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11/24/2010
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$1.50/NOVEMBER 29 - DECEMBER 5, 2010
Vol. 31, No. 47
Cost, creative needs driving AG’s HQ search Officials with greeting card maker stress an environment conducive to hiring best By STAN BULLARD sbullard@crain.com
NEW GAME IN TOWN As UH’s Ahuja Medical Center readies itself to go live, expect intense rivalry with Clinic’s Hillcrest Hospital to follow By TIMOTHY MAGAW tmagaw@crain.com
The leadership team at University Hospitals’ $298 million Ahuja Medical Center in Beachwood is in the midst of hiring hundreds of workers as the new hospital gears up for what’s likely to be a spirited competition for patients in Cleveland’s eastern suburbs. Jim Benedict, president of the new, 144-bed medical center, said Ahuja’s sprawling, 53-acre campus along Interstate 271 positions the University Hospitals system to gain access to an estimated 530,000 patients in the eastern suburbs, parts of Lake, Medina and Summit counties, and even into the western suburbs. So far, the health system has hired about 325 for the medical center, the bulk of whom are involved with clinical operations, and Mr. Benedict anticipates about 400 to be on staff by the time the See GAME Page 11
Talk about a creative business challenge, one that’s as much about corporate culture as corporate cost. That’s what the region faces as it strives to retain the headquarters of American Greetings Corp., which announced Nov. 19 that its search for prospective corporate homes includes two Chicago-area sites, four Northeast Ohio sites from Westlake to Beachwood and a major makeover keeping it in Brooklyn. Two American Greetings executives heavily involved in the site search emphasized the desire to establish a new headquarters that is amenable to creativity but is com-
An employment identity problem
TOP: PROVIDED/BOTTOM: MARC GOLUB
Ahuja Medical Center (top), University Hospitals’ new $298 million facility in Beachwood, likely will compete with Cleveland Clinic’s Hillcrest Hospital, which recently completed the Jane and Lee Seidman Tower (below).
Many NE Ohio companies see leveling off of recent positive results
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After a year in which most saw their business improve, Northeast Ohio manufacturers disagree over whether the economy has reached the “new normal” they’ve been hearing and worrying about, or if
Walter & Haverfield attorney Mark Floyd (right) is one of many lawyers these days whose clients are dealing with investigations into the misclassification of employees. The government is trying to crack down on businesses that are misrepresenting their employees as independent contractors and reaping the financial benefits of doing so. Read Michelle Park’s story on Page 3.
it’s just in a slow section of the road back to recovery. “I’ve seen more of a slower recovery over the last six months, and I still have a difficult time forecasting the next six months due to fluctuating shipments or inconsistent shipments,” said Larry Fulton, owner of Cleveland-based Lefco Worthington,
which makes pallets and specialized shipping containers. Mr. Fulton has a good view of the local industrial landscape from his perch atop a company heavily involved in shipping, as his customers don’t sell much without Mr. Fulton being aware of it. He said his customers’ business has been erratic
recently, without the steady gains associated with a strong recovery. “Shipments of technical equipment, aerospace parts, defense parts — all are seemingly uncertain and continue to show no signs of true recovery,” Mr. Fulton said. “The new normal in business that everyone is talking about is real.” Similarly, Charlie Kerr, who owns Kerr Lakeside Inc., a company in See NORMAL Page 4
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INSIDE
Manufacturers wonder if ‘new normal’ is settling in By DAN SHINGLER dshingler@crain.com
petitive on a cost basis. The discussion came about because Brooklyn, the suburb that has been the greeting card maker’s home for the past 50 years, raised the city income tax to 2.5% from 2%. Catherine Kilbane, American Greetings general counsel, said the tax shift “started the conversation.” “It began a broader discussion about what the company will look like — and would like to look like — in the future,” Ms. Kilbane said. An important part of that discussion is how and where the company can attract creative personnel, from artists and writers to technical types. “We currently have one of the
HIGHER EDUCATION Northeast Ohio schools part of boom in recruiting international students ■ Page 13 PLUS: BULLYING REACTIONS ■ EARLY BIRDS ■ & MORE
BUSINESS CONDITIONS Is any of your plant work force now on short time or layoff?
Month
Yes
No
November
15%
85%
October
17
83
September
19
81
August
22
78
July
27
73
June
27
73
SOURCE: PRECISION METALFORMING ASSOCIATION