Regional JobsOhio Office Adds Two key Staff Members
10/31/2011
For additional information, contact:
Jenny Febbo
216.363.5426 (o)
440.258.8805 (c)
jfebbo@teamneo.org
REGIONAL JOBSOHIO OFFICE ADDS TWO KEY STAFF MEMBERS
Steve Fritsch, Walt Good to help communities and companies
access state incentives and services to create jobs
CLEVELAND, Ohio, October 31, 2011 – As part of its expanded role as a regional business development catalyst, Team Northeast Ohio (Team NEO) announced today that Steve Fritsch and Walt Good have joined the staff of its newly established JobsOhio Regional Office in Northeast Ohio as business development directors.
Team NEO is one of six JobsOhio Network Regional Partners across the state. The regional office assists companies and communities in 18 counties of Northeast Ohio that are seeking support from JobsOhio for growth and job creation.
“Steve and Walt both have deep knowledge of Northeast Ohio’s many assets, as well as a strong understanding of the needs of companies looking to locate or grow here,” said Christine Nelson, vice president, regional business development for the office. “Their experience will be a tremendous benefit to the people they team with across the region.”
In collaboration with Team NEO’s partners in 18 counties, Fritsch and Good will work closely with local economic development professionals to help them access state incentives and services for projects and transactions that spur economic development. Nelson said they will work from the offices of our regional partners, as they will spend the bulk of their time meeting and working with organizations and leaders throughout the region.
Fritsch, who has a background in economic development, strategic consulting, regional collaboration, project management and marketing solutions, most recently served as a business systems analyst for agency automation at Westfield Insurance in Westfield Center. Previously, he was Team NEO’s director of marketing and business attraction. As part of the Cleveland Plus campaign, he managed Team NEO’s outbound business development efforts toward site selection consultants and also led online marketing efforts. As a strategic business consultant to companies considering a business location investment, Fritsch analyzed decision drivers and asset requirements to create data-driven solutions.
A Summit County resident, Fritsch earned a bachelor of arts and sciences degree from Kent State University. He has served on the board of directors of the Ohio Economic Development Association and the Industrial Asset Management Council Demographics Committee.
Good, a Mahoning County native and resident, brings 17 years of economic development experience from the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber, most recently as vice president economic development, business retention and expansion. From 2004 - 2011, his office completed 156 projects, resulting in $1.954 billion in new investments, 9,200 new jobs and 15,600 retained/maintained positions. He was instrumental in local efforts that led to V&M Star’s 2010 decision to build a new $650 million, one million square foot steel tubular products production complex in Youngstown.
Good holds a bachelor of science in business administration from Youngstown State University. He is a former vice president and board member of the Ohio Economic Development Association, board member of CASTLO Community Improvement Corporation, president of the Mahoning County Community Improvement Corporation and liaison to the Western Reserve Port Authority.
Northeast Ohio is the largest of the six JobsOhio regions, with more than 4 million people. The region spans from Sandusky and Mansfield in the west to Youngstown, Ashtabula and East Liverpool in the east and from Cleveland to Dover and New Philadelphia, north to south. Team NEO meets monthly with economic development organizations from each of the 18 counties in the region to share best practices and discuss new initiatives.
About Team NEO
Team NEO advances Northeast Ohio’s economy by serving as the 18-county region’s private-sector economic development hub. It connects the region to the state’s JobsOhio program and attracts new businesses worldwide. Since 2007, the organization has attracted 48 new company operations, 4,800 new jobs and almost $173 million in annual payroll to Northeast Ohio, leading to a total annual regional payroll benefit of $281 million.
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