NILES, Ohio – The daylong Regional Talent Summit educated business leaders, human resources professionals and others about the resources available across the state and region to grow, retain and support their workforces.
“The conversation about workforce development is incredibly important right now because in the whole country, but especially in our Lake to River region, we’re seeing a boom of business expansion and attraction of businesses into the market,” Michael McGiffin, vice president for stakeholder engagement and investor relations at Lake to River Economic Development, said at Thursday’s summit at the Eastwood Event Centre.
The event was presented by Lake to River and JobsOhio.
New jobs are coming to the area, “and what we want to make sure is that we’re helping companies who are already in market and companies who are coming into market to capitalize on building the most efficient workforce,” McGiffin said.
There are many resources available to help companies build and retain their workforce, and the summit was a way to bring those resources to the decision-makers, he said.
The event runs through Thursday with panel discussions about competing for talent, population retention and growth, funding and services to support talent attraction and retention, second chance hiring and apprenticeships, opportunities for people with disabilities, veterans, overcoming barriers to employment and mental health and recovery.
The keynote speaker, Meghan Grace, an author, podcast host and generational expert, was to talk about generational differences in the workplace.
About 240 people registered for the summit, which drew representatives of workforce development, human resources, company leaders and educational institutions.
Alexa Sweeney Blackann, Lake to River interim CEO, pointed out what she called the brain power in the room.
“It’s through the collaboration of the individuals and companies in this room that gives Lake to River its competitive advantage,” she said. “Without people, without talent, we can’t succeed at economic development.”
Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel in his opening remarks said Gov. Mike DeWine wants Lake to River to make a difference in the region.
JobsOhio as a whole and each of its regional partners is important, he said.
“But he really felt that this region had some unique opportunities, and that if we could create this Lake to River region, it would really enhance the state as a whole,” the lieutenant governor said. “And so I can tell you he is behind what you’re doing …”
Trestle also said one of the governor’s main goals is to make sure every Ohioan lives up to his or her God-given potential.
“We’ve got to have the mentality that every child is thinking about reaching their God-given potential here in Ohio,” he said.
Regardless of the career or industry a student enters, the message should be that they can pursue it in Ohio, he said.
Companies are relocating to Ohio from other states, and others are expanding in the state, Tressel said. One of the reasons is because those companies believe Ohio has the workforce to fill their needs.
“So to me, that’s our biggest opportunity, is to make sure that that’s true,” he said.
A panel discussion about competing for talent included representatives from JobsOhio who talked about some of what that organization offers to help companies attract employees.
John Sherwood, director of talent strategy at JobsOhio, talked about the new relocation incentive program.
“It is a cash incentive that goes directly to employers in JobsOhio’s 10 primary sectors, and it incentivises them $15,000 for every net new STEM and technical hire that they bring into the state beyond their historical behavior,” she said.
If a manufacturer in the Mahoney Valley, for example, typically recruits three engineers from out of state to relocate each year, the program will pay the company $15,000 each for the fourth through 15th engineer recruited from out of state, Sherwood explained. And there are no guidelines on how the company uses the money.
McGiffin said Lake to River officials want attendees to leave the summit with an understanding about the incentives and resources available to help their companies.
“But the overarching theme is that we’re in this together,” he said. “Our economy moves and pushes and pulls together, and so that if this cluster of business and community and civic leaders pull together, we’re going to lift this economy in partnership.”
Pictured at top: Michael McGiffin, vice president for stakeholder engagement and investor relations at Lake to River Economic Development.