Minnesota Wire & Cable Co.

Mr. Wagner is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Minnesota Wire and Cable Co. (MWCC). He has been with the St. Paul based custom development and manufacturing firm since 1985, when he joined the sales department. Before coming to MWCC, Mr. Wagner worked for Northstar Financial Corporation, and the Metropolitan Sports Center. He became president of MWCC in 1992, and was named CEO in 2000. During that time, Mr. Wagner greatly expanded the company's market exposure which now includes the medical, defense, industrial and commercial sectors; and he has provided strategic direction to evolve the business into a high technology development house primarily through federal research and development grants. The company has a nearly 50 percent capture rate on federal grant applications, compared with a 10 percent national average. Mr. Wagner developed MWCC's subsidiary MINNESOTA MED-EQUIP, the Minnesota Defense division, a joint venture with Primordial, Inc., and was a founding member of the state's Manufacturers Alliance and Leaders Alliance. In 2004, Mr. Wagner founded the Defense Alliance of Minnesota, the region's defense and homeland security industry network that is the first of its kind nationally. A collaborative among businesses, organizations, federal agencies and state and national political delegations, the Defense Alliance is having a positive impact on businesses securing federal research dollars and government contracts, and thereby developing the high technology infrastructure of the state. The Alliance is also involved with service member support, and lobby efforts to make Minnesota more "Veteran friendly." Mr. Wagner and the staff of the Defense Alliance were awarded the Small Business Administration's Veteran Business Champion of the Year Award for the state of Minnesota for 2006. In 2007, the Defense Alliance was selected by the Defense Sustainment Consortium to be a Center of Excellence for the Midwest. Mr. Wagner was the President of the General John W. Vessey Jr. Chapter of the Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA) from 2005 to 2007, significantly expanding its corporate and individual membership levels, and leading it to two consecutive "Best Chapter" awards during that time. In 2006, he was selected to be on the national Defense Advisory Board of the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), which advises the Secretary of Defense on ESGR initiatives. Additionally, Mr. Wagner is a member of the board of Minnesota Bramstedt Surgical and the St. Joseph's School. He supports the Downs Syndrome Association of Minnesota, and coaches softball, soccer, and basketball for youth teams. He also created a charitable giving program called "Charity Park." Mr. Wagner has traveled internationally to over 24 countries throughout Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Europe, including with Minnesota Governor Arne Carlson's trade delegation to Asia. In 1999 he was honored with the Governor's International Trade Award. Mr. Wagner holds a Bachelor's degree in business with an emphasis in management from the University of Saint Thomas. He and his wife Cindy reside in Eagan, Minnesota with their five children.

Joan Thompson is the executive vice president/chief financial officer (CFO) of Minnesota Wire & Cable Co. and has been with the company since 1981. She currently serves as chairperson of the United Hospital Foundation board of directors. She also serves as a director at Park Midway Bank and the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation. She is a member of many organizations including the National Association of Corporate Directors, Rotary International, Defense Alliance of Minnesota, Association of the US Army, St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, Minnesota Chamber of Commerce and the US Chamber of Commerce. In 2006, Thompson was named by Mpls/St. Paul Business Journal among the year's top Women in Business and was also the United Hospital Foundation's Trustee of the Year. She's also received the Bravo Award, Deubner Award and HERBIE Award from the St. Paul Chamber of Commerce. Her family owned manufacturing business recently received the 2007 Tibbets Award for Small Business Innovation Research Excellence. She speaks regularly to business, government and community organizations about ethics, leadership, family business and workforce development. She studied at the University of Minnesota and the University of St. Thomas.

Dick Reinhart, owner of Dick's IGA in River Falls, has seen W-2 in action during its pilot run in Pierce County. He said employers have seen some of those problems and more, but in many cases there were solutions.

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