A New Economy, Calls for Non-Traditional Actions December 6, 2002 @ 8:30 PM on WVIZ As Ohio’s gubernatorial candidates make their final round of campaign pitches before Tuesday’s election… plans for fixing the state’s flagging economy have become a staple of stump speeches. But no matter who wins… academic, civic, and business leaders agree that Northeast Ohio’s economic problems cannot be solved in Columbus. While our next governor can push for policies designed to help local businesses compete in the global marketplace… neither Tim Hagan nor Bob Taft can bring back the massive industrial complex that was the backbone of our regional economy for more than 100 years. But that doesn’t mean our economic maladies are terminal. As part of “Making Change: Reinventing Our Economy,” ideastream’s Julie Henry looks at Northeast Ohio’s descent into fiscal fatigue… and some steps local folks are taking to help create a healthy environment for robust business growth. JULIE HENRY: ONCE UPON A TIME, NORTHEAST OHIO WAS AN ECONOMIC POWERHOUSE. IN FACT, FOR ALMOST A CENTURY AND A HALF… OUR REGION WAS A HOTBED OF INNOVATION AND INDUSTRY THAT HELPED TRANSFORM OUR NATION INTO A MANUFACTURING GIANT. AND WE BASKED IN THE WARM GLOW OF UNINTERRUPTED ECONOMIC GROWTH. BUT IN 1970, THE GRAVY TRAIN CAME TO A SCREECHING HALT. AND THAT WARM GLOW HAS BEEN REPLACED BY THE COLD, HARD REALIZATION THAT HIGH-PAYING MANUFACTURING JOBS ARE GOING THE WAY OF THE DINOSAUR. JUST ASK JOE RODRIGUEZ. JOE RODRIGUEZ: It's a sad feeling knowing that you put all this time and effort into a company and they decide that it's a, you get paid too much or it's not enough and they're going to move out of the country. JH: RODRIGUEZ IS ONE OF THE 800 WORKERS WHO LOST THEIR JOBS WHEN YORK INTERNATIONAL SHUT DOWN ITS ELYRIA FURNACE AND AIR CONDITIONING FACTORY IN 2001… SHIFTING PRODUCTION TO PLANTS IN KANSAS AND MEXICO. JOE RODRIGUEZ: Manufacturing facilities are out the door, we just can't compete with the low wages of these other countries, Mexico, Korea, China. And so, yeah, I truly believe that we are going to be a service only nation, that's where our meat and potatoes is going to be, it’s not going to be in manufacturing. JH: RODRIGUEZ MAY HAVE A POINT. IN THE PAST THREE DECADES, NORTHEAST OHIO HAS LOST MORE THAN 150-THOUSAND MANUFACTURING JOBS. PUT ANOTHER WAY… IN 1970, ABOUT ONE IN THREE LOCAL WORKERS EARNED A PAYCHECK BY MAKING THINGS. TODAY, IT’S ONLY ABOUT ONE IN SIX. AND THAT MEANS HAVING A STRONG BACK AND A CAN-DO ATTITUDE JUST DOESN’T CUT IT ANYMORE IF YOU WANT TO MAKE A DECENT LIVING. SO THOMAS WALTERMIRE… CHAIRMAN, CEO, AND PRESIDENT OF POLY-ONE CORPORATION… SAYS WE NEED TO CHANGE NOT ONLY THE WAY WE WORK, BUT THE WAY WE THINK. Thomas Waltermire, Chairman, CEO, and President PolyOne Corporation: We've got to transition this whole economy to one where people make money and make a living because of the quality of their minds rather than the quality of their labor. JH: ONE WAY TO BEGIN MAKING THAT TRANSITION IS BY HITTING THE BOOKS. LORAIN COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE PRESIDENT DR. ROY CHURCH SAYS A HIGHLY SKILLED WORKFORCE IS KEY TO GROWING THE KINDS OF COMPANIES THAT OFFER GOOD JOBS. Dr. Roy Church, President, LCCC: The premiums on education and training beyond high school have never been higher. So there's as much importance to building the talent pool as there is to building the jobs, because there's a synergistic relationship and really a symbiotic relationship between them. JH: AND IN THE BRAVE NEW WORLD OF OUR 21ST CENTURY ECONOMY, TECHNOLOGY IS ALSO VITAL TO JOB CREATION… AS ROSS-TEK INFORMATION SYSTEMS PRESIDENT FREDERICK JOHNSON EXPLAINS. Frederick Johnson, President and CIO Ross-Tek Information Systems: What's happening with the industry as a whole is that technology has become such a mainstream need for any aspect of any sized business, whether it's small or large. and it really depends on how we adopt it and embrace it, not just for the sake of technology itself, but for the sake of being able to compete globally. JH: SO, WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? HOW DO WE BEGIN MAKING CHANGE TO REINVENT OUR ECONOMY? FOREST CITY ENTERPRISES PRESIDENT ALBERT RATNER SAYS THE FIRST STEP IS TO STOP DEPENDING ON OTHERS TO FIX OUR PROBLEMS FOR US. Albert Ratner, PresidentForest City Enterprises: What we need to do, we have spent very little time even talk about the subject. So I think we need a different model. I think that corporations will play a vital role that takes place, but the difference is the corporations no longer alone can help us do the things we need to do. JH: FROM CORPORATE BOARDROOMS TO CLASSROOMS… FROM CITY HALLS TO SHOPPING MALLS… EACH OF US CAN HAVE AN IMPACT ON THE FUTURE OF OUR REGIONAL ECONOMY IF WE WORK TOGETHER… SAYS STACY CONDON OF THE NORTHEAST OHIO TECHNOLOGY COALITION. Stacy Condon, Associate Dir. NorTech (NE Ohio Technology Coalition): I think it's a monumental change, but I don't think it's unreachable, in that we've seen other communities do it. This community has changed before and we can change ourselves again. It's a matter of getting a common vision and getting everyone in line behind that. JH: FOR IDEASTREAM… I’M JULIE HENRY. Support for the Making Change segments on “Feagler and Friends” is provided through a grant from the SBC Foundation. SBC companies provide a full range of voice, data, networking and e-business services throughout 13 states, including Ohio.