Soapbox

Even in the rough economic waters of 2008, Mayor Mark Mallory says Cincinnati is doing just fine.

The official numbers have been tallied, in fact.  Mayor Mallory has just announced that over 2,500 new jobs were created in the City of Cincinnati in 2008.

“Despite the difficult national economic climate, Cincinnati had a very strong year of job creation," Mallory says.

The City of Cincinnati's Economic Development Division has played a major role by creating incentives for new companies to either relocate to Cincinnati or further expand, if they're already here.

Mayor Mallory and Councilmember Cole further contributed  to Cincinnati's burgeoning workforce by helping 200 young people find jobs through the Mayor's Youth Employment Program, which is also figured into the city's 2009-2010 budget.

City Hall sees several reasons for Cincinnati's success amidst economic hard times:  an internationally respected corporate roster, affordability, a well educated workforce, access to top-notch training, a plethora of transport options and the city's business friendly environment.

Companies that added a significant number of jobs in 2008 include Medspace (1,339), US Bank (435), Humana (200), dunnhumbyUSA (150) and FirstGroup (135), among others.

"Our city continues to be a very attractive location for business investment," Mallory says.  "Over the last few years, we have implemented a much more targeted and aggressive economic development strategy, and it is paying off.”

Writer:  Jonathan DeHart
Source:  City of Cincinnati        

Counting people means hiring people.

And this is a good thing for Cincinnati, as the US Census Bureau (USCB) has announced 1,000 job openings for carrying out Cincinnati's 2010 census.

"This is an excellent opportunity for 1,000 Cincinnatians to get a good quality job that will give them valuable future job skills and to be part of improving our community,” says Mayor Mark Mallory.

Mayor Mallory has a history of vigorous engagement with the census process.

After discovering 22,000 residents who were overlooked and challenging the 2006 census, Mayor Mallory is being proactive in 2009. 

In order to ensure a comprehensive, accurate 2010 census, Mallory has launched a 100 member Census Complete Count Committee. 

At the national level, Mayor Mallory is chairing the US Conference of Mayors' 2010 Census Task Force.

“The US Census Bureau's Cincinnati office is in the midst of an intense recruitment drive to hire office and field staff from across the Cincinnati area,” says George Conner, Cincinnati Census Office Manager.

Placement testing is currently underway at the local office on Linn Street in the West End. 

More information about these positions can be found here, or by calling 513-766-3040.

Writer:  Jonathan DeHart
Source:  City of Cincinnati, US Census Bureau Cincinnati Office

Thanks to the University of Cincinnati's Simulation Center (UCSC), engineering for Procter and Gamble (P&G) has gone virtual.

And it's win-win. 

UC students get experience working with P&G engineers.  P&G solves design problems on more cost and time effective virtual terrain.  And participating students serve as a readymade talent pipeline for P&G.

“In the physical world, they’re at UC, but in the virtual world, they’re at P&G,” says Don Bretl, P&G's operations manager of the UCSC.

Virtual modeling is a growing trend in various industries, in which the tradition model – physically creating a prototype, testing it and then modifying it in the real world – is increasingly obsolete.

Corporations like Toyota, Mercedes and Ford are also catching onto the advantages of digital modeling, in which prototypes are conceived and tested on computers.  Then, if the virtual shoe fits, a physical one can be made.

“Our motto is to explore digitally and confirm physically,” says Bretl.

UC and P&G based much of the model for the UCSC on Catepillar Inc.'s partnership with the University of Illinois, and the resultant Champagne Simulation Center.

The pre-existing Master Alliance Agreement between UC and P&G, and UC's status as a PACE (Partners for the Advancement of Collaborative Engineering Education) university made the decision an easy one.

“It’s the best of both worlds,” says Professor Teik C. Lim, head of UC's Mechanical Engineering Department.  “You tap into the creativity of the students — ‘8 to 5’ is gone. The students can come and go as they please. Whatever hours of the day work best for them — they are not constrained by when the P&G office is open."

Ultimately, Lim adds, "students graduating with these simulation skills are very attractive to P&G.”

Writer:  Jonathan DeHart
Source:  University of Cincinnati

Christmas may be over, but United Way of Greater Cincinnati (UWGC) is about to give a gift of $38.3 million.

This money will fund programs that instill financial wisdom in children and help adults achieve financial stability.

“We are pleased that we were able to keep support for vitally needed programs and initiatives that help children and families lead better lives at a high level," says UWGC Board chair, Carrie K. Hayden.

This marks the third and final year of UWGC's three-year Agenda for Community Impact, which will contribute a total of $52.1 million to various services and initiatives in 2009, including the $38.3 million in economic related programs, as well as a $5.3 million gift to the American Red Cross, Cincinnati Area Chapter.

Even with the present state of the economy, UWGC is going strong. 

“We’re very grateful to the generous people and companies in our region," says United Way president, Robert C. Reifsnyder.  "Given the economy, it’s especially important that we are able to invest substantially in services that help families and individuals with issues around financial stability."    

In fact, UWGC is actually expanding into Ohio and Dearborn counties in 2009, since the United Fund of these counties merged with UWGC in 2008.

Specifically, some of UWGC's 2009 programs will help prepare children for kindergarten, provide academic support for young students, assist families and individuals reach financial stability, offer safety nets for older adults and people with chronic conditions or disabilities, and guide community development.

To learn more about UWGC's 2009 agenda, visit here.

Writer:  Jonathan DeHart
Source:  Toni Lehmkuhl, Carrie K. Hayden, Robert C. Reifsnyder, United Way of Greater Cincinnati

Times may be tough, but Cincinnati's young need not fear.

In response to the current economic woes, the Southwest Ohio Regional Workforce Investment Board (SWORWIB) has pledged $1.8 million to assist 30% more of Cincinnati's young people with job training and other employment services in 2009-2010.

"It is nice to be able to focus our funding for job training at a time when this area really needs it," says Sherry Kelley Marshall, President of the SWORWIB. "Even in a stagnating economy, we want young people to still have hope. This is a step to a brighter future."

The SWORWIB is partnering with Hamilton County's Department of Job and Family Services to help Cincinnati's at-risk youth, at lower costs.

In order to ensure effectiveness, the SWORWIB has selected the best programs aimed at helping this oft neglected demographic through a competitive bidding and review process that takes into account an organization's quality and reach.

Some of the programs chosen to receive funding include Connect2Success, Literacy Center West, Easter Seals Work Resource Center, Lighthouse Youth Services and Jobs for Cincinnati Graduates.

“We were pleased to receive many stellar proposals from a variety of strong organizations successful in providing quality services related to education, training, employment and support services for youth, “ Marshall says.

To learn more, visit here.

Writer:  Jonathan DeHart
Source:  Brian Gregg, The Southwest Ohio Regional Workforce Investment Board

The Salvation Army is now accepting credit cards.

During its 2008 Red Kettle campaign, the Salvation Army made use of MobileCharge, a cutting-edge BlackBerry technology, courtesy of Infintech and Cincinnati Bell, which allows donors without cash on hand to contribute by flashing plastic – debit or credit.

“This capability provides a great new option for those contributors who may not have cash readily available,” says Denise Martin, Red Kettle Coordinator for The Salvation Army. 

This unique technology was made possible by collaboration between Cincinnati Bell and Infintech, which works anywhere a mobile signal is available. 

According to Infintech, alongside increasing mobility, the streamlined process actually cuts costs by as much as 45% to 60%, when compared to the manual variety, which has a wider range for human error.

With its near instantaneous turn-around time, MobileCharge offers a convenient and affordable credit card processing alternative its manual counterpart.

Writer:  Jonathan DeHart
Source:  Infintech, Ryan Rybolt 

Thanks to Drake’s new Stroke Recovery Center (SRC), stroke treatment has reached a new level.

“Too often, stroke patients are told after six months or a year that they have plateaued in their recovery, and that they need to adjust to their new limitations,” says Brett Kissela, M.D., co-director of the Stroke Recovery Center at Drake. 

Yet, whether one has suffered from a stroke a week or a decade ago, the good doctors at Drake insist that improvements can be made in their post-stroke condition.

“I’ve seen the dramatic improvements that many patients can have, sometimes years post stroke, given specialized therapies and new cutting-edge treatments,” Kissela says.

The SRC draws on Drake’s strength in neurorehabilitation, the University of Cincinnati’s (UC) internationally respected team of stroke researchers and the treatment expertise of the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Stroke Team.

One feature offered by the SRC is its ground-breaking Stroke Team Assessment and Recovery Treatment (START) Program. 

START gives post-stroke patients the opportunity to consult with a mixed team of medical, therapy and research specialists, who collectively develop a treatment program, based on evidence, tailored to each individual’s case. 

Although there are programs that provide treatment for isolated post-stroke conditions, Drake’s SRC is one of only a few in the country to combine the strengths of a world renowned stroke team and research university.

This holistic approach allows patients to work toward recovery in a number of areas:  walking, mobility, balance, using their hands, cognitive functioning, speaking, swallowing and more.

Drake is doing more than mixing treatment techniques adopted from elsewhere.  They’re actually creating many of the treatments; many of them in Drake’s Neuromotor Recovery and Rehabilitation Lab (NRRL).

“Drake Center is the only hospital of its kind in the region with an in-house clinical research laboratory funded by the National Institutes of Health and the American Stroke Association,” says Stephen Page, PhD, director of NRRL and Associate Professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Applied Health Sciences.  “We’re not just providing treatments; we’re often the ones developing them.”

This is encouraging news for the 2,000-some ischemic stroke victims in Cincinnati each year.

More information on the SRC at Drake can be found here.

Writer: Jonathan DeHart
Source: Drake Center

The University of Cincinnati (UC) has a new friend in China.

Starting this fall, UC and Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) launched a program that allows second-year English-track, mechanical engineering students at SJTU to matriculate at UC for the last three years of UC’s undergraduate mechanical engineering program.

Admitted students will complete the last three years of UC’s mechanical engineering undergraduate program, including one year of real world work experience, through UC’s acclaimed co-op program, and a capstone design clinic project in the fifth and last year of study.

Graduates will receive B.S. degrees in mechanical engineering from both UC and SJTU, making them highly marketable in both the US and China.

Earlier this year a group of UC professors visited SJTU, where Professor Teik C. Lim, head of UC’s Mechanical Engineering Department, gave a presentation to more than 100 SJTU first and second-year students.  Other professors in this delegation included Frank Gerner, associate dean for Undergraduate and Administrative Affairs in the College of Engineering; and Professor Jay Lee, Ohio Eminent Scholar and L.W. Scott Alter Chair Professor in Mechanical Engineering.

During their visit Lee says they visited some companies, such as Caterpillar, National Instruments and GE. 

“We found out that this program has value for [the students’] future,” Lee says.  He adds that the companies they spoke with “are excited about this type of student.”  

Professor Lee co-created the program with Professors Guang Meng, dean of SJTU’s mechanical engineering department, and Lifeng Xi, the department’s associate dean.

Already, five SJTU students are enrolled in the program, and companies in both the US and China have shown interest in having these students do their co-op programs with them. 

These students are scheduled to graduate from UC after summer quarter 2011, after which they will return to SJTU to complete a final project for the SJTU portion of the program.

SJTU is considered one of the top engineering schools in China, and already has academic relationships with the University of Michigan, MIT, Georgia Tech and Purdue University. 

“Our strategy is to develop strong ties with top universities, and to then create pathways for the best students into a broad range of UC disciplines,” says Vice Provost of UC International, Mitch Leventhal, PhD.

More information on UC International can be found here.

Writer: Jonathan DeHart
Source: University of Cincinnati

Strata-G Communications now sports six shiny rocks – Diamond Awards, that is.

Strata-G, one of Cincinnati’s largest integrated marketing communications agencies, impressed the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) – East Central District enough to secure five first place awards and one Award of Achievement at this year’s Diamond competition, held in the PRSA’s West Virginia chapter.  

The PRSA recognized Strata-G’s high caliber of work across several categories:  public service, community relations and integrated communications, among others.

“We have a pretty broad mix within the PR group,” says Jon Reischel, Director, Public Relations and Business Development.  “In our department, we’ve gone from four people, up to ten, in the past two and a half years.  Having a bigger team with that kind of diversity allows us to be more attractive to a wider array of clients.”

Strata-G did their award winning work for several clients, including the Clifton Cultural Arts Center, Gold Star Chili, Toyota Boshoku, Northern Kentucky Tri-ED, TimberTech, Bosch Accessories and Avery Graphics.

Reischel attributes Stata-G’s success to their out-of-the-box style of creative consulting. 

For example, one client, Gold Star Chili “has been receptive to a different approach [to PR].  The work that we’ve done for them has landed outside of the traditional definition of PR, which is fun.”

This non-traditional PR campaign was titled Active in the Community.  Strata-G leveraged Gold Star’s previous work with fire fighters, and the profiles of franchises in the community to engage customers, by asking them to donate movies, which Gold Star sent, along with surplus chili, to troops with local ties stationed in Kuwait.

Dinner and a movie served. 

Alongside great media coverage and community recognition for the campaign, Gold Star “got a bunch of fans in Kuwait,” Reischel says.

Out of more than 150 entries in this year’s Diamonds competition, Strata-G was the only PRSA Cincinnati chapter firm to score multiple awards, and won more first place awards than any other competing company.

This is no mean feat. 

The PRSA – East Central District is composed of 15 chapters, spread between six states:  Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia and eastern Pennsylvania. 

More information about Strata-G’s extensive offering of services can be found here.  

 
Writer: Jonathan DeHart
Source: Strata-G Communications

Thanks to Cincinnati-based Contingent Network Services, operations for Zumiez just got easier.

Zumiez, a 343-store action sports fashion retailer, has hired Contingent to deploy its EverWorX Wide Area Network (WAN) to streamline and speed up store management systems for Zumiez’s new locations nationwide, which will be linked by a private broadband network by December 2009.

The benefits of Contingent’s WAN are faster credit card processing, remote network monitoring, energy management and high speed internet access; easing communication and increasing productivity.

“We were managing a variety of disparate providers and doing our best to integrate our network in-house,” says Zumiez Technology Director, Lee Hudson.  “Contingent introduced us to a very unique approach that was simple to understand but met our specific needs.” 

Even with such a wide range of capabilities under one umbrella, Contingent is committed to keeping things running smoothly.

As a policy, if a site goes down, Contingent is the first to know, and the client does not pay while they wait for it to be fixed.   

“Enough cannot be said about Contingent’s service,” Hudson says.

To learn more about the extensive capabilities of Contingent, visit here.

Writer: Jonathan DeHart
Source: Contingent Network Services, Zumiez, Lee Hudson

With Jamal Rashed, PhD, as new director, The Center for International Business (CIB) in the Williams College of Business at Xavier University is just about to get even more global.

“Only by understanding the variations among the world's peoples their traditions, values, and aspirations can students of the Williams College of Business perceive the common humanity which unites all societies,” Rashed says. 

One is wise to heed these words, for Rashed, an expert on international trade, finance, monetary theory and labor economics; brings a lot to the international table. 

He’s led study abroad programs for executive and traditional MBA programs, taught international business and economics, and won several teaching awards to boot.

Starting January 3, 2009, Rashed, who received his PhD in economics from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, will officially take the reins at CIB, where he has been since 1989, most recently serving as Chair of the Department of Economics and Human Resources from 2001-2006. 

Under Rashed’s leadership, CIB plans to expand its international scope through more opportunities for its students to intern and study abroad. 

“The Williams College of Business is confident that under Dr. Rashed's  leadership a number of initiatives will be undertaken,” says Ali Malekzadeh, Dean of Xavier’s Williams College of Business.  “More partnerships will be created with foreign universities, leading to additional short-term study abroad programs.

The Phil and Beth Gasiewicz Study Abroad Scholarship for Business Students is one means of financial support for students with their eyes set on international experience.  

There will be 3 of these scholarships at the MBA level and 8 at the undergraduate level for the 2008-2009 academic year.

“The US itself is increasingly populated with people from other countries,” Rashed says.  “Such individuals are enriching our culture and changing the very fabric of our society in ways Xavier students need to better understand.”

Professors Hema Krishnan, Mike Webb, and Elaine Crable sat on the screening committee who selected Rashed as new CIB director.

Writer: Jonathan DeHart
Source: Xavier University

The Japan America Society of Greater Cincinnati (JASGC) knows how to throw a good party.

On December 8, at the Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati’s Japanese and American business communities remembered the good of 2008, forgot the bad, and looked forward to 2009 at JASGC’s annual bonenkai.

A bonenkai – literally “a party to forget the year’s troubles” in Japanese – is de rigueur for organizations in Japan. 

JASGC first introduced this yearly cultural rite of passage to Cincinnati 20 years ago, and it’s still enjoyed today.

Building on the successes of 2008, in 2009 JASGC hopes “to reach a broader group of people in the community,” says Carrie Bogner, JASGC (position).

This year’s bonenkai hosted over 140 guests, featured entertainment by award-winning, local violinist Kaori Matsui, who has been on NPR’s podcast From the Top over 100 times; and the Sakura Ladies Chorus, who have performed at the Cincinnati Art Museum’s Asian Cultural Festival and the Cincinnati Fine Arts Fund’s Art Sampler Weekend. 

JASGC’s 2008 bonenkai was sponsored by All Nippon Airways, Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber, Cincinnati Symphony, Fifth Third Bank and Pioneer Automotive Technologies, among others.

More information on JASGC and its exciting cross-cultural and business opportunities can be found here.

Writer: Jonathan DeHart
Source: The Japan America Society of Greater Cincinnati 

 

No need to fear, Lego robots are here.

On December 14, Cincinnati area students showed their Lego engineering prowess at this year’s First Lego League Robotics Tournament, sponsored by iSpace and held at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College.  

Prior to this, thirty-five participating area teams of nine to 14 year olds were given three months to tweak and tinker with their robots.  At the tournament, the robots were then unleashed in a simulated environment, in which they were tested against the elements. 

The robots, built with Lego kits, were put to the task of saving a model house from a flood, opening and closing windows, even building a levy, among several other challenges – all in a 2 ½ minute time frame.

However, tinkering with robots was not the only item on the agenda.  The students were also assigned homework.

In line with this year’s tournament them, Climate Connections, the students were given the task of researching a climate-related environmental issue and proposing a solution to government leaders who can act on their proposals.

The students were evaluated on the performance of their robots, climate issue presentations and teamwork.

Alongside the nine to 14 year olds, students aged six to nine also displayed their Lego creations and climate research projects.

“Developing an interest and skills in science, math and technology is vital, especially at an early age.  The FIRST Lego League tournaments provide excellent opportunities for young people in our area to do just that,” said Jana Martin Kemp, assistant project manager, external affairs for Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.

In addition to last weekend’s local tournament, First Lego estimates this year to be its biggest to date, with over 135,000 students on 12,000 teams in 40 countries competing. 

Writer: Jonathan DeHart
Source: iSpace, Lisa Desatnik, Jana Martin Kemp

Cincinnati Bell's (CB) new class of home phone proves that old technologies can learn new tricks.

Ever ahead of the curve, CB unveiled a cutting-edge new product on November 24:  the Smart Home Phone (SHP).

This new breed of home phone allows users to send and receive text messages, review voicemail from a list, play or delete them in the order of choice, even convert them to text for their reading pleasure.

“The inspiration behind [the SHP] has been a long-standing one,” says Dave Heimbach, Vice President of Product Development at CB.  “We, for a long time, have been trying to bring relevance back to the land line.”

And with customers leaving behind their land-line service at a rate of 9 to 11% a year, this is a goal born of necessity.

And for “folks with young kids who don’t want their son or daughter to own a cell phone yet, but want to give them the ability to text, they can text from this device,” Heimbach says.

CB is the first US carrier to offer text messaging and SpinVox features for home phones, all in one package.  

And these features reach far beyond home. 

The wireless SHP headset can send text messages to any phone capable of texting, anywhere in the world. 

The SHP also allows users to access the Yellow Pages and stay up to date with local weather and sports reports.

“A lot of carriers are looking at deploying this type of technology,” Heimbach says.   Fortunately, he continues, CB is “one of the first one’s out there with this one.”

Lisa McLaughlin, Senior Public Relations Consultant at CB, adds, “one of the neat things about Cincinnati Bell is its business model, which has the land line, high speed internet and it has the wireless network.”

This combo culminates in SpinVox capabilities, which allow users to convert voice mail into text messages, and peruse them in whatever order they choose.

This nifty upgrade runs on CB’s ZoomTown high-speed internet and home phone service.  For those already subscribing to both services, the SHP handset is available for a modest $29.99.  Its regular retail price is $129.99. 

To sweeten the pot, the first three months of text messaging and SpinVox use come free for SHP users.  After the trial period, unlimited text messaging is $9.99 per month, and SpinVox $5.99.

Writer:  Jonathan DeHart
Sources:  Lisa McLaughlin, Dave Heimbach

Got brain drain? 

Some say Ohio does.  But luckily, this can be cured.  And Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown is leading the way. 

Acknowledging it as an issue that must be addressed, Vice President for Governmental Relations and University Communications at the University of Cincinnati, Greg Vehr, says, “The question is, what are we currently doing, or what should we be doing, that could lead to a reversal in the exodus of young people in the region?”  

On December 1, Nancy Zimpher, President of the University of Cincinnati, hosted a summit, aimed at tackling this challenge.  

Sen. Brown lead the discussion, which was open to the community. 

The UC forum was the first of a six-stop circuit, which Sen. Brown will take through other regions of Ohio.

Business leaders and university presidents attended this round-table, which addressed topics like educational access, affordability and how to adequately prepare Ohio’s students for competitive 21st Century jobs.

Forum participants echoed one key step in this solution:  reach them while they’re young.

“There was a lot of conversation around STRIVE and its importance to the region, and the impact that could have on getting people off to a good start early in their educational career,” Vehr says. 

This need is particularly felt in the STEM disciplines (science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine).

On the industry side, Sen. Brown was instrumental in passing the SECTORS and CURE Acts this year, which support the development of emerging industries.

Now it’s time to strengthen the educational foundation to prepare the talented workforce needed for Cincinnati’s diverse industries.

As one example of this commitment in action, “Hughes High School is being renovated, and is going to become a STEM focused high school,” Vehr says.

More information on this forum can be found here.  

Writer:  Jonathan DeHart
Source:  Greg Vehr