Stay up-to-date on the companies, people and issues that impact businesses in Syracuse, Central New York and beyond.
Syracuse extends AD Wildhack’s contract through mid-2025
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — John Wildhack, director of athletics at Syracuse University, will continue to lead the Orange’s department of athletics for at least the next
SUNY appoints Malatras as the next SUNY Chancellor, succeeding Johnson
ALBANY, N.Y. — The State University of New York (SUNY) board of trustees on Friday announced the appointment of Jim Malatras as the 14th chancellor
Oneida County reports 15 COVID-19 infections in last day
UTICA, N.Y. — Oneida County officials on Friday reported that the county had 15 new coronavirus cases in the last day. The number of active
Syracuse, OCC to use federal funding for student retention, support services
Syracuse University (SU) and Onondaga Community College (OCC) will use federal funding to provide support services that increase student retention and graduation rates. The money
Here are some recent tweets that came across the @cnybj Twitter feed, offering small business, COVID-19, HR, and leadership tips. NFIB @NFIBFrom NFIB’s July #SmallBiz Optimism Index: “Nearly a quarter of small business owners said they will have to close if economic conditions do not improve over the next six months. Another 22% warned they
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Here are some recent tweets that came across the @cnybj Twitter feed, offering small business, COVID-19, HR, and leadership tips.
NFIB @NFIB
From NFIB’s July #SmallBiz Optimism Index: “Nearly a quarter of small business owners said they will have to close if economic conditions do not improve over the next six months. Another 22% warned they may not last a year.” More survey results here: https://nfib.com/content/press-release/economy/small-business-optimism-index-drops-in-july/
SBA @SBAgov
Q: Which loan forgiveness application should sole proprietors, independent contractors, or self-employed individuals with no employees complete?
A: These types of businesses automatically qualify for the Loan Forgiveness Application Form 3508EZ: https://sba.gov/document/sba-form-paycheck-protection-program-ez-loan-forgiveness-application
Big Ideas for Small Business @BigIdeas4SB
Yes, you can make your concerns heard — What regulations are impeding your business? See details here: http://ow.ly/j70550AXFei
Strategic Watch @Strategic_Watch
How To Price Your Early Stage Startup Product http://dlvr.it/Rd76K4
Small Business Expo @SmallBizExpo
Five Instincts You Have to Fight to Succeed as an Entrepreneur http://twib.in/l/L6rqyzbAM4kd
HR Dive @hrdive
Nearly three-quarters of #employers in a recent survey said they were not pursuing COVID-19 employee #liability waivers. https://www.hrdive.com/news/employers-skipping-covid-19-liability-waivers/583155/
Nancy Youngwirth @nancy_youngw
When it comes to managing crisis, @OracleHCM finds #HR organizations should consider addressing these four key areas: https://bit.ly/31PXp1x
Jumbiz @JumbizNews
How To Secure Employee Trust After A Management Shake-Up: http://dlvr.it/RdW4Rr
Entrepreneur @Entrepreneur
5 Solutions to Your Biggest Work-From-Home Challenges: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/353971
Mark C. Crowley @MarkCCrowley
Full acceptance: Pwc’s survey of 3,500 of its global clients found that nearly 80% of them expect some remote working is here to stay post-COVID. “A blend of office & home working is most likely to be the future norm,” PwC UK’s chairman Kevin Ellis.
Maury Davis @maurydavis
Focus on bettering your personal character. Being a leader requires one to lead oneself. #MauryDavis #Leader #Leadership
Anita Zinsmeister @carnegiejersey
Leadership is a concept that should be familiar to most of us. We are either leaders now, or we work under a management team at our current positions. https://inc.com/young-entrepreneur-council/4-critical-lessons-for-anyone-new-to-leadership.html
Michael Sgro Leadership Coaching @CoachSgro
What is coaching? (updated) https://michaelsgro.com/post/coaching-consulting-therapy-oh-my
Lolly Daskal @LollyDaskal
Great Leaders Don’t Say Just Trust Me — @LollyDaskal: http://bit.ly/2llyE8x
4 Factors to Consider Before Buying an Essential Business in COVID Times
The shutdowns and rollbacks of businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic continue to play havoc with the U.S. economy. But the least-affected businesses during the crisis, for the most part, have been those deemed “essential” by state and local governments, allowing those companies to remain fully operational or close to it. Meanwhile, with the idea
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The shutdowns and rollbacks of businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic continue to play havoc with the U.S. economy. But the least-affected businesses during the crisis, for the most part, have been those deemed “essential” by state and local governments, allowing those companies to remain fully operational or close to it.
Meanwhile, with the idea that essential businesses can be recession-proof and even boom during a public crisis, buying one is becoming a more attractive prospect for some people.
Our current economic challenges as a nation are showing that owning an essential business can be a solid financial strategy for an individual. They are practical purchases. They are not often glamorous businesses, but essential businesses make sense largely because they offer services that are currently in demand, and as such, they can weather economic downturns.
Some essential businesses are busier than ever as people are trying to maintain social distance by staying home and not taking many vacations.
And at the same time, all kinds of essential businesses provide ownership opportunities while millions of unemployed people are looking for new opportunities or new career tracks. Perhaps they are looking to be their own boss and to have more control over their financial future.
I suggest considering the following when weighing whether to buy an essential business:
• Focus on successful types of essential businesses. Among the essential businesses that have the potential to succeed even during difficult economic times are: delivery services, grocery stores, convenience stores, e-commerce, gas stations, cleaning services, liquor stores, auto repair, lawn care, pest control, mailing/shipping services, and contracting. The pandemic may be with us for a while. People will be home more often, and businesses that can service their needs while home will gain customers.
• Consider franchises as ownership opportunities. While some franchises are struggling during the pandemic, others are in a better position. For franchises in general, much of the industry will be entering a buyer’s market, and those with the means will find some good opportunities. People need jobs, and franchises annually employ 9 million people in the U.S. One benefit of buying a franchise is having an organizational and management team already in place to train you and help guide you. Reach out to other franchise owners to get a sense of the company’s commitment and support.
• Know a bargain vs. a bad investment. A relatively low sale price tempts some people into making a poor buying decision on a business. It’s important to pore over the business’ financial numbers that it recorded before the pandemic and do all the research possible — especially of the market where the business is located — to determine if it was on a growth track and what the competition is like. Two questions you need to ask yourself as a potential buyer of an essential business are: What can you bring new to the business to make it more successful, and why was or wasn’t it profitable?
• Be sure you’re up to owning a business. There are no guarantees with owning an essential business. The pandemic has put a spotlight on their importance, but they take lots of work and organizational skills to run. If you are someone who cannot deal well with uncertainty, buying a business any time, let alone during the most uncertain time in our history, isn’t the right choice. Buying a business and committing to it requires thorough research, a passion for the business, a solid financial foundation, and a leap of faith.
Owning an essential business brings with it the satisfaction of providing necessary services for people. In these times especially, that is a noble pursuit.
Chris Buitron is president of Mosquito Authority (www.mosquito-authority.com), a national mosquito-control firm with franchises serving communities across the U.S. and Canada.
UTICA — Black River Systems Co. Inc. of Utica has been awarded an $89.3 million modification to a contract for operational counter-small, unmanned-aircraft system (C-sUAS) open-systems architecture from the U.S. Air Force. “The objective of this effort is to rapidly enhance and commercialize the technology and approach developed under the previous Small Business Innovation Research
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UTICA — Black River Systems Co. Inc. of Utica has been awarded an $89.3 million modification to a contract for operational counter-small, unmanned-aircraft system (C-sUAS) open-systems architecture from the U.S. Air Force.
“The objective of this effort is to rapidly enhance and commercialize the technology and approach developed under the previous Small Business Innovation Research Phase II contract in order to support rapid research, development, prototyping, demonstration, evaluation and transition of C-sUAS capabilities,” according to an Aug. 10 contract announcement from the U.S. Defense Department.
Work will be performed in Utica and is expected to be completed by May 1, 2023. Fiscal 2020 research, development, test, and evaluation funds totaling $9.15 million, fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds of nearly $2.7 million, and fiscal 2018 other procurement funds in the amount of $2.5 million are being obligated at the time of award, per the announcement.
The total cumulative face value of the contract is nearly $185 million. The Air Force Research Laboratory in Rome is the contracting authority.
Black River Systems designs, develops, deploys, and analyzes radar, infrared, acoustic, and electronic-warfare sensing systems for the Defense Department and prime contractors. The company has offices in Ohio, Minnesota, and California, in addition to its Utica headquarters.
The NoBull Company leases space at the Atrium Building in downtown Syracuse
SYRACUSE— The NoBull Company has leased 1,468 square feet of office space in the Atrium Building, located at 2 Clinton Square in downtown Syracuse, JF Real Estate announced. Matt Funiciello of JF Real Estate represented the owners of the Atrium Building in this lease transaction. Along with using its space to record and film its
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SYRACUSE— The NoBull Company has leased 1,468 square feet of office space in the Atrium Building, located at 2 Clinton Square in downtown Syracuse, JF Real Estate announced.
Matt Funiciello of JF Real Estate represented the owners of the Atrium Building in this lease transaction.
Along with using its space to record and film its popular podcast, the NoBull Company is using the location as office headquarters for “The NoBull Business Conference” featuring keynote speaker Gary Vaynerchuk.
The conference (www.nobull2020.com) will be held at the Oncenter in Syracuse on April 8, 2021. The conference is designed to help business leaders and entrepreneurs cut through the noise of business advice and learn how to build an “amazing company.”
Oswego Health to use Exelon-donated iPads for virtual meetings with patients
OSWEGO — Oswego Health says it is using 30 iPads that Exelon (NASDAQ: EXC) donated to the organization so it can conduct virtual meetings with its Medicaid patients that need services. Exelon, based in Chicago, operates the James A. Fitzpatrick and the Nine Mile Point nuclear power plants in Scriba. With the current state of
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OSWEGO — Oswego Health says it is using 30 iPads that Exelon (NASDAQ: EXC) donated to the organization so it can conduct virtual meetings with its Medicaid patients that need services.
Exelon, based in Chicago, operates the James A. Fitzpatrick and the Nine Mile Point nuclear power plants in Scriba.
With the current state of the pandemic, Oswego Health’s care-management unit is “finding it more difficult” to assist clients with coordinating care because many of them don’t have access to the proper technology, the organization said in a news release.
For those reasons, Deanne Meyers-Acome, Oswego Health’s care-coordination manager, worked with the Oswego Health Foundation to contact Exelon to see if the company could provide any additional support.
Exelon upgrades its technology regularly and donates used equipment to local nonprofits.
“It’s always been a focus of our organization to assure excess resources go to helping the right people. This was the perfect opportunity to give back and help bridge the coordination challenges facing care management and their clients.” Nick Millard, corporate maintenance instructor at Exelon, said. “Exelon is happy to provide Oswego Health care management with 30 iPads to assist their clients in the community with access to care through Telemed. In addition, the iPads can be used for families that have multiple children that may be limited in devices to access their educational needs to complete schoolwork as we know these care managers are offering support however their clients need it.”
Oswego Health cites data from NY State of Health, New York’s online health-insurance marketplace, as indicating more than 20,000 Oswego County residents were enrolled in Medicaid during 2019.
Many of those residents need additional support and assistance with services. Oswego Health’s care-management group meets clients “regularly” to help manage their medical needs, social needs, and behavioral needs, per the release.
Some examples of the assistance it provides are coordinating care with providers, therapists, educational needs, housing solutions, transportation, along with offering additional support so individuals can live a healthy life.
Oswego Health care management
The Oswego Health care-management team includes 17 care managers that specialize in children or adults. On average, the children’s care managers service 25 Medicaid clients each per month in Oswego County and the adult-care managers service 40 clients a month.
In total, the Oswego Health care-management group is an extension of service to more than 1,000 Medicaid clients throughout the community yearly and about 30 non-Medicaid children that are contracted through the county with the Oswego Health care-management unit.
Upstate Medical University expands neurosurgery services with hiring of three doctors
SYRACUSE — Upstate Medical University announced that it has expanded its neurosurgery department with the hiring of three new surgeons, allowing Upstate to offer “additional and expanded services to a larger region of New York.” It has hired Dr. Harish Babu, Dr. Ali Hazama, and Dr. Timothy Beutler. The three new neurosurgeons expand Upstate’s existing
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SYRACUSE — Upstate Medical University announced that it has expanded its neurosurgery department with the hiring of three new surgeons, allowing Upstate to offer “additional and expanded services to a larger region of New York.”
It has hired Dr. Harish Babu, Dr. Ali Hazama, and Dr. Timothy Beutler.
The three new neurosurgeons expand Upstate’s existing department, making it the largest neurosurgical team in Central New York. The expansion of the department by nearly a third will allow Upstate to provide neurosurgical care to a wider portion of New York state, Dr. Satish Krishnamurthy, interim chair of the department, said in a release.
“Upstate’s department of neurosurgery has been serving the region for more than 60 years,” Krishnamurthy said. “We are dedicated to the Upstate Medical University mission to improve the health of the communities we serve through education, biomedical research and patient care. The addition of these three specialist neurosurgeons will enable us to provide excellent patient care to more patients in more specialty areas.”
The department of neurosurgery multispecialty group offers advanced care and technologies as well as “basic, translational and clinical research aimed at finding new treatments and improved strategies” for disorders of the brain and spine.
The department plays a central role in Upstate facilities, including the region’s “only” adult and pediatric Level-1 trauma center; Upstate Cancer Center; the Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital’s neonatal care units; the comprehensive stroke center; and the region’s telestroke network, which supports stroke care at 11 hospitals across Upstate and Central New York.
About the doctors
Babu joins Upstate Medical after completing residency from the department of neurosurgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Following residency training, he completed fellowships first in epilepsy/functional neurosurgery at the University of Toronto in Canada, followed by tumor/skull base neurosurgery fellowship at the Center for Minimally Invasive Neurosurgery, Prince of Wales Hospital, Sydney, Australia. Babu obtained his doctoral degree in neuroscience from Charite Medical University in Germany. His specializations at Upstate Medical will include adult brain tumors, skull-base tumors, and gamma knife; functional (epilepsy), general and spinal surgeries.
Hazama has been a resident in the department of neurosurgery at Upstate Medical since 2013. He is a graduate of Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science. Hazama’s specialties at Upstate will include general, spine, and minimally invasive spine surgery. He will practice at Upstate Community Hospital and the downtown campus.
Dr. Timothy Beutler completed a residency in neurological surgery at Upstate Medical University, which began in 2013 and included a fellowship in Neuro Critical Care (CAST Program) from 2017 to 2018. Beutler is a graduate of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. His specialties at Upstate Medical will include critical care, general, and spine. He is Upstate’s first neurosurgeon dedicated to critical care neurosurgery.
Stay up-to-date on the companies, people and issues that impact businesses in Syracuse, Central New York and beyond.