National job-growth rates have exceeded those in New York for the first time in six years, according to a new report New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli released today.

DiNapoli’s report, entitled “Employment Trends in New York State,” noted that New York added 110,000 jobs between June 2012 and June 2013.

But over the same period, national job-growth rates exceeded New York’s rates in nearly every major employment sector, including professional services, leisure and hospitality, trade, transportation and utilities, financial activities, and mining, logging, and construction.

The “good news” is that New York’s job count has increased above its pre-recession levels, DiNapoli said in a news release.

“The bad news is that, over the past year, we have fallen short of the national growth rate in several major employment sectors. New York, like much of the nation, is still struggling to generate the well-paying, secure jobs that workers at various skill levels and experience need and deserve,” DiNapoli said.

The report also analyzed New York employment data over the past six years.

From 2007 through 2011, private-sector job trends were more favorable in New York than nationwide, partly because of sharp housing-market declines in some other areas of the nation that didn’t occur in New York.

Private-sector jobs in New York rose 1.5 percent during this period while employment nationwide declined 3.1 percent.

New York also retains a significant advantage in personal income per capita, at $52,095 in 2012 compared to a national average of $42,693, the DiNapoli report said.

Regionally, the state’s employment picture remains “uneven,” according to the state comptroller.

In the period from 2007 through 2012, private employment increased in New York City, the Ithaca region, the Capital District and the Buffalo-Niagara region. In the same time period, regions including Syracuse, Utica–Rome, Binghamton, Elmira, and Kingston “experienced sizeable declines” in private-sector employment.

Private-sector employment declined more than 3 percent in the Syracuse region, nearly 4 percent in the Utica–Rome area, and nearly 7 percent in the Binghamton region, the data in the DiNapoli report indicates.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com

Moody’s Investors Service on Thursday changed the outlook on New York from stable to positive and affirmed the Aa2 rating on the state’s $3.5 billion in general-obligation (G.O.) bonds.

Moody’s has also affirmed the ratings on all outstanding appropriation-backed and G.O.-related bonds as well as various state-intercept programs.

The positive outlook reflects improvements in New York’s economy, governance, financial position, and fiscal outlook, Moody’s said in a news release. If the trend continues, New York would also boost its reserves and draw closer to “structural balance,” the firm added.

New York’s Aa2 general obligation rating reflects the relative strength and recent resilience of its economy; governance constraints including a history of late budgets and limited executive authority to reduce appropriations; a financial position that has improved but remains below average; a moderate combined debt and pension burden; and sound debt management and frequently updated financial forecasting, according to Moody’s.

The revision is “another strong affirmation” of the progress state government has made to put New York’s fiscal house “in order,” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo contended in a news release.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com

SYRACUSE — Surviving the “new normal” economy, meeting aggressive business growth goals, tapping global markets, and engaging employees and customers — these were among the topics that a panel of four area business executives and one nonprofit leader discussed at the Business Journal 500 event on Wednesday morning, Aug. 21 at the Genesee Grande Hotel in Syracuse.

Rob Simpson, president of CenterState CEO and moderator of the panel discussion, asked the panelists how their organizations are adapting to a “new normal” economy featuring tepid growth, rapid change, and constant business uncertainty.

Nice N Easy Grocery Shoppes responded to the trend of consumers driving less and buying less gasoline by “tossing out” the traditional convenience-store model and “going bigger,” said Fran Duskiewicz, senior executive VP at the Canastota–based company. That included building bigger stores offering more amenities typically found only at larger supermarkets and even hiring executive chefs, he noted.

Peter Belyea, president of CXtec and TERACAI, which sell networking equipment and services and generated $115 million in sales combined last year, stressed the need to concentrate on the future and on the customer. “You can’t long for the old days,” he said. “We’ve focused on understanding our customers.”

Stephen Chabot, VP of operations at INFICON, Inc., a Switzerland–based technology company that employs 240 in DeWitt, said his firm’s revenue dropped 30 percent in 2009 amid the recession. But the company bounced back with three straight years of record sales. The key was investing in research and development and sales, he said. “We accelerated product development,” Chabot said. The company, which produces high-tech instrumentation, sensors, and process-control software, has generated most of its growth outside the U.S. by tapping growing international markets.

Nathan Andrews, president of Morse Manufacturing Co., Inc., a 90-year-old business that specializes in making drum-handling equipment, said, “Unequivocally yes, it’s a ‘new normal’ [economy] and the scary thing is that in another five to seven years, it’ll be another new normal.”  He said his company has also achieved new revenue heights by reaching into global markets, including Asia.

Mary Jo Thorn, CEO of ACHIEVE, a Johnson City–based nonprofit whose mission is enhancing the quality of life for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities, said her organization faces the dual challenge of declining government funding and increased demand for its services.  ACHIEVE employs more than 260 and generated more than $20 million in 2012.

Goal setting

The panelists agree on the need to set ambitious corporate goals, such as a revenue or fund raising target, and keep employees involved, informed, and engaged in meeting it.

Belyea said that last year CXtec and TERACAI set a goal of reaching $200 million in sales by 2015. Management has shared the goal and roadmap for reaching it with employees every step of the way. “Bringing along everybody helps you get there,” he said.

But Belyea jokingly admits that when he first revealed the goal to his employees they questioned his sanity. “They thought I was a lunatic the first time I stood there.”

A year later, the enterprise is on pace to reach the goal, he said.

INFICON’s Chabot said his company has a goal to double in revenue by 2020, a campaign called Vision 2020. The business has put up posters throughout the building and communicated with employees frequently about its progress toward the target.

“A lot of our employees have bought in and they have incorporated [the goal] on a daily basis,” Chabot said.

Thorn, of ACHIEVE, said the nonprofit had to scale back a planned capital campaign from an $11 million goal to $4 million in the wake of the recession, but noted it is now within $500,000 of achieving it.

Contact Rombel at arombel@cnybj.com

BUSINESS JOURNAL 500 PANEL

Moderator: Rob Simpson, president, CenterState CEO

Panelists:

Mary Jo Thorn, CEO, ACHIEVE

Peter Belyea, president, CXtec & TERACAI

Stephen Chabot, VP of operations, INFICON, Inc.

Nathan Andrews, president, Morse Manufacturing Co., Inc.

Fran Duskiewicz, senior executive VP, Nice N Easy Grocery Shoppes