Date: November 2, 2006
Presenter: Ned Holmes, Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce
The guest speaker for this meeting was Ned Holmes, the Business Development
Representative of Military/Space for the Greater Omaha Chamber of
Commerce. Mr. Holmes is primarily responsible for the relationships
between the Chamber and the defense community. He has activities in
economic development and marketing with focus on the needs of the
military missions and the defense contractors.
A major requirement of the local defense industry is the development of
technology. Mr. Holmes will discuss the current activities of the
Chamber to attract and maintain a robust business climate, particularly
in technologies important to defense. These activities have brought new
mission responsibilities to Offutt AFB, new companies to Omaha and a
multitude of new people to the metro.
There is also another area of interest to the ITCouncil membership. The
Chamber has long sought to create a "Technology Council" and aggregate
related economic develop tasks under one structure. The ITCouncil has
expressed an interest in contributing to or providing this function for
the Chamber. The Chamber has similar working relationships with other
organizations through the Community Partnerships program, such as
Destination Midtown, City of Omaha and Academic Partnerships. The
history and position of the ITCouncil in the community would be a
natural complement for the Chamber given their guidance and direction on
areas of interest.
Conversations with Chamber members about the ITCouncil have occurred
over the past years. Where to start has often been mentioned. Perhaps
discussions such has this will provide a clear direction. The ITCouncil
is willing to pay dues to the Chamber as a nonprofit member organization
with support of the Chamber for publicizing the ITCouncil meetings. The
simple ability to reach more interested colleagues for larger meeting
participation would be of mutual benefit. More ideas to come.
With permission of the the presenter, the Presentation has been provided for the ITC as a Portable Document Format (PDF) file. To read this file, you will need to download the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Ned Holmes has more than 40 years of combined business and military experience. He was active in a family owned rental equipment business until graduation from college and entry into the US Air Force, where he spent 22 years in communications to include joint service and international assignments culminating in command of an airborne communications unit of 200 personnel.
Upon retirement from the military, Holmes founded a local health and fitness company serving as President and CEO. During this time, he was a board member with the local chamber of commerce, and held a director level position at an Omaha mega church, as well as various leadership positions at the district level. Most recent to his current assignment to the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce, Holmes was Director of Logistics for a local company.
As the Military Affairs Liaison to the Omaha Chamber, Holmes is responsible to stay abreast of military events in the community and to interact with defense industry officials with emphasis on business growth in support of the various missions assigned to area military units. In the role, work also includes the Information Technology industry. Holmes oversees the chamber Military Target Advisory Group made up of defense industry lead executives, the Information Technology Target Advisory Group including IT CIOs, the Stratcom Offutt Community Support group comprising senior business leaders, and as an advisor to the Stratcom Consultation Committee.
The Holmes family is founder of Taco John International with controlling interest.
Ned Holmes is a graduate of the University of Wyoming and has a Master's Degree from Webster University. He has completed the basic and staff officers communications schools, squadron and staff officer as well as the national security management course. His military decorations include defense and meritorious service medals with clusters.
Ned is married with two adult children living in the area and five grandchildren.
