Ohio faces ‘friendly fire’ in mission to build economy
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base was my training ground and the final command of my 35-year military career. My service there gave me a love for Ohio and its industrious spirit and ideas about what will shape its future. Thanks to Governor DeWine appointing me to the JobsOhio Board in 2019, I can continue to participate in Ohio’s progress.
There are significant parallels between leading a major military facility and building a thriving state economy.
The first rule of any mission is to have an objective. The second is to understand any opposition you will face. The third is to equip your team to succeed.
The State of Ohio, its business leaders, universities, and communities have a mission: Become America’s new center for the next generation, digitally-enabled economy. The mission is bold and attainable.
However, Ohio faces
Lyles
“friendly fire” from other U.S. state development entities and a host of fair and unfair competitive practices from foreign nations. Ohio’s leaders understood this and took appropriate countermeasures in establishing JobsOhio.
Founded 10 years ago, JobsOhio is a first-of-itskind private, nonprofit economic development corporation that takes profits from Ohio’s successful beverage enterprise and pays them forward to attract and expand businesses, payrolls and career opportunities for generations of Ohioans.
In making Ohio a hub of innovation, JobsOhio is a sprocket. The staff is composed of industry veterans engaging every link of Ohio’s collaborative chain — helping propel ingenuity and ambition. They engage and collaborate with government officials, as well as regional economic development organizations, universities and a multitude of business sector organizations representing the largest corporations to small- and medium-sized businesses across Ohio.
The results are impressive. From Innovation Districts and major industrial expansions to underserved business loan programs, JobsOhio’s strategies have helped save over 590,000 Ohio jobs and attracted $64 billion in new investment and more than 210,000 in new jobs to the State since 2011. Their partnerships with educators and career counselors help assure Ohio’s workforce is skilled to build careers and take those businesses forward.
This past year, I have been proud to witness JobsOhio’s initiatives to help mobilize the business community to secure PPE and other vital needs during the pandemic.
Its work is illustrative of my belief in the power of positive people to overcome negative challenges through collaboration.
As Ohioans emerge from both a contentious political year and the personal tragedies and economic dislocations associated with the pandemic, it is fitting to focus on all the good that can be accomplished when people work together toward a shared mission. Sustainable and prosperous Ohio communities propelled by good paying jobs for the hard-working people of Ohio sounds like such a mission to me.