
As a result of this project, the Coastal Risk report will have a comprehensive suite of data. We were also able to provide this information to an area manufacturer, who found it valuable in its employee recruitment and retention efforts.
There is a wealth of valuable data available from many sources. Finding it is the great challenge and in our fast-paced world, agencies and organizations can’t afford the staff time it takes to track down the bits and bytes needed.
Time and again, Emsi provides great information that can make a great difference for our partners in need of it for their projects.
No matter what part of the state you are in, our business retention team is ready to help your organization dive into the data pool for the specific information you need.
Mark Laliberte
Business Resource Specialist
NH Division of Economic Development
Tags: business resources, business retention, data, Emsi, Mark Laliberte
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on In Search of the Right Data, Collaboration is Key
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