CANFIELD, Ohio – Sometimes a fresh set of eyes is all it takes to fix a problem that seemed unsolvable.
That is the impetus behind the C-Level Strategy Series with Jon Arnold, a new series launched by The Business Journal that looks to help business leaders solve common problems through open discussion and collaboration.
In the series, Jon Arnold, president of investment services at J. Arnold Wealth Management, talks with a panel of area business leaders about the issues they face each day.
“I’m looking to get around the political answers or the diplomatic answers. I just want the straight-from-your-heart answers,” Arnold said.
The group will convene four times a year for an open discussion led by Arnold. The discussion is broken into segments and published in a video-first format, based on topics, at BusinessJournalDaily.com and on The Business Journal’s social media platforms.
Joining Arnold on the panel are:
• Guy Coviello, president/CEO of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber.
• Barb Ewing, CEO of the Youngstown Business Incubator.
• Bob Messaros, president/CEO of Commercial Metal Forming.
• Jeff Leo Herrmann, CEO of the Youngstown Publishing Co.
The first video, which is published online, deals with the subject of retaining talent.
“One outcome of the pandemic is a tighter business community,” Herrmann observed.
“Over the past year, we saw more collaboration and support of each other to make it through the tough times. Times are still tough. So we wanted to convene a panel to discuss and share operating strategies in today’s business environment,” Herrmann said.
When it comes to helping chamber members retain their talent, Coviello advises “getting them into situations where they don’t have the home distractions or the financial distractions. “Financial literacy, or illiteracy I should say, is a real detriment to retaining an employee,” the chamber leader said.
On the topic of workforce, the YBI has seen the greatest success in creating meaningful internships for students.
“I couldn’t even guess right now
the number of students that we brought on as an interns that have transitioned into really great employees,” she said.
In an area as hard-pressed for skilled workers as the Mahoning Valley, workforce development is the responsibility of every business, Ewing said.
“We have to get every player on the field,” she said.
“If you’ve got an employer who’s just stealing workers from another company and not really developing their own employees, then they are part of the problem,” Ewing said.
Future topics include politics in the workplace and how the pandemic has changed the workplace.
“A great opportunity that we’re sitting on is relocating remote workers,” said Coviello. “The Mahoning Valley is an ideal place for lots of people who now all of a sudden don’t have to go to the office anymore.”
The key to attracting those workers, and making sure they want to stay, is to create a good company culture, says Messaros.
“Why do company’s fail? They don’t really examine [if they hired] the right people. Did they have the right culture?”
For Arnold, creating a winning company culture comes down to following one rule.
“We have the 300 rule,” he explained.
“I tell our folks, ‘If I give you 100, and you give me 100, and you give your job 100, there’s no way we can fail.’ ”
The C-Level Strategy Series with Jon Arnold is published every other Friday at BusinessJournalDaily.com. Videos can be found by clicking “content partners,” under the content studio tab or at BusinessJournalDaily.com/category/c-level-strategy-series.