Crain's Cleveland Business by Crain's Cleveland Business

MORE THAN MONEY Mid-major schools look beyond big salaries to attract, keep top coaches

NOTABLE BUSINESSES: These honorees promote diversity in the workplace. PAGE 12

PAGE 3

CRAINSCLEVELAND.COM I DECEMBER 13, 2021

Safety focus for University of Akron E School reacts after three people were shot in September as an off-campus party dispersed

very day Mary Stone finds herself faceto-face with an enemy. It’s a massive eyesore, a hodgepodge of sand, rocks, concrete and garbage in her University Park neighborhood. So notorious is the foe that it’s simply known by three words: The Dirt Pile. The pile’s appearance shifts depending on the vantage point. From Stone’s street, it looks like a vast landfill. Glancing at it from the other side,

near an elementary school, it’s more of a mountain. For the past five, or eight, or 10 years — neither residents nor city officials were able to be definitive — trucks have been zooming in and out of the Dirt Pile. It’s officially a material storage facility owned by the city. Stone feels no one is concerned about the Dirt Pile: “It’s in a neighborhood they don’t care about.” In other words, she said, it’s poor. About

| BY AMY MORONA

7,400 residents are estimated to live there. The median income is $18,128. To her, the Dirt Pile is a symbol, representing neglect, disengagement, despair. She believes the city has turned its back on the neighborhood she’s lived in for all of her 73 years. The University of Akron has, too. The 218-acre campus just blocks from her house feels like a separate city. See AKRON on Page 40

“IF THOSE KIDS HAD SURVIVED, OR JUST BEEN WOUNDED, I DON’T THINK THEY WOULD HAVE DONE ANYTHING ABOUT IT.” — Mary Stone, resident

Left: A memorial for Alexander Beasley who was shot at an off-campus party last September. Right: Rentals at the corner of Brown and Thorton Streets near the University of Akron. | GUS CHAN FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

Realty firm stumbles on Oswald Centre BY STAN BULLARD

The 21-story Oswald Centre in downtown Cleveland has gone into foreclosure, a staggering turn of events for a Chicago-area real estate firm that had a long, successful run here, as well as a strong track record in the Windy City.

A run of bad luck at the 1972-vintage building at 1100 Superior Ave. that American Landmark Properties of Skokie, Illinois, has owned since 2007 may account for most of the property’s woes, but it also suffers from the long-term challenges of the See SUPERIOR on Page 40

NEWSPAPER

P001_CL_20211213.indd 1

Foxconn helps Lordstown Motors end 2021 with plan for the future BY RACHEL ABBEY MCCAFFERTY

Lordstown Motors Corp. has not had an easy year. The electric vehicle startup began 2021 boasting of its high number of pre-orders and sharing plans to complete its first beta vehicles in the spring. By June, the company

THE

LAND SCAPE

was walking back some of its previous disclosures around pre-orders, saying some had been inaccurate, and its founder and CEO had resigned, setting a comprehensive leadership transition in motion. Production of the company’s first vehicle, an electric pick-up truck, has been delayed until next year. But Dan Ninivaggi, who took on

the role of CEO for the company in August, sees a path forward for Lordstown Motors. Ninivaggi, who previously served as CEO of Icahn Enterprises L.P., declined to comment on the leadership changes that took place before he arrived. See LORDSTOWN on Page 41

A CRAIN’S CLEVELAND PODCAST

12/10/2021 1:39:13 PM

T:10"

Unexpected P s r s o e blem n i s : Bu

T:13.5"

AT&T Internet for Business helps protect you from cute videos that are actually malware. Get AT&T Internet for Business with Internet Security Suite powered by McAfee®. Call 855-432-1500 to learn more.

McAfee and the McAfee logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of McAfee, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States or other countries. ©2021 McAfee, Inc. All rights reserved. ©2021 AT&T Intellectual Property. AT&T and the Globe logo are registered trademarks and service marks of AT&T Intellectual Property. All other marks are the property of their respective owners. Geographic and service restrictions apply to AT&T Internet for Business services. Internet speed options not available in all areas. Call or go to www.att.com/smallbusiness/explore/internet.html to check qualiﬁcation.

Filename: 735934-1_ATT_IPBB_Puppies_10x13_5_v3.indd

IPBB Print - Puppies

SPORTS

For mid-major schools, finding and keeping top coaches involves more than money Schools like the University of Akron and Kent State put a focus on building strong programs BY JOE SCALZO

Maybe the best way to explain the difference between a Power 5 college program in 2021 and a mid-major program is this: Two years after winning a national title, LSU fired Ed Orgeron and will pay him $17 million not to coach its football team anymore. The University of Akron and Kent State University, meanwhile, will each spend about $7 million on football this season. Same ocean, different fish. While Cincinnati recently became the first mid-major program to earn a spot in the College Football Playoff, the gap between the nation’s Power 5 conferences (the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, PAC-12 and SEC) and its Group of 5 conferences (American Athletic Conference, Conference USA, Mid-American Conference, Mountain West and Sun Belt) feels as big as ever, especially since blue-blood programs such as Notre Dame and Oklahoma can’t even keep their head coaches from fleeing for greener — i.e., richer — pastures. So how do Northeast Ohio’s mid-major programs attract and keep top coaches? Simple. They sell them on more than money. “The reality is, you can’t be afraid of losing coaches,” said Akron athletic director Charles Guthrie, who just landed Oregon offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead as the school’s football coach. “What you want to do is find a coach who can bring up your program and get things going, which makes it that much easier to recruit someone the next time around.” Guthrie arrived in Akron last spring and, in his first major move, fired Zips football coach Tom Arth on Nov. 4 with two years and $640,000 remaining on his contract. That’s small change in Division I college football — at least 11

Akron football coach Joe Moorhead, center, poses with university president Gary L. Miller and athletic director Charles Guthrie. | UNIVERSITY OF AKRON

to turn the corner, to try and generate more money and excitement, we had to fix this one challenge over here. Sometimes you have to take that risk.” Of course, firing a coach is one thing. Hiring a better one is another. To that end, Guthrie reached out to former Zips assistant Moorhead, who had landed in Eugene after being fired for going 14-12 as the head coach at Mississippi State in 2018-19. Moorhead made about $3 million a year at MSU and about $1 million a year at Oregon, but

“THE REALITY IS, YOU CAN’T BE AFRAID OF LOSING COACHES. WHAT YOU WANT TO DO IS FIND A COACH WHO CAN BRING UP YOUR PROGRAM AND GET THINGS GOING, WHICH MAKES IT THAT MUCH EASIER TO RECRUIT SOMEONE THE NEXT TIME AROUND.” — Charles Guthrie, University of Akron athletic director

programs will pay $3 million or more in buyouts this fall — but it was a big deal at Akron, which has struggled with financial and enrollment issues in recent years. Guthrie said a few anonymous donors stepped up to cover Arth’s contract, believing the cost of having one of the nation’s worst football teams was bigger than the buyout. “We were down over $300,000 at the box office in ticket sales,” Guthrie said. “We felt like, in order

agreed to a five-year contract with the Zips worth a base salary of $425,000 per year before incentives. Moorhead said his personal connection with the region (he’s from Pittsburgh, and his son plays football at nearby Grove City College) and the professional opportunities Akron offered outweighed the financial part of the deal. “Monetarily, as a college football coach, right, wrong or indifferent, we are privy to some good

money,” Moorhead said at his introductory press conference. “But that was the last factor that came into play here. There were a lot of other job opportunities that had a lot of other zeros at the end of it, but at the end of the day, you can’t put a price tag on family.”

Leaving it better

Kent State, meanwhile, recently extended head coach Sean Lewis’ contract through 2025 for $510,000 a season — a $50,000 raise from his original deal that began in 2018. Lewis has revitalized the Golden Flashes’ program, winning the first bowl game in school history in 2019 and advancing to this year’s MAC championship game. Kent also increased its budget for assistant coaches and has tried to make other program upgrades, when possible. But athletic director Randale Richmond knows that if Lewis keeps winning, other schools will come calling with bigger checks in hand. He saw it happen earlier in his career at Kent, when football coach Darrell Hazell left for Purdue after two successful seasons with the Golden Flashes. “At the end of the day, we’re student-centered, coach-led and administrator-supported,” Richmond said. “If we do all those things well, we’re gonna have coaches who move on to other opportunities. I’ve never been one in my career that’s worried about when they’re going to be gone. It’s a blessing to work

with somebody who leaves something better than they found it. “Every time Coach Lewis has these students get off a bus trip or a locker room, he said, ‘Leave it better than you found it.’ One thing that I know is, whenever and if ever that time comes, it (the football program) is going to be left better than when they found it.” Guthrie agreed, saying the best programs succeed no matter who is coaching. “You look at Boise State — they’ve had three or four different coaches and they’re still rolling,” Guthrie said. “Why is that? People see it as an attractive opportunity.” The same dynamic exists in men’s college basketball. When longtime Zips coach Keith Dambrot left for Duquesne after the 2016-17 season, Akron hired John Groce, who has three winning seasons in the last four years. Kent State has made the NCAA tournament under four different coaches since 1999, most recently in 2017 with Rob Senderoff, the team’s coach for the last decade. Cleveland State University, meanwhile, just signed basketball coach Dennis Gates to a six-year, $3.2 million contract, making him the highest-paid coach in the Horizon League. Gates was the conference coach of the year in each of his first two seasons with the Vikings, and Vikings athletic director Scott Garrett said the school has tried to create an environment “that makes it very hard for him to leave.”

“I can’t predict what the future is going to look like, but Coach Gates has been public about saying he wants to go down as the all-time winningest coach at Cleveland State,” Garrett said. “We’re all working together to make sure we’re on a path for that.” Cleveland State doesn’t have football, of course — a good thing, since Lincoln Riley’s new $10 million annual salary at USC is almost the equal of CSU’s $13 million athletic budget — but Garrett said he tries not to get too caught up in finances, regardless of the sport. He knows there are programs that can pay coaches far more than Cleveland State. But when it comes to coaches like Gates, he does his best to shorten the list. “If you get to the point where you’re having that level of success (with a coach), you hope you can eliminate all but a very small group of potential vacancies,” he said. Ultimately, the ADs said, it’s better to replace a successful coach than write a check to get rid of an unsuccessful one. And if a bigger school does come in with a godfather offer? Well, Richmond hopes the coach makes the most of his wealth. “If it’s generational-changing money, go do something positive with it,” he said. “Become a Rockefeller or a J.P. Morgan or a Carnegie and leave a legacy.” Joe Scalzo: joe.scalzo@crain.com, (216) 771-5256, @JoeScalzo01

DECEMBER 13, 2021 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 3

P003_CL_20211213.indd 3

12/10/2021 12:44:04 PM

BANKING

DON’T LET YOUR LOANS GET ICED OUT! CALL YOUR LOCAL CREDIT UNION TODAY FOR YOUR COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE INVESTMENTS!

Interest rates at all time lows! Commercial Real Estate Loans up to $15 Million No Prepayment Penalties • As Little as 10% Down

CONTACT JONATHAN A. MOKRI

440.526.8700 jmokri@cbscuso.com www.cbscuso.com Your Business Lending Partner SM

Contact me for any commercial real estate need in Northeast Ohio! • Buy or Sell • Tenant Representation • Property Management • Industrial/Retail/ Commercial

CALL NOW! 330.958.7291 www.john-lubinski.com

www.hannacre.com

Sky Quest is honored to be recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in Northeast Ohio.

HOW TO FLY WITH SKY QUEST: » On-Demand Charter » Jet Card Memberships » Aircraft Ownership Opportunities

FlySkyQuest.com 216-362-9904 Charter@FlySkyQuest.com

Nonbank mortgage lenders are gaining market share in Cuyahoga County BY JEREMY NOBILE

Top lenders

With the sort of growth Brecksville-based CrossCountry Mortgage has achieved in the past couple years amid a hot mortgage market fueled by low interest rates, it’s of little surprise the company — and other nonbank lenders like it — is winning business in its backyard. CrossCountry was the top lender for one-to-four family homes in Cuyahoga County in 2020, according to a Western Reserve Land Conservancy analysis of Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data. The lender made 1,732 loans in the county last year totaling nearly $290.2 million. That volume pushed Third Federal Savings and Loan Association of Cleveland from the largest to the second-largest lender in the county. Nationally, CrossCountry funded $42.8 billion in loans in 2020, a 183% increase over the prior year. That surge helped lift company revenue by 251% to $2.2 billion last year, according to Crain’s research. With more growth this past year, which saw the company add 142 new branches and 1,500 employees, CrossCountry projects it will hit $54 billion in nationwide loan volume by the end of 2021. It expects the momentum to carry into the new year as well, regardless of the potential for rising interest rates. “We are expecting the lending market to be very strong in 2022,” said CrossCountry chief brand officer Laura Soave. “That trend is driven by double digit home price appreciation and the current pace of home sales. Although rates may increase slightly throughout 2022, we believe they will continue to remain well below historical averages.” CrossCountry’s growth points to a broader trend. Independent, nonbank mortgage lenders accounted for more than 68.1% of all mortgages originated in 2020 compared to 58.9% in 2019, according to data from Inside Mortgage Finance. The Wall Street Journal notes the nonbank share of the mortgage lending pie in 2020 marks the sector’s largest market share ever recorded. Of the top 15 lenders for one-tofour family homes (a HMDA definition) in Cuyahoga County, nonbanks accounted for just more than half (51%) of all loans made in 2020 and just less than half (48%) of all dollars lent out. The rest comes from their traditional bank competitors. That’s a large increase from 2019, when nonbanks provided 41% of those loans and 37% of dollars lent in the county. In terms of market share, scales are tipping in favor of nonbanks in Greater Cleveland and across the country. Nations Lending Corp., a national retail mortgage lender based in Independence, joined the county’s top-15 lenders for the first time last year, squeaking in at No. 14. Nations CEO Jeremy Sopko aspires for his company to rank among the 10 largest independent mortgage lenders in the next couple years, and it’s trending in the right direction. The firm doubled total lending volume of $2 billion in 2019 to $4.4 billion in 2020 and projects to top $5 billion in originations by the end of 2021. The firm saw revenue jump 122% in 2020, according to Crain’s research. Helping Nation’s growth, Sopko as-

The top 15 lenders that made home purchase loans on 1-4 family homes in Cuyahoga County in 2020. Lender

Number of loans made

Dollars loaned

1732 1140 1050 1021 769 729 489 478 370 335 327 326 281 260 251

$290,160,000 $217,210,000 $226,040,000 $196,565,000 $134,215,000 $159,575,000 $69,645,000 $85,150,000 $93,620,000 $54,745,000 $62,445,000 $53,680,000 $59,745,000 $46,100,000 $38,445,000

CrossCountry Mortgage Third Federal S&L Howard Hanna Mortgage Huntington Bank Quicken Loans First Federal S&L Lakewood Fairway Ind Mortgage Fifth Third Bank KeyBank Liberty Home Mortgage PNC Bank CBNA/Citizens Chase Bank Nations Lending American Midwest Mortgage

The top 15 lenders that made home purchase loans on 1-4 family homes in Cuyahoga County in 2019. Lender

Number of loans made

Dollars loaned

1421 1103 1034 924 748 698 552 419 416 350 349 346 247 243 228

$250,615,000 $171,385,000 $197,340,000 $169,160,000 $153,490,000 $108,770,000 $100,770,000 $93,575,000 $52,590,000 $60,170,000 $72,535,000 $57,490,000 $34,105,000 $61,065,000 $31,160,000

Third Federal S&L CrossCountry Mortgage Howard Hanna Mortgage Huntington Bank First Federal S&L Lakewood Quicken Loans Fifth Third Bank KeyBank Fairway Ind Mortgage PNC Bank Chase Bank Citizens Bank Union Home Mortgage Company First National Bank of Pa American Midwest Mortgage

SOURCE: WESTERN RESERVE LAND CONSERVANCY ANALYSIS OF HOME MORTGAGE DISCLOSURE ACT DATA

serts, are fast closing times and flexibility on credit scores — something that seemingly applies with many independent lenders. Sopko said Nation’s average closing time is between 20 to 30 days. CrossCountry said it is closing loans at an average of about 21 days. According to Ellie Mae Origination Insight Reports, the average time to close a home purchase loan has been around 50 days. As far as credit standards, banks have kept those tight amid economic swings brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. But nonbanks are seemingly being more flexible there. “We don’t care if you’re at 580 or 810 (credit score),” Sopko said. “Do you have the qualifications to get approved through underwriting guidelines and do we feel you have the ability to make payments? That’s how we look at it.” Nonbanks have been disrupting the traditional banking industry in the mortgage business for at least the last decade, but they’ve stepped up their game significantly in recent years. Companies like KeyBank are working on ways to compete even better with the tech-enabled platforms benefiting nonbanks. Key, for example, is partnering with fintech startup Blend on a “digital application solution” in 2022, according to the company. But they’re also competing with the growing marketing resources and singular focus of their nonbank competitors. CrossCountry this year acquired naming rights for the Cleveland Browns headquarters in Berea now

known as the CrossCountry Mortgage Campus. And Nations Lending just launched its first integrated brand campaign, which includes a commercial featuring oft-controversial exNBA star Dennis Rodman. From a policy perspective, the Ohio Bankers League trade group suggests that nonbanks have a leg up in the mortgage business because they don’t have to abide by the same degree of regulations as commercial banks with respect to Community Reinvestment Act requirements. As the nonbank lending industry continues to grow, perhaps that should change. Western Reserve Land Conservancy researcher Frank Ford feels it’s a fair question to raise. “Nonbank lenders continue to act more bank-like and enter traditional lending spaces gaining market share. Without the same capital, regulatory, or underwriting requirements, an uneven playing field has been created in competition for mortgages,” said OBL spokesman Evan Kleymeyer. “With over half of mortgages now originating outside of the traditional banking industry, policy makers need to consider all segments of the mortgage industry when considering issues of affordable housing, equity in homeownership, and future regulations. If elected officials are serious about solving issues around equity in homeownership, all parties need to be held to the same regulatory scrutiny and at the table working together.” Jeremy Nobile: jnobile@crain.com, (216) 771-5362, @JeremyNobile

4 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 13, 2021

P004_CL_20211213.indd 4

12/10/2021 1:52:10 PM

I know your labor and employment

matters can’t wait for a

“slow no.” As former in-house counsel for a Fortune 50 enterprise, I’ve been a consumer of legal services. I know what it’s like to wait (too long) for answers, only to hear “no, you can’t” or “no, it won’t work.” My clients deserve better, and I make sure they get it. Sound advice and timely responsiveness to all their labor and employment matters. The laws and regulations are complex. Missteps make headline news. Immigration concerns make a tight talent market even tighter. I use my native Spanish-speaking skills and hands-on litigation experience to advocate for my clients. Guiding them to avoid problems before they can surface. Finding—or creating—the right path for their business. One that leads to “yes.” I’m MARGARITA KRNCEVIC. I’m on your team.

MY BENESCH MY TEAM

> Of Counsel, Labor & Employment Practice Group > (216) 363-6285 | mkrncevic@beneschlaw.com

www.beneschlaw.com

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

In a decade, JobsOhio reversed significant industry declines BY KIM PALMER

When it comes to economic development, Ohio has one of the most distinctive programs in the country. JobsOhio, formed in 2011 and the brainchild of former Gov. John Kasich, uses state liquor sale revenue to finance the private, nonprofit framework, creating an economic development organization with significant resources — and fewer bureaucratic barriers than other government agencies. That structure set the stage for JobsOhio to respond quickly as the state’s economy contended with the worst of the pandemic disruptions. “The organization’s structure, as a private nonprofit, gives it a lot more flexibility, confidentiality and provides reliable funding,” said Bob Smith, chairman of the JobsOhio board and former Team NEO chair, in an interview on the10-year anniversary of the organization. JobsOhio was crucial during the early days of the pandemic, said Smith, a partner in the Cleveland office of Cerity Partners, as Gov. Mike DeWine wanted to get out in front of economic headwinds. “His request to JobsOhio was to be really aggressive in thinking about the unique needs of the state and asking, ‘What could JobsOhio do to help relieve some of the pressing issues on businesses?’ ” Under the leadership of J.P. Nauseef, JobsOhio’s president and CEO, the organization dedicated $500 million in pandemic funding for the purchase of personal protective gear, as well as loans or grants that went to about 15,000 small businesses. Manufacturers as a result were able to retool to produce protective gear and hand sanitizers using JobsOhio funding. “We moved very quickly, moved much faster in the state of Ohio than in other states,” Smith said.

A DECADE OF RESULTS

The ability to infuse $500 million into the state’s economy follows a move made in 2013, when JobsOhio spent $1.4 billion to purchase rights to the state’s liquor enterprise until 2038. It was a profitable move. In 2020 alone, Ohio liquor sales hit a record $1.57 billion, a 19% increase from the previous year. In the last decade, revenue from those funds was used to assist more than 2,800 economic development project deals involving 500 new companies coming to Ohio and 2,100 existing local businesses expanding within the state. Those projects, according to a 10-year JobsOhio overview of its performance, are responsible for more than 800,000 jobs representing more than $45 billion in payroll that subsequently generated more than $1.35 billion in annual taxes. In the decade before 2011, Ohio lost more than 230,000 industrial jobs, an 18% decline, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor

Statistics’ Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. “It (was) like losing the top employer in each large Ohio city: Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton J.P. Nauseef and Toledo,” said Nauseef, who took the organization’s top job in 2019. “I’d say if you ask what’s the top accomplishment for JobsOhio and our network partners, it’s turning around decades of decline in those sectors.” JobsOhio has targeted its efforts on nine strategic industries — advanced manufacturing; aerospace and aviation; automotive; energy and chemicals; financial services; food and agribusiness; health care; logistics and distribution; and technology — deemed to have the most potential economic impact in the state.

“OUR TARGETED SECTORS REPRESENT ABOUT ONETHIRD OF THE STATE’S GROSS PRODUCT, JUST UNDER A QUARTER OF THE TOTAL EMPLOYMENT, AND ABOUT 40% OF OHIO’S PAYROLL.” — J.P. Nauseef, JobsOhio CEO

Since JobsOhio took over distributing grants and loans, those sectors have seen employment increases of 14% on average across the board, according to the organization’s analysis. “Our targeted sectors represent about one-third of the state’s gross product, just under a quarter of the total employment, and about 40% of Ohio’s payroll,” Nauseef said. Nauseef said the average wage per job in those targeted sectors is roughly 35% higher than the average wage for the rest of the private sector economy in Ohio. Shortly before the first pandemic-related shutdowns in March 2020, Nauseef rolled out a comprehensive realignment of strategies and goals, dubbed “JobsOhio 2.0.” The strategy ratcheted up the group’s annual investment in loans and grants from $150 million to $500 million, developed 12 new major economic programs, and added the military/federal sector — think NASA Glenn Research Center and Wright Patterson, near Dayton — to the other nine focus industry sectors. Mark Barbash, who was a development official in former Gov. Ted Strickland’s administration, points out that by dedicating significant funding to targeted programs, JobsOhio strengthens development dollars. See JOBS on Page 42

6 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 13, 2021

P006_CL_20211213.indd 6

12/10/2021 1:49:56 PM

TAX TIPS

Early end to Employee Retention Credit and personal liability BY CARL GRASSI

On Nov. 15, President Joe Biden signed the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill (H.R. 3684) into law. The law includes revenue-raising tax provisions as well as other budgetary offsets that are estimated to raise about $51 billion over 10 years on a net basis. One revenue-raising provision involves the early termination of the Employee Retention Credit, or ERC. The ERC was created by the CARES Act, enactGrassi is senior ed in March 2020, counsel at to encourage busiMcDonald nesses to keep emHopkins LLC ployees on their payroll. The American Rescue Plan Act extended the credit to eligible employers for the third and fourth quarters of 2021. In 2021, the ERC is worth up to $7,000 per qualifying employee per quarter. However, under the infrastructure bill, employers may no longer claim the ERC for wages paid after Sept. 30, 2021 (except for wages paid by an eligible recovery startup business). The early termination of the ERC could cause problems for those businesses that already monetized the credit for wages paid beginning Oct. 1, 2021. The ERC is claimed on the Form 941 quarterly payroll tax return, but the rules allow a business to monetize the credit early by retaining the federal pay-

roll taxes withheld from its employees’ wages, rather than depositing the money with the IRS. As a result, some businesses will not have deposited their tax withholding obligations for Q4 2021 in anticipation of receiving the credit. Because the ERC program was terminated early, businesses that retained payroll tax amounts for Q4 2021 will likely need to pay back those payroll taxes. Furthermore, there is a 10% penalty for a company’s failure to deposit payroll taxes withheld from employees. Although this penalty was initially waived for taxes not deposited in anticipation of receiving the credit, it is unknown whether employers who would have qualified for the fourth-quarter credit and reduced their payroll tax deposits prior to the passage of the law will face late deposit penalties for the shortfall of the payroll taxes deposited in anticipation of claiming the ERC for Q4 2021. Where a company retained payroll taxes in anticipation of receiving the ERC and the company is unable to repay the IRS for the post-Sept. 30 payroll taxes it retained, certain officers, directors or employees of the company might be personally liable for such unpaid payroll taxes. This is because the payroll taxes retained may qualify as trust fund taxes. Trust fund taxes are taxes paid to a business by someone else (an amount withheld from an employee’s wages is considered paid to the company by the employee) that are set aside as a liability to the business and that must be paid to a government entity. To assist in the collection of these taxes, the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty

(TFRP) was created. The TFRP is imposed against any person who is required to collect, account for and pay over any tax if that person willfully: fails to collect or truthfully account for and pay over the tax; or attempts to evade or defeat the tax. The amount of the penalty is equal to 100% of the unremitted taxes. The people against whom the TFRP may be assessed include an officer or employee of a corporation, or a member or employee of a partnership, who is responsible for supervising or making the withholding payments to the IRS. The penalty can only be asserted if the failure to withhold and pay the IRS was “willful,” meaning that the responsible person makes the deliberate choice not to pay the withheld taxes to the government. Because TFRP is a civil penalty imposed for the purpose of protecting governmental revenue, willfulness does not depend upon the presence of an evil or criminal motive or a specific intent to deprive the government of its taxes. It may seem unfair for the IRS to impose penalties when the Q4 2021 ERC was retroactively repealed. But given the potential personal liability for a responsible person, the lack of IRS guidance and the likelihood that a failure to pay Q4 2021 taxes would have been done intentionally (i.e., willfully), companies that did not deposit payroll withholdings expecting to receive the ERC for wages paid after Sept. 30, 2021, may want to consult a tax attorney to discuss ways to remedy the situation so responsible persons can make the best case to avoid potential penalties.

SALT • SALT • SALT

Water Softener • Industrial • Food • Ice Melt • Sea Salt

Call For Pricing!! Minimum Delivery: 1 Pallet

MEDINA, OH

1-800-547-1538 Salt Distributors Since 1966 www.saltdistributormedinaoh.com

Get Even More Savings

on Health Benefits for Your Employees

Grimm Winter mix 2x4.33.indd 1

9/22/2020 1:14:55 PM

Introducing The Preferred Choice Network This exclusive network offers access to three of the area’s premier health systems – Summa Health, Cleveland Clinic, including Cleveland Clinic Akron General, and Akron Children’s Hospital – all at a preferred price! If your business has 50 or fewer employees, contact your broker, visit summacare.com/mewa or call 330.434.SAVE today for more information.

in partnership with FOR MORE INFORMATION

DECEMBER 13, 2021 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 7

P007_CL_20211213.indd 7

12/10/2021 2:14:48 PM

PERSONAL VIEW

Ohio’s requirements block too many working people from jobless benefits RICH WILLIAMS FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

BY MICHAEL SHIELDS

EDITORIAL

Sticking around A

bill introduced last week to help keep college students in Ohio after they graduate correctly understands the problem. But does it meet the test of outlining meaningful solutions to the state’s brain drain? There are some things to like — but also reasons to be skeptical. State Rep. Jon Cross, a Republican from Kenton who chairs the House Finance Subcommittee on Higher Education, offered a plan that would take some bold steps, one of which is exempting from state income taxes for up to three years any graduate of an Ohio public or private college. Also in the bill: Businesses that offer paid college internships would earn a refundable credit of 30% of paid wages for students’ internships, apprenticeships and co-ops; the state would offer up to 100 merit-based scholarships of $25,000 to out-of-state students seeking STEM degrees; and more money would be added to the Ohio College Opportunity Grant program for students with associate degrees seeking four-year degrees. The goal, Cross told the Associated Press, is to “incentivize Ohio’s younger population to live, learn, work and prosper in Ohio vs. leaving the state after graduation.” Fair enough. As the Cincinnati Enquirer pointed out, between 10% and 40% of graduates, depending on the university, “are leaving the state to pursue jobs and lives elsewhere.” Combined with a continued dwindling of the state’s population of high school graduates, the flight of college students exacerbates the workforce challenges that employers in Ohio — and most states — now face. When Cross announced the bill last Monday, Dec. 6, he was joined by several university presidents, who are eager for help in reversing enrollment declines that have become more pronounced during the pandemic. The tax break for businesses offering internships makes sense, as does bolstering financial support for students with associate degrees who want to continue their education. The plan to forgo income taxes for three years, though, is an expensive gimmick — and one that’s unlikely to provide the expected incentive for students to stick around. Cross didn’t have a price tag, though he told the Enquirer, “I’m sure it’ll be big.” The bet is that it would keep so many new grads in the state that resulting economic growth would

offset the initial lost income tax revenue. But for most young workers, the exemption from state income taxes would amount to only a few hundred dollars yearly. We appreciate the idea that every penny counts, but that hardly seems like a reason for a young person to decide where to live. Far more important: Is the state doing everything it can to keep higher education costs low, to help businesses grow, and to offer an environment in which young people are confident they can thrive? It’s these more basic questions where Ohio often is lagging, and where this plan only hints at a response. We don’t dwell on non-economic issues, but if the goal is to convince young people to stick around, legislators might also consider how their aggressively conservative adventures in gun and abortion policies, and their failure to enact LGBTQ protections (which have the support of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce), position Ohio for job attraction and retention. Tax breaks can help create a growth environment, but they’re far from the only factor in making people want to make a commitment to a place.

Rock star The Detroit real estate company Bedrock plays a big role in the future of downtown Cleveland, and it made an important move last week in hiring Deb Janik as senior vice president of business development here, starting Jan. 7. Janik has spent more than 30 years focused on economic development in the public, private and nonprofit sectors, most recently at the Greater Cleveland Partnership, where she has been senior vice president of major projects and real estate development. That major-project emphasis should serve her well at Bedrock, where two items on her to-do list are the company’s remaking of Tower City as a “destination marketplace,” and its collaboration with the city of Cleveland on the 30-year Vision for the Valley along the Cuyahoga River to revitalize the waterfront with offices, homes, retail and parks. Both are hugely challenging tasks. Janik, with a wealth of experience and a deep reservoir of respect in town, is exceptionally well-positioned to help Bedrock meet them.

Executive Editor: Elizabeth McIntyre (emcintyre@crain.com) Managing Editor: Scott Suttell (ssuttell@crain.com) Contact Crain’s: 216-522-1383 Read Crain’s online: crainscleveland.com

Decisive action from federal policymakers made sure that even as COVID-19 destroyed more jobs than any recession in Ohio’s history, millions of people could keep food on the table and roofs over their heads. More than 800,000 Ohioans were laid off in March and April 2020 alone. By September 2021, more than 2.3 million Ohioans had received newly authorized federal Un- Shields is a employment Compensation (UC), al- researcher with lowing many to qualify who don’t ordi- Policy Matters narily due to Ohio’s narrow eligibility Ohio. rules, and supplementing regular state benefits. Those programs bolstered the economy and provided a crucial lifeline to families, but Congress let them expire in early September. By October, Ohio still had 228,600 fewer jobs than in February 2020, and was recovering jobs just half as fast as the nation. Despite the continuing need, Ohio lawmakers make it harder than all but three states to meet the earnings test to qualify for UC. Ohio’s requirement that a working person be paid at least $280 per week means someone paid the minimum wage who works up to 31 hours per week will never qualify. The test is fundamentally unfair: Low pay means that the median woman working in Ohio would have to work 2.5 hours more per week than a man to qualify, and the median Black worker would have to work four hours more than their white counterpart. A worker paid less than 90% of all Ohio workers ($10.04 per hour) would have to work four times as many hours as one paid more than 90% ($45.37). The stringent pay test means OHIO EMPLOYERS HAVE that many of the Ohioans YET TO FULLY RESTORE THE most likely to lose their jobs to COVID-19 were the JOBS DESTROYED BY same workers excluded COVID-19, AND OHIOANS from UC. Policy Matters found DISPLACED FROM WORK BY that four in five of the THE PANDEMIC OR 750,000 working Ohioans now excluded from unem- RECESSION FACE NEW ployment benefits by stiff BARRIERS TO TAKE THEM. pay requirements would be covered by a plan co-sponsored by Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown. It would cover laid-off workers who made $1,500 during the year and at least $1,000 in one quarter. Congress should pass this legislation, known as the Wyden bill, or Ohio’s legislature should pass a bill modeled on it. Attempts by some Ohio politicians to strong-arm people back into jobs that don’t exist or are not feasible by making it as miserable as possible to be without work are grossly out of touch. Last spring, Gov. Mike DeWine cynically blocked Ohioans from receiving $300 weekly federal benefits 10 weeks before those benefits expired, depriving Ohio of hundreds of millions of federal dollars that would have gone to families who needed them and largely been spent at Ohio businesses. Now a scheme in the Ohio Senate would reverse long-standing law and require that the General Assembly pre-approve such benefits before they can begin. Pressed for data to support the proposal, the bill sponsor could only point to help-wanted billboards he passed on his way to the Statehouse weeks after the federal unemployment programs ended.

Write us: Crain’s welcomes responses from readers. Letters should be as brief as possible and may be edited. Send letters to Crain’s Cleveland Business, 700 West St. Clair Ave., Suite 310, Cleveland, OH 44113, or by emailing ClevEdit@crain.com. Please include your complete name and city from which you are writing, and a telephone number for fact-checking purposes.

See JOBLESS, on Page 9

Sound off: Send a Personal View for the opinion page to emcintyre@crain.com. Please include a telephone number for verification purposes.

8 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 13, 2021

P008_CL_20211213.indd 8

12/10/2021 2:12:59 PM

OPINION

WE’RE EXPANDING!

PERSONAL VIEW

How to prioritize safe and successful aging in place

RESPONSIVE, REAL-TIME COMMUNICATIONS

BY STEVE HANSLER

More than 90% of seniors wish to age in place, a concept the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines as “the ability to live in one’s own home and community safely, independently, and comfortably.” Yet, most housing in our region is not designed to allow safe and successful aging, and there is a shortage of options for those who wish to purchase or rent housing that is accessible for seniors as they age. As is noted in the article in the Nov. 15 edition of Crain’s Cleveland Business , “Northeast Ohio strains to meet housing needs of agingin-place population”, seniors now outnumber children in Cuyahoga County. My agency, Maximum Accessible Housing of Ohio (MAHO), works to advance accessibility, independence and inclusion in homes and communities. We have over 40 years of experience providing accessible housing and education for seniors and people with disabilities. We know that it will take a multi-pronged approach to address this important challenge. The first prong is to enhance people’s ability to age successfully in their current housing. Home modifications and adaptive equipment can make a home easier and safer to live in. Many options are relatively inexpensive and can make a significant difference in people’s lives. For example, swing clear hinges can add about 2 inches of clear space to a door opening, making it so a wheelchair or walker can fit through a narrow bathroom door. These hinges sell for less than $10 each. MAHO’s highly trained staff offers free seminars and other training on this subject. For qualifying Cuyahoga County homeowners, we offer free home accessibility assessments. Details are on our website: www.maxhousing. org. While home modifications are usually the most cost-efficient way to enhance aging in place, some items, such as bathroom renovations, ramps and stair lifts, are more expensive. Increased funding to help pay for educational programs and these types of home improvements is essential and good public policy. According to the American Council on Aging, the average cost of Cleveland-area nursing homes is $7,847 per month. That means a home modification that extends someone’s ability to stay in their home for just three years would save over $250,000 while improving quality of life. The second prong is to increase the supply of housing that is accessible or adaptable for aging in place. For over 30 years, the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) has required that newly constructed housing with four or more connected units has basic accessibility features. Unfortunately, as is noted in the draft City of Cleveland Housing Plan 2030, “those requirements have not been strictly enforced.” It is vital that those who design, build

JOBLESS

From Page 8

Ohio employers have yet to fully restore the jobs destroyed by COVID-19, and Ohioans displaced from work by the pandemic or recession face new barriers to take them. COVID counts remain elevated, prompting fears among immuno-compromised workers of contracting COVID-19, and among parents of bringing it to an unvaccinated child. Child care — unaffordable to many even before COVID-19 — has now become impossible for more families to access as centers grapple to restaff. Ohio families need lawmakers to make a deep funding commitment to our state’s child care infrastructure, including earmarks to raise pay for the skilled workers — mostly women — who do the work. The typical Ohio child care worker is paid just $10.90 an hour, prompting staffing shortages.

and approve these projects enforce these minimal standards. Foundations and governments should require a minimum of 10% of units in any housing projects they fund meet or exceed accessibility requirements. In addition, private developers should be incentivized to exceed accessibility requirements in housing developHansler is ments not covered by the FHA. president of These steps would help address the Maximum shortage of accessible units and the Accessible Housing of Ohio. growing need for age-friendly housing. The third prong is to end the stigma around aging and those modifications that increase accessibility. Curb cuts and automatic door openers are common because they are legally required to comply with accessibility requirements. But they no longer have stigma because everyone benefits from them. Similarly, most home modifications that help with aging in place generally make living easier for all people. Wider doorways, nostep entries, lever handle sinks and motion-activated controls exemplify this. As Mary McNamara, director of Cleveland’s Department of Aging, said, “People don’t think about their need to age in place, or they don’t anticipate mobility issues.” Ending this stigma would encourage a realistic approach to aging, including planning ahead.

WE OWE IT TO OUR PARENTS, GRANDPARENTS AND, FOR US AGING BABY BOOMERS, OURSELVES TO PRIORITIZE SAFE AND SUCCESSFUL AGING IN PLACE. The fourth prong is to work to ensure that our communities are inclusive for seniors and people with disabilities. We need to make sure that new infrastructure funds are spent on improvements that actually work for people with limited mobility. Too many only meet technical accessibility requirements. Similarly, businesses should assess how age-friendly they are. For example, many seniors do not frequent fast casual restaurants because they can’t easily read the menu board. MAHO offers ADA+ assessments to assist businesses in this process. The silver tsunami of aging baby boomers is not a surprise. In just five years, the first boomers turn 80, the age at which half of all people have a disability. We owe it to our parents, grandparents and, for us aging baby boomers, ourselves to prioritize safe and successful aging in place.

Pleasant Valley Corporation is looking for high energy, talented individuals to join our growing team. Fast paced, exciting work place, offering competitive pay and future growth. Interested in joining our team? Send your resume to hr@pvccinc.com

OFFICES: MEDINA • AKRON • INDEPENDENCE

IN CASE OF CYBER ATTACK...

FULL SERVICE

INCIDENT RESPONSE Command & Control Digital Forensics & Investigations Disaster Recovery & Remediation Services Crisis Management

IR911.com CYBER ATTACK HOTLINE:

www.FortressSRM.com

And employers who want to staff up in some of the hardest-hit sectors may need to make wage improvements that are long overdue. The median waiter or waitress in Ohio is paid $9.56 per hour. The median retail worker, just $11.96. Wages this low would not even have been possible two generations ago, when the federal minimum wage was worth about $13 per hour, adjusting for inflation. Raising Ohio’s minimum wage to $15 per hour would benefit nearly 1.6 million working Ohioans. It would also help businesses to restaff and resume full operations. As Ohio workers and businesses scramble to recover the jobs destroyed by the COVID-19 recession, policymakers must take steps to ensure that all working people have protection against joblessness now and in the future. Congress should pass the Wyden bill on its own, or in the reconciliation process. Ohio lawmakers should pass a similar bill if Congress fails to act and set aside proposals to curtail UC access. DECEMBER 13, 2021 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 9

P009_CL_20211213.indd 9

12/9/2021 12:20:15 PM

GOVERNMENT

Company’s guidebook shows off the best of Northeast Ohio BY KIM PALMER

City Visitor Communications started in 1981 publishing straightforward visitor’s guides used by hotels to help guests navigate Northeast Ohio’s hot spots. About three years ago, the company’s leaders were approached by the region’s economic development organization, Team NEO, to use those skills on a guide aimed at attracting companies and talent to the region. “Team NEO does an exceptional job directing businesses to the right commercial areas in the region, but what makes a company? It’s people, and we can help bring those people here,” said John E. Brachna, president of City Visitor Communications. City Visitor chairman Rocco A. Di Lillo and Brachna, who had extensive experience in the corporate relocation field, accepted the challenge and set about researching the best way to sell Northeast Ohio to prospective out-of-town workers. “When we first started, we had various focus groups to help us structure this guide. And the one thing that surprised us was that a lot of millennials we talked to still thought of Northeast Ohio as a city with the river on fire and lots of smokestacks,” Brachna said. The observations from the focus groups, he said, were either incorrect or outdated, and it was their mission to change those negative perceptions with the “Northeast Ohio Relocation Guide,” an exhaustive 238-page look at everything worth knowing about the region. The answer about how to counter

Brachna said. Attracting new talent and worker relocation is crucial to the region. According to 2020 U.S. Census data, the city of Cleveland lost 24,000 residents over the past decade. That’s concerning because a Team NEO report predicts that by 2025, 65% of the region’s workforce will need to have a two- or four-year de“WHAT WE TRY TO SHOW IS EACH PLACE’S or certiVALUE AND WOW FACTOR. WHAT HAPPENS gree, fied marketIS THAT PEOPLE ARE SURPRISED AND SAY, able skills, to keep up with a ‘I DIDN’T KNOW YOU GUYS HAD ALL THIS.’ ” growing talent gap. Currently, — John E. Brachna, president of City Visitor Communications only 34% of the “Living Here” and “Things to See workforce fits that criteria. “I don’t care if you’re a very, very and Do.” The last pages of the publication large corporation or a small compaare dedicated to the “Surrounding ny. There is a drive for new talent, Communities” of Geauga, Lake and and that’s what we help do with our Lorain counties, highlighting such guide,” Brachna said. places as Headlands Beach State Park, Lorain’s Harbor Lighthouse The Emerald Necklace and and Paterson Fruit Farm. senior living facilities “What we try to show is each place’s value and wow factor,” BrachTo make a convincing case for rena said. “What happens is that peo- location, Brachna said, the guide ple are surprised and say, ‘I didn’t stays away from quantitative facts know you guys had all this.’ ” about a place and instead talks For anyone looking to make about what is unique in each neighNortheast Ohio home, Google borhood and community, focusing searches for “relocating to Northeast on the quality of life. Ohio,” “relocating to Cleveland” and “We don’t sell people statistics; “moving to Northeast Ohio,” Brachna we sell them with real life,” he said. said, will bring the guide up as a first For example, the “Becoming a or second post. Local in Northeast Ohio” feature The success of the guide in North- highlights what recent transplants east Ohio has even spurred talks with love most about their adopted JobsOhio, the state’s private nonprof- home, thus crafting a more personit economic development organiza- al message, Brachna said. tion, to re-create the Northeast Ohio The list includes stories from a guide for other parts of the state, Cleveland Clinic cardiologist from provincial perceptions of the neighborhoods of Cleveland, Akron and Canton is to just show readers “what they didn’t know,” Brachna explains. The guide focuses on the character of the varied neighborhoods in those cities with bright, full-color photos splashed across multiple pages accompanying sections titled

Australia; a project manager with NASA Glenn Research Center from Puerto Rico; the president and CEO of the Cleveland Orchestra, who originally hails from Quebec; and Geraldo Rivera, who has a home in Shaker Heights. The personal touch is important, because most relocations affect more than just the one individual. “When you are moving an employee, you are often moving a whole family, and it is a package deal,” Brachna said. “We’re selling the whole family that this is a great place to call home.” The guide provides extensive information on potential jobs for spouses, schools for children and parks for dogs. It also details what has been in demand more and more recently: living facilities for senior family members who are coming along in the move. For younger and international transplants, draws like the Cleveland Metroparks’ Emerald Necklace and the Cleveland Museum of Art are highlights, said Pim Soler, manager of global mobility at Parker Hannifin Corp. “University Circle is such a rich cultural area. I find a lot of my European assignees like that a lot,” she said. Soler handles both domestic and international relocation for the Mayfield Heights-based global manufacturer that has about 55,000 employees in 50 countries and relocates about 100-150 employees to Northeast Ohio every year. Parker has a program for early career employees involving rotational assignments within the com-

pany. “We hire newly graduated students from college to join this program, and they rotate 24 locations every six months or two years — and many of them come to the Northeast Ohio region,” Soler said “They are looking for short-term leases, and I have shared the digital copy of the (guide) with them, which they found helpful.” Soler, a transplant by way of Bangkok, Thailand, has made Northeast Ohio home with her husband, who is from Barcelona, Spain, and found the cost of living and good schools very attractive. “We found ourselves in Cleveland about 10 or so years ago, and here we were able to become firsttime homeowners,” Soler said. With Parker Hannifin’s proposed acquisition of Meggitt, a U.K.-based aerospace and defense motion and control technology company with more than 9,000 employees — and as COVID-19 restrictions wane, borders open and international visa processes are reevaluated — Soler is expecting a surge in relocations. Both Soler and Brachna agree that once people get to know the region — be it the affordable cost of living, the green space or diverse character of the neighborhoods — they tend not to leave. “They don’t leave, and I think that is a compliment. They stay here for a long time and even retire here,” Soler said. “They just have to adjust to the weather.” Kim Palmer: kpalmer@crain.com, (216) 771-5384, @kimfouroffive

Here for you. Here for life.

ASM INTERNATIONAL

World’s Largest Materials Information Society

Connecting 20,000+ materials professionals with resources to solve problems, improve materials performance, & support professional development. Wherever you are in your materials career, ASM provides the resources needed for advancement and growth. Join today! 800.336.5152 | asminternational.org/membership

www.ncafinancial.com (440) 473-1115 Securities oﬀered through Royal Alliance Associates, Inc. (RAA), Member FINRA/SIPC. RAA is separately owned and other entities and/or marketing names, products or services referenced here are independent of RAA. RAA does not provide tax or legal advice. Investment advisory services oﬀered through NCA Financial Planners. 6095 Parkland Blvd., #210 Mayfield Hts., OH 44124 F: 440-473-0186

10 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 13, 2021

P010_CL_20211213.indd 10

12/9/2021 12:19:57 PM

Transforming Health Care for All.

At University Hospitals, we’re transforming health care to work better for everyone. Committed to the care of Northeast Ohio for over 150 years, our unique capabilities position us to lead the future of health care. Compassion & Equity. Striving to deliver personalized, compassionate care with dignity and respect. Breakthroughs. Pioneering medical research and breakthroughs that advance patient care. Quality & Cost. Delivering nationally recognized high-quality care while leading the industry in reducing costs. Hometown Team. Our team of over 32,000 caregivers is 100% dedicated to the communities of Northeast Ohio where we live and serve our patients. Learn more at Uhhospitals.org/transform.

71275_324789_UNI_Transform_BlackGirl_Doctor__Crain’s_12.13.21_10.25x14.indd 1

12/1/21 7:20 AM

SIZE B

LIVE –

TRIM 10.875 x 21

324789_UNI_Transform_BlackGirl&Doctor__Crain’s_12.13.21_10.25x14

BLEED –

CLE PU

CRAIN’S 2021

ntentionality is the key for Crain’s Notable Businesses Championing Diversity and Inclusion. Intentionality meaning every one of the 19 honorees made an intentional effort to promote diversity and inclusion in their workplace and in the community at large. The 19, chosen by Crain’s after they successfully completed the Greater Cleveland Partnership Equity & Inclusion Organization Assessment and Crain's written evaluation, represent a cross-section of Cleveland and Northeast Ohio. The honored include professional athletics, the arts, and the business, legal and medical communities. There are representatives from the construction, manufacturing, real estate and finance sectors, and the group also has one of the area’s finest private high schools.

Some of the representatives have been fostering diversity in their workplace for more than two decades. Others have been spurred by the recent nationwide focus on diversity and inclusion. All promote the hiring of women and individuals of color, and many spur conversations in the wider community that open minds and hearts to the possibilities of diversity. All lead to actions that foster an inclusive and open work environment. Each business can be a model for others who can adapt practices and principles that best fit their individual workplace. As more join the effort, Northeast Ohio can set new standards for opening hearts and minds to the possibilities and positives of diversity and inclusion. Additionally, Crain's is showcasing seven organizations of

the many that took the GCP E&I Organization Assessment and were recognized by GCP as "Best in Class" in specific areas. Crain's is honored to partner with GCP on this year's effort. The area chamber of commerce has collected data and reported on the status of diversity and inclusion efforts in Northeast Ohio for two decades. Employers who complete GCP's equity and inclusion assessment receive immediate feedback and suggested resources that can be useful for internal diversity and inclusion strategic planning. The assessment also provides aggregate data on the region’s workforce diversity. The deadline to complete the 2021 GCP E&I Organization Assessment is Friday, Dec. 17. Visit tinyurl.com/GCP-EI-Assessment. And look for the 2022 GCP E&I Organization Assessment on GCP's website beginning Feb. 1.

CHAMPTITLES What’s more modern and progressive than diversity? Perhaps nothing — but blockchain technology might be right up there. Fortunately for Cleveland’s CHAMPtitles, you can do both at once — and do both better with a diverse staff. The company, launched in 2018 by local blockchain advocates Shane Shane Bigelow Bigelow and Bernie Moreno, aims to revolutionize the way that people deal with vehicle titles. Eventually, the company hopes that state governments will buy its system, which CHAMP says provides faster, more efficient and secure title documentation. But it’s already got some big insurance companies as clients and has raised more than $13 million in investments, including $8.5 million in venture capital raised in August. It’s done it all with a diverse and growing staff — currently 23 people — that CEO Bigelow and his team have built by hiring people who represent the broader community. The company’s staff takes pride in challenging themselves to recruit creatively and perhaps unconventional-

ly. For example, the company reports its successful hires have included a Hispanic fast-food manager who learned to code when he wasn’t working — and became a senior member of the CHAMPtitles tech team. Then there’s the female concert oboist who, as it turned out, had the skills to become a great analyst for the company. “We bring our own backgrounds to the interview process and work to ensure they do not cloud our judgment,” is CHAMP’s self-described strategy for successful hiring. It’s little wonder that the Greater Cleveland Partnership this year named CHAMPtitles “Best in Class” for supplier diversity. Even among leaders in diversity, it stands out. — Dan Shingler

COMPANIES IN THE TOP QUARTILE FOR RACIAL AND ETHNIC DIVERSITY ARE 35% MORE LIKELY TO HAVE FINANCIAL RETURNS ABOVE THEIR RESPECTIVE NATIONAL INDUSTRY MEDIUMS. — McKinsey & Co.

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS The Cleveland Cavaliers' symbol for their efforts to promote diversity and inclusion hangs on the side of the Sherwin-Williams global headquarters in downtown Cleveland. A giant banner shows a collection of diverse hands on a basketball, which the team believes illustrates the value of teamwork from every member and culture of the community. Kevin Clayton, hired in 2019 as the organization’s vice president of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement, leads an organizational effort that in the past year had members of the front office taking leadership roles in promoting diversity within the organization and in the Northeast Ohio community. Clayton, general manager Koby Altman and coach J.B. Bickerstaff

made numerous appearances to spur discussion and conversation, including at the Cleveland City Club Forum. Clayton and Corey James (director, Diversity & Inclusion, Community Engagement & Fan Development) introduced an IDEAL (Inclusion, Diversity, Engagement, Awareness, Leadership) team to help shape DEI strategy. The team is comprised of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) and cross-functional team members in (or allies to) the LGBTQ, Jewish, Black and the Lati-

no communities. Clayton and James also averaged 20 webinars, interviews, panels or keynotes per month discussing the issues of racial and social justice across multiple industries and communities. Bickerstaff is one of 12 Black coaches in the NBA and Altman one of 10 Black general managers. The Cavs are proud to have one of the highest minority full-staff percentages (over 40%) across all major league sports. The Cavs also were part of an alliance of the three professional sports teams in Cleveland (Cavs, Guardians, Browns) that promoted voter registration and supported social justice efforts. The NAACP Cleveland Branch honored the alliance with its Community Leadership Award for 2021. — Pat McManamon

12 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 13, 2021

P012_P013_CL_20211213.indd 12

12/9/2021 12:22:48 PM

C striv dive ons its com It of is tity, enta and play ists. form thea nati land and (wit bicC thes wor orga chan dom buil nom tion boa C mun help dive the gram cord “C ers sion shap ture com leav chan twee In talit duc Cho whe sugg or le “W mos Ray artis state cent to d and

and . ffort. orteast uity and rsity ides

tion -Asess-

CLEVELAND PUBLIC THEATRE Cleveland Public Theatre (CPT) strives to embrace and advance diversity, equity and inclusion onstage, behind the scenes and in its boardroom, audiences and community. Its productions address a range of issues, including cultural identity, race, gender and sexual orientation. Between October 2019 and December 2020, 80% of CPT’s plays were created by BIPOC artists. In the past decade, it has formed two culturally specific theaters, according to the nomination: Teatro Público de Cleveland (with local Latino artists) and Masrah Cleveland Al-Arabi (with local artists from Arabic-speaking communities). CPT’s experience forming these theaters and producing work by BIPOC artists taught the organization that “powerful change must be centered on freedom, empathy, listening, and building trust,” according to the nomination. BIPOC representation among CPT’s staff and its board both stand at 50%. Close relationships with community and arts organizations help foster effective, inclusive and diverse collaborations and extend the reach of educational programs and artistic projects, according to the nomination. “CPT consistently recruits others into their diversity and inclusion efforts, from individuals shaping their organizational culture, to a wider audience who comes to CPT productions and leaves with a renewed desire for change, and at every step in between,” the nomination stated. In the interest of “radical hospitality,” CPT aims to make its productions accessible, with a new Choose What You Pay policy where audiences may pay the suggested ticket price — or more or less. “We are committed to justice, most urgently for BIPOC folks,” Raymond Bobgan, CPT executive artistic director, said in a provided statement. “We will continue to center BIPOC stories as we strive to disrupt and dismantle racism and oppression.” — Lydia Coutré

EATON Eaton’s diversity and inclusion efforts start at the top. Craig Arnold, the power management giant’s chairman and CEO, has signed the “I ACT ON” pledge, which, according to the company, outlines specific actions the top executive “will take to cultivate a trusting environment where all ideas are welcomed, and employees feel comfortable and empowered to have discussions about diversity and inclusion.” Arnold is a leader of the Business Roundtable’s special committee to advance racial equity and social justice solutions, and he chairs Eaton’s

Global Inclusion Council. The global and regional inclusion councils meet quarterly to review results and “identify next steps,” the company said. Eaton, which is based in Ireland but has a large corporate office in Beachwood, has 87,000 employees. Two-thirds of its directors are wom-

en and U.S. minorities, and U.S. minorities make up 54% of its global leadership team. In addition, more than 40% of the participants in Eaton’s leadership development program are women, and 33% are minorities. The company’s internship program consists of 36% women and 35% minorities.

“We aspire to be a model of inclusion and diversity in our industry — a place where everyone matters, a place where everyone belongs,” Arnold said. In Cuyahoga County, Eaton and its partner companies are attempting to address the digital divide by donating computers that are refurbished for students. The company also has worked to promote inclusion and social justice in the legal and business communities — including the hosting of a 2020 summit that explored workplace diversity and “lawyers’ roles in combating racial inequities and social justice,” the nomination said. — Kevin Kleps

mes nteronth and dus-

lack one The the entajor

alliorts ardoter ocial evence ship

HIGHLY INCLUSIVE ORGANIZATIONS GENERATE 1.4 TIMES MORE REVENUE AND ARE 120% MORE CAPABLE OF MEETING FINANCIAL TARGETS. — McKinsey & Co.

mon DECEMBER 13, 2021 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 13

P012_P013_CL_20211213.indd 13

12/9/2021 12:23:42 PM

GIFFEN & KAMINSKI

pate in the Minority Corporate CounThe law firm of Giffen & Kamins- sel Association, the Defense Research ki was walking the walk for diversity Institute’s diversity committee, the and inclusion long before the terms Ohio Women’s Bar Association, the Norman S. Minor Bar Association joined the popular vernacular. and the Women in Law The downtown law firm Section of the Cleveland was founded in 2004 as a Metropolitan Bar Associa100% woman-owned tion (CMBA). firm; it remains that way Through its leadership today. Managing partner of the Diversity & IncluKaren Giffen (a founder) sion Committee of the called diversity and incluCMBA, the firm also has sion “fundamental to the spearheaded a movenature of the firm itself.” ment among CleveThe firm touts the diverse Karen Giffen land-based law firms to backgrounds and expericollaboratively recruit diences of its team as a core verse talent to come to strength. Cleveland to practice “Because Giffen & Kalaw. The firm was the first minski is an exemplar of a winner of the CMBA Didiverse and inclusive versity and Inclusion workplace, there is no Trailblazer Award. need for diversity and inGiffen also served on clusion initiatives,” the the board of directors of nomination said. “The Kerin Kaminski the Inclusion Initiative, a partnership is diverse, not nationwide effort from the legal on its way to becoming diverse.” The firm’s many efforts include departments of several large comtaking a leadership role with the Na- panies that committed $30 million tional Association of Minority and in work to minority- and womWomen Owned Law Firms (NAM- en-owned firms. — Pat McManamon WOLF). The firm’s lawyers partici-

FIRMS IN THE TOP TIER FOR DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION ARE ALSO 1.8 TIMES MORE LIKELY TO BE CHANGE-READY AND 1.7 TIMES MORE LIKELY TO BE INNOVATION LEADERS IN THEIR MARKET. — McKinsey & Co.

KE GR

JONES DAY In 2020 and 2021, 49% of the lawyers promoted to partner at the Jones Day law firm were women. That is just one example of the efforts made by the nationwide firm headquartered in Cleveland to address issues of gender, diversity and inclusion. Fourteen percent of lawyers who made partner in the same time period were diverse, including four Black women. Of the firm’s partners, 30% are women and 13% are diverse. In Cleveland, 26% of

partners are women. Two-thirds of partners-in-charge of Jones Day U.S. offices are either people of color or women — including Heather Lennox in Cleveland. Jones Day hired Naoma Stewart in 1960 as the firm’s first female lawyer, then promoted her to partner in 1970. The firm now has a diversity leader and a diversity committee, with active diversity chairs in every U.S. office and firm-wide groups for LGBTQ, Black, Hispanic and women lawyers to provide support, net-

working and development. “As leaders, we recognize our profession still has work to do in increasing diversity,” said Yvette McGee Brown, partner-in-charge of Diversity, Inclusion and Advancement. “That’s why we support pipeline and law school programs, and our lawyers volunteer in community and professional organizations to help advance students from historically underrepresented communities to consider a career in the law.” — Pat McManamon

In ven tate incl al di cam tors than enjo com F surr Geo tors wer way bett and the com bett Age A dou emp on own

By Su Appl

bus serv own rem goal stra

As a local company with a global reach, we understand the power of our differences. Our commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion creates a culture that allows associates to bring their whole, authentic selves to work. Our differences are not just celebrated, they are essential to everything we do — they increase our creativity and enrich our decision making. We are honored to receive this recognition and proud of our associates who make Diversity, Equity & Inclusion a priority.

Bus the succ path

14 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 13, 2021

P014_P015_CL_20211213.indd 14

Wh inve Craf com goal of b navi mat cum forc und cust own the bus pote prev

12/9/2021 2:23:32 PM

proinMce of nceipeand unins to oriuniw.” mon

KELLER WILLIAMS GREATER METROPOLITAN

Considering people of color weren’t certain whether Keller Williams was completely welcomIn 2020, Keller Williams con- ing to diversity, the company now vened with five of its Black real es- invites Black Realtors Network tate agents to discuss issues around members to on-board Black eminclusivity, implicit bias and cultur- ployees, according to the nominaal differences. From that discussion tion. “Our biggest priority, however, came an inter-agency Black Realtors Network that now boasts more was finding Black agents to teach in classes in our compathan 100 members and ny,” the nomination said. enjoys a direct line to “We believed that Black company leadership. educators were needed Following the protests to help us program our surrounding the death of training in a way that George Floyd, Black Realtakes all of our agents tors Network members into consideration and is were invited to suggest geared equally for the ways the company can success of all our people. better support diversity Jermaine Brooks At KWGM, we will conand inclusion efforts in the workplace. Among other out- tinue to work with our agents in comes, Keller Williams learned to the Black community to better unbetter integrate Black agents into its derstand what we need to know about racial injustice, historical Agent Leadership Council. Additionally, the company re- context, implicit biases, and what doubled efforts to encourage Black we should be looking at locally employees to teach classes, work and internally to spark the neceson HR committees and have an sary changes from within.” — Douglas J. Guth ownership stake in the agency.

AMONG COMPANIES WITH MORE THAN $750 MILLION IN REVENUES, CASH FLOWS WERE 2.3 TIMES HIGHER PER EMPLOYEE OVER A THREE-YEAR PERIOD FOR THOSE WITH A WELL-DEVELOPED DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION PLAN COMPARED WITH THOSE WITHOUT ONE. — McKinsey & Co.

KEYCORP When it comes to diversity, equity and inclusion, Cleveland’s largest regional bank leads by example. KeyCorp, the parent company of KeyBank, established a role for a chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer nearly two decades ago. Key embraces diversity at the top of the ladder with the makeup of its 15-person board of directors, which includes five women and two minorities — levels that pace ahead of other public companies in Northeast Ohio. Key’s executive leadership team is 47% diverse as well, composed of a mix of minorities, women and veterans.

This composition has undoubtedly inspired the company’s bevy of DE&I efforts. That includes a progressive initiative focusing on gender pay equity for its 17,000 employees, one-third of whom work in Northeast Ohio. In the community, Key has partnered with a number of institutions on a variety of DEI initiatives. The first among many was in support of the Louis Stokes Fellowship at the Mandel School of Applied Sciences, which brought diverse students interested in social work to explore projects important to the city of Cleveland. Efforts like these, and many oth-

ers, have helped secure Key a number of awards and accolades. The bank is a 12-time winner of the Human Rights Campaign Best Places to Work for LGBTQ Equality award, an 11-time honoree in the DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity and a four-time winner of the National Organization on Disabilities’ Leading Disability Employer Seal. “We are proud of our diverse and inclusive culture, and continually work to cultivate and curate a workplace where equality and respect are not an aspiration, but an expectation,” said KeyCorp chairman, president and CEO Chris Gorman. — Jeremy Nobile

SPONSORED CONTENT W15

WEATHERHEAD 100 UPSTART WINNERS Rank

% Sales growth

Company name

HQ city

Year founded

Website

Company description

Employees (2020)

155%

M Genio Inc.

Cleveland

2012

www.mgenio.com

M Genio is a boutique custom software development firm focused on mobile, cloud, and IoT.

117%

Bridge Analyzers, Inc.

Bedford Heights

1997

www.bridgeanalyzers.com

Bridge Analyzers is an original equipment manufacturer of gas analyzers for food packaging and exhaust emissions.

114%

Jennasis & Associates, LLC

Olmsted Township

2011

jennasisassociates.com

Jennasis & Associates is a creative agency offering branding, content marketing, design, public relations, social media strategy, search engine optimization and other services.

111%

Beese Fulmer Private Wealth Management

Canton

1980

www.beesefulmer.com

Beese Fulmer Private Wealth Management provides personalized, confidential investment management to individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and corporations.

105%

Kiwi Creative

Strongsville

2011

kiwicreative.net

Kiwi Creative is a digital marketing agency for B2B software and technology companies.

100%

Inner Circle Advisors

Independence

1996

www.innercirclellc.com

Inner Circle Advisors offers advisory, tax and accounting services for businesses and their owners.

99%

ConnectedHR

Cleveland

2014

https://connected-hr.com/

ConnectedHR provides customized fractional HR services delivered by high-caliber, experienced consultants.

81%

Mortach Financial

Avon

2000

mortachfinancial.com

Mortach Financial offers financial planning services to help client prepare to retire on their own terms.

78%

the telos institute

Chardon

2006

www.thetelosinstitute.com

The telos institute is a organizational strategy firm offering leadership development services, merger management and more.

69%

Ciresi & Morek

Brecksville

2012

www.ciresiandmorek.com

Ciresi & Morek is an executive search firm that strategically partners with its clients to recruit talent globally.

56%

DMS Management Solutions

Westlake

2003

https://www.dmsmgmtsolutions.com/

DMS Management Solutions provides a wide range of accounting and consulting services to small & medium-sized businesses.

51%

Planned Financial Services

Brecksville

1994

www.PlannedFinancial.com

Planned Financial Services acts as an independent financial steward for individuals, families and businesses seeking objective wealth planning.

41%

TinyCircuits

Akron

2011

https://tinycircuits.com

TinyCircuits is a designer and manufacturer of miniature electronic devices.

40%

US Freight

Rocky River

2009

www.gousfreight.com

US Freight is a logistics company that acts as the liaison between customers and shippers across the United States.

27%

Grants Plus

Cleveland

2007

grantsplus.com

Grants Plus is a grant firm that has helped nonprofits raise more than $200 million in grant funding.

16 17

22%

FORM

Shaker Heights

2004

https://www.theformgroup.com

FORM is a creative agency for arts and culture and nonprofits.

22%

Ralston Instruments, LLC

Newbury

1969

Ralstoninst.com

Ralston Instruments is a developer of hardware and software solutions for the high precision test and calibration market.

WEATHERHEAD 100 CENTURION WINNERS 1

862%

Leaf Home

Hudson

2005

www.leafhome.com

Leaf Home is a technology-enabled, direct-to-consumer provider of home solutions.

1984

256%

Park Place Technologies

Cleveland

1991

parkplacetechnologies.com

Park Place Technologies simplifies the management of complex technology environments worldwide through parts distribution and on-site service.

2300

226%

GEMCORE

Hudson

1992

www.gemcorehealth.com

GEMCORE is a family of privately-held companies providing diabetes management solutions, mail-order and wholesale supplies, medications, specialty third-party logistics and more.

302

168%

Budget Dumpster LLC

Westlake

2009

https://www.budgetdumpster.com/

Budget Dumpster provides affordable and dependable waste removal solutions to customers nationwide.

258

163%

Echo Health Inc

Westlake

1996

www.echohealthinc.com

Echo Health Inc. is a processor of electronic payments for the healthcare and insurance industries, providing payment system solutions for payors of all sizes.

116

134%

NOMS Healthcare

Sandusky

2001

www.nomshealthcare.com

NOMS Healthcare is a multi-specialty practice with approximately 300 providers in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

955

114%

Nations Lending Corporation

Independence

2003

https://nationslending.com/

Nations Lending is a mortgage lender that seeks to find tailored, custom financial solutions for each client.

1035

86%

Garland Industries Inc.

Independence

1895

www.garlandco.com

Garland Industries Inc. is a manufacturer of high-performance roofing and building envelope systems.

1315

47%

TalentLaunch

Independence

2016

https://mytalentlaunch.com/

TalentLaunch is a nationwide network of independently-operated staffing and recruitment firms under common ownership.

205

P034_P037_CL_20211213.indd 37

12/8/21 4:25 PM

LGBTQ-OWNED BUSINESS DIRECTORY This directory includes Northeast Ohio-based companies that are at least 51% owned by individuals identifying as LGBTQ as well as local nonprofits focused on LGBTQ issues (owners are not listed for nonprofits). Companies do not need an LGBTQ certification to be included. An Excel version of the directory with more details is available to Crain’s Data Members. To learn more or to submit your company, visit CrainsCleveland.com/data. Send feedback to Chuck Soder: (csoder@crain.com).

 ADVERTISING - MARKETING - PUBLIC RELATIONS Linear Creative 4166 Pine Lake Drive, Medina 440-799-4325/linearcreative.com Marketing and advertising agency Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Raymond W. Jasinski Small Organization Solutions 4612 Bucyrus Ave., Cleveland 937-475-0990/smallorganizationsolutions. com Solutions design firm creating strategy, design and experiences Main LGBTQ owners: Brendan Trewella; Josh Maxwell Top executive: Brendan Trewella Triad Communications Inc. 1701 Front St., Cuyahoga Falls 330-237-3531/triadadv.com Branding, digital marketing, websites and design Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Rick Krochka

ADVOCACY AND SOCIAL SERVICES Colors+ 21430 Lorain Road, Suite 400, Fairview Park 330-529-5667/colorsplus.org Strengthening LGBTQ+ Youth and their allies in individual and community wellness Top executive: Kristen Pepera Gay Community Endowment Fund of Akron Community Foundation 345 W. Cedar St., Akron 330-376-8522/gaycommunityfund.org Permanent endowment fund dedicated to the local LGBTQ+ community Top executive: Julie Jones LGBT Community Center of Greater Cleveland 6705 Detroit Road, Cleveland 216-651-5428/lgbtcleveland.org LGBTQ+ community center Top executive: Phyllis Harris LGBTQ+ Allies Lake County One Victoria Place, Suite 260, Painesville 440-296-9443/lgbtlakecounty.org LGBTQ resource and advocacy organization Top executive: Betty Jacobs LGBTQ+ Lorain County P.O. Box 654, Elyria 440-574-0393/lgbtqloraincounty.com Collaborates with community partners/ engages with LGBTQ+ community Top executive: Melanie Kortyka Plexus LGBT & Allied Chamber of Commerce 6815 Euclid Ave., Cleveland 216-243-7510/thinkplexus.org Chamber of commerce focused on the LGBTQ community Top executive: Amanda Cole West 117 Foundation Inc. P.O. Box 16236, Rocky River 330-687-5850/west117foundation.org Provides philanthropic leadership support to Cleveland’s LGBTQ+ community Top executive: Stephen Sokany

 ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT AND RECREATION ATNSC: Center for Healing and Creative Leadership 11808 Cromwell Ave., Cleveland 216-712-0922/atnsc.org Residency, research and exhibition space Top executive: M. Carmen Lane Cleveland Burlesque LLC 15711 Waterloo Road, Cleveland ohioburlesque.com Theatrical burlesque and drag company Main LGBTQ owner: Bella Sin Top executives: Bryan Mravec; Bella Sin

 BUSINESS SERVICES LDR Worldwide 10680 Robert Lane, Chagrin Falls 216-538-0720/ldrworldwide.com Training and performance improvement organization focused on behavior change Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Denise Reading PRN Solutions LLC 26915 Westwood Road, Suite A1, Westlake 800-776-5192/prn4hme.com Third party coordinator Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Marty Leppla

 CONSTRUCTION Brigadier Construction Services 2285 E. Enterprise Parkway, Twinsburg 330-963-0078/brigadierconstruction.com General construction Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Shawnte V. Thompson Nash Integrated Services LLC 1889 9th St. S.W., Akron 330-240-1600 Home repair, plumbing, electrical, painting, adding additions Main LGBTQ owners/top executives: Jacob Nash; Erin Nash

 EVENT PLANNING CLE Luxury Picnics Southfield Avenue, Brooklyn 216-699-0231/cleluxurypicnics.com Luxurious dining experiences and slumber parties Main LGBTQ owners/top executives: Annette Hine; Mauwa Kunyu Media Design Imaging 1265 W. 106th St., Cleveland 216-539-4634/mdifilm.com Event and video production company Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Johnny Wu Palmer Event Solutions 2619 Vestry Ave., Cleveland 216-236-1117/palmereventsolutions.com Event planning strategists for nonprofit organizations Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Gail Palmer

 EVENT VENUES Marigold Catering 3901 Lakeside Ave. E., Suite 100, Cleveland 216-566-5400/marigoldcatering.com Catering and event planning services company Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Joan Rosenthal

 FITNESS AND WELLNESS Amplio Fitness LLC 20545 Center Ridge Road, Suite 410, Rocky River 216-990-6988/ampliofitness.com LGBTQ+ wellness studio Main LGBTQ owners/top executives: John Hall; Belle Ursa Lucky Star Holdings Inc. (CycleBar Beachwood) 3355 Richmond Road, Suite 101a, Beachwood 216-307-3077/beachwood.cyclebar.com Indoor cycling studio Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Joseph Purton

 FLORIST Lilys Floral LLC (Urban Orchid) 1455 W. 29 St., Cleveland 216-390-6362/theurbanorchid.com Floral boutiques specializing in weddings and events Main LGBTQ owner: Brandon Sitler Top executives: Brandon Sitler; Jeff Zelmer

 GRAPHIC DESIGN Walder Studio

P.O. Box 770464, Lakewood 216-401-7143/walderstudio.com Design firm Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Michelle Kowalski

 HEALTH CARE Cleveland Sex Therapy LLC 6516 Detroit Ave., Suite 3, Cleveland 216-870-7510/clevelandsextherapy.com Sex therapy company Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Matthew Lachman Colors+ Counseling LLC 21430 Lorain Road, Suite 400, Fairview Park 330-529-5667/colorsplus.org/counseling Mental health counseling for ages 3 and up, adults, couples and families Main LGBTQ owners/top executives: Kristen Pepera; Lisa Pepera Energetic Awakenings 36200 West Shore Parkway, North Ridgeville 216-544-9472/energeticawakenings.com Trauma-informed alternative holistic counseling and transformational coaching Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: David de Bardelaben-Phillips Hearing Science 815 Crocker Road, Suite 8, Westlake 440-438-3401/hearsci.com Audiology and hearing aid private practice Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Joe Baker Jane Miller, LISW, CDBC 5 S. Main St., Suite 205, Oberlin 800-457-0345/healing-companions.org Psychotherapist; executive director of Healing Companions Inc., a provider of psychiatric service dogs Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Jane H. Miller

 INSURANCE Allstate Insurance: Gina Piunno Agency 7987 Hills and Dales Road N.W., Massillon 330-223-6008/allstate.com/ginapiunno Allstate insurance agency Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Gina Piunno New York Life (Lee Davis, agent) 6100 Oak Tree Blvd., Suite 300, Independence 440-319-2406/newyorklife.com/agent/ lhdavis Life insurance and financial services Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Lee Davis

 LAW FIRMS — LEGAL SERVICES Douglass & Associates Co. LPA 4725 Grayton Road, Cleveland 216-362-7777/douglasslaw.com Collections, real estate and probate law firm Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: David M. Douglass Joy B. Savren Attorney at Law 1422 Euclid Ave., Suite 618, Cleveland 216-771-6597/jbsavrenlaw.com Family law attorney, probate and estate planning Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Joy B. Savren

 MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS Diversity Forward 1700 W. Market St., Suite 198, Akron 330-267-9099 /diversityforward.com Diversity, equity, inclusion and talent management consultancy Main LGBTQ owner: Tonie Snell Top executive: Angella Guajardo Dovetail Leadership Group 7548 Birkner Drive, Kent 937-360-1105 Nonprofit consulting, leadership development and grant writing Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Erin Cole

Kilboy Consulting Group LLC 2271 Mahoning Road, Deerfield 234-255-5252/kilboyconsulting.com Health care quality improvement consulting Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Matthew Kilboy RH Professional Services Inc. 13600 Shaker Blvd., Suite 405, Cleveland 216-712-0459/rhprofessional.com Consulting firm Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Raland Hatchett

 MANUFACTURING King Nut Cos. 31900 Solon Road, Solon 440-248-8484/kingnut.com Snack nut and food manufacturer Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Martin Kanan

 MEDIA The Buckeye Flame 6110 Fir Ave., Cleveland 917-599-6714/thebuckeyeflame.com Ohio’s LGBTQ+ news and views platform Top executive: Ken Schneck

 PERSONNEL SERVICES STAFFING Accurate Staffing Inc. 1650 S. Arlington St., Suite 4, Akron 330-630-0700/accuratestaffinginc.com Employment agency offering staffing and recruiting Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Todd Kennedy

 PRINTING Full Color Printings 1452 W. 110th St., Cleveland 216-227-8521/fullcolorprintings.com Commercial printing company Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Michael Brunstedt Howling Print & Promo P.O. Box 692, Chardon 440-363-4999/howlingpromo.com Promotional product, apparel, print and design solutions company Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Ed Hamner

 REAL ESTATE Progressive Urban Real Estate 4001 Detroit Ave., Cleveland 216-619-9696/progressiveurban.com Specializing in real estate sales in Cleveland and Cuyahoga County Main LGBTQ owner: Keith Brown Top executive: David S. Sharkey

 RESTAURANTS — BARS — NIGHTCLUBS Bob Sferra Culinary Occasions 4261 Mayfield Road, South Euclid 216-973-6271/culinaryoccasions.com Catering, pastries, cakes, confections, chocolate Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Bob Sferra Cocktails Cleveland & The Bear Cave 9208 Detroit Ave., Cleveland 216-961-3115 Gay bar Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Brian Lyons The Leather Stallion Saloon 2205 St. Clair Ave., Cleveland 216-589-8588/leatherstallion.com Gay bar Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Ken Myers Jr. Rowley Inn 1104 Rowley Ave., Cleveland 216-795-5345/rowleyinn.com Restaurant/bar

Main LGBTQ owners: Raphael Rivilla; Jon Oberman Top executive: Jon Oberman Tear-Ez 360 S. Main St., Akron 330-376-0011/tear-ez.com Bar Main LGBTQ owners: Gary Reams; David Canfield; Michael Modugno Top executive: Gary Reams Vibe Bar and Patio 11633 Lorain Ave., Cleveland 216-476-1970/vibecleveland.com LGBTQ+ bar Main LGBTQ owners: Kevin Briggs; John Briggs Top executive: Kevin Briggs

 RETAIL Common Goods Studio LLC 2000 Canfield Road, Unit C, Youngstown 234-228-9760/commongoodsstudio.com Vegan coffee shop and small business co-op Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Sheri Bodo Gray’s Auctioneers LLC 10717 Detroit Ave., Cleveland 216-226-3300/graysauctioneers.com Licensed auctioneers; valuers; fine art, antiques, jewelry, decorations Main LGBTQ owners/top executives: Serena Harragin; Deborah Gray Margie’s Closet 1384 W. 117th St., Lakewood 330-240-1600/margiescloset.org Retailer selling new and used clothing and accessories Main LGBTQ owners: Jacob Nash; Tom Knepper II; Monika Veliz Top executive: Jacob Nash Pet-Tique 10906 Clifton Blvd., Cleveland 216-631-2050/pettique.com Pet boutique for dogs, cats and their owners Main LGBTQ owners: Lawrence Carter; Kevin Schmotzer Top executive: Kevin Schmotzer Sits ‘n Wiggles Dog Training 3460 Woodridge Road, Cleveland 216-910-7487/sitsnwigglescle.com Positive reinforcement dog training and behavior consulting Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Valarie Ross The Soothing Sloth Soap Co. 16105 Southland Ave., Cleveland 440-665-8624/soothingsloth.com Self-care products retailer Main LGBTQ owners: Sean Hirsch; Zach Wise Top executive: Sean Hirsch STEM Handmade Soap 12405 Madison Ave., Lakewood 216-515-5531/stemsoaps.com Handmade soaps and natural skin care products Main LGBTQ owners/top executives: Steven Meka; David Willett Styles of Imagination LLC (Cleveland Cut and Sew Manufacturing Co.) 3500 Payne Ave., Unit 1C, Cleveland 216-508-4005/stylesofimagination.com Ladies clothing design and manufacturing company Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Diane Linston

 TRAVEL Tours of Cleveland LLC 3766 W. 132nd St, Cleveland 216-318-3865/toursofcleveland.com Provider of walking tours of downtown Cleveland Main LGBTQ owner/top executive: Scott O’Con

38 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 13, 2021

P038_CL_20211213.indd 38

12/10/2021 11:58:26 AM

MARKETING

BY LAURA SHERIDAN

Marketers are in a pickle. The pandemic has created new challenges as everyone’s trying to grow their brands while not disappointing their customers. Supply chain, inflation and staffing shortages require a reexamination of your advertising program. Another layer of complexity is the fact that people hate ads! As advertisers bombard consumers across platforms like TikTok, Facebook, television, billboards and more, consumers are trying to avoid them, signing up for ad blockers and subscription services. We’re all getting better at hitting the “unsubscribe” link in emails. If you’re short on product, then now is not the time to waste money on stimulating sales you can’t fulfill. Even if you’ve been advertising in the same publications and online channels for years, it’s time to redirect the funds. However, don’t confuse advertising with communicating with your customers. Even when demand exceeds supply or your ability to deliver a great customer experience is declining, it’s not time to stop talking to customers. When you’re consistent in your

communication and your message, customers are more likely to trust your brand. When they trust your brand, wonderful things happen. People are more likely to buy from you and believe positive things about your company. Positivity is at the core of social sharing. Instead of promoting a product of the month in your e-newsletter, share tips that relate to your customers’ challenges. Instead of inserting a coupon in packages, insert a “thank you for your business” note or share ideas on product usage or expanded applications. Be honest with your customers. Let them know what’s going on. Manage expectations. Let them know you value your relationship. Keep talking. If you can’t fulfill orders, then how about redirecting your sales teams’ efforts? Instead of focusing on closing deals during sales calls, use the time to learn about your customers and prospects. What challenges are they facing? What’s holding their businesses back from growing? What new products may they value? What’s causing friction in their lives? It may be time to temporarily change how you measure your sales team’s results. Stop tracking new sales and start tracking what you

know about your customers. The new learnings about your prospects and customers will catapult your ad results when it’s time to resume advertising. Knowing more about your customers will allow you to craft more targeted, effective advertising. While you’re scaling back on advertising, redirect resources to developing your brand strategy. What is brand strategy? Brand strategy is more than your logo, tag line or color palette, which are creative elements that represent your brand. It is the entire experience your customers and prospects have with your company, product or service. It’s what differentiates your brand in meaningful ways in the eyes of your customer. It’s what enables luxury brands like Rolex, Porsche and Gucci to charge premium prices. It answers the question, “why should consumers pick you?” It starts with customer research. Who is your target audience? What job are your customers hiring you to do for them? What’s their perception of your brand and how does that sync with what they need? What words do customers use to describe your brand; the problem your product or service solves for them; their needs?

GETTY IMAGES

Time to evaluate advertising plans amid supply chain, staffing issues

The most effective advertising and marketing messages use your customers’ words, not yours. Then, when they read your materials, the messages will resonate, and they’ll feel like you’re talking directly to them. Savvy marketers with sound brand strategies pre-COVID recognize the need to begin the process again. Why? Because consumer habits, behaviors and needs have all changed since the pandemic. Since a brand strategy is all about differentiating your brand and how you talk to customers in ways that are relevant and valuable to them, when their behaviors change, yours need to also. A smart brand strategy informs far

more than your advertising. It’s a guide that can and should be used when you’re making decisions regarding new products, features, services, marketing channels, hiring talent and more. Brand strategy work can take time, and marketers are inherently impatient. Now, while you have supply chain, inflation and staffing headaches, is a great time to redirect your marketing resources. Scale back on advertising. Ramp up on brand strategy. Then, when it’s time to advertise, your dollars will go further. Laura Sheridan is president of Viva La Brand, a Cleveland-based brand and marketing strategy, research and agency search firm.

DECEMBER 13, 2021 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 39

P039_CL_20211213.indd 39

12/10/2021 1:14:10 PM

AKRON

From Page 1

“They don’t give back at all,” she said. The pile is on the radar of Gary Miller, UA’s president. After all, many of the students who attend his institution live in the area during the academic year. “It’s a concern of ours, too,” Miller said. “We’ll work on that, somehow.” The pile and much of the area surrounding it, though, are city property. Sure, the University of Akron is lots of things — an economic driver, a center of arts and culture — but for Stone and others who live nearby, UA is a neighbor, and a powerful one at that. Miller said the university wants to impact the University Park area “to the extent that we can,” which raises the question: How far can, and should, a college’s off-campus influence extend?

SAFETY FIRST

For the university, there’s no higher priority than safety, the president said. It’s especially top of mind right now. Three people were shot in September as an off-campus party in University Park dispersed. Maya Noelle McFetridge, 18 and a first-year student at Akron, and Alexander Beasley, 25, died. Police were reportedly less than 100 yards away. The university acted fast, holding a press conference two days after the shooting. It wasn’t the first time university leaders unveiled off-campus safety plans. “If those kids had survived, or just been wounded,” said Stone, the 73-year-old resident, “I don’t think they would have done anything about it.” These latest initiatives included pledges to add more campus police officers and committing $1 million to an already-ongoing effort with the city and county to add more broadband security cameras. Miller, who took office in 2019, is the fifth president Akron’s had in 22 years. Four of those changes happened in the past seven years. The changing leadership may be one factor that has hindered progress.

SUPERIOR

From Page 1

office sector and more recent pandemic-era trends with downsizing tenants in the work-from-home era. The glass-skinned steel structure, owned by an affiliate of American Landmark Properties through 1100 Superior of Cleveland LLC, has 31% vacancy in its 576,000-square-feet of rentable space. However, insiders believe it actually has more space than that available as tenants turn back space to landlords because they can get by with less office space as the lingering pandemic delays the return to the office. According to data from the JLL Inc. real estate brokerage, the structure is worse than downtown as a whole, which has a vacancy rate of 26%. However, it is better off than other Class B, older buildings, which have a vacancy rate of 33%, according to JLL’s annual Skyline Report issued in October. The collateralized mortgage loan on the structure, referred to as COMMM-2014-UBS3, went into default when 1100 Superior quit paying monthly payments on the $48.25 million remaining principal on a $52.5

One predecessor, for example, got rid of an off-campus student services department focused on boosting community engagement and safety. In the September press conference, Miller made it clear his administration wants to run point from here. “It is clear we must do more,” he said. “It is clear the university must take the lead.”

off-c lot o emp they A now that

TUR

marks is Yisroel Gluck, who was described by Crain’s Chicago Business as an “investor best known locally as a former investor in Willis Tower and part of the group that sold the city’s tallest skyscraper in 2015 to private-equity giant Blackstone Group for $1.3 billion.” Willis Tower was a turnaround of the former Sears Tower in Chicago. John Roeser, an executive vice president at American Landmarks who led the team that won tenants in the mid-2000s at Oswald Centre, told Crain’s Cleveland Business in 2007 that the company felt it had landed a “trophy asset” in Cleveland and wanted to be in it for “the long haul.” That tenure proved to be long. But it likely isn’t the outcome the investors anticipated. American Landmarks is also a huge concern, amassing a portfolio of $1.5 billion in 30 years with office, industrial and apartment properties. Roeser and Gluck did not return phone calls and an email from Crain’s Cleveland Business by deadline last week. An answer also has not been filed in the foreclosure proceeding.

Th are ing enfo hou with sigh In havi have new hoo sub the But don Mill Th “lon ven O univ is c off-c hire city He adm S Two the Kas Gar lette “Th ties Uni pres the Th wor sust tion they ty ad Th can prob pus rece aler safe duri back O son crea stud “I we’r eryo said H — “ out puts doe look wan reas them “Y som you neig St Dirt abo hop mor Akro safe U wou univ

Stan Bullard: sbullard@crain.com, (216) 771-5228, @CrainRltywriter

Amy com

HEADING SOUTH

The student-focused section of University Park is more often referred to as “south of Exchange,” a nod to the busy thoroughfare of East Exchange Street. The whispers students volley between themselves can feel coded, big “us versus them” energy: Don’t go south of Exchange. If you go four blocks back, you’re in a bad, bad area. University Park is a transient neighborhood due to student schedules. Only about 13% of residents own a home. Concerns about safety and about gun violence have been rising in the neighborhood as well as across Akron. City officials are using portions of its federal pandemic relief money to go toward a “whole-of-Akron” approach to try to curb it. “I used to go to house parties because that was the life of college,” said Asha Brown, a 21-year-old UA student. “But now it’s like, I don’t want to go to a college party and get shot.” Yet the student-dominated chunk of University Park still has less gun activity per capita than 49 other neighborhoods in the city, according to a September analysis from the Akron Beacon Journal. Community members outside of the university-adjacent area wondered to the newspaper if the response to nearly 40 other homicides in different parts of the city would be as swift. Dan Horrigan, Akron’s mayor, said the city takes the same approach to south of Exchange as it does with all neighborhoods. “I will always fight for a strong, successful, independent University of Akron,” Horrigan wrote after September’s shootings. “The institution has endured significant challenges in the last decade. As a community, as students, faculty, parents, and stakemillion loan taken out against the property in May 2014, according to a court filing. That was technically a refinance of the property — typically a time when companies take money out of a project they want to keep with a new, larger loan — after buying it for $47 million in 2007. The foreclosure was filed Nov. 22 in Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas by US Bank as the trustee for the loan, which already had been placed in special servicing with LNR Special Servicing of Miami Beach, Florida. A Dec. 6 report by DBRS Viewpoint sheds additional light on the building’s fiscal woes. Notes from the special servicer relayed to the investment community stated that the building was more than 120 days delinquent on monthly payments, and the owner quit paying the mortgage because it wanted to get a loan modification. Such modifications typically are given by insurance and bank lenders, but not by special servicers who seek to recoup capital for bond investors. “Borrower advised they were unable to fund the capital costs associated with the leases due to high roll over during the remaining term of the loan,” the report stated, in a refer-

“The Dirt Pile,” a landfill near the University of Akron campus. | PHOTOS BY GUS CHAN FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

holders: Now is not the time to pull back or turn away.” The university shares a mutual aid agreement with the Akron Police Department. This means the institution’s force has jurisdiction over some city blocks. Grace Kasunic, the undergraduate student government president, called it a “gray area” when it comes to deciphering who’s actually responsible. That uncertainty, she said, can make students wonder if a crime is even worth reporting.

LONGSTANDING EFFORT

It’s not the first time there’s been an effort to revamp the neighborhood. The members of the University Park Alliance read like a Who’s Who of Akron when it was founded in 2001, including leaders from the public school district, hospital systems and the city itself. The plans called for turning the neighborhood into a bustling mixedence to rampant tenant downsizings expected in the post-pandemic era. Oswald Centre in the spring lost a full-floor tenant from its top floor when labor and employment law firm Little Mendelson moved to Key Center and substantially cut the size of its office. The DBRS report noted that the building suffered $2.8 million in damage in 2017 when a water line broke and only $500,000 was received from insurance, putting the building in a bind for additional funds.

WHAT COMES NEXT

Alex Jelepis, a director and executive vice president at the NAI Pleasant Valley realty brokerage in Independence, said Oswald Centre had done well for several years in retenanting the building, landing the Oswald Cos. insurance concern and Osborne Engineering as new tenants. “They had a good run and were successful with the building,” Jelepis said. “They put all the right cosmetics on it from a new lobby to a cafe and fitness center. But the other side of it is that the building is almost 50 years old. You have to wonder how much work needs to be done to the elevators and mechanicals to keep it com-

use mecca to attract residents and employers. Despite millions in funding and an all-star team of local leaders, plans to revitalize the area didn’t pan out. “These are all busy people,” said Dave Lieberth, a former deputy mayor of Akron who also served as University Park Alliance’s interim director for a few months. “They all had balls in the air, and none of them could keep their eye on this ball.” The group eventually disbanded in 2013, three years after the university’s $65 million football stadium opened. In an alternate reality, the nearby intersection of Brown and East Exchange streets could have, would have, should have looked different, perhaps more similar to anchor developments in other college towns, said Lieberth. “It should have been residential, it should have been retail, it should have complemented InfoCision Stadium,” he said. “It didn’t happen.” petitive.” He added he believes the structure is not a candidate for apartment conversion because it’s such an attractive building, and the city continues to need lower-priced office space. Dyann Davison, a senior vice president at Hanna Commercial Real Estate’s Cleveland office, said the future is more the challenge for the building than the past. With office tenants giving back to landlords more than 250,000 square feet of space the past two years, there is substantial space to fill downtown. “There’s some activity, but the only buildings gaining tenants are spending lots of money on improvements and amenities and being very aggressive in terms of rents and concessions,” she said. That also means owners of newer buildings and those with substantial cash will be the ones to stay afloat. American Landmarks through 1100 Superior had tried to sell the structure several years ago, but multiple insiders say the asking price was too high. Meantime, it managed to sell the 1111 Superior Building across the street (the former Eaton Center) at an undisclosed price to a New York concern. The principal at American Land-

SHIFTING DYNAMIC

About 23,200 total students went to UA full-time in 2011. The number is down to 12,400, today, dropping 47% in a decade. Shifting enrollment impacts the neighborhood’s makeup as well as landlords’ bottom lines. The streets aren’t teeming with pride of place. A lot of older houses remain in poor condition despite efforts to remove blight. One company lists three-bedroom homes with most utilities included at about $340 - $470 per month per bedroom, far cheaper than apartments at some of the fancy developments that have popped up in recent years. Even before the pandemic marked a switch to online learning, fewer students were renting south of Exchange, according to Kurt Seifert, a local landlord. The hits intensified when some students went home to study in 2020. “Our landlords still had to pay their bills,” said Kerry Jackson, UA’s

40 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 13, 2021

P040_P041_CL_20211213.indd 40

12/10/2021 1:40:01 PM

went mber ping ment eup . with uses e efany with $340 , far e of have

ked stuExrt, a fied e to

pay UA’s

deness y as and ity’s prioup as a ow-

vice arks ts in told 2007 ed a and ul.” But vesandassn 30 and

turn rom eadnot pro-

m, r

off-campus safety director. “And so a lot of them went elsewhere to fill the empty beds and empty houses. And they weren’t students.” A lot of the problems popping up now, Jackson said, directly relate to that dynamic.

TURNING A NEW PAGE

This semester, university leaders are trying again. They’re re-examining zoning laws and how they can be enforced. They’re looking to improve housing and increase collaboration with the city as well as increase oversight of landlords. In fact, the conversations they’re having with landlords and others have sparked more ideas. Maybe a new building could host neighborhood activities. Perhaps a new police substation used by both the city and the university forces would be good. But both ideas would require private donations or grants to make happen, Miller said. The president is working on a “long-term plan of control and intervention,” due early next year. One of the biggest changes the university has made since September is creating a new job focused on off-campus safety, for which they hired Jackson, a veteran of both the city and the university’s police forces. He was planning to retire until the administration came knocking. So far, he’s taking a lot of meetings. Two of the people he’s met with are the student government president, Kasunic, and vice president, James Garchar. The pair issued a lengthy letter after September’s shootings. “The dangers of off-campus parties are an unfortunate reality at the University of Akron due to the threat presented by non-student crime in the area,” they wrote. They asked for the city and UA to work with them to provide “swift, sustainable, and collaborative action.” So far, the leaders feel like they’re getting that from the university administration. There’s a new form where students can easily report non-emergency problems off-campus, as well as a push to get more students to opt-in to receive emergency text messaging alerts. Off-campus private civilian safety patrols, which went away during the pandemic, are coming back south of Exchange, too. One of the biggest parts of Jackson’s job, though, is simply trying to create some type of bridge between students and other residents. “It’s not really melding real well, so we’re looking at how we can get everyone to meld a little bit better,” he said. He’s mulling over hosting events — “something that gets everybody out of the house at the same time and puts them in the same place” — but doesn’t yet know what those could look like. He believes the residents want to live close to a university for a reason. He said he wants to include them. “You should be appreciative when someone chooses to live next door to you,” he said. “We want to be good neighbors.” Stone, the woman who lives by the Dirt Pile, is curious yet skeptical about how these plans shake out. She hopes UA actually works to become more aware of people like her, proud Akronites who want to stay put, be safe, feel respected. Until that happens, she said, she wouldn’t necessarily recommend the university to anyone she knows. Amy Morona: amy.morona@crain. com, (216) 771-5229, @AmyMorona

Lordstown Motors expects to start producing and delivering its electric pickup truck to customers in 2022. | LORDSTOWN MOTORS

LORDSTOWN

From Page 1

The company has gone through a lot of “distractions,” Ninivaggi said, but its “fundamental strategy” of focusing on commercial vehicles and on using the former General Motors plant in Lordstown was a solid one. But actually filling up that 6.2-million-square-feet facility was a critical component for success. Currently, the company only uses about 20% to 25% of the plant, Ninivaggi said. Enter the multifaceted partnership with Hon Hai Technology Group, first announced in September. Overall, Lordstown Motors has entered into an agreement in principle with the Taiwan-based electronics giant known as Foxconn. Foxconn made an upfront investment after the agreement was announced, buying $50 million in Lordstown Motors’ stock. That’s under 5% of the company’s shares, but it was a “meaningful investment at a critical time,” Ninivaggi said. And, significantly, Foxconn will be buying the plant in Lordstown for $230 million. The first down payment was expected in November, and the full purchase is expected to be complete in April of 2022. The building purchase means Foxconn can bring in other customers to get

tric vehicle platform, Mobility in Harmony. The immediate benefits of partnering with Foxconn, such as a faster path to production and the purchasing power the large company brings, are important. But Ninivaggi said the plans to jointly create vehicles are just as important, as it helps Lordstown Motors create a “vehicle development pipeline.” “That’s the key,” he said. Ninivaggi said he thinks it was the skilled workforce at Lordstown Motors and in Northeast Ohio that caught Foxconn’s attention. Lordstown Motors has about 650 employees, 443 of whom are in Lordstown.

LOOKING TO NEXT YEAR

can stand behind. “Virtually every EV manufacturer, from Tesla through Rivian, has delayed production targets,” he said. Lordstown Motors has been on something of a “roller coaster,” but Rick Stockburger, president and CEO of BRITE Energy Innovators, an energy technology incubator in Warren, said he still has a lot of hope around the company’s future. The leadership changes and the announcement of the Foxconn partnership only strengthened his confidence. The company’s founder and former CEO, Steve Burns, was “very much a dreamer,” Stockburger said. “And he set really, really high expectations, and he set really, really lofty goals,” he said. Stockburger doesn’t think that was all bad. The excitement helped the community embrace the idea of electric vehicles, which he said are still “a bit of an unknown” to the typical consumer. But when companies miss their goals, it can shake the public’s faith. Making the leadership changes

helped reset the community’s expectations, he said. And the partnership with Foxconn brings some established processes and some long-standing expertise to the startup. Guy Coviello, president and CEO of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber, said the partnership with Foxconn seems like a “perfect fit,” bringing that experience to Lordstown Motors, while also providing the company with needed capital and taking the responsibility of the large plant off its plate. Coviello said the region is always talking about diversifying its economy; bringing Foxconn to the Lordstown plant offers the chance to diversify that factory on a more micro level, making multiple products under one roof. That could make the facility more “viable,” he said, and offer more stability to the jobs provided within.

Foxconn could have built or bought a plant anywhere, he said. But the region’s supply base and its workforce made it the right location. “The talent to launch good production facilities in a complex indusRachel Abbey McCafferty: (216) try like automotive with new EV plat771-5379, rmccafferty@crain.com forms, that talent doesn’t exist in most parts of the country or the C R A I N ’ S C L E V E L A N D B U S I N E S S | S E P T E M B E R 3 - 9 , 2 018 | PA G E 2 9 world,” Ninivaggi said. But the agreement with Foxconn is Advertising Section far from a solution, Ninivaggi noted; it just provides the first few steps on the company’s path forward, and there’s still plenty of work to be done. In November, Lordstown Motors released its third-quarter results for the year, noting that commercial production would be delayed and that expectations are for To place your listing in Crain’s Cleveland Classifieds, “VIRTUALLY EVERY EV it to begin in the third quarter of 2022. In a news release, contact Ainsley Burgess at 313-446-0455 MANUFACTURER, FROM TESLA Ninivaggi said that producTHROUGH RIVIAN, HAS DELAYED tion of the pre-production or email ainsley.burgess@crain.com vehicles for validation activiPRODUCTION TARGETS.” ties began in the fourth — Dan Ninivaggi, Lordstown Motors CEO quarter of 2021, calling it a “modest delay from earlier the Lordstown facility to scale; al- expectations as component and maready, it’s announced plans to build terial shortages, along with other the Fisker PEAR program there. The supply chain challenges, remain an companies also are pursuing a con- issue for Lordstown Motors just as tract manufacturing agreement for they are for the industry at large.” Foxconn to make the Endurance In a call with Crain’s, Ninivaggi detrucks in Lordstown, which must be clined to update the company’s entered before the facility purchase third-quarter production outlook. ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTING closing. Generally, though, he spoke to the But the plan also is for the part- “challenging” nature of launching nership between Foxconn and Lord- new vehicles, particularly for startstown Motors to continue to grow in ups. A big reason is the industry’s the future. The companies are pur- high standards for safety, and he said suing a venture agreement to design he’s not willing to cut corners. He and commercialize other vehicles wants to make sure Lordstown Motogether, using Foxconn’s open elec- tors puts out a vehicle the company

CLASSIFIEDS

CLASSIFIED SERVICES

LIST YOUR AD TODAY

DECEMBER 13, 2021 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 41

P040_P041_CL_20211213.indd 41

12/10/2021 1:40:23 PM

ACCOUNTING

Chris Carroll joins Maloney + Novotny as a Principal. He focuses his tax practice on closely held businesses and high net worth individuals. Chris advises clients on mergers and acquisitions, entity structuring and succession planning as well as federal, state and local income tax compliance and planning. He brings over 14 years of public accounting experience with him to the firm.

ADVERTISING / MARKETING

thunder::tech thunder::tech is honored to welcome Matt Bachman as new Senior Account Manager. Matt has over ten years of experience specializing in Shopper Marketing, Consumer Engagement and Experiential Marketing for some of the largest CPG companies in North America. Equipped with the skills and knowledge needed to create innovative marketing campaigns for our clients, Matt’s addition to the thunder::tech team will help provide cutting-edge digital services to our clientele.

FINANCIAL SERVICES

Creekside Financial Advisors, LLC Creekside Financial Advisors is happy to announce that Ryan Levine, CPA has joined as Director of Financial Planning. Prior to Creekside, Ryan headed up acquisitions for a Clevelandbased real estate investment firm. Ryan also served as a manager at two top accounting firms in Washington DC. Ryan graduated from the University of Maryland with a B.S. degree in accounting. He earned his Certified Public Accounting designation (CPA) in 2010. Registered Representatives offer securities through Securities America, Inc. (SAI) member FINRA/SIPC. Financial Advisors offer advisory services through Securities America Advisors, Inc. (SAA) Creekside Financial Advisors, LLC and the Securities America companies are unaffiliated.

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE HEALTH CARE

INSURANCE

NONPROFITS

The MetroHealth System

Hylant

Cleveland Water Alliance

Rita Andolsen rejoins The MetroHealth System from Cleveland State University where she served as Vice President of Marketing and Communications. Andolsen served at MetroHealth from 2014-2020 focusing on communications and community engagement. In her new role as Executive Director, Philanthropy Communications, she will provide vision, leadership and counsel for MetroHealth philanthropy communications, shaping and building the presence of MetroHealth among key audiences.

As Managing Director of Transactional Risk, William Walker is instrumental in the continued expansion of Hylant’s executive risk practice. In this role, he will drive revenue growth through successful and innovative executive risk program structure, management and consultation. He will also consult and lead representation and warranty insurance (RWI) engagements.

Cleveland Water Alliance voted to appoint Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells as Vice Chair of the Board and head of the Governance Committee. Kyle is CEO of the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District and former Deputy Director of the District’s Watershed Programs. Kyle holds a BS from Ohio State and an MPA-MSES from Indiana University. CWA has a strong partnership with the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District and looks forward to continuing this collaboration with Kyle in these leadership roles on the Board.

HEALTH CARE

The MetroHealth System Mary Wheelock joins MetroHealth from the ALS Northern Ohio Chapter where she served as executive director for nearly eleven years, doubling the number of staff and nearly tripling the operating budget. In her new role as Executive Director, Philanthropy, she will lead a high-performance fundraising team focused on major, institutional, planned giving, annual giving, donor pipeline management and grant development, as well as the cultivation and stewardship of transformational donors.

HEALTH CARE

The MetroHealth System Michelle Wood is the Chief Operating Officer for The MetroHealth Foundation and the Executive Director, Philanthropy Finance and Operations for Foundation and System Philanthropy at The MetroHealth System. She has been with the health system for nineteen years managing the operations of the Foundation including accounting, audit, investment, governance, and risk management activities. In her expanded role, she will also assume responsibility for the department’s information management systems.

LAW

Roetzel & Andress Roetzel is pleased to announce that David Hirt joined the firm as a shareholder in the Employment Services Group. David focuses his practice in education law and represents school districts and municipalities on a wide variety of issues. His practice includes counseling administrators and boards of education on employment and labor issues, student issues such as discipline, special education, enrollment, and tuition; public records requests; and defense of administrative and court complaints.

NONPROFITS

Cleveland Water Alliance Cleveland Water Alliance recently voted to appoint Michael Schum as their Board Chair. Michael joined the Board of Directors in November 2020 and has nearly 30 years of experience in the automotive and consumer products industries. He is the Vice President of Global Product Development at Moen, overseeing product strategy, development, and execution. CWA has a longstanding partnership with Moen and looks forward to facilitating innovative water technologies as part of this collaboration.

REAL ESTATE

IRG Realty Advisors IRG Realty Advisors, LLC (IRG RA) is proud to announce Chris Monaco has joined the team and been named Senior Vice President and Director of Property Management. With over 30 years in the real estate industry, he has extensive experience in asset management, property management, accounting, restructuring, and real estate division management. Monaco will lead the property management, operations, and lease administration groups.

JOBS

From Page 6

To place your listing, visit www.crainscleveland.com/people-on-the-move or, for more information, contact Debora Stein at 917.226.5470 / dstein@crain.com

NEW GIG? Preserve your career change for years to come.

Plaques • Crystal keepsakes Frames • Other Promotional Items

C O N TA C T

Maloney + Novotny

Advertising Section

Laura Picariello Reprints Sales Manager lpicariello@crain.com (732) 723-0569

“Through the creation of these programs they recognize that there are issues they are targeting, like workforce assistance, and helping distressed communities and we are going to dedicate money to it,” he said. “In government, you’d have to say, ‘Well, I’m sorry we can only do so much, there are guidelines, and rules.’ In the past, programs were designed narrowly as opposed to broadly. That’s one of the big differences with a JobsOhio-type of organization and what they are doing.” In one of those broad-based moves aimed at positioning the state for future tech innovations and industry advancements, the group committed $300 million for three Innovation Districts in Cincinnati, Columbus and Cleveland. The idea of creating a place for innovation is modeled after similar efforts in Atlanta and St. Louis that have developed vibrant tech ecosystems, Nauseef said. The research institutions and other partners are required to contribute to the buildout of these Innovation Districts with increases in research expenditures and STEM skilled workers. “The three districts are designed to produce a net 47,000 new STEM degrees, 60,000 new jobs and generate up to $9 billion in annual economic impact to the state over 10 years,” Nauseef said. “A $100 million investment in Cleveland should result in tripling of the production of STEM talent.” Critics have argued that the private, nonprofit structure of JobsOhio leaves it with no obligation to disclose communications or transactions with businesses, and that the organization does not fall under state and federal Freedom of Information Act regulations, as a typical state agency would. JobsOhio supporters, though, see it as the best way to facilitate the private-public deals needed to bolster the state’s economy. “Transparency has always been an issue when dealing with public-private deals,” Barbash said. “In government, we always tried to negotiate those as quietly as we could, because the businesses don’t want them public.” JobsOhio also brings in staff with private-sector experience and pays them commiserate salaries (higher than state salaries) to make deals with businesses, Nauseef said. “There is a fierce competition for investment, and when people hear a big dollar amount going to help out a company, it is good to remember we are getting that and more back,” he said. “Of the 2,800 deals that we’ve done in 10 years, only 34 of them got to the point where they’ve gone through some kind of a clawback or default. That’s 98.8% success rate.” (He added that the defaults have remitted tax or loan funds back to the state.) Nauseef said the pipeline of deals for the beginning of 2022 is the best the organization has ever seen. “If you look at the primary metrics that we measure — our performance, job creation and new payroll, the capital investment from the projects and the total number of projects — we’ve already exceeded the JobsOhio all-time record for each of those metrics so far this year,” he said. Kim Palmer: kpalmer@crain.com, (216) 771-5384, @kimfouroffive

42 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 13, 2021

P042_CL_20211213.indd 42

12/10/2021 1:56:45 PM

NOMINATIONS NOW OPEN

crainscleveland.com

Executive editor Elizabeth McIntyre (216) 771-5358 or emcintyre@crain.com Group publisher Jim Kirk (312) 397-5503 or jkirk@crain.com Associate publisher Amy Ann Stoessel (216) 771-5155 or astoessel@crain.com Managing editor Scott Suttell (216) 771-5227 or ssuttell@crain.com Assistant managing editor John Kappes (216) 771-5359 or john.kappes@crain.com Web editor Damon Sims (216) 771-5279 or dpsims@crain.com Assistant editor Rachel Abbey McCafferty (216) 771-5379 or rmccafferty@crain.com Art director Kayla Byler (614) 312-7635 or kayla.byler@crain.com Senior data editor Chuck Soder (216) 771-5374 or csoder@crain.com Cartoonist Rich Williams REPORTERS

Stan Bullard, senior reporter, Real estate/ construction. (216) 771-5228 or sbullard@crain.com Lydia Coutré, Health care/nonprofits. (216) 771-5479 or lcoutre@crain.com Michelle Jarboe, Enterprise reporter. (216) 771-5437 or michelle.jarboe@crain.com Amy Morona, Higher education. (216) 771-5229 or amy.morona@crain.com Jay Miller, Government. (216) 771-5362 or jmiller@crain.com Jeremy Nobile, Finance/legal/beer/cannabis. (216) 771-5255 or jnobile@crain.com Kim Palmer, Government. (216) 771-5384 or kpalmer@crain.com Joe Scalzo, Sports business. (216) 771-5256 or joe.scalzo@crain.com Dan Shingler, Energy/steel/auto/Akron. (216) 771-5290 or dshingler@crain.com ADVERTISING

Events manager Erin Bechler, (216) 771-5388 or ebechler@crain.com Integrated marketing manager Cody Smith, (330) 419-1078 or cody.smith@crain.com Sales manager Mara Broderick, (917) 612-8414 or mara.broderick@crain.com Sales and marketing coordinator Shannon Smith, (440) 281-6397 or shannon.smith@crain.com Account executives Laura Kulber Mintz, Loren Breen, Kaylie West People on the Move manager Debora Stein, (917) 226-5470, dstein@crain.com Pre-press and digital production Craig L. Mackey Office coordinator Karen Friedman Media services manager Nicole Spell Billing YahNica Crawford Credit Thomas Hanovich CUSTOMER SERVICE

e are looking for senior-level professionals who stand out in the field of law and have practiced at

least 10 years. They must have shown the ability to affect

change in their roles or practice areas. They should serve as role models and have assumed leadership positions in professional or civic organizations. Winning candidates will be featured in the Feb. 28 print and online issue of Crain’s Cleveland Business.

CrainsCleveland.com/Nominate

NOMINATION DEADLINE:

JAN. 5

Customer service and subscriptions: (877) 824-9373 or customerservice@crainscleveland.com Reprints: Laura Picariello (732) 723-0569 or lpicariello@crain.com

Crain’s Cleveland Business is published by Crain Communications Inc. Chairman Keith E. Crain Vice chairman Mary Kay Crain CEO KC Crain Senior executive VP Chris Crain Secretary Lexie Crain Armstrong Chief Financial Officer Robert Recchia G.D. Crain Jr. Founder (1885-1973) Mrs. G.D. Crain Jr. Chairman (1911-1996) Editorial & Business Offices 700 W. St. Clair Ave., Suite 310, Cleveland, OH 44113-1230 (216) 522-1383 Volume 42, Number 45 Crain’s Cleveland Business (ISSN 0197-2375) is published weekly, except no issue on 1/4/21, combined issues on 5/24/21, 6/28/21, 8/30/21, 11/22/21, at 700 West St. Clair Ave., Suite 310, Cleveland, OH 44113-1230. Copyright © 2021 by Crain Communications Inc. Periodicals postage paid at Cleveland, OH, and at additional mailing offices. Price per copy: $2.00. Postmaster: Send address changes to Crain’s Cleveland Business, Circulation Department, 1155 Gratiot Avenue, Detroit, MI 48207-2912. 1 (877) 824-9373. Subscriptions: In Ohio: 1 year - $79, 2 year - $110. Outside Ohio: 1 year - $110, 2 year - $195. Single copy, $2.00. Allow 4 weeks for change of address. For subscription information and delivery concerns send correspondence to Audience Development Department, Crain’s Cleveland Business, 1155 Gratiot Avenue, Detroit, MI, 48207-9911, or email to customerservice@crainscleveland.com, or call (877) 824-9373 (in the U.S. and Canada) or (313) 446-0450 (all other locations), or fax (313) 446-6777.

DECEMBER 13, 2021 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 43

P043_CL_20211213.indd 43

12/10/2021 12:00:27 PM

Pushing Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Forward

Momentum builds upon itself. Thompson Hine has a long-standing commitment to promoting the value of diversity and advancing equity and inclusion. With these guiding principles always at the forefront, our efforts gain energy that fuels the momentum to bring about transformative action. ThompsonHine.com

Our commitment to innovation is embodied in SmartPaTH™ – a smarter way to work – predictable, efficient and aligned with client goals.