Business & Tech

Henry Sibley Grad's Gen Community Localizes Business Networking in Mendota Heights Area

A new networking group for local businesses kicks off Feb. 28.

A handful of business men and women have been gathering in Lilydale over the past month to create a local networking group to serve the Mendota Heights area.

The model, called Gen Community, was created by Henry Sibley class of ’93 grad Jennifer Heusinkveld and her business partners Shawn Racine, a Cretin-Derham Hall grad, and Circle Pines resident Mark Peterson.

The three met in a different networking group that wasn’t meeting their expectations.  “We decided that we wanted to use social media as well as receive quality referrals,” said Heusinkveld. “So that’s kind of how it started.”

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A number of Gen Community networking teams have been established in the Twin Cities since April of 2010, including Eagan, New Brighton, Woodbury, St. Paul and now Mendota Heights-Lilydale.

An Oakdale team and a Hmong-St. Paul team are on the way.

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 The model focuses on referrals and networking to help businesses help each other, and emphasizes use of the internet and social media. A website for members works as a communication hub and tracks metrics for the group.

Heusinkveld has been helping to develop the networking groups outside of her practice as a business and estate-planning attorney at Heusinkveld Law Firm in Rosemount. Sound overwhelming?

“It has its moments,” said Heusinkveld. “It’s been fun. It’s been a great learning experience and I think this is something that’s well-received.”

A Local Need

Mark Josephs of Edward Jones in Lilydale, the team's president, initially approached Gen Community about developing in the Lilydale area. Josephs said that there’s a need for a local business organization in the Mendota Heights area. He also said he appreciates that Gen Community itself has local ties.

Gen Community's LLC model is meant to complement rather than compete with a traditional business chamber, said Heusinkveld. Where a chamber would emphasize marketing and community outreach, she said Gen Community is all about networking and referrals between businesses.

Christine Schlenker, from Mendota Dental, was invited to a recent meeting by Lifestyle Chiropractic’s Joel Fugleberg, the team’s vice president.

“I am always interesting in networking with other people, so I went to check it out,” said Schlenker in an email. “I am not yet sure if it is something I will join, once a week is a little much for me as my duties at the office keep my plate full. I would hope to get referrals and more new patients from it and also promotion for my mobile website business.”

Room to Grow

Membership in the Mendota Heights-Lilydale team stands at about six. Ideally the group would like to officially launch Feb. 28 with 10-15 members, said Heusinkveld, and reach about 30 when mature. It costs $395 to join and $350 annually thereafter, according to co-owner Mark Peterson. Gen Community follows a model of professional exclusivity to limit competition between members. 

 “We kind of want it to be like an Angie’s List—and now, Facebook—where people go to find things and ask questions, and to have all our members looked at as experts in their field,” said Heusinkveld.

Mendota Heights-Lilydale Gen Community meets Tuesdays, 11 a.m. at Lilydale City Hall. An informal social meeting open to the public is also planned for 7:30 a.m., March 6 at Capitol View Cafe in West St. Paul.


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