By TERRY BRLAS

Strongsville Post editor

The city of Strongsville went a different direction for its most recent quarterly Economic Development Breakfast, held at the Ehrnfelt Event Center Jan. 26.

Instead of hosting a keynote speaker orating on a specific topic, the city entertained four individuals with varying perspectives deliberating on a series of question.

State Rep. Mike Dovilla (R-Berea); Dr. Dennis D. Miller, chair of the Economics Department at Baldwin-Wallace College; Shawn Upchurch, founder of business consulting firm UpSearch; and Caryn Candisky, district director for the office of U.S. Sen. Rob Portman (R-Cincinnati) served on the panel.

The three questions that each of the panelists answered were what do you believe are the most significant challenges northeast Ohio faces on the road to recovery, what steps need to be taken to resolve these challenges and create more jobs and is there a future for manufacturing in our state?

Candisky opened the forum by stating that government needs to get spending under control and needs to "attack these record setting deficits."

"At the federal level the most significant challenges he (Portman) is working on today is getting that deficit under control and enacting pro-growth policies that will encourage job creation and strengthening of the economy," she said.

Candisky stated that Sen. Portman has tackled issues such as tax and regulatory reforms that would create an environment where the economy could succeed and private sector growth can occur. She also said that the senator feels spending reductions are not enough to spur growth.

"He has put forth a bi-partisan plan that would require, before regulations are enacted, the process of analysis," she said. "On the tax reform issue he is working on putting together legislation right now. One of the issues that is part of that tax reform effort deals with lowering the corporate rate, broadening the base, getting rid of some of the underbrush of the deductions and all the complications in the tax code."

Other issues that Sen. Portman is working on according to Candisky are education and workforce training. She stated there are approximately 44 federal programs spread among nine agencies in the federal government.

"One of the challenges we face is trying to get our arms around the fact that there are 70,000 some jobs available in Ohio, yet we still have an unemployment rate above 8 percent," Candisky said. "Sen. Portman has been working on ways we can revamp workforce development issues at the federal level ... Sometimes it's getting through the federal bureaucracy, sometimes it's a change in policy, but sometimes it's direct involvement of staff of Sen. Portman to encourage CEOs of businesses to invest in Strongsville and beyond."

Upchurch works with clients in 33 states and three countries. His comments were directed at the small businessman or -woman and came from a global perspective. His advice focused on attitude more than anything else.

"We are our own worst enemy," he said. "If we don't believe in ourselves that is something cascaded down from our attitudes from the media and conversations with each other. We make it hard on ourselves."

What are the biggest challenges to creating jobs in northeast Ohio according to Upchurch?

"Every organization in northeast Ohio has people and a purpose," he said. "Not every organization does a very good job of communicating their purpose. Instead what we have is a lack of clarity on purpose ... If you listen to the radio or read the newspapers there is a pessimism that exists. We need to change the attitudes that we have. "

There is also a lack of cooperation among the cities and municipalities in northeast Ohio according to Upchurch.

"It looks like we are fighting amongst ourselves," he said. "It looks like we are trying to steal a company from one of our sub-communities in northeast Ohio and bring it to our community instead of taking the fight to Chicago or Michigan."

When answering the question about the future of manufacturing in the state Upchurch stated "there is an absolute truth that our revenues from our manufacturing base are shrinking."

"We have such an attachment to this manufacturing element. It's not an anti-manufacturing position that I am taking," he said. "Let's get a hold of what is happening to us ... The conversations I am having with S&P 500 companies have roadmaps of 25 years and they are mapping out in Africa and different parts of the world. They are already moving forward and getting their hands on facilities so they can have those capacities up and running in time as the dynamics of those different countries shift."

Miller has taught in countries such as Egypt, Nicaragua and the Ukraine. He said that northeast Ohio has more going for it than any of those countries. He is hopeful about the future of this area.

"I was talking with a colleague at Baldwin-Wallace who is more of a regional development economist and she said since 2009 we have been adding manufacturing jobs in northeast Ohio," he said.

Not surprisingly, Miller touted the importance of an educated workforce to meet the special demands of modern employers.

"So often I hear from employers that there is not a shortage of workers, but a shortage of qualified employees who are able to either immediately meet the needs of an employer or are versatile enough to adapt to a new job situation," he said.

Miller emphasized two approaches in regards to necessary steps to create more jobs in northeast Ohio.

Institutions of higher education need to promote internships for undergraduate students and employers need to offer them. Community colleges and vocational schools need to improve communication with employers in order to design curriculums to better meet the needs of employers.

"Is there a future for manufacturing in our state? I think there is," Miller said. "Even though the total job market has been increasingly service oriented over the years there are emerging manufacturing opportunities for job growth."

Miller gave a number of examples to support his point including the resurgence in steel manufacturing in the city of Youngstown due to the increasing demands for gas and drilling pipe for the gas fracking industry in southeast Ohio and western Pennsylvania. He also pointed to the resurgence of the auto industry, which has helped manufacturing in northeast Ohio.

In the first year of his term, Rep. Dovilla has introduced 10 bills that focus on creating jobs, strengthening public education, protecting senior citizens and advocating for veterans. His legislation includes House Bill 144, which simplifies the process for small businesses to incorporate and locate important information on Ohio's online small business portal; House Bill 258, which provides a tax credit for individuals obtaining a bachelor's degree or attaining journeyman status in the construction and building trades; and House Bill 331, which creates the Cybersecurity, Education, and Economic Development Council to attract and retain jobs in the technology sector.

"We are trying to get the state moving in the right direction and make sure that people keep more of their money so they can reinvest it back into the communities," he said. "We've taken a new approach to economic development in the state of Ohio ... We've established JobsOhio, which is a non-profit organization run by eight folks from major companies who have experiencing driving job creation."

Rep. Dovilla has taken a look at regulatory reform. The common sense initiative in the Office of the Governor examines each regulation in the state of Ohio that has an impact on business.

"Each of us in this room has an important role in bringing prosperity back to our great state," he said. "To see our economy in Ohio become strong once again, we must engage in common sense initiatives, working in concert with one another to develop real world solutions to real world problems."