Crain's Cleveland Business by Crain's Cleveland Business

EDUCATION: State steers funds to boost teacher prep programs amid shortage. PAGE 2

SMALL BUSINESS

Restaurateurs reflect on the pandemic and the road ahead. PAGE 10

CRAINSCLEVELAND.COM I APRIL 11, 2022

BIG DREAMS FOR OLD RIVER ROAD

Developer Bobby George has a broad vision for preservation and revival in the Flats BY MICHELLE JARBOE

Developer Bobby George is charting a new course for the Samsel Supply Co. warehouse, a century-old maritime stronghold on the east bank of the Flats.

George teamed up late last year with Cleveland-based GBX Group to acquire the brick industrial building and four other historic properties along Old River Road. Now the partners, who started buying up real estate in the Old River Road Historic

District almost five years ago, are pursuing state preservation tax credits for their first major project. The five-story Samsel complex is the subject of a $41.7 million plan for See FLATS on Page 20

International interest in Cleveland Clinic’s model of care has accelerated as the health system continues to broaden its network and develop relationships around the world. Cleveland Clinic London, which opened at the end of March, is just the latest example of the Clinic’s global expansion. The system has long had facilities in Toronto and

Abu Dhabi, and it’s working with partners in China and the Bahamas. “The hunger for the expertise of our caregivers at the Cleveland Clinic has only increased,” said Dr. Rakesh Suri, president of international operations. “And therefore we are responding to those requests in a way that continues to allow us to prioritize our mandates here in Ohio and See CLINIC on Page 21

NEWSPAPER

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CLEVELAND BUSINESS

Net positive

Cleveland Clinic London is latest show of global growth BY LYDIA COUTRÉ

The Samsel Supply Co. warehouse, right, is the largest building in the Old River Road Historic District. Developer Bobby George aims to transform the historic structure into a “wellness hotel,” with short-term apartments, a Roman-inspired bathhouse, fitness facilities and a biohacking center. The project is the first phase of a broader redevelopment plan that includes the Upson-Walton Building, top left; 1220 Old River Road, bottom left; and other properties. | MICHELLE JARBOE/CRAIN’S

Mutombo looks to expand Spire’s global reach

BY JOE SCALZO

A caregiver demonstrates using a “Workstation on Wheels” at Cleveland Clinic London. | CLEVELAND CLINIC

THE

LAND SCAPE

When Dikembe Mutombo was growing up in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), basketball courts were about as common as ski lodges. The closest basketball court to his house was 90 minutes away … by bus. “I tell my kids, ‘You’re lucky. You

wake up and you go to school five minutes away and there are 10 basketball courts on campus,’” said Mutombo, an 18-year NBA veteran and 2015 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee. “Even now, the (African) kids are taking the bus, they’re stuck in traffic, they work out for an hour or two See MUTOMBO on Page 19

A CRAIN’S CLEVELAND PODCAST

4/8/2022 2:53:36 PM

EDUCATION

Grant aims to help educator shortages BY AMY MORONA

color, students from underrepresented backgrounds and/or stuSchool districts in Ohio and na- dents who have an interest in some tionwide are reporting a shortage of of the high-need subject areas. Working with five area organizaeducators. Some vacancies already existed before the COVID-19 pan- tions, the university will look to credemic in fields such as special edu- ate more immersive experiences for cation, STEM and foreign languages. local high school students to get Plus, administrators reported re- them thinking about a career in cruiting and retaining teachers was teaching earlier. There will also be a challenging for many districts during cohort of 10 students this fall and 10 in fall 2023 that will be supportthe past two years. “Educator vacancies and other ed financially and academically staff shortages represent a real chal- throughout their entire time at the lenge as our schools work to recover, university. Retention is crucial. “If we can just get them through falling hardest on students of color, students in rural communities, stu- that first year and they’re like, ‘Yes, dents from low-income back- teaching is for me,’ they tend to grounds, students with disabilities, make it,” Alicia Crowe, Kent State’s and multilingual learners,” U.S. Sec- associate dean for undergraduate retary of Education Miguel Cardona education and student services, said of students. “And they tend to said last month. Cardona asked states, districts and graduate and become a teacher, a higher education institutions to dip really good teacher at that.” Like Kent State, Baldwin Wallace into federal relief funding to help address the issue. In Ohio, the depart- University continues to see declinments of education and higher edu- ing interest in most of its education cation are using $5.2 million, split offerings. The Berea campus’ unbetween nearly 30 public and private dergraduate early childhood eduinstitutions, of the state’s funding to cation program, traditionally one of do just that via new grants. The push the most popular education majors comes as the field of education faces at any university, saw about a 37% drop over the past five fall semeschallenges. “Teachers are not respected the ters. It has continued to be an ongoing way that they were a couple of decades ago,” said Jennifer Walton-Fi- problem to meet the needs of sette, director of teacher education at schools, even in areas where traditionally there haven’t been teacher Kent State University. In 2011, 383 students in total en- shortages, according to Michael rolled in the advanced study portion Smith, dean of BW’s College of Eduof Kent State’s education programs, cation and Health Sciences. “In the past, we actually had or the preparation and pedagogy phases of a student’s degree. That higher graduates (in early childnumber fell to 376 in 2016 and 267 hood education) than we had job last fall, a roughly 30% drop from a openings in Ohio,” Smith said. “So we were an exporter, if you would, decade before. to other areas in country.” “FOR MANY OF OUR STUDENTS OF COLOR theAlmost all of OR UNDERREPRESENTED STUDENTS, BW’s graduate are seeTHEY DON’T SEE SOMEBODY THAT LOOKS programs ing enrollment LIKE THEM, SO THEY DON’T CONSIDER IT drops, too. The university has sevA VIABLE CAREER.” eral master’s level — Jennifer Walton-Fisette, director of teacher offerings, includeducation at Kent State University ing three that focus on areas with Walton-Fisette points to a few shortages, such as science, math possible reasons for the decline. In- and special education. Students enrolled in the yearlong dividuals may have higher expectations for their post-grad pay. High program stay busy, coupling five schoolers might not consider edu- days each week at a school district cation as a possible field when con- during two semesters with classes of their own. sidering higher education options. It’s intense — and expensive. The The climate is different, too. Ohio’s recently introduced House cost for BW’s advanced math teachBill 616 would limit how teachers ing program, for instance, is listed discuss sexual orientation, gender at nearly $20,000 for tuition, books and fees. identity and race. To get teachers in the field quickNearly 80% of the country’s public K-12 educators are white. The er, officials are using the $160,000 need to diversify the workforce has the university is receiving via this long been there, Walton-Fisette grant funding strictly as scholarsaid. It has been magnified since ships. For Ohio residents enrolling in the murder of George Floyd and the national conversations about race the university’s math and science teacher master’s programs, officials that followed. “For many of our students of col- are coupling another state grant or or underrepresented students, earmarked for residents going into they don’t see somebody that looks STEM programs, as well as institulike them, so they don’t consider it tional funding of its own in addition to the educator shortage a viable career,” she said. Kent State is using the $200,000 it awards. This brings the cost down received in these new grants to help to less than $4,000 for either prorecruit and retain more students of gram.

A STEM/engineering classroom at Baldwin Wallace University, top. The university, above, is one of several in the state receiving funding to help boost Ohio’s pipeline of K-12 educators, including in STEM fields. | BALDWIN WALLACE UNIVERSITY FILE PHOTOS

In 2011, 383 students enrolled in the advanced study portion of Kent State’s education programs, or the preparation and pedagogy phases of a student’s degree. That number fell to 267 last fall, a roughly 30% drop from a decade before. | KENT STATE UNIVERSITY FILE PHOTO

It will take a while for the pipeline to be boosted. In the meantime, districts such as Akron Public Schools are using substitutes to fill positions. It’s easier now, due to recent state legislation that relaxed the necessary requirements. Akron schools currently have a roster of 650 substitutes on file, up from 565 during the 2019-20 academic year. It’s become a recruitment tool of

sorts, according to Angela Harper, recruitment and retention manager at Akron Public Schools. Ohio offers an accelerated path for residents who want to become educators after certain requirements are met, including being sponsored by a district. “When they start subbing, they don’t realize that this is something that’s giving them enjoyment, it’s

something that’s bringing joy to their life, and it’s something that they want to continue to do,” she said. A bump in pay probably helps, too. Substitutes working on a daily basis can now make up to $249 a day in the district’s schools. Amy Morona: amy.morona@crain. com, (216) 771-5229, @AmyMorona

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MANUFACTURING

Arrow International sees growth potential in addition of e-bingo BY RACHEL ABBEY MCCAFFERTY

Arrow International offers charitable, instant electronic bingo machines. | ARROW INTERNATIONAL

Arrow International Inc. is working to bring bingo into the 21st century. Yes, bingo. Arrow in Brooklyn makes charitable gaming supplies, from paper pull tabs and bingo paper to electronic versions of those games. The company is seeing a big boost lately, as Ohio recently legalized charitable, instant electronic bingo. Arrow had already been providing these e-bingo products to organizations in other states but, as of April, can now serve Ohio groups, too. The company got its start more than 50 years ago, fulfilling sweepstakes for banks, said chief operating officer John Gallagher III. It was started by Gallagher’s grandfather, a World War II veteran. A Catholic priest suggested Arrow get into bingo supplies, setting the company on the path it’s on today. Arrow is headquartered in Brooklyn and employs about 600 people in Ohio. In total, the company has four manufacturing facilities, more than 60 distribution facilities and about 1,200 employees. The company does not share annual revenue. Arrow has been growing organically and inorganically through acquisition recently. Private equity firm Platinum Equity acquired the company in December 2020, and

Arrow has been using that relationship to scale the business and consolidate its distribution network, Gallagher said. Arrow acquired Lancaster Bingo Co. in Ohio, its largest independent customer, in the fall of 2021. Since then, the company has bought three other companies, including one in the U.K. Arrow makes a lot of its products in-house, though some, such as the gaming machines, are partially made elsewhere and assembled on site. There’s a lot that goes into making charitable gaming products, and it’s more than just manufacturing the physical product itself. For instance, Gallagher said Arrow “algorithmically” designs its bingo cards. “So you’re not just playing a random sequence of numbers on a card; you’re actually playing a product that’s designed to give you the sensation of being closer to winning,” he said. The company employs a number of research and development personnel, he said, as well as game designers, artists and mathematicians. “Content is king in this industry,” Gallagher said. Arrow has been hiring throughout the pandemic, in part to support the rollout of e-bingo in Ohio. Mary Magnuson, Arrow’s vice president of government affairs, said

bringing in new products can attract new, younger members to the fraternal and veteran’s groups using them. Profits to charities in some of the states — Ohio is the eighth — already offering these devices have gone up, and they haven’t seemed to impact more traditional, paper-based sources of charitable gambling revenue, she said. “It really is a vital way of helping them to continue to survive,” she said. E-bingo was signed into law in Ohio by Gov. Mike DeWine in the summer of 2021, and organizations began receiving their licenses at the start of April 2022. Companies need an electronic endorsement from the state, which Arrow has, in order to make and sell e-bingo machines. Gallagher said the hope is that other markets will soon approve e-bingo, as well. The charitable gaming industry tends to modernize later than the rest of the gaming industry, he said. The proceeds from charitable gaming support their communities, and Gallagher said the company takes “a tremendous amount of pride” in its products, but also in what they do for the community. “It’s gaming for good,” Gallagher said. “It’s gaming with a purpose.” Jean Wilson, department of Ohio American Legion commander, said she expects e-bingo to be a big bene-

fit to veteran’s organizations like hers, bringing in a new source of income. That’s particularly important as COVID-19 wanes, because a lot of fraternal organizations have been shut down or otherwise struggling amid the pandemic. The veteran’s organization American Legion has more than 500 posts in Ohio, though Wilson noted not all have a brick-and-mortar location. Wilson lives in Harrison, near Cincinnati. Her post hosts traditional bingo and will now offer e-bingo, as well, but she thinks some organizations that have not done bingo in the past may be able to add e-bingo to their repertoire. Traditional bingo takes a lot of time, effort and volunteers that the electronic version won’t. And, using Arrow for the e-bingo products, there’s no up-front cost, Wilson said. The company has offered a $5,000 credit on each machine. So until that credit is used up, 100% of the profits can stay with the post, with a percentage that must go to community charities. After the credit is done, the post can keep 65% of the profits, more than most agreements offer, Wilson said. “The money that’s raised is going to be well-spent,” she said. Rachel Abbey McCafferty: (216) 771-5379, rmccafferty@crain.com

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Middlefield Banking Co. new, old CEOs discuss bank’s future amid leadership transition As of April 1, after 35 years with the company, including 22 as CEO, Thomas Caldwell has officially retired from Middlefield Banc Corp. Stepping in as president and CEO for the holding company that operates The Middlefield Banking Co. (about $1.3 billion in assets) is James Heslop II, another veteran of the community bank who has served the firm since 1996, including since 2000 as chief operating officer. Crain’s sat down with both Caldwell and Heslop just prior to Caldwell’s retirement to talk about their careers, the leadership transition, where the bank is today and where it’s going. Here is what they had to say. — Jeremy Nobile (This conversation has been edited and condensed for length.)

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 Q: How about a brief state of the union on Middlefield? Caldwell: We ended 2021 with record earnings. I believe the bank is extremely sound financially and the future is bright. And I think with Jim taking over, it makes for a smooth transition, not only for staff but for the bank itself. We share the same thoughts, ideas and philosophies on culture and how the bank should be run. So I feel very confident in Jim. Heslop: We are bullish on 2022 in that we believe the local economy is very strong. We do look forward to building consistent growth on the balance sheet and income statement. Really, the top focus for me will be to hopefully work with the management team we have here to drive some sustainable revenue growth.  Q: Tom, when you look back on your career, what’s something you’re particularly proud of? C: Probably what I’m most proud of here at Middlefield is that throughout all these years, with all the changes in technology, the financial crisis, competition and other challenges, we have always remained true to our mission. We always take good care of customers and the communities we serve, and we’ve provided a great work environment for employees. I know one person here started as a janitor cleaning the floors, and now he’s one of our top commercial lenders. That is the kind of environment we’ve created. And I think over the years, we’ve provided a great return for shareholders. But the fact we’ve stayed true to our mission is what I’m most proud of.  Q: You worked your way up the rungs at the bank, too, right? C: Yes. I was going to school and joined the bank to make some additional money. Something Jim and I have in common is we both started off as tellers. I started to do other things around the bank, one thing led to another, and I just never left. That was back in the fall of 1975. So I kind of fell into this, but I discovered that I was pretty into it. When there were opportunities to move, I took advantage of that. What I’ve liked best about the bank, and I got out of it later in my career, was interacting with the customers and helping them out. Especially when it came to providing loans to customers. Seeing those people bring their own kids in to do banking later on was gratifying.  Q: And how old are both of you? C: 64. H: 68.  Q: So what prompted you to pull the trigger on retirement, Tom? C: The short story is, I never planned on being the person that they had to come in and carry me out of the office. There are a lot of sacrifices you make with

James Heslop, left, and Thomas Caldwell

your time when you are in this kind of position. Some of that was my fault. I thought I couldn’t take the time away, though in hindsight I probably could have. I’ve watched too many people hang on for too long; they get out and then they’re not around much longer. I’m leaving at a time when I feel pretty doggone good, and I want to go out and enjoy myself.  Q: You’re leaving the board, too. A lot of folks in your position probably would hang around there. C: That was a tough decision. This industry has been my life for 46 years. But I felt if I stayed on the board, it wouldn’t feel like I was really retired. And I didn’t want to be perceived as the guy looking over the next guy’s shoulder. I just wanted a clean break.  Q: Jim, you’re obviously more than qualified for this post. However, some might criticize the decision for the bank to not place someone younger at the CEO level. Was that considered? H: You’re not the first person to bring that up. It is not common for the successor to be older than the retiree. The board went through its process, and Tom and I were not a part of that. They did engage outside consultants and review internal and external candidates. The board wanted a clean transition and to continue what Tom has done all these years. And I can say I have no retirement plans at this point.  Q: What are your thoughts on growing the bank from here? H: We’ve had good growth over the years, though in 2019, 2020, 2021, balance sheet growth was not that strong. There are multiple reasons for that — while we had strong earnings last year, we’ve also taken some heavy loan-loss provisions due to the uncertainty of COVID in the market. I look forward to going back to where we were in 2018. I had to go back that far. But we have some core market segments in central Ohio and Northeast Ohio from Summit and Cuyahoga counties to Lake County. I think if we focus on those and properly portray our brand while maintaining fiscal conservatism, I think we deliver strong results. C: In terms of standing out from the competition, it’ll be all about relationships. Banks offer the same products and services, but how they are offered is what distinguishes community banks from the larger nationals.

 Q: Is Middlefield looking at acquisitions? Or is that too difficult right now with the state of the bank’s stock? H: We have not done a deal since Liberty Bank in 2017. I hate to go down this path, but it is an honest statement: the trading multiple on our stock, we are working on that. We are working with a good investor relations firm, which we hope will reinvigorate us and get out stock to trade reasonably well. That will give us some opportunities. However, we realize there are other opportunities along these lines on which we may potentially capitalize. And there are some similar institutions in Ohio with older management teams that may not have a succession plan. So we will continue to look for those opportunities.  Q: The company has obviously been facing some pressure from at least one activist shareholder, Ancora, to grow or sell the bank. Have you folks worked through a sale process? Or are you wholly committed to independence? H: We all know any company in this country can sell on any given day for a premium, and there will always be shareholders who want to see that premium who don’t worry about the true value of the organization but are focused on what is my return to my pocket today. I can say that the board, especially in the last 10 years, has been very focused on their fiduciary responsibilities. There are opportunities to sell or consider a merger of equals. The board does regularly look at a sale-value analysis and what we could achieve if we were to sell today. What I can say is with great determination and insights and outside advisers, we’re looking at all our opportunities. C: If you are a short-term investor, the return probably hasn’t been as great as a shareholder who has been in this bank for 20-some years. These folks see this as a great investment. Shareholders are an important constituency, and I like to think we’ve taken good care of them. But to sell the bank to get a quick premium — I’ve got to question what impact that has on the community and our staff. I do think the opportunity for Middlefield right now is to remain independent and look for strategic acquisitions while working on promoting the stock as a good investment.  Q: And what’re your thoughts on any other headwinds or tailwinds to growth today? C: Economic conditions are going to have a lot of impact on the financial services industry going forward. We just had a rate hike, and depending on who you listen to, there could be anywhere from one to five more by the end of the year, which could have a negative impact on growth. And we are still looking at inflation pressures, gas prices that impact everybody. Now we’re looking at a proposed tax rate hike that would increase the corporate tax rate. All those things are headwinds to deal with. H: But, per my earlier reference, we still remain bullish on 2020. Our local economies are strong. Unemployment is down in Ohio and nationally, and individual businesses in the market have the opportunity to do more business, but we still can’t find enough workers or enough people willing to work. So there is some uncertainty.

4 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | APRIL 11, 2022

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REAL ESTATE

Krueger Group eyes Rocky River site for apartments BY STAN BULLARD

Krueger Group, a Cleveland construction and real estate development firm, has surfaced with another apartment project site, this time in Rocky River. With a proposed four-floor building containing 54 units in its first phase, the project capitalizes on a scarce commodity for heavily developed suburbs: a vacant site of 3 acres. Moreover, and what’s even more scarce, the property on a site near 22591 Center Ridge Road already is zoned for multifamily use. Bobby Krueger, president of the

family-owned firm, said in a phone interview that the company is fine-tuning construction drawings for the so-far-unnamed structure. If things proceed as planned, the company hopes to start going vertical on the project by late summer or early fall. “Depending on how Old Man Winter treats us, availability may be in late 2023 or early 2024,” Krueger said. “We’re really excited about it. I was born and raised in Rocky River. This is the perfect opportunity to do something that’s in our wheelhouse and is in our backyard.” He noted part of the excitement is

due to the fact that the last large apartment development of scale in Rocky River was finished in 2013. That is the 300-unit Brighton Chase complex, which Edwards Communities of Columbus constructed on a former supermarket and associated retail site near the eastern end of Center Ridge in Rocky River. The planned Krueger complex may include a second phase. The developer acquired additional land next to its original project site after receiving city approval last winter for what’s now its first phase. Krueger may seek approvals to add 46 suites in another building at an

undetermined future time. The Rocky River project will be designed so the suites are a little larger and the project has more two-bedrooms than an urban offering, Krueger said. Krueger also has in the works, through other partnerships, two urban apartments in Cleveland. One is Treo, which will have 171 units near the West 25th Street bridge south of Columbus Road in Ohio City. Krueger hopes to finish that later this year. The other is a 26-suite building on West 58th Street, in the Detroit-Shoreway neighborhood, that it plans to

start building this summer. Although Northeast Ohio has seen more apartment development recently than in several decades, statistics from a March report by Colliers International show that there remains room for more projects. The Colliers Cooper team reported that the market tends to add about 788 units annually, but it estimates demand in the Cleveland area at 2,856 units. It reports 168,000-suite rental market in Cleveland is also 97.7% occupied. Stan Bullard: sbullard@crain.com, (216) 771-5228, @CrainRltywriter

A light-filled, and light-rich on the inside, expansion is in the works for the 1992-vintage Soprema US headquarters at 310 Quadral Drive in Medina County. | VOCON

Soprema HQ expansion to score environmental points inside and out BY STAN BULLARD

Soprema U.S., an arm of Strasbourg, France-based Soprema Group, is about to make its headquarters a showplace for architects, builders and its neighbors in a Wadsworth industrial park. Cleveland architecture firm Vocon has designed an expansion for the company’s headquarters that will give it a shimmery modern exterior and integrate many of the company’s products for the building market into the project. Many are environmentally friendly products that reduce building impacts and aim to make it a nearly zero-emission building. Metal panels, or louvers, that help shade the building from direct sunlight will be imported from Europe for the building because the company does not yet sell them in the United States. At the same time, the design will replace a workmanlike concrete

building dating from 1992 with a contemporary design. Jodi van der Wiel, design director at Vocon, said the project’s goal is “to create an exciting new space that energizes employees while advancing environmental and human sustainability. The design re-imagines the dated, existing structure with a highly efficient space matching the needs of an evolving workforce.” To that end, the structure will have features such as Soprema’s green roof, which will also go onto new terraces, its vegetation-covered walls and the company’s legacy waterproof roofing and associated building products. Tim Kersey, Soprema U.S. CEO, said in an interview the design is not only prized by privately held Soprema’s owner, Pierre-Etienne Bindschedler, but the investment also will meet business goals for the company in Medina County. “We’ve grown so much over the last 10 years that we needed to get ev-

van der Wiel

Kersey

eryone back under one roof,” Kersey said, as it has staffers not only in its headquarters and production structure but also in two other buildings nearby. While the plan has been years in the making, the pandemic disruption and the rise of the work-from-home era is not changing the course of the project. “We don’t think fully remote work is sustainable,” Kersey said. “It was time to put everyone back under one roof. We think people need interaction. It’s healthier. You cannot replace, as they used to say, ‘water

cooler talk.’ “ The expansion and updating will mean a lot for Soprema staffers. Nick Randjelovic, Soprema’s director of business development and technical services, said in a Zoom interview, “We’re all excited to be in one building. We don’t want to have to jump in our cars to do business together. And we’ll enjoy the open-office design.” Robert Patrick, Wadsworth’s service director, said the city is glad that Soprema is expanding in town, not only for what he described as a $12 million project but because of its role in the community. “This will bring more people to the community at its (new) training center, and they are a fantastic community member,” Patrick said. “Our senior center and a cafe there are known as the Soprema Senior Center and Soprema Cafe because of their contribution to the project.” By the numbers, the project will add 12,000 square feet to the head-

quarters and production building of 15,000 square feet. The project will update everything, including heating and cooling systems. Soprema employs 92 people in its headquarters administrative and research units, and another 52 in its plant. The Wadsworth location means the project not only uses city water but relies on the city’s municipal power system, which incorporates the use of two solar arrays in town. Van der Wiel said the use of green electricity will allow the project to come in far below the energy requirements under the AIA’s 2030 challenge, a goal to slash energy use to combat climate change. Soprema has sold its products in the U.S. since 1985, but current staffers do not know why it landed in Wadsworth for its first headquarters and production building here. Stan Bullard: sbullard@crain.com, (216) 771-5228, @CrainRltywriter

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ADVISER

Take time to prioritize your HR agenda Human resources professionals are the unsung heroes of the pandemic. For small to midsize companies, HR is a department that, under normal circumstances, can be woefully understaffed and overworked. The COVID-19 pandemic intensified that reality and, as a result, left no time for strategic planning and agenda setting that is now imperative in our post-COVID-19 world. There has never been a better time to shine the spotlight on HR and topics like work culture, well-being, employee retention, compensation and new work models. This is an exceptional opportunity to make a “course correction” and allow HR leaders to facilitate meaningful generative discussion with employees and advance change. Take the time to set an HR agenda and consider the following: Culture matters: Culture means a lot of things to a lot of people; however, when people are working both in and out of the office, it can be challenging to create one. Culture change is slow, but companies can use this opportunity to empower employees working from home. Avoid micromanaging and be ex-

pectant. Communication is also key in pushing culture change. Office leaders can and should use text, video or email to talk about changes in the office, upcoming social events and to encourage work collaboration.

and don’t attempt to be all things to all people.

Hubben is vice president, corporate benefits, at NFP.

Well-being: It’s no longer about weight-loss challenges and walking clubs — it is about mental health and condition management. One of my clients invested in an on-site mental health counselor two days per week through their EAP program to ensure that employees have access to a therapist. The therapist is booked solid. COVID-19 was a stress test on employees’ mental health, and trends indicate that employees need more support. This presents an opportunity to do better. HR can also make the strategic decision to target your highest claim conditions. For example, digestive diseases have eclipsed diabetes as the top chronic condition and currently affect 66 million people. Target it, program around it

Compensation: This landscape has also changed. Now is the time to consider job leveling and/or a compensation review. According to the Conference Board, the increase in wages for new hires and inflation have caused overall compensation to jump 3.9%, the highest increase since 2008. Hourly worker wages have increased 5.7% over the past 12 months, and unemployment is under 4%. This is a clarion call for HR to add this to their agenda. Otherwise, employees can and will continue to “job hop” seeking out better pay. Flexible work: It’s surprising to note that one-third of workers report that they are considering leaving their job in the next six months. Creating innovative work arrangements could slow that trend and is now ranked as the most important desired aspect of a new job, closely followed by better pay and career advancement. HR could take an innovative approach to this by co-creating a strategy that benefits the employer and employee together. Address the historical stigma around flexible working by communicating openly with all employees to ensure opportunities are of-

GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCK

BY KATE HUBBEN

fered on a fair and transparent basis, and that flexibility does not confer privilege or disadvantage to different groups of workers. The biggest challenge to prioritize agenda setting for small to midsize companies can be inertia. HR has to “play defense” most days, so

finding the time and energy to make change can be tough. Invest in relief for your HR department with additional staff. Plan a halfday retreat to reset and update. Empower HR to execute an updated agenda — your employees will thank you.

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PERSONAL VIEW

Public has right to know about county jail, justice center deliberations

GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCK

BY JAMES M. TRUTKO

EDITORIAL

Divided we fall T

he Ohio Legislature just can’t help itself. And it’s not helping Ohio businesses. Using language that mirrors a controversial new law in Florida, Republican Reps. Mike Loychik of Trumbull County and Jean Schmidt of Cincinnati last week introduced House Bill 616, which would ban discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity until fourth grade in all public schools. The bill also seeks to control how racism is taught in K-12 schools, banning, for instance, critical race theory and “The1619 Project.” We don’t make a habit of diving into the details of K-12 curricula and don’t pretend to be experts on them. But we recognize political grandstanding. Supporters say it’s about protecting children, but the bill’s vague language and harsh penalties leave little doubt that its main aim is to limit discussion of gender/sexuality/race/equity issues in Ohio schools. Maybe that’s OK by you. But it’s worth considering the broader implications of this type of social adventuring. Ohio Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Steve Stivers, a former Republican member of Congress, said in a statement that the organization “is concerned that some of the language in this bill may impede Ohio’s ability to lure the best and brightest minds to fill these openings and put down roots” in Ohio. Stivers, in a nod to Intel’s plans to invest $20 billion in chipmaking operations near Columbus, noted that Ohio “is blessed with a number of recent large-scale private investments, but the state remains challenged from a workforce standpoint to fill the scores of available and upcoming job openings. To this end, Ohio needs to be a welcoming place for all. We should focus on ways to cultivate and harness the talents of Ohioans, while also attracting out-of-state workers to relocate here.” In Florida, big companies — Disney, most notably — faced pressure from employees to take a position against the legislation. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, in turn, made political hay by picking a fight with Disney. This is not the kind of thing we want in Ohio, which isn’t blessed with Florida’s year-round beautiful weather, tourist-driven economy and business-friendly tax environment that provides an easier lure for employers. Ohio loses a disproportionate share of its college graduates every year. Stivers is right to point out that the Legislature

should focus on making Ohio more economically competitive, and not figuring out more ways to divide people. Remember that JobsOhio campaign to put up billboards in hot markets — Austin, Boston, New York — touting Ohio as an ideal, low-cost place for workers and businesses? Doesn’t mean anything if the perception of the state is as a hotbed of culture wars. Gov. Mike DeWine made the expected dodge — he hadn’t read details of the bill — and offered his usual boilerplate when Republicans get aggressive on social issues: “Our goal always is for Ohio to be a welcoming state. ... We want it to be a state that reaches out to everybody.” But clearly it isn’t. This type of legislation isn’t Ohio’s only, or even its primary, economic challenge, but it doesn’t help.

In with the new C

ircus. Train wreck. Debacle. Pick your term. Any are suitable to describe the failures of the Ohio Redistricting Commission. U.S. Rep. Bob Gibbs of Holmes County went with “circus” last week when he announced he would retire at the end of his term, citing a redistricting process that forced him into a primary challenge. That process, as Bloomberg put it, “has been marked by legal challenges, with the state’s Supreme Court ruling that an initial congressional map and three proposed maps for state legislative districts unconstitutionally favored Republicans.” Even so, early voting started last Tuesday, April 5, for the May 3 primaries for congressional and statewide races. The court is still considering a legal challenge to the districts. The seven-member commission approved the maps by a 4-3 vote, with Gov. Mike DeWine, Secretary of State Frank LaRose, House Speaker Bob Cupp and Senate President Matt Huffman in support. (A fifth Republican, state Auditor Keith Faber, joined Democrats in opposition.) Its work has led to chaos and has been a failure. The state needs a new redistricting panel that doesn’t include elected officials and is committed to following the mandate of creating fair districts.

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

Cuyahoga County is approaching a critical community decision on public safety with virtually no public input or debate. The Cuyahoga County Justice Center Steering Committee is nearing a final recommendation on the location and design of a new $500 million jail and a $1 billion justice center. The two facilities will last 30 to 40 years and Trutko is an have a profound effect on public safe- economist and ty, which is a primary governmental market research responsibility. professional. The Locating details about the planned lifelong facilities is extremely difficult. The Cuyahoga Steering Committee website has no County resident clear summary of the status of deliber- lives in Rocky ations or proposals. Interested persons River and can be must wade through thick PowerPoint reached at decks or three-hour YouTube videos. jmtrutko@ After months of very little coverage, lo- gmail.com. cal media appear to have rediscovered the Steering Committee’s deliberations, but the long blackout on coverage has left most of the public unaware of the project’s status. It’s a shame, especially because current estimates clearly indicate the seriousness of the crime problem in Cuyahoga County. Based on data from various sources, there were about 40,000 reported crimes in Cuyahoga County in 2020 — 35,200 crimes in the Ohio Incident-Based Reporting System (OIBRS) and 4,600 from other sources. The number of violent crimes (murder, rape, robbery, assault) was about 9,100 and the number of property crimes (burglary, larceny and motor vehicle theft) was 30,700. An estimate based solely on reported crime substantially underestimates the actual number of crimes and their impact. Pew Research Center quoted survey estimates from the national Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) that found that in 2019, “only 40.9% of violent crimes and 32.5% of household property crimes were reported to authorities.” Unfortunately, the magnitude of crime and the apparent ineffectiveness and mismanagement of the major county institutions dealing with crime have created a lack of confidence that government can keep its citizens safe, and that administration of justice will be unbiased and fair. Equally problematic is that two divergent views have emerged regarding crime and punishment, with two fundamentally different philosophies about how to reduce crime and increase public safety. One side is concerned about lawlessness, permissiveness and the government not taking their crime responsibility seriously. The “deterrence through punishment” group believes that crime has been perpetrated throughout history by a small number of morally flawed individuals with evil intent. This group believes that both reducing crime and providing justice for victims involve punishing criminals. It advocates prevention of minor crimes, strong police presence and the need for certain incarceration or other punishment of the perpetrators. See DELIBERATIONS, on Page 9

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.

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 | APRIL 11, 2022

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OPINION

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The Cuyahoga County Justice Center Steering Committee is nearing a final recommendation on the location and design of a new $500 million jail and a $1 billion justice center. A possible location is the site at 2700 Transport Road. | GOOGLE MAPS

DELIBERATIONS

From Page 8

The contemporary “root causes” perspective views crime primarily as the result of social and cultural factors. In this view, the solution is to reduce the social/cultural drivers and use treatments to minimize recidivism. In practice, this means reducing harsh or unfair sentences for minor infractions, using diversion programs for first offenses, and providing clinical treatment for mental health, behavioral or drug problems. From what one can gather from the available information, many Steering Committee members seem to be proponents of the “root causes” approach and are incorporating their philosophy into the facilities’ design. They are proceeding as if the public has confidence in their judgment, shares their assumptions about the crime strategy or solutions, is willing to pay for a project with many design amenities, and wants a quick decision.

jail overcrowding or a successful crime reduction strategy. But the Steering Committee is rushing ahead anyway without confirming whether the programs work. A critical assumption in their plan is the projected number of jail beds, which will determine the size, design and cost of the jail. One might expect the Steering Committee to use the 10-year historical average of 2,100 daily inmates and 26,000 annual admissions to predict the probable number of criminals needing incarceration. Some very negative forecasts saw a jail population as high as 4,500 in 25 years. But, up until last fall, based on their optimistic predictions about diversion and treatment programs, the Steering Committee was designing for 1,664 beds with diversion programs putting 500 formerly incarcerated individuals back into the community. Moreover, since 568 beds are reserved for people needing medical and mental health services, only about 1,100 beds would be for hard-core prisoners. Some members were evidently talking about designs as low as 1,000 total beds, so evidently the size issue depends

THE STEERING COMMITTEE HAS PROJECTED TOTAL COST AT ROUGHLY $500 MILLION FOR A NEW JAIL AND $1 BILLION FOR THE NEW JUSTICE CENTER COURTS, EXCLUDING LAND ACQUISITION COSTS. OVER TIME, THE COSTS COULD INCREASE SIGNIFICANTLY. THE JAIL AND COURT DESIGNS ARE HEAVY ON AMENITIES TO MAKE THE FACILITY ATTRACTIVE FOR THE COMMUNITY, HUMANE FOR PRISONERS AND PLEASANT FOR THE STAFF. THE PROJECTED COST IS AT LEAST $2,500 FOR EACH CUYAHOGA COUNTY HOUSEHOLD, SO IT’S VERY IMPORTANT TO GET THE RIGHT SIZE AND DESIGN. The opposite is true. The public is aware that the criminal justice “experts” in Cuyahoga County have historically done a miserable job managing the existing jail and court facilities. These experts are now proposing a new jail design that will require the sheriff ’s staff to manage larger pods with more integrated services at a remote location with 10%-20% fewer staff than in recent years. Despite the chronic staffing problems at the current facility, the Steering Committee is assuring the public that the sheriff will be able to manage a change whereby one officer now responsible for limited services for 24 inmates will soon be responsible for managing a comprehensive range of services for 48 inmates. The Steering Committee is banking on a wholesale “system change” plan to reduce jail inmate counts, cut costs and reduce recidivism. The root causes-based plan is based on an optimistic belief that diversion is successful in reforming marginal criminals and cutting incarceration counts and costs. The diversion programs have only recently been introduced and have yet to be a proven solution to chronic

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on a number of subjective assessments. However, it seems unlikely that the public would share the Steering Committee’s optimistic assumptions if they understood the plan. Finally, the Steering Committee has projected total cost at roughly $500 million for a new jail and $1 billion for the new justice center courts, excluding land acquisition costs. Over time, the costs could increase significantly. The jail and court designs are heavy on amenities to make the facility attractive for the community, humane for prisoners and pleasant for the staff. The projected cost is at least $2,500 for each Cuyahoga County household, so it’s very important to get the right size and design. Before moving forward, the Steering Committee should communicate a lot more with the public about their key assumptions on crime prevention and diversion programs in designing the facilities. More importantly, they need to explain how expenditures on the jail and justice center will reduce crime, improve public safety, and improve the efficiency and fairness of the courts. APRIL 11, 2022 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 9

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KLONDIKE BAR TURNS 100 Isaly’s, the company behind the iconic product, got its start in Mansfield in the early 1900s. PAGE 14

SMALL BUSINESS

Cleveland restauranteurs Brad Friedlander, from left, José Melendez, Laurie Torres and Matt Harper in the dining room of Mallorca. | GUS CHAN FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

THE ROAD AHEAD Cleveland restaurateurs reflect on the pandemic two years later

little more than two years have passed since the COVID-19 outbreak prompted government shutdowns and the closures of restaurant dining rooms. Although the pandemic appears to be fading slowly in the rearview mirror, restaurants are still dealing with the financial impact of the global health crisis, plus the challenges of a tumultuous economy that include staffing problems, supply chain issues and inflation. With all these things in mind, Crain’s sat down with a few independent restaurant owners in Greater Cleveland to discuss how the pandemic has impacted them and how they’re thinking about the future in these uncertain times. The restaurateurs who participated are: Laurie Torres, owner of Mallorca in downtown Cleveland and president of Cleveland Independents, a coalition of locally owned restaurants; José Melendez, owner of Twisted Taino in Parma and Melendez Catering Services; Brad Friedlander, owner of Cut151 Supper Club (formerly Blu, the Restaurant) in Beachwood; and Matt Harper, owner of Creekside Restaurant in Brecksville. Here is what they had to say. — Jeremy Nobile

 Q: It’s been a little more than two years since COVID lockdowns were put into place. How are you feeling about where you’re at today? • Friedlander: I don’t even know what to say. It’s been such a crazy two years, and if you take it back from the beginning, who knew what was going to happen? I personally had just opened a restaurant, Blu, and closed it eight months after I opened it. Then we reopened it, and we closed it again. Then Red moved and we tried to put another concept in there, which was Rosso Italia. We opened that and then COVID hit harder a month later. So it was crazy. I chose to close for almost six to eight months rather than try to stay open. But our restaurants don’t take well with takeout generally, so we tried that but it wasn’t overly successful. So it’s been a battle. Then we finally felt we were coming out of it in October of last year. And we were gearing up, had both restaurants open finally. We were doing business and had a ton of stuff booked for the holidays. Then came Omicron, and that just took

the wind out of our sails completely. There is this energy that when you open a restaurant carries you forward for a little while. But after you open, if you have to close but then reopen, that energy doesn’t exist. So when we reopened, we decided to change Rosso into Cut151 to get that energy. But again, there was Omicron, which just took the wind out of any opening. So how am I feeling? A little frustrated. • Torres: It’s interesting because I’m downtown. The urban centers suffered a lot because we don’t have the people coming back to the offices. Where before we would always have a really nice lunch crowd we’re really not seeing much of one now. Now, because we’re 26 years old, I stay open because we do have people who’ve been coming here for so many years that I couldn’t close the door on them. But the urban centers have struggled a lot. We lost the crowds for the baseball games, the football games, the theater, etc. that were See RESTAURATEURS on Page 12

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FOCUS | SMALL BUSINESS

Clap on: Students develop soundbased app for content creators BY DOUGLAS J. GUTH

Two Cleveland-born college students have created an app that makes it easier for influencers and other content creators to record videos viewed by thousands — if not millions — of loyal followers. As a twist, the app has similar functionality to a technology created years before the business partners were even born. Moreland Hills natives Jonah Katz and Andrew Hamilton recently launched their Pump app as a proofof-concept for a larger PumpML platform. The app lets people remotely record content by clapping, much like The Clapper — that old-school fodder for late-night television humor — allowed users to turn appliances on and off with a clap of the hands. According to its inventors, the app eliminates a major inconvenience for content creators: the need to constantly fiddle with recording devices when making content. Someone filming an exercise session, for example, can simply utilize the app’s double-clap functionality rather than constantly returning to their smartphone or tablet. “The people using the app are content creators, whether creating a TikTok video, a workout at the gym, or

filming their golf swing,” said Katz, a communications major at the University of Wisconsin. “Anyone who records repetitive content where they’re going back and forth from a device.” The entrepreneurial pair iterated on their technology knowing convenience was a watchword for content producers. Before their time or not, The Clapper concept became a natural fit for the app. “We automatically cut out the end of the video to remove the claps so that users don’t have to go in and do that manually,” Katz added. The Pump app will ideally help the partners perfect their technology, eventually leading to products responsive to all manner of non-voice sounds — clapping hands, a crying baby, the rumble of a motor and more. This amalgamation of audio analysis, machine learning and context-aware computing falls under the framework of computer vision, which equips learners with knowledge on how computers see and interpret the world. “This allows computers not just to see, but to hear, and that encompasses the work we’re doing with the company as well,” said Hamilton, a computer science major at Cornell University.

Making a ‘long-term bet’ Hamilton handles the technology side of the company’s daily functions, while Katz runs business operations. Among Hamilton’s professional accomplishments is co-development of grading software for a Cleveland Clinic radiologist. Katz, meanwhile, produced $70,000 in sales as a branch manager for a full-service painting company. Combining their strengths, the friends built a handful of apps, although Pump marks their first foray into iOS development. With AI-driven devices taking on more human roles — from notifying us when our laundry is done to performing complex medical tasks — it’s increasingly vital for them to grow a humanlike understanding of the world, Katz said. See APP on Page 14

Influencer Ria Patag tests the Pump app. A screen grab of the app shows how someone filming an exercise session can use the app’s double-clap functionality rather than returning to their smartphone or tablet. | CONTRIBUTED

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FOCUS | SMALL BUSINESS

RESTAURATEURS

more determined to see this through. I think it was March 15 (2020) when we had to let a lot of our people go, and I had to look a lot of them in the eyes and said, "We will make it through this." Whatever the other side of this looks like, we will be there. It wasn’t easy. It’s a family-run business, kind of a neighborhood place in our city. So that thought crept into my head a couple times because of the exhaustion with things, but they were never real serious thoughts. We just tried to find a way to make it through.

From Page 10

coming downtown. During Omicron, people would still go out to dinner, but they were doing it mostly close to home because that’s where they felt safe and comfortable and they weren’t coming downtown, because there wasn’t much drawing them downtown. So that was a struggle. As there are more plays and more shows, we’re seeing people come back downtown more. So I feel positive going forward. The frustration is always still there, just because right now inflation is such a burden. I kind of watch my income week to week so I can watch what’s going on. And over the last three weeks, it’s pretty much what comes in goes right back out, because of inflation and labor costs and all that. So that’s a real frustration because we feel like we got through COVID, we got through the civil unrest we had a couple years ago and people are starting to come back downtown. But the money you’re making filling your house is going right back out because everything is so expensive. • Harper: So our restaurant lends itself to carryout. We do a lot of carryout, online, DoorDash, that sort of thing. So when we were shut down in the dining room, we were able to pivot and change things to do curbside pickup and some big family meals. So, we lost money, but it wasn’t horrible. And once we were able to open back up again, we started to see there was this pent-up demand where people wanted to get out. We saw how business changed. Not only are people coming out for dinner earlier, we’re as busy at 2 p.m. in the afternoon as we are at 6 p.m. We found people’s dining habits have changed, like maybe they’re only eating one meal and it’s at 2 p.m. in the afternoon. So we make it through all that, then November, December hits with Omicron. We also have a party room and we lost a lot of that business. Lucky for us we already had a remodel scheduled for the beginning of January, so we were going to be shut down then anyway. So we shut down and opened back up and people thought we had a brand-new restaurant, so we got some energy there and continued to ride that. I’d say we’re in a pretty good spot right now. There’s definitely some huge, pent-up demand of people wanting to get out and do things. People aren’t going out as late, so we’re not open as late as we used to be. But we’re in a pretty good spot and I’m optimistic based on what I’m seeing. • Melendez: I opened right in the middle of the pandemic, so I haven’t had the same experience with having to open then close and reopen again. But when I started Twisted Taino in Ohio City, it was good, but not as good as things now thankfully. Right now I am pretty much all carryout. So it really didn’t hurt me when Omicron came around. Yeah, I didn’t already have a lot of diners coming out, but I was set up well for carryout, DoorDash, Uber Eats. Unfortunately, they do take a good amount out of your profits, of course, because you are using their services. But because my location now in Parma has parking and some other features I didn’t have before, (that) has helped me increase my revenue. However, just like Laurie was mentioning, now we have inflation and other things. Labor is up. And we barely see the money. We are pretty much breaking even right now. So we’re hoping with the warmer season, the patio and everything opening, we

Laurie Torres stands in the bar area of Mallorca, her restaurant in the Warehouse District of Cleveland. Torres has owned the same restaurant for 26 years. | PHOTOS BY GUS CHAN FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

start to see more revenue. And we’re trying to not increase the prices because we know everyone is going through this. Gas prices and everything are going up. And if you start raising your prices on food as well, that is going to hold people back.

José Melendez, owner of Twisted Taino

Brad Friedlander, owner of Cut151 Supper Club

Matt Harper, owner of Creekside

 Q: With these last two years being as difficult as they have been, has that made any of you reconsider this industry or maybe getting out of the restaurant business? • Friedlander: Well, yes, of course. It gets to the point where you talk about food cost and labor cost and rent factors and you really can’t make any money. You can maybe survive. Maybe places that do a lot of takeout and don’t have large overhead, it’s different. I mean at one time we had 135 employees. Right now we’re probably down to about 30. It’s just that different. So yeah, we think about that. But when you’ve invested so much time and money and blood, it’s hard to take that step. It’s probably a wise decision. It probably is, to get out of it. But that’s a hard pill to swallow. It’s not even a matter of ego. I just put $600,000 into the dining room at Blu with my landlord’s help. Or key items on the menu, like a lobster po’ boy, or crab legs, they’re priced out of the market now. Crab legs are costing almost $60 a pound. Pre-pandemic, they were probably about $25. Now I go out buying crab legs anywhere I can when they’re as close to $40 a pound as possible, and I do that once a week. Tuesday nights we do crab legs for $50 a pound, and that brings a lot of people in. But I don’t make any money on it. And the other thing is, too, is advertising. If we advertised, we’d probably do more business. But if we spend all that money on an advertising campaign, and another virus kicks up, the rest of the money is gone. • Torres: No, but only because it’s a unique situation. If I were in a different person’s situation like Brad’s, I may think about getting out of the business. But Mallorca has been here 26 years. So, we’re kind of a legacy in the city. People know the restaurant. People have

(jokingly) threatened my life if I were to ever close! As long as we can keep our head above water, we’ll keep going. For me, one of the biggest problems in the industry is it has such a negative perception. People are like oh, you have to work such long hours and holidays, but there are also such positives about it. You get to be part of everybody’s celebrations. And what I like about this restaurant, because we are such a legacy, is we are so much a part of the city’s history that we are part of the people’s history, and then they become part of our history.

“AND WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS RESTAURANT, BECAUSE WE ARE SUCH A LEGACY, IS WE ARE SO MUCH A PART OF THE CITY’S HISTORY THAT WE ARE PART OF THE PEOPLE’S HISTORY, AND THEN THEY BECOME PART OF OUR HISTORY. ” — Laurie Torres, owner of Mallorca

So it’s a different dynamic for me, because it is not necessarily just about the profitability, but also maintaining our legacy in the city. In fairness, though, if I had a restaurant that was only a couple of years old, and I had to work as hard as I do now and struggle as much as I do, I might consider it because it is very, very hard work. That’s part of the reason you can’t find labor. And people who come in don’t appreciate just how difficult it is. There are times when I say, you have a law degree, you have an engineering degree, what are you doing here? But I’m driven by maintaining our legacy here. • Harper: February was our 30-year anniversary, so I feel a bit like Laurie, but a little different. Did the thought creep into my mind? Yeah, maybe. But as we kept getting sucker-punched with different things, part of it just made me

 Q: José, considering your situation, do you regret opening amid the throes of the pandemic? • Melendez: Not really. Part of my background story is I used to be homeless. That’s how I got into the food industry. I was living in my car and people’s basements, and I got into catering, I’ve been doing that for seven years. When COVID came by, everything shut down because all my events, all my weddings, it was all shut down. However, I noticed restaurants at least can do carryout. So that’s when I said, OK, if I can get some money, that’s what I would do just to keep going and get some money in. I live by — and I was told this many years ago by my dad, who was a pastor — this idea of walk by faith, not by sight. So I’m always walking, no matter what the sight is. My bank account could be at zero, but I’m always very optimistic. You know? Tomorrow is going to be another day. But am I working a lot? Sure. My wife and I, we are probably working about 85 hours a week. And it’s mostly us. People call off, and whenever there are no employees, it’s her doing the prep and I’m over here as the cashier. But we’re always open. And we do work a lot. I will say I regret not getting my own engineering degree! But really, I love what I do. I love food and serving people. That’s why I do it. And I know good things are coming for us at the end of the day.  Q: What were your situations like with landlords amid the pandemic? Did they work with you considering the circumstances? • Torres: We did not have to pay rent during COVID for those two months that we were closed, and it wasn’t tacked on to anything else. • Friedlander: Well, I owe my landlord a lot of money. I mean, I’m here. And I paid rent last year, but that’s when I had all that money. Now, I don’t know what I’m going to do. I have 14,000 square feet in Beachwood, and it’s not cheap. I also have only 14,000 square feet because at one time we have five restaurants, and we had all these office people and this and that. There is at least 3,000 square feet I don’t need, so I’m trying to give that back right now.

— Jo of Tw

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• Harper: Our landlord deferred a couple months of partial rent to the end of the year. He wasn’t sympathetic at all.

• Ha wen Walm in th resta ther reas in a who ask p at an You mor like i sens bett I can with resta

• Melendez: My situation was the same. I opened in Ohio City. They just deferred some money. The landlord actually raised the rent for my 500 square feet up to $7,000 amid the pandemic. It was crazy. That’s why I got out of there. And I was paying double rent, because I was paying at the other location in Parma

• Me a ch whe on, i espe ther been little

• Torres: It’s surprising to me that landlords themselves had money coming in from the government and it was almost like they were double dipping. They got money and PPP, and then they wanted your money.

12 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | APRIL 11, 2022

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FOCUS | SMALL BUSINESS “MY BANK ACCOUNT COULD BE AT ZERO, BUT I’M ALWAYS VERY OPTIMISTIC. YOU KNOW? TOMORROW IS GOING TO BE ANOTHER DAY.” — José Melendez, owner of Twisted Taino while I was building out. And they didn’t do anything either. They deferred the money but two months later, it was added to the regular rent, which was even worse because it went like $4,000 to almost $5,000. Like, thanks, you helped me for December and January, but I’m still hurting. But they didn’t care.  Q: When we think about the restrictions put in place during the pandemic that you were all subjected to, in retrospect, how do you think all of that was handled from a government and policy perspective? • Friedlander: Nobody knows what to do. It was something that never happened before so, who knew what the right thing to do was? Everybody did the best they could with the information that they had. • Torres: I was directly involved with a lot of negotiations with the governor when we were talking about whether to close, how we would handle that. I feel like Gov. DeWine and (Lt. Gov.) Jon Husted handled it well and were very thoughtful. And that was at a time when a lot of states were like, just close everything down. On a state level, I feel like it was handled very well. Like there were a lot of curfews instead of shutdowns. To some people, it may have seemed silly or stupid, but they weren’t involved with the discussions as to why things went that way, and it actually benefited the restaurants that we did things that way. Locally, it was kind of a cluster … mess. Everyone wanted to put their hands on it. The county had you doing one thing and the city had you doing another. At one point I had things on the window that showed where tables were for the county, and the city was like, what are those doing there? And I’m like, well, you need to call the county because I’m just trying to run a restaurant here. That was a bit confusing. But again, I think everyone was just trying to do what they thought was the right thing. • Harper: Horrible. Common sense went out the window. You could go to Walmart and there’s a thousand people in there, but you could not go to a restaurant and dine. No common sense there whatsoever. And what is the reasoning for that? You put employees in a very difficult situation with the whole mask thing, with them having to ask people wear masks and get sworn at and yelled at. You know, it’s easy to be a Monday morning quarterback. But I just felt like if they used a little more common sense with things, it could’ve gone a lot better. I was very frustrated with, yeah, I can go to Walmart and stand in line with 30 people, but I can’t go sit at a restaurant. It made no sense to me. • Melendez: All I can say is, being a chef and being behind that grill when it’s 130 degrees with that mask on, it gets a little difficult breathing, especially after eight to 12 hours in there. I do think everyone could’ve been a bit more organized and used a little more common sense, but I think

they were doing the best they could.  Q: So what was it like dealing with customers through all of this? • Friedlander: We haven’t had too many problems. There are some people who’d squawk about masks or this and that. But generally, it hasn’t been bad. We didn’t have any instances where there were any real fights with anyone. • Torres: I actually think people had been more understanding about COVID than they are with the lack of staff. People don’t understand that … like, I had someone complain not long ago that their lobster wasn’t pulled out of its tail. But we have two waiters right now. Those two wait captains on a Saturday night will sometimes wait on over 200 people. We don’t have the time to do the things we used to be able to do fine-dining-wise. And people don’t understand if you tell them we’re short-staffed, so just please be patient, you might have to wait a little longer. They say they are patient, but they are really not. And they get angry. So people got COVID because it was something that we all went through together. But now, there’s more and more demand for restaurants. That is a great and a positive thing, but there is not more demand from people wanting restaurant jobs. So now you have one person trying to do the same jobs as three or four times as many people, and people are less patient than they should be. • Harper: I would say that I think the customer is more on edge. I had a friend who tried to explain it from a customer’s perspective: they’re trying to go out and eat, but a restaurant is closed or their hours listed on Google aren’t the real hours they have, and now they’re closed, and now they’re frustrated, and now they go to the next restaurant … and they find out a place that had their favorite wing special doesn’t have it anymore. So he was trying to give me that other perspective of someone just trying to go out and dine, but things just aren’t like they were before. • Melendez: Our clientele has been polite. There are some things they don’t entirely understand, like we’re built for takeout and don’t have any public bathrooms, which some people don’t get. But I think I had more issues at the beginning with my own staff, like people didn’t want to get vaccinated or wear masks. It was a battle with your own, too. And that was my biggest battle as opposed to the customers.  Q: What are the biggest challenges or concerns that you folks are thinking about as you move ahead from here? • Harper: We’re staffed OK right now, so I would say the biggest issue is the supply chain. One week we can’t get ketchup, or tartar sauce. Now we send managers out to restaurant depots or somewhere else, and we’re spending all this time just trying to put the normal menu out there. Another issue is packaging. There’s a lot of frustrations with the rhyme or reasons why you can’t get things. • Friedlander: It’s the supply chain. If you can’t get the items that you sell and build your restaurant around, what would you do? It’s like if you’re McDonald’s and you can’t get hamburger, what do you do? People are going to all these chain restaurants, and it doesn’t seem they know the differences anymore

between that and something they get made fresh or from scratch. So why go to these lengths to make all this food when they are just going to go to, I don’t even know, Mitchell’s or something, and pay as much as they would pay at my place? • Melendez: It’s definitely a small percentage of people who appreciate things made from scratch anymore, as chain restaurants become more popular. • Friedlander: And it didn’t always used to be that way. I couldn’t have been here this long and had success at one time if so. There was a time when every cook on my line was from (the Culinary Institue of America). Whether they were sautéing broccoli or anything, they were doing it with technique. Now, I don’t think I have a single CIA graduate in my kitchen. • Melendez: There are many restaurants that may have a similar type of food, but I want mine to always have something that is unique. So, competition is good. But of my biggest concerns, staffing is one — I mean, I’m using high schoolers right now, and they’re eventually going to go to school, which we encourage them to do. But how long are we going to be in the same situation? Now we have inflation. People on the East Side don’t want to work for us because gas is more expensive. I guess the uncertainty of what could happen the next day or the next month, that’s what concerns me most.

Here for you.

Here for life.

“ONE WEEK WE CAN’T GET KETCHUP, OR TARTAR SAUCE. NOW WE SEND MANAGERS OUT TO RESTAURANT DEPOTS OR SOMEWHERE ELSE, AND WE’RE SPENDING ALL THIS TIME JUST TRYING TO PUT THE NORMAL MENU OUT THERE. ” — Matt Harper, owner of Creekside

• Torres: Speaking more in general for a lot of restaurants I see in Cleveland Independents, I think everyone is going to have a problem with staffing going forward until we as an industry are able to rebrand what it means to work in the industry and look at it in the exciting and loving way we look at it. We need to rebrand what that looks like so people don’t just look at this as an industry with long hours and low pay, but they think about it as a dynamic opportunity. When you think about it, most restaurants are run by chefs who could cook and started a restaurant or a waiter who decided they wanted to become a restaurant (owner). You don’t have to be some great business mogul to get into this business. I also think that from the perspective of the independents, one of the challenges is going to be differentiating ourselves from the chains. If we all just go to those chains, we become these homogenized cities with no personality. The restaurants here are the personality of the city. So we have to worry about how to differentiate ourselves from those chains that have become so popular and have the almighty dollar to be able to market themselves in a way that we can’t.

www.ncafinancial.com (440) 473-1115 NCA Financial Planners, LLC is now Sequoia Financial Advisors, LLC. Investment advisory services offered through Sequoia Financial Advisors, LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor. Registration as an investment advisor does not imply a certain level of skill or training. www.sequoia-financial.com 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. Sequoia Financial Group is not affiliated with RAA. 6095 Parkland Blvd., Suite 210, Mayfield Hts., OH 44124. Phone: 440-473-1115 www.ncafinancial.com

CRAIN’S THOUGHT LEADER FORUM

FOCUS: EMPLOYEE BENEFITS

SHOWCASE YOUR INDUSTRY EXPERTISE

PUBLISH DATE:

May 16

in this paid feature from Crain’s Content Studio – Cleveland.

PARTICIPATION DEADLINE:

CONTACT: conner.howard@crain.com

April 18

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FOCUS | SMALL BUSINESS

Klondike bar celebrates 100 years BY JUDY STRINGER

If you’re looking to ruffle the feathers of that Pittsburgh transplant at work or those Steeler fans down the street, drop this little nugget: Their beloved Isaly’s is actually Ohio-bred. Yep, the company behind iconic products like chipped chopped ham, Skyscraper ice cream cones and Klondike bars, got its start as a small business in Mansfield in the early 1900s. Its affordable ice cream parlors/delis, however, became a Depression-era favorite in the Steel City where Islay’s stores would open just two to three blocks apart, according to historian Brian Butko, author of “Isaly’s Chipped Ham, Klondikes, and Other Tales From Behind the Counter.” “Growing up in Pittsburgh, (Isaly’s) were more common than McDonald’s,” Butko explained, “which probably has a lot to do with why Pittsburgh lays claim to the brand.” Given that 2022 is the 100th anniversary of the Klondike — one of America’s favorite frozen treats — now is a good time to set the record straight. William Isaly, grandson of Swiss immigrants, established his dairy business in downtown Mansfield in 1902.

counter service. In 1918, the Isaly Dairy Co. spread to Youngstown — where a new factory and headquarters was built on Mahoning Avenue — and beginning in the late '20s, it landed in Pittsburgh; Columbus; and Fort Wayne, Indiana. “At its peak, there were probably more than 400 Isaly’s stores in operation,” Butko said. “And if you count all of the Isaly plants and stores that existed at one time or another, it tops 700. They are considered the largest family-owned dairy chain in the world ever.”

Staying power

Customers saddled up to Isaly’s lunch counters for sandwiches featuring its celebrated ultra-thin chipped chopped ham or a cup of its Boulevard Coffee brand. Yet Butko credits Isaly’s soaring popularity to the first-of-its-kind Skyscraper cones, which were formed with an elongated ice cream scoop, and its chocolate-dipped Klondike bars. Both sold at prices “even poor people could afford,” he said. How and where Klondikes originated depends on who in the Isaly family you ask, according to Butko, but there is a general agreement that it occurred at one of the Ohio dairies in “WHAT I THINK IS IMPORTANT AND 1922. IMPRESSIVE IS THAT A CENTURY “The Eskimo Pie, which was invented LATER, THAT PRODUCT DOMINATES two years earlier, was THE MARKET.” such an enormous success that every— Brian Butko, author of “Isaly’s Chipped Ham, Klondikes, and Other Tales From Behind the Counter” body was jumping on the bandwagon. There “The Isalys were really cheese were hundreds of imitators, so who makers,” said Butko, who is publica- invented the Klondike is kind of irreltions director at the Pitts- evant,” he said. “What I think is imburgh-based Heinz History Center portant and impressive is that a cenwhen he’s not researching and writ- tury later, that product dominates the ing his own historical accounts. “But market.” Early Klondike flavors included after William settled in Mansfield, he found the grass for the cows the classics, such as vanilla, chocowasn’t ideal for cheese production, late and strawberry, and some so he started producing milk and unique offerings like cherry, maple delivering it.” and grape. The bars were sold excluIsaly was an early adopter of pas- sively in Pennsylvania and Ohio until teurization and soon was pasteuriz- the 1970s and became America’s ing, bottling and delivering milk for best-selling novelty frozen treat other farmers. He expanded into heading into the ‘90s with the sucMarion in 1914. cessful “What Would You Do For a The Isaly factories also made ice Klondike Bar?” advertising camcream to sell to grocers, Butko said, paign. and to assert more control over how In 2021, approximately 98 million his dairy goods were stored, served Klondike bars were sold, according and priced, in 1917 Isaly opened his to a press release from Unilever, first retail store in Mansfield with which acquired the brand in 1993. milk, ice cream, bread and lunch The bars currently come in a wide va-

APP

From Page 11

The app’s creation is part of a “long-term bet” around a digitally engaged future, said Katz. This ambitious wager includes a $200,000 seed round raised in the last year. The young entrepreneurs are aiming to accrue another $2 million in seed funding in the second half of 2022. “We’re not actively raising now, but we have a big list of venture capitalists and investors who’ve given us soft verbal commitments,” said Katz. “Pitching any vision, you’ll run into people who don’t believe in it. But we’re driven by

this vision where devices will be in the background of our daily lives.” The Pump sample app initially centered on fitness, with that focus migrating into augmented and virtual reality and other areas of the creator economy. In talking to a VR developer about re-creating an astronaut’s experience in space, the sound of breathing could trigger virtual condensation to form on the inside of a player’s helmet. The app waitlist has about 500 influencers on board, boasting a total audience of around 30 million viewers. Ria Patag, whose fitness-related Instagram page has over 3,000 followers, films workouts to market her personal brand and get more eyes on a burgeoning line

riety of flavors, and the Klondike portfolio also includes ice cream sandwiches, cones and shakes, Unilever senior brand manager Tracy Shepard-Rashkin said in an email. Still, she noted, “the original chocolate-coated, ice-cream-loaded Klondike bar continues to remain an iconic staple in freezer aisles and reigns as our top-selling product.”

Second act As for the rest of the Isaly’s empire, the business began to contract in the late '60s, with the rise of supermarkets and convenience stores. Butko said the company eventually consolidated corporate operations in Pittsburgh, where today Conroy Foods — purveyors of Beano’s condiments and sauces — produce and distribute Isaly-brand deli meats, including the chipped chopped ham, and have recently relaunched its ice creams and coffee. Spokesperson Jennifer Gregg said when Jim and Leslee Conroy bought the brand from the Deily family, who had purchased the brand from the Isalys, they received a box of memorabilia, including recipes for unique ice cream flavors like Whitehouse Cherry and Maricopa. “They really wanted to bring back a product that brought joy to so many people,” she said. “It was a success. Since then, we’ve received many requests to reintroduce additional flavors and already brought back two of the most requested, chocolate marshmallow and toasted almond fudge.” Giant Eagle, Gregg said, sells the products. Butko said that although no company-owned Isaly’s restaurants remain, some independent operators have kept the name, including one diner in Stow’s Colonade Shopping Center off state Route 59. “Then there’s a couple here right over the (state) line in Pennsylvania,” he said. Bricker’s Cafeteria in East Liverpool, Ohio, Butko added, has the closest historical ties, as Lee Bricker, an Isaly relative, opened the restaurant, and it's still run by the Bricker family. Gregg said Conroy Foods hopes to open “an authentic Isaly’s restaurant” in the Pittsburgh area in the near future. Contact Judy Stringer: clbfreelancer@crain.com of fitness apparel. PumpML reached out to Patag about testing the app, a proposal that immediately intrigued the Las Vegas-based influencer. “I was very receptive about it, be-

Author Brian Butko credits Isaly’s soaring popularity to the first-of-its-kind Skyscraper cones, which were formed with an elongated ice cream scoop, and its chocolate-dipped Klondike bars. Both sold at prices “even poor people could afford,” he said.

Klondike bars were sold exclusively in Pennsylvania and Ohio until the 1970s and became America’s best-selling novelty frozen treat heading into the ‘90s with the successful “What Would You Do For a Klondike Bar?” advertising campaign. | “ISALY’S CHIPPED HAM, KLONDIKES, AND OTHER TALES FROM BEHIND THE COUNTER”

was going to give a shot.” Even in the testing phase, the app has aided Patag in recording her gym sessions. She’s also spoken with PumpML about making improvements — among them giving users the ability to listen to “PITCHING ANY VISION, YOU’LL RUN music while the softis in use — to INTO PEOPLE WHO DON’T BELIEVE IN ware which the proprietors IT. BUT WE’RE DRIVEN BY THIS VISION have been more than receptive. WHERE DEVICES WILL BE IN THE “I proposed putting that on their road BACKGROUND OF OUR DAILY LIVES.” map,” Patag said. “(The — Jonah Katz, Pump app creator company owners) have been open to feedcause I love trying new things,” Pa- back.” Katz sees a wide-open future for tag said. “Anything that could help me with my social media presence, I the sound-detection innovation,

pointing to 11 B2B prospects the company has added since the beginning of February. Expansion into AR/ VR is among the company’s plans, an opportunity that favors customer retention over a giant user base. “The goal isn’t to get 10 million users for this app, but we’d love to get 100,000 people coming back every week to use our technology,” said Katz. “That would show we can deliver sustained value instead of something going viral. Our metrics are oriented around retention. We feel like our technology can solve real problems for people, and that feels incredibly meaningful.” Contact Douglas J. Guth: clbfreelancer@crain.com

14 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | APRIL 11, 2022

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The most impactful way to improve the health of your team members is to improve their diet. “Most of the diseases we see are caused by food and can be cured by food,” according to Dr. Mark Hyman of the Center for Functional Medicine. My company, HarvestOwl, has been preparing healthy lunches for Cleveland’s office-based workforce for more than seven years. We’ve seen the benefits firsthand – happier, healthier, and more engaged team members. Here are three key lessons we’ve learned along the way that can help your team eat healthier.

We segment our guests along a healthfulness spectrum (Kale, Who?, Middle of the Road, Pretty Healthy, and Adventurous). Our weekly lunch menu is balanced to include items that appeal to each of our four guest personas. For example, for our guests who are resistant to healthy eating, we offer a Grilled Buffalo Chicken Wrap. The small step? It’s grilled and not fried. And, it’s served on a whole wheat wrap instead of a more-refined white wrap. On the same menu, for our uber healthy guests, we offer a Super Kale Bowl with beet, carrot, black lentils, dried blueberries, walnuts, quinoa and turmeric apple vinaigrette. I suggest you adopt a similar mindset when feeding your team. Choose an assortment of options that vary in their healthfulness. Don’t push the envelope too far – focus on one small step in the direction of better health.

Small changes to the organization of your office’s kitchen can have a huge impact on what your team members eat while at work.

If you make a healthy lunch easy to get, pretty darn tasty and as affordable as a burger, I promise that your team members will eat it.

They’ll tend to eat what they see first. So, place your healthy snacks front and center on the kitchen countertop. I suggest a basket of apples and bananas with packets of unsweetened almond butter. Store your less healthful snacks in a cupboard, out of sight.

The most successful companies we work with contribute to the cost of each lunch on behalf of their team members. Lunches are ordered online in advance and delivered to a HarvestOwl refrigerator in their office. The company contribution equals affordability and the ease of ordering reduces friction.

You might be a vegan-loving, power-bowl-eating professional. But, keep in mind that your team might not be in the same place. When bringing healthy food into your office, provide an assortment of items that are more healthy and others that are less-so. Our philosophy at HarvestOwl is to meet our guests where they are and provide a lunch that’s one small step in the direction of better health.

So many office workers feel guilty about what they eat for lunch. They’d like to eat better, but they’re short on time and budget. Address these two items and you’ll significantly improve participation in your healthy lunch program. Scott Himmel is the founder of HarvestOwl (formerly LunchOwl), a Cleveland-based service that provides fresh, healthy and personalized lunches to forwardthinking businesses and office buildings. He can be reached at scott@harvestowl.com and (216) 672-0655 x101.

Whole health matters. With a healthier workforce comes happier employees, improved morale and increased productivity. Delta Dental is committed to the whole health of our customers and members—we know the connection oral health has on the rest of our body, and that having dental benefits makes it easier for individuals to care for their oral health. Now, we’re making it easier for people to care for their eye health, too, with DeltaVision® vision benefits.

DeltaVision® www.deltadentaloh.com/vision

As we continue to navigate through the changing workplace, we are often reminded that employment isn’t the only thing changing for our employees. Education arrangements, family changes and even personal outings have completely shifted too. These adjustments — some short term and some long term — are affecting our employees in new and challenging ways, which means we must support them at work where they spend majority of their days. This can be done by addressing their emotional well-being, work/life balance, financial health and physical health. Here for more is Earl Major, vice president of human resources at Delta Dental of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana.

It all starts with listening. We didn’t want to assume what our employees wanted during this time, so we launched

Wellness programs are becoming an expectation among most current and prospective employees in both the private and public sectors. Furthermore, the traditional plan revolving around gym memberships, weight loss and smoking cessation has become outdated. The next challenge is to identify new strategies that provide meaningful programs in support of personal goals at work and at home, while addressing new challenges to the health insurance plan. The changing landscape means employee wellness is no longer as simple as step challenges and health reviews. To achieve maximum results, wellness programs must work in unison with health insurance plans to help alleviate high-cost claims whenever possible, and leaders must understand the connection between wellness and engagement at work. In other words, companies are best served by identifying their own pain points with high claims and steering incentives toward alleviating those

an engagement survey to hear what they value and need from us. Based on the results, we implemented a four-pillar approach to employee well-being: Body, mind, wealth and purpose. Survey results also showed that nearly 90% of our employees said that they were not ready for retirement and wanted to be better prepared. In response to that need, we brought on a new investment adviser providing monthly educational workshops and individual investment guidance. We also expanded our paid parental bonding leave and continue to offer volunteer and corporate citizenship opportunities (both virtually and inperson), allowing our employees to feel connected to our purpose-driven culture despite not being together in the office. In fact, we offered 30 opportunities for employees in all three of our states this past year, with employees logging nearly 2,000 volunteer hours.

Research tells us that employees who are in good health are more likely to

issues, coupled with encouraging engagement for increased productivity. One of the best ways to help drive engagement in a wellness program is to add the correct incentives. Many plans have incorporated HRA contributions to those who are active participants in physical activity or biometric screenings, as this not only provides incentives for employees to increase participation, but also limits the employer’s cost liability. When looking at today’s claims activity, we are most likely to see increased costs in mental health, diabetes and digestive health issues. Since the risks have shifted over the past decade, so should the targets. When these issues can be identified and treated in a timely manner, the costs to all parties involved can be reduced dramatically. Thinking outside the box on both purposes and incentives will help drive members to engage and utilize the program in a fashion that will provide more tangible returns for all involved. Since wellness goals are intended to decrease medical and prescription costs while increasing employee engagement and attendance, it’s vital to find the key areas of concern and target programs that will focus on those particular needs.

deliver better work performance. They often have a better quality of life, lower risk of illness and are more likely to volunteer and give back to their community. The well-being of our employees also translates to dollars back into their pockets. For example, our health care employee contribution cost share from 2021 to 2022 did not increase at all. Throughout the entire pandemic, our employees have been paying the same amount for their medical coverage.

Take breaks, participate in professional development and growth opportunities and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Our employee assistance program (EAP) offers resources to our staff and individuals within their households 24-7 via phone, website, text, video counseling or mobile app. The EAP can assist with a wide variety of topics such as legal consultation, debt management, stress, elder care, tobacco cessation, family and relationship concerns and much more. In addition, our Think, Teach, Thrive professional development

programming allows employees to step away from their work for an hour or less to stretch their minds and participate in lunch-and-learn sessions, book club conversations or TedX style employee presentations. We encourage physical activity and healthy nutrition by promoting use of our on-site fitness center with free personal training as well as daily credits to cover lunch at our on-site cafeteria. We already had a foundation in place that showed our employees we cared about them even before the initial shutdown and continue showing that we care during the pandemic. When employees were sent home in 2020, transparency was our key focus, keeping employees at the center of the company’s value proposition and communicating frequently. We have been fortunate to not suffer the effects of the great resignation and that’s a testament to our total employee rewards and the hard work we’ve put into creating a culture that makes our employees feel valued and connected. Engaged employees are more satisfied with their jobs, while disengaged employees are more likely to pursue career opportunities elsewhere.

From medical insurance to retirement plans, we recognize employee benefits are an important part of an employee’s total compensation. Making the best use of health benefits as well as paid time off and retirement plans allows employees to save money, stay healthy and enjoy a secure financial future. We have long been committed to the whole health of our members. Recognizing this, we partnered with VSP® Vision Care this year to offer DeltaVision® vision insurance to our groups. Dentists and eye doctors are both trained to detect early signs of many conditions, which can lead to earlier intervention and better overall health. We also know employees are spending more time in front of a screen, and even those who do not need glasses may turn to their vision benefits to help reduce eye strain and the effects of blue light.

Strength and Support You Can Count On

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CRAIN'S LIST | SOFTWARE DEVELOPERS Ranked by full-time local employees as of Jan. 1, 2022 LOCAL FULL-TIME STAFF - 1/1/2022 RANK

COMPANY

TOTAL 1-YEAR CHANGE

CODERS

TYPE OF SOFTWARE THIS COMPANY OFFERS

MAIN LANGUAGES

TOP LOCAL EXECUTIVE

HYLAND 28500 Clemens Road, Westlake 44145 440-788-4988/hyland.com

1,705 -23.6%

168

Content management and intelligent automation

C#, C++, C

Bill Priemer, president, CEO

QUADAX INC. 7500 Old Oak Blvd., Middleburg Heights 44130 440-777-6300/quadax.com

777 -3.6%

Health care claims management and revenue cycle management

.NET Framework

John S. Leskiw, president, CEO

MRI SOFTWARE LLC 28925 Fountain Parkway, Solon 44139 800-321-8770/mrisoftware.com

535 8.5%

166

Property management and accounting for the real estate industry

VB.NET, C#, Java

Patrick Ghilani, CEO John Ensign, president

OVERDRIVE INC. One OverDrive Way, Garfield Heights 44125 216-573-6886/overdrive.com

384 4.9%

Reading apps for public libraries and schools

C#, ASP.net MVC/Web Steve Potash, founder, CEO API, SQL Server, React, Kafka, Ruby

FOUNDATION SOFTWARE LLC 17800 Royalton Road, Strongsville 44136 800-246-0800/foundationsoft.com

273 -13.9%

Accounting, project management, estimating and PowerBuilder, Delphi, takeoff and mobile software for construction C#, JavaScript companies

Mike C. Ode, CEO

TRIMBLE TRANSPORTATION 6085 Parkland Blvd., Mayfield Heights 44124 440-721-2020/transportation.trimble.com

250 0%

Transportation, fleet management and asset maintenance

C#, .NET Framework, Java

James Langley, senior vice president

MIM SOFTWARE INC. 25800 Science Park Drive, Suite 180, Cleveland 44122 216-455-0600/mimsoftware.com

232 27.5%

Medical imaging

Java, Ruby on Rails, C++, MATLAB

Andrew Nelson, CEO

OECONNECTION (OEC) 4205 Highlander Parkway, Richfield 44286 330-523-1800/oeconnection.com

210 —

E-commerce, supply chain, business intelligence and fleet solutions for OEM distribution networks (dealerships, repair shops)

.NET Framework, Java, Patrick C. Brown, president, CEO PHP

N2Y LLC 900 University Drive S. , Huron 44839 419-433-9800/n2y.com

112 5.7%

Special education - K-12 and transition

.NET Framework

Chrissy Wostmann, board chair

KEYFACTOR 6150 Oak Tree Blvd., Suite 200, Independence 44131 216-785-2990/keyfactor.com

90 30.4%

Cybersecurity

C#, Java, Powershell, Python, Go

Ted Shorter, CTO

FENETECH INC. 260 Campus Drive, Aurora 44202 330-995-2830/fenetech.com

75 7.1%

ERP software for the fenestration industry

.NET Framework

Ronald W. Crowl, managing director

NEW INNOVATIONS INC. 3540 Forest Lake Drive, Uniontown 44685 330-899-9954/new-innov.com

71 1.4%

Medical education tracking software

C#, TypeScript

Steve C. Reed, CEO

BINARY DEFENSE 600 Alpha Parkway, Stow 44224 800-246-2792/binarydefense.com

70 -7.9%

Managed detection and response

F#, Python, Go, JavaScript, C/C++

Mike Valentine, CEO

7SIGNAL INC. 6155 Rockside Road, Independence 44131 216-777-2900/7signal.com

60 20%

Wi-Fi monitoring and mitigation

Java, Javascript, C/ C++

Thomas M. Barrett, CEO

EPICOR EDI (FORMERLY 1 EDI SOURCE) 31875 Solon Road, Solon 44139 877-334-1334/epicor.com

60 —

Electronic data interchange and business-tobusiness integration software

C# using .NET Framework

Lance Hutt, VP, general manager

SURGERE 3500 Massillon Road, Uniontown 44685 833-221-1165/surgere.com

55 0%

Part identity and location for supply chains

C#, .NET, and Blazor

William Wappler, CEO

POINTE BLANK SOLUTIONS LTD. 30400 Detroit Road, Suite 400, Westlake 44145 440-243-5100/pointeblank.net

49 4.3%

Case management software for the justice community; health care management software

Thomas J. Coury, chairman, chief software architect

TRIBUTE INC. 141 Broad Blvd., Suite 206, Cuyahoga Falls 44221 330-656-3006/tribute.com

48 0%

ERP software for industrial distributors that provide value added services

.NET Framework

Susie Hopper, president

MAIN SEQUENCE TECHNOLOGY INC. 4420 Sherwin Road, Hamilton Hall, Willoughby 44094 440-946-5214/pcrecruiter.net

45 2.3%

Database/business process automation for prehire activity

Microsoft / React / SQL Server

Gretchen A. Kubicek, CFO Martin H. Snyder, president

DATA-BASICS INC. 600 Broadway Ave., Bedford 44146 216-663-5600/databasics.com

44 0%

ERP service, construction and accounting software for HVAC/R trades

SmallTalk, Android, HTML, Azure, DBFrameWork, others

Arthur K. Divell Jr., CEO

DESCARTES MACROPOINT 6050 Oak Tree Blvd., Suite 150, Cleveland 44131 888-544-3844/macropoint.com

40 —

Software to improve performance, security of logistics-intensive businesses

Numerous

Dan Cicerchi, VP and general manager, Transportation Management

ONOSYS 5005 Rockside Road, Suite 1100, Independence 44131 888-666-7976/onosys.com

38 —

Online ordering software for restaurant chains and hospitality companies

C#, JavaScript, HTML, CSS

Chris Anderle, president Matthew Pavkov, VP of technology Ryan Younker, chief technology officer

SQUIRRELS LLC 121 Wilbur Drive N.E., North Canton 44720 855-207-0927/airsquirrels.com

38 0%

Screen mirroring and digital signage

C, C#, Objective-C, JavaScript

Andrew Gould, CEO

FORMFIRE LLC 1100 Superior Ave., Suite 1650, Cleveland 44114 216-357-7400/formfire.com

36 -7.7%

Small group health insurance technology

.NET Framework

Colin Ingram, cofounder, CEO

SEGMINT INC. 2020 Front St., Suite 101, Cuyahoga Falls 44221 888-734-6468/segmint.com

33 —

Transaction cleansing, analytics and insights for financial institutions

—

Adam C. Craig, president

Research by Chuck Soder (csoder@crain.com) | Information is from the companies.

Get 39 companies and +140 executives in Excel format. Become a Data Member: CrainsCleveland.com/data 18 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | APRIL 11, 2022

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LIST ANALYSIS

Hyland’s local staff shrinks, BrandMuscle drops off list BY CHUCK SODER

A 23% drop in the size of Hyland’s local workforce in 2021 caused total employment on this year’s edition of the Crain’s Software Developers list to plunge. The Westlake-based content management software company is still easily the largest software company in Northeast Ohio, with 1,705 full time employees in the region, but that figure fell by more than 500 through 2021. That decrease caused the combined local employment for the full digital list to fall 9%. Granted, the rest of the companies on the list didn’t do much to counterbalance the drop: their local employment grew less than 1% when you look at the 34 companies that submitted two years of consistent data. That’s historically low for companies on this list. Hyland continued to grow in terms of revenue and worldwide employment through 2021. Until last year, local employment had grown steadily as well, increasing in big chunks almost every year for at least the prior 20 years. For instance, Hyland added about 360 people locally in 2020. In January 2021, the company laid off about 140 people on its Product Delivery team, according to multiple media outlets. The company wouldn’t say what other factors played into the latest drop, but it’s certainly not the only local software company that saw its local workforce shrink last year. For instance, BrandMuscle had been a staple in the top 10 for years but didn’t submit this year, as its development team is now primarily in India. The Chicago-based marketing software company reported 42 programmers in Northeast Ohio as of Jan. 1, 2018, and that number has fallen each year since. The pandemic and the rise of remote work did not accelerate that transition, according to Lori Alba, vice president of marketing at BrandMuscle. But BrandMuscle and many companies on the list told Crain’s that they are now hiring people with less regard to where they live. “I’m hiring people from everywhere,” said Alba, citing growth in the sales and business development team at BrandMuscle, which still has 140 employees in Northeast Ohio. Several companies on the list told Crain’s they’re hiring from other geographies — and allowing remote work permanently — to combat the labor shortage hitting so many different industries, judging by responses we received to the following multiple choice questions. Over the past year, what actions has your firm taken specifically to address staffing challenges? The top two responses were related: 18 companies picked “Permanently allowing remote work part or full time.” Fourteen chose “Recruiting from new geographies.” Many of the 24 respondents picked both, as they could choose multiple answers. Companies on the list are strongly embracing remote work, judging by the results of the next question: Regarding local employees who be-

Back to the office? Regarding local employees who began working remotely when the pandemic began: Is your firm requiring them to come back to the office? Results are from 23 companies. They’re back or will soon be back full time: 1 They can work remotely a few days/week: 10 They can work remotely one day/week: 0 They can work remotely full time: 6 They’ll now all work remotely: 3 We’re still deciding: 2 We worked in the office through the pandemic: 1 We worked remotely before the pandemic: 0

HR goes into action What actions has your firm taken to address staffing challenges? Responses are from 24 companies, who could choose more than one answer. Raised salaries beyond cost-of-living increases: 11 Improved insurance/retirement benefits: 6 Added/expanded tuition/training benefits: 1 Allowing remote work part or full time: 18 Added/expanded signing bonuses: 3 Recruiting from new geographies: 14 Recruiting from new schools:1 Recruiting people not actively seeking work: 4 Loosened qualifications listed on job postings: 1 None of these: 2 SOURCE: CRAIN’S SURVEY

gan working remotely when the pandemic began: Is your firm requiring them to come back to the office? The short answer: “No.” Of the 23 respondents, 19, or 83%, said they’re letting people work remotely at least a few days a week. And nine of those companies aren’t requiring people to come in at all. Three of the nine said they are entirely or almost entirely virtual. That makes them much more remote-friendly than the 99 companies who answered the same question for our Largest Privately Held Companies list, which covers various industries, this past fall. Only 41% of those companies said they would allow remote work even once a week, and none said they’d go completely virtual. Chuck Soder: csoder@crain.com, (216) 771-5374, @ChuckSoder

Basketball Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo is part of an investment group looking to bring international students to the Spire Institute and Academy. | CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS

MUTOMBO

From Page 1

and they get on the bus for an hour, hour and a half to get home. Hopefully Mommy has cooked something, but sometimes Mom didn’t cook because they didn’t have money for food. “It’s just a struggle.” Mutombo, one of 10 children in his family, grew up competing in soccer and martial arts before picking up basketball at age 16. He moved to America at age 21 on a United States Agency for International Development (USAID) scholarship with designs on becoming a doctor. His rare height (7-foot-2) and athleticism caught the eye of Georgetown coach John Thompson, who molded him into an all-conference player for the Hoyas and a future first-round draft pick of the Denver Nuggets. The eight-time NBA All-Star wants to create similar opportunities for students in Africa, which is why he’s part of an investment group that recently began a strategic partnership with the Spire Institute and Academy. The group will work with Spire to attract and secure international talent and expand the academy’s global reach, particularly in Africa. “My business partner informed me there was a huge sports complex outside of Cleveland, Ohio, and that we should look it up,” said Mutombo, who recently spoke to Crain’s Cleveland Business by Zoom. “We checked it out and I said, ‘I’ve traveled around the world and I’ve never seen anything like this. I would really love to be a part of this.’” Mutombo’s investment dovetails with the NBA’s recent efforts to grow the game in Africa. NBA commissioner Adam Silver talked about that initiative at last month’s NBA AllStar Technology Summit — former President Barack Obama was part of the Zoom panel — and pointed out that 10% of the league’s current players were either born in Africa or have a parent who was born in Africa. The 54 countries in Africa have a total population (1.3 billion) that rivals China, and about 50% of that population is under the age of 20. “It’s really important for us to expand the number of young people who play the game,” said NBA Africa CEO Victor Williams, whose organization plans to build 1,000 courts on the continent. “In order to do so, we

Dikembe Mutombo poses with Spire commissioner J.P. Ducro, commissioner Kathryn Whittington and former NBA player Mitch Richmond at the Spire Institute and Academy.

have to provide great infrastructure for them. We want to get every kid in Africa bouncing the ball rather than kicking the ball.” Mutombo visited Spire while in town for the All-Star Game in February, and plans to be back for a bit in June to host a basketball camp. “Spire is not just a place where I invest my money, and that’s all and I’m not coming back,” Mutombo said. “I’m not like that. I just love the place.” Managing partner Jonathan Ehrenfeld said Spire is pursuing partnership opportunities with the NBA and hopes to secure scholarship funding and a presence with NBA Africa. The Mutombo-Spire partnership hasn’t yet produced any fulltime students, but Mutombo said they hope to have a few enrolled before September. “There’s a lot that we’re doing behind the scenes right now,” Mutombo said. “We’re trying to raise the awareness of this place, raise the visibility and bring in more tournaments for basketball, volleyball, soccer, football — whatever they can offer. As the campus continues to grow, with all the new hotels coming, there’s more that we are working on. We are reaching out to all our partners in the different sports so they know there’s a great place in North America where they can come.” Part of the draw, Ehrenfeld said, is the fact that Spire offers more than just athletics. It looks to prepare students for life beyond the sport and the court, offering a “holistic approach” to academics and life devel-

opment, with a heavy focus on college and career placement. “We aim to expand our majors beyond athletics to include industries including medicine, marketing, agriculture, journalism and many others so that students can double major in their sport and their passion for a lifelong impact,” Ehrenfeld said. Mutombo shares that goal. In addition to his basketball success, he graduated from Georgetown with bachelor’s degrees in linguistics and diplomacy, served as a summer intern in Congress and the World Bank, and speaks nine languages. He founded the Dikembe Motumbo Foundation in the DRC in 1997 and, in 2018, received the Sager Strong Award for his humanitarian work. He has spent his life trying to help others, and views the Spire partnership as an extension of that. “I want to give kids the tools to succeed in life,” he said. “I think Spire has that platform. When it comes to the venue, when it comes to training, when it comes to classes, the environment, being close to the waterfront — it doesn’t get better than that. The place is very peaceful, very calm. It gives you a chance to rest, to work on your game, to talk to the coaches and to travel. “They’re competing, they’re going to class, they’re living a normal life and there’s no better place, because there’s no place like that in America. I wish I went to a school like that.” Joe Scalzo: joe.scalzo@crain.com (216) 771-5256, @JoeScalzo01

APRIL 11, 2022 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 19

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Cleveland Clinic London by the numbers

184

PATIENT BEDS

29 INTENSIVE CARE UNIT BEDS

8 OPERATING THEATERS

21 DAY CASE ROOMS FOR SURGERY

41 Cleveland Clinic London, which opened at the end of March, is just the latest example of the Clinic’s global expansion. | CLEVELAND CLINIC

CLINIC

17% from 2020) with an operating income of $746 million — more than triple the year prior. The operating From Page 1 margin was 6%. Associating the Cleveland Clinic’s the U.S. where we’re based, but also to help those in our global communi- brand and reputation with more ty who seek Cleveland Clinic quality quality facilities in different parts of the world is a plus for the health syscare.” The 184-bed hospital that opened tem across the country and in Northin March is the Clinic’s second loca- east Ohio, said Tom Campanella, tion in London, following the Cleve- health care executive in residence at land Clinic Portland Place Outpa- Baldwin Wallace University. “The big question mark will be the tient Centre, which opened in financial side of it,” he said. September 2021. As a private hospital, Cleveland Cleveland Clinic London links the Clinic London offers an alClinic’s existing research ternative to public hospitals efforts — in Northeast Ohio, of the National Health SerFlorida, Abu Dhabi and vice — the United Kingacross the global system — dom’s publicly funded to the “tremendous rehealth care system. search assets” in London, Campanella points to two said Dr. Brian Donley, CEO sides of COVID-19’s impact of Cleveland Clinic Lonon how patients have acdon. cessed care during the pan“In London are some of demic. With public hospithe leading universities and Suri tals overwhelmed during leading research institusurges, private hospital utilitions, and so we have been zation increased. But on the working on those relationother hand, patients’ ability ships, and strengthening to travel due to restrictions those relationships,” he or their willingness to due to said. “And when you comfort level is likely to strengthen research collabhave a negative impact on orations, and you get that international patients across diversity of thought, and Europe, he said. new ways to think about And longer term, there’s problems and new ways to Donley likely to be increased comsolve those, that’s when you petition. can really see an exponen“There’s going to be more tial increase in outcomes private hospitals moving in for patients and new disto try to get that market coveries.” share,” Campanella said. The Clinic is not disclos“The challenge for the Clinic ing the total cost of its Lonis to differentiate themdon project, but in 2018 selves from these other through a U.K. subsidiary it competitors.” financed £665 million The Clinic’s global efforts (about $900 million in U.S. Campanella date back to its 2006 signing dollars) to fund constructof an agreement with Mubadala Ining and equipping the hospital. In July 2021, Moody’s assigned Aa2 vestment Company to provide care in to Cleveland Clinic’s outstanding Abu Dhabi. The same year, Cleveland Clinic debt and a stable outlook. Moody’s cited, among other factors, its Canada opened a 26,000-square-foot strength as an international brand, outpatient clinic in Toronto. Nearly a which “will allow the system to grow decade later, in 2015, the 364-bed revenue outside of the constrained Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi hospital northeast Ohio market and offset the opened. And a couple years after that, the impact of the pandemic on volumes,” the July 2021 rating rationale stated. Clinic launched a new structured It also noted that Moody’s expects platform, Cleveland Clinic Connectthe system’s “centralized and inte- ed, designed to connect members grated governance structure will help with Cleveland Clinic enterprise exthe system maintain good cash flow perts in a collaborative manner. The margins while managing execution program aims to help the Clinic serve risks related to its London expansion more people through virtual health, and ongoing integration of Florida while also supporting care the delivery of local care for those seeking it at acquisitions.” In 2021, the Clinic’s total operating member institutions. Luye Medical Group became the revenue reached $12.4 billion (up

BED NEUROLOGICAL REHABILITATION WARD

1,200

vesting in education from the beginning, citing partnerships that are already in place in London with universities to train fellows, medical students and nurses. “I think having Dr. (Tom) Mihaljevic as our CEO, is probably the best example of how we’ve taken that learning from Abu Dhabi to build London,” Donley said. Mihaljevic, who oversees the system’s global strategy, served as CEO of Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi before becoming president and CEO of the entire health system. The past two years in particular required a lot of shared learning, and ultimately strengthened the system’s existing relationships around the globe, Suri said. In many ways, this means the system will emerge from the pandemic with “a stronger bilateral partnership” across all of its locations around the globe. “And the one thing that has come through is that the demand for high quality health care still continues to grow,” Donley said. “And so we feel confident that the demand for the Cleveland Clinic model of care will continue to always be there. And we look forward to serving those needs in all of our areas, and now including in London.”

first — and to date, only — member of Cleveland Clinic Connected. The two are collaborating on the development CAREGIVERS INCLUDING 300 of Shanghai Luye Lilan Hospital in the DOCTORS AND 400 NURSES Shanghai New Hong Qiao International Medical Center. The hospital, which will be owned and operated by Luye Medical Group, is under construction and is expected Lydia Coutré: lcoutre@crain.com, TOTAL CLEVELAND CLINIC to open in 2026. 771-5479, @LydiaCoutre C R A I N ’ S HOSPITALS C L E V E L A NGLOBALLY D B U S I N E S S | S(216) EPTEM BER 3 - 9 , 2 018 | PA G E 2 9 Cleveland Clinic Connected emphasizes supporting quality, safety and experience initiatives. Member physicians can connect with clinical Advertising Section experts at Cleveland Clinic for physician-to-physicians consultations, and member institutions can access the Clinic’s expert advisory services, education and training. The program is just one model through which the Clinic offers its expertise to international partners. In To place your listing in Crain’s Cleveland Classifieds, 2021, the system formed a strategic advisory council with a tertiary health contact Suzanne Janik at 313-446-0455 care institution in the Bahamas. Through a two-year agreement, Doctors Hospital Health System and the or email sjanik@crain.com Clinic aim to improve and expand health care delivery in the Bahamas. Collaborating with local partners or consulting with existing systems by leveraging intellectual capital can create brand recognition with less financial risk, Campanella said, noting there’s “a lot of potential for win-win scenarios” in such models. Campanella points to a number of BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY factors to consider, including declining inpatient trends and uncertainty in the market and financial challenges C.W. JENNINGS INDUSTRIAL EMPIRE Since 1973 in the U.S. health care system, such as C.W. Jennings Global Enterprise Inc. risk arrangements and the shift away from the fee-for-service payment Manufacturing/Distribution Advising models. Industrial/Consumer Goods “The more financial challenges Global Expansion Financing you’re having in the US, the less risks you want to take when you do someConstruction / Acquisitions thing globally,” he said. Corporate Partnering In the Clinic’s mix of different models, the system ultimately decides how C.W. Jennings Global Trading Centers Inc. to enter a market — international or not — based on an analysis of what International Commerce Network that community needs, Suri said. C.W. Jennings Industrial Holdings Inc. “Just like there are different models of serving patients between CleveC.W. Jennings Industrial Capital Inc. land, Lakewood, Bay Village, Akron, C. W Jennings Industrial Building Inc. Florida, and in different parts of the U.S. — every community has specific For Industrial Services Call Headquarters needs — so too, are there differences (216) 505 - 5049 / (855) 707 - 1944 in the needs between populations globally,” Suri said. BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY Cleveland Clinic London is building on the lessons of the Clinic’s other locations in the U.S. and abroad, said Fabrication Company Donley, who has been with the system With Product Line since 1996. A key lesson in Abu Dhabi For Sale especially was the importance of Sales $1.3M building out a research infrastructure mike@empirebusinesses.com from the very start. www.empirebusinesses.com He also noted the importance of in-

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PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

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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 ADVERTISING / MARKETING

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Adcom

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Cleveland Foundation

Adcom welcomes Todd Hall to the team as VP, Account Director. He’s a pro at providing great marketing direction for clients. Todd’s marketing experience is both broad and deep. He has passion for developing team growth and driving client success. Todd also has a knack for telling compelling stories that make the world of instant data make sense. He tells other stories, too, some of which are actually pretty funny. Welcome to Adcom, Todd! Learn more at engageadcom.com

Oswald Companies is pleased to announce the promotion of David C. Jacobs to Vice Chairman of Oswald Companies. In this role he assumes responsibility for leading M&A activities for Unison Risk Advisors. Jacobs brings more than three decades of insurance industry experience and over 20 years of leadership at Oswald Companies, most recently serving as President and Chief Operating Officer.

The Cleveland Foundation is proud to announce that Constance HillJohnson has been elected Chairperson of the Cleveland Foundation Board of Directors. A member of the board since 2018, Hill-Johnson is the owner and managing director of Visiting Angels Living Assistance Services. She was a 2020 YWCA Women of Achievement honoree and was instrumental in bringing The Soul of Philanthropy Cleveland to Northeast Ohio in 2019 and establishing a permanent exhibit entitled Celebrate Those Who Give Black.

CONSTRUCTION

STAFFING / SERVICES

Precision Environmental Co. Precision Environmental Co. is proud to announce that Daniel Eureka has been promoted to Vice President. Daniel has continued to earn the respect of clients and peers since joining our team in 2015. Daniel’s experience includes 10 years as an environmental consultant after attaining a B.S. in Emergency Management and AAS in Fire Protection Technology from The University of Akron. Daniel’s focus will be to evolve our estimating / project management teams and explore new opportunities within the environmental and demolition sectors.

Direct Recruiters, Inc. INSURANCE

Oswald Companies Oswald Companies is pleased to announce Jessica Jung has been promoted to President of Oswald Companies. She joined Oswald in 2015 and most recently served as Executive Vice President and Managing Director of Property & Casualty. She brings over two decades of advanced industry and leadership experience to this role, which includes oversight of all business units.

We are pleased to announce that Cherie Shepard has been named Managing Partner at Direct Recruiters, Inc. As the first woman appointed to Managing Partner at DRI, Cherie has demonstrated leadership, mentorship, dedication, and a standard of excellence in her role and within the search industry. She currently directs the Packaging, Processing & Material Handling teams. Cherie Shepard demonstrates exceptional leadership qualities and serves as a positive role model for women in business.

HEALTH CARE

Lifebanc is excited to announce Micah Davis as its Chief Operations Officer. Micah brings over 15 years of healthcare leadership and will lead Lifebanc’s efforts to maximize and increase organ, eye, and tissue donation and to provide quality, cost-effective services to two transplant centers, 80 donor hospitals, patients, and community. We look forward to the experience and work ethic that Micah brings to further our mission of saving and healing lives through organ, eye, and tissue donation.

INSURANCE

Oswald Companies Oswald Companies is pleased to announce the promotion of Steven Baltas to National Sales Director of Benefits. In this role he has oversight of group benefits sales for all URA Operating Companies. He most recently served as Benefits Sales Director for Oswald Companies. He has over 20 years of industry experience. Prior to joining Oswald, Baltas was the President and Founder of Union Insurance Group, Inc.

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THE WEEK CHANGE AT THE TOP: Len Komoroski will step down from his role as CEO of the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and the Rock Entertainment Group at the end of the Cavs’ season. But he’ll still remain affiliated with REG, where he’ll focus on its “growth and development, as well as special projects and initiatives,” the Cavs announced on Thursday, April 7. Asked if the Cavs would hire a replacement for Komoroski or would promote from within, a spokesman said, “We expect to make an announcement on that early (this) week.” Komoroski was hired as the Cavs’ president in 2003, and he became CEO in 2013. FLYING HIGH: The Chagrin Highlands I and II office buildings in Beachwood were acquired Tuesday, April 5, by an Aventura, Florida, investment firm for $39 million, according to sources familiar with the transaction. The buildings were shed by Shelbourne, a Brooklyn, New York-based company that has a substantial portfolio of buildings in the Cleveland suburbs. Shelbourne also did well in the sale to GLF Ohio LLC, an affiliate of Kawa Capital Group, an independent real estate asset adviser and capital services provider with more than $1.8 billion in assets under management. County land records show that Shelbourne shelled out $14 million to acquire them in 2017 from an affiliate of Jacobs Real Estate Services of Westlake. The firm of the late Richard and David Jacobs developed them as multitenant properties in the Chagrin Highlands corporate center. WHAT’S IN STORE: The owners of SouthPark Mall have added another key asset to their holdings — a vacant Sears store attached to the Strongsville shopping center. Real estate records show that an affiliate of Kize Capital LP, a New York investment firm, paid $5 million for the former department store. Sears closed its SouthPark outpost in late 2018 and had been marketing the property for sale at an undisclosed price. The acquisition gives Kize and its partner, Spinoso Real Estate Group, command of a critical gateway to the mall. A Kize affiliate bought SouthPark in late April 2020, in a $57.7 million deal that illustrated the battered state of the enclosed-mall business. That initial purchase spanned the core of the mall; the adjoining Dick’s Sporting Goods store and Cinemark theaters; and freestanding retail buildings to the north, including a Kohl’s store and several restaurant sites. The four attached department stores — the shuttered Sears and the occupied Dillard’s, JCPenney and Macy’s boxes — were independently owned. INTO THE BREACH: Parker Hannifin Corp. on Tuesday, April 5, disclosed in a regulatory filing that a third party “gained unauthorized access to the company’s systems” on March 14 and obtained company data, and possibly personal information of Parker’s employees. The Mayfield Heights-based maker of motion and control technologies said in the filing that when the third party’s presence was detected, it “immediately activated incident response protocols, which included shutting down certain systems and commencing an investigation of the incident, which is ongoing.”

Parker said it notified and is working with “relevant law enforcement authorities, and engaged legal counsel and other third-party incident response and cybersecurity professionals.” The company’s investigation into the breach is ongoing, but Parker said it “believes some data was accessed and taken and may include personal information of company team members.” FEELING INDUSTRIOUS: Add Treeview Real Estate Advisors LP of Philadelphia to the roster of owners of large industrial buildings in Northeast Ohio after a $40 million acquisition. Cuyahoga County land records show that Treeview Cleveland LLC acquired the industrial buildings. The portfolio includes a Solon building at 28600 Fountain Parkway and three in Strongsville, at 20784 Westwood Drive, 23221 Morgan Court and 21848 Commerce Parkway. Treeview Cleveland was formed by Teresa Tsai, a New York attorney who is listed as the CEO of Treeview Real Estate Advisors. Tsai has an international law practice, according to her LinkedIn profile. The seller was an affiliate of Falcon Real Estate Investment Management of Chicago, which has owned the properties since 2006, according to Cuyahoga County property records. Falcon represented a group of Swiss institutional investors in the purchase. MARKET FORCES: The Kroger Co. paid $10.4 million for a suburban Cuyahoga County site where the grocer plans to build a robot-powered grocery-delivery hub. Public records show that a Kroger affiliate finalized the 28-acre land deal, in Oakwood, in late March. The seller was Premier Development Partners, a Cleveland real estate company that assembled the formerly residential site and had it rezoned for commercial uses. Kroger, which closed its last Cleveland-area stores in 1985, is returning to the region with a standalone delivery model. The Cincinnati-based grocer expects to serve customers in Northeast Ohio and Pennsylvania from its new facility, which will employ up to 400 people. The 270,000-square-foot delivery center will rise along Interstate 271, at the southwest corner of Alexander and Macedonia roads. Construction will take about 24 months. RUBBER HITS THE ROAD: Dandelions are potentially big business for Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. The Akron-based tiremaker on Thursday, April 7, announced it will work with the U.S. Department of Defense, the Air Force Research Lab, BioMADE and Cincinnati-based Farmed Materials in a “multi-year, multimillion-dollar program” to create rubber from a specific species of dandelion. Goodyear said the program “will build on research that analyzed more than 2,500 species of plants but found only a few with properties suitable for use in tires.” Taraxacum kok-saghyz, a dandelion species known as TK, “has proven to be a valuable alternative to natural rubber trees,” Goodyear said. Planting and harvesting of TK seeds will begin this spring in Ohio. The natural rubber produced will be used in the production of military aircraft tires that will be built and tested by Goodyear in cooperation with the Air Force Research Lab at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton.

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