Business briefly Oct. 30

Navy picks Chromalloy

Chromalloy Gas Turbine Corp. of Carson City won a contract worth $100,319 to repair and maintain turbine engines for the U.S. Navy.

- Northern Nevada Business Weekly

Accredited BBB members

New BBB Accredited Businesses with the Better Business Bureau serving northern Nevada and the Lake Tahoe Basin include:

Reno: All Out Trucking, Caughlin Pack-N-Ship, Concise Communications and Roadrider of Reno Ltd.

Sparks: Kelly's Kurtains & More.

Carson City: A2Z Staffing LLC, C. Brian Sonderegger M.D. and Mark D. Funke D.D.S.

Washoe Valley: Great Outdoor Patio Furniture.

Minden: Great Basin Physical Therapy and Performance Center.

Stagecoach: Ginny's Mobile Grooming.

Incline Village: Charles C. Harmon Co. and Hooked Up Sport Fishing.

Kings Beach: United Lock & Key and North Shore Hardware.

Yerington: Wild West Chevrolet.

Stateline: Blue Sky Events and Travel Management LLC and Deborah A. Palmer, A Professional Corporation.

South Lake Tahoe: Elements Spa, High Altitude Heating & Air, Tahoe Discount Mattresses & More and Yag Solutions, Inc. Tahoe City: State Farm Insurance.

- Northern Nevada Business Weekly

New VP at Heritage Bank of Nevada

The Heritage Bank of Nevada has recruited Nevada-native Kip McKibben to serve as its vice president/commercial loan officer III.

McKibben previously worked as the vice president/senior loan officer at First Independent Bank and focused on commercial lending. He is also a graduate of Reno High School and the University of Nevada, Reno.

"Kip is a true community banker with an understanding of our customers and their needs within our market area," said Stan Wilmoth, president and CEO of Heritage Bank in a statement.

Heritage Bank boasts of being the only community bank in Northern Nevada, with local ownership and a local Board of Directors.

Joint business breakfast to focus on gaming and skiing

The annual breakfast on Nov. 8, hosted by the Northern Nevada Development Authority, Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Authority and the Business Council of Douglas County, will feature speakers with insights on gaming in Nevada and abroad and skiing-based tourism in the region.

William Eadington, an economics professor and the director of the Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming at the University of Nevada, Reno, will lead the talk on gaming. He has written about issues related to the economic and social impacts of commercial gaming.

Carl Ribaudo, principal at Strategic Marketing Group and the executive director of Ski Lake Tahoe, will give the talk on ski tourism. He has more than 20 years of experience in the travel and tourism industry, with a focus on marketing analysis and competitive strategy development.

The breakfast runs from about 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. at the Carson Valley Inn, 1627 Highway 395 North in Minden. Cost is $20 in advance and $35 at the door. To RSVP, call the NNDA at 883-4413, the business council at 782-6715 or the Chamber of Commerce at 782-8144.

Federal agency offers $20K for app to navigate government's resources

The federal Small Business Administration is looking for programmers to develop an app that can help entrepreneurs navigate the federal government's programs, services and contracting opportunities.

The app can be designed for use on the web, personal computers, mobile devices or any other platform with Internet capabilities that can access data on federal websites.

First prize is $5,000; three second-place prizes are $3,000; and three third-place prizes are $2,000.

Entries can be submitted at http://entrepreneurs.challenge.gov between Nov. 5 and Nov. 20. Winners will be announced Nov. 23.

IRS to offer free employer health care webinar

The Internal Revenue Service will host a free webinar on how to report employer-provided healthcare coverage on W-2 tax forms.

The Oct. 31 webinar is designed for employers, tax professionals, attorneys, payroll professionals, industry partners and small businesses. The webinar will be at 11 a.m. and cover the changes employees will see to their W-2s, when employers must begin reporting the cost of coverage on the form and more.

For more information, go to www.irs.gov and search "webinars." For a link to register for the webinar, contact the Carson City Chamber of Commerce at 882-1565.

Business group launches 'Sensible Regulations' campaign

The Nevada branch of the National Federation of Independent Business is spearheading a new group to address "onerous regulations."

The coalition, Small Businesses for Sensible Regulations, was launched nationally over the summer and says it has 1,000 members, 170 of which are in Nevada. The state branch formally launched last week.

"Small businesses want to grow, hire, and increase profit just like any business, but the realized and expected costs of regulations make it difficult to commit to new expenses like new employees or locations." Randi Thompson, state director of NFIB Nevada, said in a statement.

For more information or to join the coalition, go to sensibleregulations.com

Rural Counties RSVP announces new board member

Brian J. Costello has joined the board of directors of the Nevada Rural Counties Retired and Senior Volunteer Program.

RSVP encourages greater civic engagement for citizens 55 and older by providing volunteerism opportunities.

Costello is the director of northwest regional operations for NV Energy and is a graduate from the University of Nevada, Reno. He is also a board member of the NV Energy Northern Nevada Foundation, where he helped with grants for many senior programs.

"Brian Costello is a welcome addition to RSVP's board of directors, and his understanding of senior issues will be critical to RSVP's continued ability to help seniors in need," RSVP Executive Director Janice Ayres said in a statement.

JobConnect launches campaign to promote job postings

Nevada JobConnect and the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation are working together to get more employers in Carson City and Douglas and Lyon counties to post their job openings with the state's one-stop employment centers.

The two groups are inviting employers to join the campaign in Carson City from Oct. 31 to Nov. 4. During that time, 10 business associates will meet with employers in the area "in the hopes of developing a partnership with them in hiring," according to a press release.

"The partnership between the state and private businesses is crucial in tackling the unemployment crisis we are still experiencing," Gov. Brian Sandoval said in a statement. "At the same time, businesses will also benefit from the incentives that the state offers them for such a partnership."

UNR MBA program makes Princeton Review's 'best' list for fourth time

The University of Nevada, Reno's College of Business made the Princeton Reviews' "Best Business Schools" guidebook for the fourth time, according to a release from UNR.

The selection is made based on the quality of its Master's of Business Administration program and the opinions of more than 19,000 students at accredited MBA programs. The listing does not rank the schools in order but shows UNR's score as four points higher than last year.

"Being included in The Princeton Review's 'Best Business Schools' book again this year is very rewarding," said Kambiz Raffiee, director of the MBA Program and associate dean of the College of Business. "It is especially gratifying to see that we have scored even higher this year, evidence that our faculty members are not content to rest on our laurels. They work hard to make the program better each year."