A Conversation With ... Brad Bodenhausen

Through a year-long partnership with MSU, effective July 1, you’re splitting your time between your chamber duties and as director of the school’s International Leadership and Training Center. What is the mission of the center?
We aim to provide noncredit, short-term, customized training for really two avenues of clients. The first would be partner universities of Missouri State, who would be sending their students here to Missouri to get an international experience and learn about a certain aspect of their education here in the U.S.

The other avenue would be businesses and professional associations located internationally. We want their people to have that same kind of practical experience. It really combines classroom learning with practical experience. That can include business visits, job shadowing, things where businesspeople here can share their experience and insights with our visitors from abroad, but at the same time gain some global insights and tap into their experience.

Gov. Jay Nixon has recently led trade missions to the United Kingdom, France, South Korea and Taiwan. What countries would you like to see the state work with?
A lot of time folks talk about the BRIC countries of Brazil, Russia, India and China. I think China works well for us because there are already so many existing connections between southwest Missouri and China, particularly, through Missouri State. There are a lot of great relationships there we can build on.

The other area we need to look at is South America, particularly Brazil, Colombia, Chile and Panama in Central America. Panama, Chile and Colombia are all areas that have free trade agreements with the U.S. Some of the regulations, the challenges and barriers that might exist have been erased. So it makes it an easier opportunity. First, it’s a matter of finding the products that are needed there and are produced in our area and looking for distribution partners.

Brazil is a huge opportunity and a dominant force in South America. It’s emerging to be a global power in a lot of ways, but it’s a tough place to do business. A lot of companies have told us it is a challenging place to do business for a variety of reasons. That’s why we think some of these connections we can build through the university and also the chamber can help open doors for business.

What type of products are other countries looking to import from southwest Missouri?
When you talk about manufacturing in our area and products that are produced here, there are two or three main things. Top of the list are things related to agribusiness and food products. Not just in southwest Missouri, but throughout our state, that is a huge sector and there are even greater export opportunities. In the Springfield area proper, a lot of the equipment that is used in making food products is a leading category of export products. The stainless steel fabrication industry is very strong here. We have 15 or 16 companies that produce industrial equipment that is made out of stainless steel. Many of those companies serve the food and beverage industry, the wine industry specifically, and pharmaceuticals. As those industries grow in developing countries, the market for equipment used to make those products has an opportunity to grow internationally as well.

How did this partnership come about?
The center started on July 1, but it’s been an idea we have talked about through the years as a partnership between Missouri State and the chamber. The center is part of Missouri State’s Office of International Programs, but we are carrying out the first year in partnership.

Missouri State pays half my time, so I am able to devote half my time. Why that’s important is because the partnership between Missouri State and the chamber has been really significant in terms of international business.

The international business program started here at the chamber about 10 years ago has really developed along and in parallel to MSU’s international program. The places where we have, on the chamber side, with the best international connections and resources we can share with businesses here, are in places where Missouri State also has a presence, particularly in China and a few countries in South America. As we have traveled on chamber and Missouri State business in the past, we kept hearing from people that they wanted practical experience. That’s what this center is really designed to provide.

Is anyone currently enrolled in the program?
Our first group is here right now, a group from China. They are biotechnology students at MSU’s partner universities in China. This group is here for four months. They are taking classes in English and biology, and we are taking them on business visits so they can learn about the biotech resources here in Missouri.

You’re hoping to move into the role with the university full time by mid-2014. What prompted the switch?
Personally, it is an ideal time to make a transition like this. I feel like, at least for the way I look at work and life, you gather experience, but there comes a point when you want to share that experience.

For the last few years after I received my master’s degree, I’ve taught at Webster University and Drury and now I’ll be teaching at Missouri State. As I have been fortunate enough to gain some experience in international business at the chamber for the last 10 or so years, it seemed like to me a great time and opportunity to share that experience.

I will do that personally as an instructor, but then also this program will allow a lot of other people in Missouri to share their experience and their insights with visiting students and professionals. At the same time, they will build connections that will benefit their business and allow them to learn from the experience of others.

I want to take that exchange of ideas to a higher level. The overall goal is to make southwest Missouri a more international place and raise the international profile of Missouri State University. 

You are currently the support staff of the chamber’s International Business Council. Since its launch in 2008, what has the council accomplished?
The two main goals of the council are to promote export opportunities and attract international investment. In terms of export promotion, we help small and midsize companies in the region become more aware of those opportunities for their business. Ninety-five percent of consumers in the world live outside the U.S. A lot of companies in this region make products or deliver services that could find a market abroad. The program helps connect those companies with the resources that can make them successful.

The other goal is to position Springfield as a more international place … that’s favorable for international investment. We have so many fast-growing and emerging economies out there that are looking to expand internationally. We want Springfield to be seen and not overlooked when business prospects look at a map. We are right in the center, an hour and a half from the population center of the U.S., so we want them to think about the advantages of being located in the Midwest.[[In-content Ad]]