T
oday’s business owner juggles several
jobs, yet one essential responsibility
— which could cost your company
billions — may be getting ignored
when it doesn’t have to be.
And what is that? Advocacy.
As a manufacturer, you face the
challenge of too many responsibilities
and not enough time. Your day is spent
building a business, managing talent,
dealing with new regulations, innovating
new products, and collaborating with
suppliers and customers, yet you cannot
ignore the importance of sharing your
stories and the issues affecting you
with lawmakers.
Inside the World of Lobbying
Each year, hundreds of bills are part
of the legislative cycle in Michigan.
Of these, many impact the current
and future success of your business and
the thousands of manufacturers across
Michigan. MMA works each day to
represent your interests, proactively
fighting for pro-manufacturing policies
and keeping members informed about
potential threats to the industry and
your business.
Two types of lobbying are critical
to a competitive manufacturing sector
in Michigan:
• Direct lobbying: MMA’s Government
Affairs team works directly with the
Snyder Administration, members of
the Michigan Legislature, legislative
staffers and agency heads. Their top
priority is to show influential leaders
how a specific legislative or regulatory
action will impact manufacturers and,
by extension, the Michigan economy.
These efforts include building
relationships with key policymakers,
gathering support for the manufac-
turing position, navigating the
legislative process, the actual
drafting of legislation, giving
testimony in legislative committees
and building support through
coalitions.
• Grassroots lobbying: This type of
lobbying is all about you and connecting
your business directly with the decision-
makers at the Capitol to inform
them of the issues impacting your
company’s bottom line. MMA’s
Government Affairs team is
efficient and effective, yet nobody
July 2017 MiMfg
makes an impact on the minds of a
state legislator like a manufacturer
from their district speaking with
them face-to-face.
For many manufacturers who spend
so much time in their facility and away
from the political process, the idea of
grassroots lobbying and going to Lansing
to speak with their elected officials can
be overwhelming. That’s why you need
the skills to effectively speak with them
and opportunities to do so.
MMA Lobby Day:
Manufacturing’s Answer
to Grassroots Lobbying
For more than 40 years, the annual
MMA Legislative Reception sparks lasting
connections between employers and
lawmakers that can’t be found anywhere
else. This evening of exclusive networking
has long provided employers with the
chance to share their stories and
manufacturers wanted to build on the
power of this annual event. MMA
members wanted to have a greater impact
on issues in Lansing; they wanted to
become more effective advocates for
their business and move legislators to
support or oppose policies affecting
people in their communities.
Lobby Day is MMA’s answer to this
member-driven demand. Beginning in
2015, manufacturers came to Lansing
in advance of the Reception to be more
informed on issues, connect in exclusive
face-to-face meetings, and learn the
skills of effective advocacy from
MMA professionals.
“Our members must be confident in
their own skills to know they can reach out
to a member of the Michigan Legislature,
speak to their elected official and affect
how they view an issue,” says Mike
Johnston, MMA vice president of
government affairs. “Each person they
employ is a vote and their families are
votes and their friends are votes — that
can be incredibly influential if you can
effectively argue your point. MMA
Lobby Day teaches manufacturers how
to be effective advocates”
In its first two years, the response to
Lobby Day has been tremendous.
“MMA Lobby Day is a real
opportunity to learn what goes on
behind the scenes at the State
Magazine 13
Key Facts to Share When
Discussing Manufacturing
608k
workers
1/5
MI GDP
$1.81
on the
dollar
pays
$17k
more
Manufacturing employs over
608,000 people in Michigan —
14% of the state’s
nonfarm employment.
Manufacturing accounts for
about one-fifth of Michigan’s
gross state product.
What’s good for manufacturing
is good for local communities —
every $1 spent in manufacturing
equals an additional $1.81 to
the economy.
Great pay! The average annual
compensation/benefits for
Michigan manufacturers is
$81,289, compared to $63,830
across all nonfarm industries.
$2t The industry’s output is huge!
Manufacturers contributed
$2.18 trillion to the U.S.
economy in 2016.
$50b
in exports Michigan exported more than
$50.08 billion in manufactured
goods in 2015.
$11k There are more than 11,400
manufacturing firms in
Michigan alone!
exports ↑ 4X U.S.-manufactured goods
exports have quadrupled over
the last quarter-century.
#9
globally Taken alone, U.S. manufacturing
would be the ninth-largest
economy in the world!
to US
economy
mfg firms
Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics
National Association of Manufacturers.