Crain's Cleveland Business articles from December 2008

Crain's Cleveland Business archives from December 2008

REPORTERS' NOTEBOOK.
December 8, 2008... A different way to get their heads together To get more information on how to best treat patients, neurologists at the Cleveland Clinic are tapping a familiar source: Their patients' minds. The Clinic's Neurological Institute is...

SOCIAL NETWORKING OPTIONS.
December 8, 2008... Byline: Diane DiPiero There are numerous social networking sites geared toward building professional relationships. Here are short descriptions of some of the most popular sites: LinkedIn: Professionals can build a network of...

GOING PLACES.
December 8, 2008... Job Changes DISTRIBUTION HEIDELBERG DISTRIBUTION CO.: John Hopkins to director of sales, northern Ohio. EDUCATION THE LILLIAN AND BETTY RATNER SCHOOL: Samuel L. Chestnut to head of school. NORTHEASTERN OHIO UNIVERSITIES...

IN BRIEF.
December 8, 2008... Firms join forces Dorman Farrell, Benefit Designs merge after project collaboration Dorman Farrell LLC of Medina has merged with Benefit Designs LLC of Akron. The merger is the culmination of nearly two years of discussions that came...

CORRECTION.(Correction notice)
December 8, 2008... A Dec. 1, page 3 story misidentified Margaret Mitchell. She is president and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Cleveland.

Corporate events slim this season, centers say; Bookings draw fewer accoutrements; some gift outfits remain steady.
December 8, 2008... Byline: JOHN BOOTH Closing the year with company parties and corporate presents may be twin holiday traditions, but this year, area events centers say Northeast Ohio companies don't seem to be in a overly festive mood when it comes to...

GRAND OPENINGS.
December 8, 2008... Solstice Salon 13348 Madison Ave. Lakewood 44107 Solstice Salon offers a full range of services, including designer haircuts, multi-dimensional color, corrective hair color treatments and facial waxing. Solstice serves men,...

Savvy marketers find that cyberspace really clicks; Firms send message that online presence an effective medium to promote business.
December 8, 2008... Byline: DIANE DiPIERO Leigh Peterson, communications manager for Jerry Bruno Productions, a Cleveland full-service entertainment provider, recently attended a five-week seminar on e-marketing techniques at Cuyahoga Community College's...

OPENING NEW DOORS; Abysmal market conditions do not prevent some bold entrepreneurs from launching ventures.
December 8, 2008... Byline: KIMBERLY BONVISSUTO The financial markets are collapsing. Layoffs abound. Credit can be hard to come by. Yet the entrepreneurial spirit seems to be ignoring these headlines. Throughout Northeast Ohio, entrepreneurs are going...

Bad medicine.
December 8, 2008... Someone should sue financial doctors Henry Paulson and Ben Bernanke for malpractice. They seem far more interested in treating the symptoms of the current financial crisis than in dealing with the disease of home foreclosures, the spread of...

Clinic's Avon health center plans keep evolving; Project's first phase swelling in scope.
December 8, 2008... Byline: SHANNON MORTLAND The Cleveland Clinic will have an even bigger presence in Avon than originally thought. The health care giant recently submitted plans to the city of Avon for a 181,000-square-foot health center that will...

Cleveland Foundation execs alter focus; Cerveny to analyze programs' wider effects; Steubi seeks to identify high-growth firms.
December 8, 2008... Byline: SHANNON MORTLAND Two of the Cleveland Foundation's senior employees are taking their jobs in new directions, while also allowing the organization to maintain its focus. Kathleen Cerveny, who currently is the foundation's...

BRINGING IN THE DOUGH; Credit crunch does not stymie Little Italy developer's plans.
December 8, 2008... Byline: STAN BULLARD With most plans for real estate development stored in the deep freeze until credit markets thaw, a proposed $10 million townhouse project is cooking in Cleveland's Little Italy, near University Circle. Taking its...

L.A. buyer cuts big industrial property deal; HBJ Holdings' $12.9M Middleburg Hts. investment part of larger plans locally.
December 8, 2008... Byline: STAN BULLARD In a sale that may be the largest industrial real estate deal this year in Northeast Ohio, a Los Angeles-based real estate investor is the new owner of nine office/warehouse buildings in Middleburg Heights after paying...

Designers give firm lobbies a face-lift; Multimedia experience fosters branding.
December 8, 2008... Byline: KEVIN BROSIEN Karen Skunta sees more than a few chairs and mediocre artwork in the average, cookie-cutter business lobby she sees the opportunity to enhance a firm's branding initiatives. The president and creative director...

An icy situation; Shortage of chemical that keep runways clear could wreak havoc.
December 8, 2008... USA Today reported that the federal government is warning airlines that flights could face disruptions this winter because of a shortage of a chemical used to keep runways free from snow and ice. This is a big deal in cold-weather places...

Cleveland's vacant property initiative attracts two to town.
December 8, 2008... Byline: JAY MILLER Two businesses are taking advantage of low-cost city loans to make commitments to build their businesses in the city of Cleveland. One company, All Seasons Contracting, is moving its growing concrete paving and...

Parker Hannifin exhibit akin to interactive museum.
December 8, 2008... Byline: Kevin Brosien The original exhibit space at Parker Hannifin Corp.'s Mayfield Heights corporate office merely showcased the company's trade show booths in a hallway leading to the cafeteria. Enter Karen Skunta & Co. Today,...

Plan ahead to take advantage of tax environment; Today's relatively low rates might not be seen in coming years.
December 8, 2008... Byline: Carl Grassi Change is clearly on the horizon for U.S. taxpayers, especially business owners. While it is impossible to predict exactly what might happen to tax rates over the next several years, business owners should...

Manufacturing climate freefall worsens in Nov. Most glaringly, 63% of survey respondents acknowledged reducing employment levels.
December 8, 2008... Byline: DAN SHINGLER Life grew dramatically worse in Northeast Ohio's manufacturing sector in November, according to the latest monthly survey by the Purchasing Managers Associ- ation of Cleveland, whose members reported severely...

CHANGE AT THE TOP; Thompson Hine's new partner-in-charge continues firm's knack for breaking mold.
December 8, 2008... Byline: ARIELLE KASS Thompson Hine, the city's fifth-largest law firm, has named as its new partner-in-charge of the Cleveland office a 40-year-old black woman. April Miller Boise, who will take over the firm's largest and...

Telecom firm dials up sales by touting savings measures.(Company overview)
December 8, 2008... Byline: CHUCK SODER Economic crises have been kind to Fidelity Voice & Data. The Beachwood telecommunications company, founded in late 2000 just as the telecom bubble burst, has more than doubled its sales over the past two years as...

New guidelines for grads; Despite menacing trend, college counselors say jobs are there - if students can be nimble.
December 8, 2008... Byline: SHANNON MORTLAND Though the job market has tanked in recent months, all is not lost for December's college graduates. Career counselors at local colleges and universities are telling students there are jobs to be had, despite...

FOR THE RECORD.
December 8, 2008... CREDIT CRUNCH CUTS DOWN JAMES LUMBER A 56-year-old lumber company is vanishing. Auctioneers on Dec. 2 and 3 sold inventory and equipment at James Lumber Co., 12565 Prospect Road in Strongsville. Guy James, operations manager, said Wells...

Lawmakers' auto disdain no surprise.
December 8, 2008... You could say that Rick Wagoner met the Dark Lord of the Sith. The only trouble was that Darth Shelby was in a tie fighter while Mr. Wagoner was lashed to a General Motors compact hybrid that might or might not be a key to the company's...

THE WEEK; DECEMBER 1-7.
December 8, 2008... The big story: Employees at Medical Mutual of Ohio Inc. are mourning the loss of chairman, president and CEO Kent Clapp, who was killed in a plane crash last Wednesday in Puerto Rico. Mr. Clapp and his fiancee, Tracy Turner, were on their way...

MILESTONE.
December 8, 2008... COMPANY: The Corner Alley, Cleveland THE OCCASION: Its two-year anniversary Talk about a nice anniversary gift. Just in time for its two-year anniversary on Dec. 7, The Corner Alley was ranked at No. 17 on the Bowlers Journal...

COMING NEXT WEEK; Health care.
December 8, 2008... We take the temperature of the benefits scene at companies across Northeast Ohio, and early returns show higher deductibles and fewer options are common throughout. We analyze the trend's effects.

Akron General centers aim to connect patients to healthier lifestyles; Hospital system's neighborhood emergency department a big hit, too.
December 15, 2008... Byline: SHANNON MORTLAND Dr. Tim Stover would be happy if fewer patients ended up at Akron General Medical Center, and he's trying to make that happen. As the creator of Akron General's LifeStyles wellness centers in Montrose and...

Forest City to focus on operational demands.
December 15, 2008... Byline: STAN BULLARD Forest City Enterprises Inc. is doing the switcheroo to deal with the global credit crunch. In a conference call with analysts and investors last Wednesday, Dec. 10, Forest City CEO Charles Ratner said, "The...

Bad news keeping economists busy.
December 15, 2008... Byline: Dan Shingler It's a good time to be an economist assuming you don't mind doling out some bad news. Economists in and around Cleveland have found an increasing demand for their opinions, appearances and research, as more people...

Even bright-eyed economists adopting gloomier outlooks.
December 15, 2008... Byline: DAN SHINGLER It's going to get worse before it gets better. The question is, for how long? That's the view of some of Northeast Ohio's top economists, many of whom are taking an increasingly dim view of the economy's...

Ex-workers seek remedy for Improvita impropriety; Employees claim missing paychecks as former bosses dart issues, file own lawsuit.
December 15, 2008... The Get Better Bear, it seems, has wandered down the rabbit hole. On the surface, Improvita Health Products, which marketed and sold homeopathic remedies such as the ursine-themed line of children's medicines, simply ran out of money and...

Legislative resistance to Big 3 a joke.
December 15, 2008... On my desk is this great calendar that is an accumulation of the very funny works of Rich Williams, who has been Crain's Cleveland Business' editorial columnist since the day we opened our doors. One day last week, I laughed out loud as I tore...

Colleges fret over endowment declines; Officials struggling to handle typical 22% loss without cutting staff, programming.
December 15, 2008... Byline: SHANNON MORTLAND The current school year is only half over, but Gene Finn already is starting to worry about the 2009-2010 academic year. With college endowments suffering huge losses already and likely to take an even bigger...

A PATENTED APPROACH; Akron prof values those of his 100 inventions that made the most impact.
December 15, 2008... Byline: SHANNON MORTLAND Joseph Kennedy doesn't think much of inventing things or patenting them. After all, that's the easy part. Though the distinguished professor of polymer science and chemistry at the University of Akron recently...

WHO IS DR. KENNEDY?
December 15, 2008... Dr. Joseph Kennedy, a distinguished professor of polymer science and chemistry at the University of Akron, has received 100 patents during his career but says he's most proud of those that have impacted society most. Born: Hungary ...

RPM head paints dark picture for sales streak; Manufacturer's string of increases likely to end, though boss is confident in long-term prospects.(Company overview)
December 15, 2008... Byline: DAN SHINGLER Frank Sullivan is bracing himself to break a family tradition he'd very much like to preserve: The one where RPM International, the company his grand- father founded, increases its annual sales every year. The...

WHAT'S NEW.
December 15, 2008... COMPANY: Wright Tool, Barberton PRODUCT: 2009 Wright Tool catalog Wright Tool's 2009 catalog features an updated look and a new theme: "Perfecting performance.'' The 406-page catalog provides descriptions, specifications and part...

THE WEEK; DECEMBER 8 - 14.
December 15, 2008... The big story: American Greetings Corp. cut 275 jobs, including 175 at its Brooklyn headquarters, to control costs as the economy continues to decline. The company, which employs about 2,200 locally, also said it will not meet its fiscal 2009...

COMING NEXT WEEK.
December 15, 2008... 2009 Book of Lists The double- issue of the Book of Lists is full of data that's vital to your business. It features 50 lists, including 16 that are new this year, and four pages with in-depth looks at key industries. Crain's next...

Fresh start.
December 15, 2008... There are still a couple weeks left in December, but since this is our last regular issue of the year, let us be among the first to say this: Good riddance, 2008. This has been, to put it mildly, a very bad year. Cleveland's biggest bank...

REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK.
December 15, 2008... Tax credits a vital cog in this project's funding Cogswell Hall, the 95-year-old affordable housing facility in the Detroit-Shoreway neighborhood, is funding most of an $8.6 million renovation and expansion project from the sale of tax...

Commercial realty activity takes new turn; As industry's loan delinquencies rise, brokers vie for lender-owned properties.
December 15, 2008... Byline: STAN BULLARD To find where commercial realty action will heat up in the credit crunch and recession, consider the marketing activities of the region's brokerages. Bob Nosal, managing partner of Grubb & Ellis Co.'s Cleveland...

Going Places.
December 15, 2008... Job Changes finance OHIO COMMERCE BANK: Steven Skaggs to assistant vice president and senior credit analyst. financial service CRANWOOD CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC: Ferenc A. Sanderson to chief operating officer. SKODA...

FOR THE RECORD.
December 15, 2008... IRISH BIOMED FIRM BOUND FOR CLEVELAND A six-year tax credit awarded last Monday, Dec. 8, by the Ohio Tax Credit Authority is expected to bring Proxy Biomedical Ltd. to Cleveland. Proxy Biomedical is an Irish medical products firm that uses...

THE INTERVIEW.
December 15, 2008... Byline: SHARON SCHNALL Lisa Hattier hardly followed a standard career path. After working at a rehabilitation hospital, the registered nurse ended up at the Geauga County Sheriff's Office in the jail's clinic. She heard about the job...

ON THE WEB.
December 15, 2008... 100 and counting University of Akron professor Joseph P. Kennedy has received his 100th patent for a method to produce high-performance compounds. Read the story on Page 3 and watch Dr. Kennedy discuss inventions, lessons and what makes...

CORRECTION.(Correction notice)
December 15, 2008... A profile story on Virtual Hold Technology CEO Mark Williams, which appeared in the 40 Under 40 section published Nov. 17, contained incorrect information about his children and companies with whom he previously worked. Mr. Williams has three...

BENEFITS AT A PREMIUM; Attempting to deal with dramatically rising health care costs, companies often asking employees to dig into their pockets.
December 15, 2008... Byline: JUDY STRINGER During open enrollment season this year, Progressive Corp.'s more than 9,000 Northeast Ohio employees saw the list of medical benefits options for 2009 shrink from five to three. And, while company spokeswoman...

Optimism, sales wane as economy shakes IT firms.
December 15, 2008... Byline: CHUCK SODER The information technology sector could run from the economy only for so long. The national recession appears to be hurting sales and optimism among IT companies in Northeast Ohio, according to a survey released...

TAX LIENS.
December 15, 2008... The Internal Revenue Service filed tax liens against the following businesses in the Cuyahoga County Recorder's Office. The IRS files a tax lien to protect the interests of the federal government. The lien is a public notice to creditors that...

Art Therapy Studio.
December 15, 2008... Byline: SHARON SCHNALL Art always has been the equalizer at the Art Therapy Studio of Cleveland. "The major thing is how we run the class, and how we use the art process, not focusing on what got the individuals to the class, but...

Network helps future nurses link to clinical opportunities.
December 15, 2008... Byline: CHRISSY KADLECK A program to pair Northeast Ohio nursing students with clinical opportunities has logged significant growth in the past year, providing some administrative relief to the dozens of nursing programs that compete for...

Cohen & Co. adds Orlando office, offers new services.
December 15, 2008... Byline: ARIELLE KASS Cohen & Co., the certified public accounting firm that strives to be a one-stop shop for clients' financial business needs, has added an Orlando, Fla., office and two new offerings to its repertoire. The Cleveland...

MetroHealth's senior center delivers; Old Brooklyn facility surpasses expectations.
December 15, 2008... Dr. James Campbell knew there was a need for a senior service center in the Old Brooklyn neighborhood, but even he was surprised by how popular the MetroHealth System's $65 million Senior Health & Wellness Center has become since its October...

GREENS IN THE ROUGH; Economy's effects felt, albeit quietly, in golf industry.
December 15, 2008... Byline: JOHN BOOTH Psst! Hey want to buy a golf course? By a couple estimates, there could be at least a dozen in Northeast Ohio up for grabs, though like the handheld signs say during tournament play, it's all "quiet.'' Even...