Leadership

Results of New Polls on Ohio Governor Race, and More

This week Baldwin Wallace University released the findings of its latest statewide poll: “… the Ohio governor’s race is a statistical tie. In a two-way race, DeWine holds a 42% to 39% advantage over Democrat Richard Cordray among voters stating a preference. More than 18% say they remain unsure about how they will vote for governor.”

Meanwhile, a new Suffolk University poll of likely Ohio voters had this result: “Democrat Richard Cordray, former director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, leads Republican Attorney General Mike DeWine by 6 points in the race for governor (46 percent to 40 percent), with 10 percent undecided.”

With respect to statewide executive offices, the Baldwin Wallace poll found:

• Republican Dave Yost leads Democrat Steve Dettelbach in the attorney general’s race 38% to 34% with 28% unsure.
• Democrat Kathleen Clyde and Republican Frank LaRose are tied at 32.6% in the secretary of state’s race, with 27.6% unsure and 7.2% picking Libertarian Dustin Hanna.
• Democrat Zack Space leads Republican Keith Faber 32.3% to 31.3%, with 30% unsure. Libertarian Robert Coogan has 6.4%.
• Democrat Rob Richardson leads Republican Robert Sprague in the treasurer’s race 33.2% to 31.1%, with 29.3% unsure and 6.4% choosing Green Party candidate Paul Curry.

And, In the U.S. Senate race, Democrat Sherrod Brown has 50% to Republican Jim Renacci’s 30% with 17.5% undecided.

The Baldwin Wallace poll also measured prospects for Ohio Issue 1. About 48% of voters support the Drug and Criminal Justice Policies Initiative, compared to about 31% of those who oppose it. About 22% are undecided.

Take a deeper dive here. 10/10/2018

State Fiscal Analysis of Issue 1 Doubts Touted Savings

Gongwer News Service reports that while the proponents of Issue 1, the ballot issue on sentencing reductions for certain drug crimes, have touted its potential to save the state money as lower-level offenders are diverted from prison into treatment programs, an analysis performed by Gov. John Kasich’s administration questions that key assumption.

Gongwer wrote: “The fiscal analysis of Issue 1, developed under a requirement that the Office of Budget and Management assess state budgetary impacts of statewide ballot issues, found that the presumed savings for the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction would likely not materialize as expected and the changes could, in fact, result in additional costs into the “tens of millions.”” 10/11/2018

Ohio Innovation Exchange Launched

The Ohio Department of Higher Education this week launched the “Ohio Innovation Exchange.”

From the department: “The Ohio Innovation Exchange (OIEx) connects industry and business with professors, students, equipment and facilities available at Ohio research universities. OIEx provides access to more than 13,000 faculty and 600 resources from campuses and laboratories around the state, with a mission to facilitate collaboration between Ohio’s leading academic and business minds.

“From research partnerships, intellectual property and technology licensing opportunities, to business development and even student internships, OIEx fosters economic development and intellectual advancement across Ohio and the globe.” 10/9/2018

See How Your Cybersecurity Readiness Stacks Up

With cyberattacks on the rise, many managers find themselves wondering what the biggest threats to their company are and if they’re doing enough to keep up.

OMA Connections Partner RSM recently launched an interactive quiz to help managers evaluate how their security programs stack up against the respondents of RSM’s Middle Market Leadership Council.

Take this brief quiz to understand how much at risk your business may be. Then, compare your responses against survey respondents and get access to the full report to see how your company stacks up. 10/10/2018

Schneider Downs Invites Manufacturing Survey Responses

OMA Connections Partner Schneider Downs invites participation in its 2018 Annual Economic Survey of the Manufacturing Industry. This is the eighth year for the survey; the goal is to provide manufacturers with a snapshot of the industry’s performance over the last year.

This survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete and is anonymous. Responses are requested by November 1, 2018.

Here are the 2017 survey results. 10/9/2018

Grants for Companies Looking to Start or Increase Exporting

The International Market Access Grant for Exporters (IMAGE) offered by the Ohio Development Services Agency is designed to help businesses increase exports and create jobs in Ohio’s economy.

The grant provides a 50% reimbursement, up to $12,500 per fiscal year for eligible activities.

Popular qualifying activities include, but are not limited to, exhibiting at trade shows, participating in trade missions, international advertising, translation services and website development.

The application period is now open, and the deadline to apply is 3:00 p.m. on March 29, 2019. Among other criteria, grant awards are administered on a first-come, first-served basis and are contingent upon availability of funds. The deadline to complete all proposed activities is September 29, 2019.

For more information and to apply, visit this website or email. And here’s a good, short video about the program. 10/10/2018

Today is MFG DAY!

In 2012 when Manufacturing Day began, the movement put forth the ambitious goal of improving the public’s perception of manufacturing with the goal of inspiring more people to pursue manufacturing careers. MFG DAY sought to correct the idea that manufacturing involved repetitive, unskilled tasks that happened in dark, dirty factories — a ridiculous idea to anyone who has actually worked in manufacturing — and show people what manufacturing really looks like.

The thought behind MFG DAY was therefore: Bring the public to real manufacturing environments and let them see for themselves. What better way to overcome any lingering negative stereotypes than to expose them for the misrepresentations that they are?

Sixty-four percent of surveyed MFG DAY 2016 student event attendees — up from 62 percent in 2015 — said that they “were more motivated to pursue a career in manufacturing.” Based on the 267,000 student attendance figure, that’s potentially 171,000 new members of a next-generation manufacturing workforce.

Congrats, all! 10/1/2018

Governor Kasich Proclaims Today Manufacturing Day

John R. Kasich and Mary Taylor, Governor and Lieutenant Governor of the State of Ohio, have signed a resolution recognizing October 5^th, 2018 as MANUFACTURING DAY throughout Ohio and encourage all Ohioans to participate in the statewide events taking place in October to celebrate the importance of manufacturing in Ohio.

See the resolution here. 10/5/2018

Send Us Your MFG DAY Photos

We would like to highlight the many MFG DAY activities and events happening at your facilities at our upcoming Ohio Manufacturers Workforce Summit 2018!

Please send us photos of your MFG DAY events and/or other activities throughout the year that capture manufacturers with young people, parents, educators and the community. We intend to use your photos in a slide show at the Summit on November 1 to recognize the many ways manufacturers are opening their doors and reaching out to the community to share career opportunities across Ohio.

Please send photos to our online repository email address by Friday, October 19, 2018.

• If possible, please name your images with identifying information (example: Conexus_MFGDAY2018.jpg).
• Photos should be in PNG or JPG format.
• For best results, the photos should be sized to 1024 x 768 pixels, or 1400 x 1050 pixels.
• When emailing photos, please remove any of the other images that you may have associated with your signature block. (example: Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, your company website).
• By submitting photos to the email address above, you are granting OMA permission to use these photos at the Ohio Manufacturers Workforce Summit and in other OMA communications.

Thank you! 10/1/2018

Impact Ohio Names Conference Speakers

This year at Impact Ohio’s Post Election Conference, four of Ohio’s legislative leaders will reflect on statewide politics and policy: Senate President Larry Obhof, House Speaker Ryan Smith, Senate Minority Leader Kenny Yuko, and House Minority Leader Fred Strahorn.

The Post Election Conference is held every two years immediately following the general election. It offers the first post-election opportunity to hear directly from those who will shape Ohio’s policy and political agenda for the upcoming biennium. OMA is a sponsor of the event.

This year’s conference is scheduled for Thursday, November 8. Register here. 10/4/2018