Surace to head Utica chapter of state CPA society

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UTICA — Stephen Surace of Deerfield is the new president of the Utica chapter of the New York State Society of Certified Public Accounts (NYSSCPA)

SU, Cornell partner with Rwandan universities

Health Care, Subscriber Only

SYRACUSE — The Syracuse University (SU) School of Information Studies (iSchool) and Cornell University are helping two universities in Rwanda train new professionals in library and information science. The iSchool, Cornell, the Kigali Institute of Education, and the National University of Rwanda signed a partnership agreement in early May. Students from the two Rwandan universities

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The iSchool, Cornell, the Kigali Institute of Education, and the National University of Rwanda signed a partnership agreement in early May. Students from the two Rwandan universities will work toward doctorates, master’s degrees, and certificates at both SU and Cornell over the next few years.

Most will work through the schools’ distance programs and receive additional training as teachers so they can begin training even more professionals in Rwanda, says Sarah Webb, a doctoral student at the iSchool who has been working on the effort. Webb first became interested in Rwanda after spending time there during a leave of absence from her job as a librarian.

It was while there she decided to pursue another degree and also learned something of Rwandan leaders’ desire to spur a more knowledge-based economy in their nation.

The National University is aiming to implement an information science program of its own while the Kigali Institute plans to train a new generation of librarians and information managers.

“They’re landlocked and they need a good industry,” Webb says. “[IT] is one that can really work for them.”

Librarians are a key piece of the strategy because they will help teachers throughout the country use technological resources in the classroom more effectively. The nation also needs to develop a reading culture, Webb notes.

Much of Rwanda’s stories and history is passed on in oral form, she says. Cultivating a generation familiar with books, but also with Google and Wikipedia, will be critical for creating a new kind of economy there, she adds.

The Kigali Institute and National University are aiming to train 33 students through the partnership with Cornell and the iSchool. Three would earn doctorates from SU, 15 would earn certificates of advance study from SU, and another 15 would earn master’s degrees from SU or Cornell.

Webb is earning her degree soon, but plans to remain at SU for a post-doctorate period to work with the Rwandans. She has worked on the initiative with Mary Ochs, an alumna of the iSchool, and the agricultural library director at Cornell.

Much of Webb’s work over the next year will involve fundraising. It will cost about $3 million to implement a program to train the 33 students. The iSchool plans to assist with some tuition aid, but the school says Webb plans to reach out to corporations, foundations, government agencies, and alumni for support.

The goal is for students from Rwanda to visit the iSchool next summer for a two-month orientation residency and then finish their degrees back home.

Along with Webb and Ochs, iSchool Dean Elizabeth Liddy was in Rwanda in early May to sign the partnership agreement.

Liddy said in a news release that the Rwandans are eager and dedicated to rebuilding their nation. The country suffered through years of civil war and genocide beginning in the 1990s.

As many as 1 million people died during the genocide, which took place in 1994.

Liddy said she would like to see increasing numbers of Rwandan students earn their degrees from the iSchool and eventually open their own information studies school.

“There is a whole continent in need,” she said. “If we really believe this is the future, and if we as iSchools believe this is where we need to be, it would be great to be part of the initiation of Africa being part of the iSchool movement.”

Upstate consumers grow more confident about current conditions in May

New York News, Regional News, Subscriber Only

Not as optimistic about the futureUpstate consumers tapped a well of current confidence in May, buoying their willingness to spend, according to a monthly poll from the Siena (College) Research Institute (SRI). SRI’s overall consumer-confidence index for upstate New York edged up 3.3 points to 74.7. It nearly breached the index’s break-even point of 75.

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Not as optimistic about the future

Upstate consumers tapped a well of current confidence in May, buoying their willingness to spend, according to a monthly poll from the Siena (College) Research Institute (SRI).

SRI’s overall consumer-confidence index for upstate New York edged up 3.3 points to 74.7. It nearly breached the index’s break-even point of 75.

That’s the point at which consumers are equally optimistic and pessimistic. Index results below 75 reflect predominant pessimism, while results above 75 show largely optimistic consumers.

Much of May’s confidence increase came from a flood of current confidence — the SRI index’s current-confidence component jumped 6.8 points to 78.4. Its future-confidence component inched up 1 point to 72.3. SRI measures overall confidence by combining current and future confidence.

“There’s a big jump Upstate,” says Douglas Lonnstrom, professor of statistics and finance at Siena College and SRI founding director. “People are feeling a little more confidence, and they’re more willing to spend.”

The gush of current confidence wasn’t confined to New York’s upstate region. In the state as a whole, overall consumer confidence swelled 2 points to 76.6.

Current statewide confidence surged 5.2 points to 76.2. Future confidence held even at 76.9.

May’s outpouring of current confidence is a departure from recent months, according to Lonnstrom. Overall-confidence gains had been largely led by consumers expressing a willingness to spend in the future, not the present, he says.

“Current confidence has been kind of stagnant, just drifting along,” he says. “And then all of a sudden, the current component went up over 5 points.”

The metropolitan New York City area went with the flow as well, with overall confidence climbing 1.5 points to 77.9. Current confidence spurted up 4.5 points to 75, but future confidence in the city area trickled down 0.5 points to 79.8.

Nationally, consumers felt better about spending under current conditions and in the future, according to the University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Index.

Overall consumer confidence across the nation moved up 2.9 points to 79.3. Current confidence increased 4.3 points to 87.2, and future confidence rose 2 points to 74.3.

Gas and food prices

Falling gasoline prices took some pressure off consumers, according to SRI’s survey. The portion of consumers citing gas prices as a problem slipped in both upstate New York and the state as a whole.

Upstate, 67 percent of consumers said gasoline prices were a problem, down from 77 percent in April. Statewide, 58 percent listed gas prices as a problem, down from 67 percent.

“If you go back a couple of months ago, people were talking about $4 a gallon gas, $5 a gallon gas this summer,” Lonnstrom says. “That has really turned around.”

Consumer concern over food prices was steadier. In May, 68 percent of upstate residents named food as a problem, just below the 69 percent who were concerned in April. Among statewide consumers, 65 percent said food prices were a problem in May, a dip from 67 percent in April.

And 55 percent of upstate residents said both gas and food prices posed a problem in May, down from 62 percent. Statewide, 47 percent said both gas and food prices were a problem, down from 54 percent.

New York buying plans

Consumers upped their plans to make most types of major purchases in May, SRI found. Computers logged in as the only category where buying plans fell, dipping 1.3 points to 13.9 percent.

Buying plans for cars and trucks revved up 2.8 points to 12.9 percent. Plans for furniture purchases ticked up 0.7 points to 19.5 percent.

The portion of consumers who anticipated buying major home improvements rose 0.1 point to 16.6 percent. The portion planning to buy a home increased 1.6 points to 5.7 percent.

The upturn in home-purchasing plans is relatively small but could be significant, according to Lonnstrom.

“You’re never going to get a ton of people saying, ‘We’re going to buy a house in the next six months,’ ” he says. “If we can turn around the housing market, that will be big for future confidence, because that’s been depressing confidence since 2008.”

SRI surveyed 801 New York residents over the age of 18 in May to conduct the survey. The consumer-confidence index does not have a margin of error because it is derived by a series of statistical calculations, but buying plans have a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 points, according to SRI.

Licari Motor Car expands

Manufacturing & Engineering, Regional News, Small Business, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Subscriber Only

HERKIMER — Licari Motor Car, Inc. is making strides in 2012 — including a new service department and expanded service and showroom facility — that should boost business for the Herkimer–based auto dealer. In early March, Licari opened a four-bay NAPA Auto Care Center at its facility on Route 28 in Herkimer and hired two

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In early March, Licari opened a four-bay NAPA Auto Care Center at its facility on Route 28 in Herkimer and hired two new service technicians.

“It’s been going extremely well,” owner Samuel Licari says of the new service center. The center is part of a broader project that expanded the former 1,500-square-foot office and showroom facility to a new 4,000-square-foot facility with three offices, a back office/break room, service office, service waiting room, and four-bay service area. Licari, who declined to say how much the project cost, hired Little Falls Construction to build the facility, which took about 11 months from start to finish.

The expansion comes at a time when the number of auto dealers in southern Herkimer County continues to dwindle. The area was once home to a number of dealers, including Skinner Auto Sales in Herkimer, Bob Kavic Jeep in Herkimer, and Holt Bros. in Mohawk. Skinner has since consolidated operations in its Richfield Springs location. Kavic and Holt Bros. are no longer in business.

Licari Motor Car’s major local competitors these days are Steet Ponte Chevrolet, Inc., also located on Route 28 in Herkimer, and Midtown Autoworld on West Albany Street in Herkimer.

As other dealers have retrenched, Licari has been steadily expanding his business, which he opened in 1989 with maybe a dozen cars on his lot. These days, Licari Motor Car averages about 65 to 70 cars on the lot, Harold Coffin, Jr., sales manager, says. In that time, the staff has grown from just two people to the current staff of six — Licari, Coffin, another sales person, an office manager, and two service technicians.

“It’s a great location, and it’s been extremely profitable,” Licari says. He expects it to be even more profitable this year with the boost in business from the service department. Between increased auto sales and growth from the service department, Licari expects his revenue to double this year. He declined to release revenue figures or specific projections.

Coffin says the dealership is successful for a number of reasons. First, people still want to do business locally, and Licari Motor Car provides that local option for people who don’t want to travel to neighboring Oneida County to shop for a car.

Licari Motor Car’s website (www.licarimotorcar.com) also helps drive sales, Coffin says. “We don’t hide anything,” he says of the auto listings on the site. “We do everything full disclosure.” That means listing the vehicle asking price, providing pictures, and offering a Carfax vehicle-history report right on the website for every vehicle. Purchased on its own, a Carfax report costs about $35 per vehicle or can be purchased in a bundle of five vehicle reports for about $45.

Offering the free Carfax is just another way of taking care of the customer, Coffin says. That kind of service has paid off for the dealership, Licari says. About 87 percent of his customers are repeat clients or those who were referred to Licari by a customer.

“I must be doing something right,” Licari says.

Licari, who opened the new service center in early March, is in the process of planning a grand-opening event with the Herkimer County Chamber of Commerce.

Big Brother Is Watching

Opinion, Subscriber Only

Tidy your house. Stash the beer cans. Guess who is stopping by without notice? Your big brother. If you say you don’t have one, I have news for you. There was news recently about a computer virus called Flame. It has burrowed its way into computers in the Middle East — especially computers in Iran.

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Tidy your house. Stash the beer cans. Guess who is stopping by without notice? Your big brother. If you say you don’t have one, I have news for you.

There was news recently about a computer virus called Flame. It has burrowed its way into computers in the Middle East — especially computers in Iran. And this affects you — your computer, your life — directly. Even if you have zero interest in foreign affairs and intrigue.

Experts are still studying Flame — to figure out what it does. This much they already know: It can change settings on computers it invades. It can turn on the microphone of a PC. It can record conversations without the speakers knowing.

Better put your bra back on. It can also take screen shots without you knowing. It can log instant-messaging chats. I wonder who is investigating whom here. My guess is that Flame is learning more about the experts than they are learning about Flame.

Welcome to the cyber world. And, the world of cyber warfare. And, cyber eavesdropping. If you think you will ever have absolute privacy again, you are kidding yourself.

Here is the jarring news. The experts reckon Flame is five to eight years old. Those experts have only just discovered it. Can you imagine how many other surveillance weapons are out there now? Can you imagine what the newest ones can do? The experts probably don’t have a clue. And you don’t have a chance.

Wait. There is always a bright side. You probably won’t have to worry about Iran launching a nuclear missile. These cyber weapons have obviously come from Israel. Or the U.S. Or both countries working together. (While no doubt spying on each other.)

Imagine the Israelis deploying them. Those Iranian generals who want to make nuclear arrangements? They won’t even be able to make appointments with their beard trimmers. I can imagine Israelis re-directing their rockets to blitz Tehran.

Now to the darker side. Your privacy will be shredded — if it hasn’t been already.

You see, most stuff that gets developed for the military and spies will make it onto the public market. Eventually. Think mini-cameras and microphones. (The alarm clock where you sleep tonight may have them. So might your date’s eyeglasses.) Think night-vision cameras. And Google Earth. And mini-drones, now available. And, that nifty tracking device. The one your spouse slipped under the hood of your car. You can buy this stuff at farmers’ markets.

And think of all the surveillance cameras that already exist. At banks and alleyways. And at a million check-out counters. And those are only the cameras you can see.

My point is simple: Perhaps Flame-type technology has not already destroyed your privacy. But it will. Coming soon, to a bedroom like yours.

Well, you always said you would like to be a star. You just didn’t know you would have your own reality show.

Your mom always told you to check your teeth for spinach and wear clean underwear. If she only knew why you would need to heed her advice.

From Tom…as in Morgan.

Tom Morgan writes about financial and other subjects from his home near Oneonta, in addition to his radio shows and new TV show. For more information about him, visit his website at www.tomasinmorgan.com

Construction survey finds Upstate’s troubles persist

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Regional News, Subscriber Only

The construction industry in upstate New York continues to experience hard times, according to a new survey from Rochester–based The Bonadio Group. Nearly a quarter of upstate construction companies, 24 percent, are losing money, according to Bonadio’s 2012 Upstate New York Contractors State of the Industry Study. The accounting, business-advisory, and financial-services group, which has

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The construction industry in upstate New York continues to experience hard times, according to a new survey from Rochester–based The Bonadio Group.

Nearly a quarter of upstate construction companies, 24 percent, are losing money, according to Bonadio’s 2012 Upstate New York Contractors State of the Industry Study. The accounting, business-advisory, and financial-services group, which has a Syracuse office at 115 Solar St., released the study June 4.

The 24 percent of firms losing money is an increase of 10 percentage points over the survey’s last edition in 2010. Construction companies are still feeling a slowdown from the recent recession, according to Heidi Caton, a partner in Bonadio’s construction division.

“It’s a lagging industry,” she says of construction. “In 2008, when everyone else was saying we were in a recession, contractors had a backlog of projects that was big enough to carry them through the next year. They’ve burned through that backlog, they’ve burned through their excess capital, and now they’re starting to feel the pain.”

Fewer jobs are available for contractors to bid on, Caton says. As a result, the number of construction firms vying for each project has increased, she adds.

The Bonadio survey supports that view, as it shows bid success rates have declined over the last two years. In 2012, 75 percent of contractors reported bid success rates lower than 25 percent — a jump from 2010, when 60 percent reported success rates that low.

And 52 percent of this year’s survey respondents said they face six to 10 competitors per bid, on average. In 2008, only 22 percent said they faced six to 10 contractors per bid.

Having more contractors competing for each job has pushed down profit margins in Upstate’s construction industry, according to Caton. Now, the entities commissioning projects have more leverage, she says.

“The owners are in control now, where in the past they never were,” she says. “They’re making stricter contract terms. They’re beating contractors up over prices, because they have 20 people in line behind the contractor waiting to take the work.”

Contract sizes decreased in the last four years, the survey found. In 2012, more than 93 percent of contractors said their average contract amount was under $5 million. That’s up from 2008, when 81 percent said their average contracts were below that amount.

The tough times could be leading construction-firm owners to consider leaving the business, according to survey results. About 27 percent of respondents expressed plans to sell or transition their business in the next five years.

And, family ownership receded in this year’s survey. In 2012, 47 percent of survey respondents reported being in family-owned construction businesses, down from 59 percent in 2010.

“There are some big companies out there that are buying up some of the smaller companies,” Caton says. “There are also companies that the owners are a little older, and they were thinking about transitioning out in the next 10, 15 years. Now they’re closing up shop.”

The situation is worse for smaller contractors, according to Caton. No large contractors with annual revenue exceeding $50 million reported losing money in the 2012 survey, while 37 percent of firms with under $10 million in revenue said they were losing money, she said.

Some segments of the construction industry are stronger than others, she adds. There seem to be more projects for firms specializing in health care and education, while those that focus on commercial-office space have a dearth of opportunities, she says.

No consensus exists on when Upstate’s construction market will improve, but it isn’t likely to be this year, Caton says.

“It’s definitely going to get a little harder,” she says. “No one is predicting improvement until 2013.”

In addition to its Rochester and Syracuse offices, Bonadio has locations in Buffalo, Albany, New York City, Geneva, and Perry
and employs almost 350 people. Its survey includes responses from about 100 construction companies from across upstate New York

Of responding companies, 52 percent said they were small businesses with less than $10 million in revenue, 40 percent said they were medium-sized companies with $10 million to $49.9 million in revenue, and 8 percent reported they were large companies with revenue exceeding $50 million.

Downtown Ithaca Alliance picks candy, clothing stores in Race for the Space

Regional News, Small Business, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Subscriber Only

ITHACA — A candy shop and clothing store, tabbed as the winners of the Downtown Ithaca Alliance’s “Race for the Space” free-rent competition, will bring missing elements to the city’s downtown, predicts the organization’s executive director. “When we looked at our criteria, not only were we looking for great businesses, we were looking for great

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“When we looked at our criteria, not only were we looking for great businesses, we were looking for great fits,” says Gary Ferguson, the Downtown Ithaca Alliance’s executive director. “They really were the proposals that seemed to fit Ithaca well and seemed to fit our situation well, fit the marketplace.”

The Downtown Ithaca Alliance announced the winners of the competition on June 1. The candy store will be a new branch of Life’s So Sweet Chocolates, a business based in Trumansburg that is owned by Darlynne Overbaugh. In Ithaca, Life’s So Sweet Chocolates is heading to a storefront in The Ithaca Journal building on West Green Street, which is owned by Urban Core, LLC.

The clothing shop, owned by Olivia Royale and Heidi Brown, will be dubbed Art and Found. It will be located in the Center Ithaca building at 171 E. State St., which is owned by Travis Hyde Properties.

For winning the competition, both shops will receive free rent for a year, a yearlong advertising package in the Ithaca Timescommunity newspaper, and design services for storefront layout and signage from Ithaca–based John Snyder Architects. The Downtown Ithaca Alliance will also provide graphic-design services, business planning, marketplace assistance, and quarterly monitoring visits from operations experts.

The organization estimates the value of the winners’ packages to be more than $40,000. Each store will have about 1,500 square feet of space.

The Downtown Ithaca Alliance’s Business Retention and Development Committee evaluated 28 entries in the competition, which opened in February. It asked about half of the entrants to submit full business plans, offering them help through business counseling. A total of 11 entrants eventually submitted plans.

“An entry was like a pre-application,” Ferguson says. “I’d call that a Reader’s Digest business plan. It was a couple pages and helped us flag it if it was something that made sense for us to take to a higher level.”

The Downtown Ithaca Alliance looked at whether an entry was viable, compatible with downtown Ithaca, and able to be started in a timely manner when it decided which entrants to ask for business plans.

It also gave an edge to concepts for types of businesses it was hoping to add to the downtown area. They included footwear, specialty restaurants, children’s clothing, candy shops, women’s accessories, lingerie, and general retail merchandise.

Winning businesses had to be willing to sign a three-year lease, with only the first year being free. They also had to be ready to pay utilities and other occupancy costs, obtain financing within 60 days of learning that they won the competition, and open within four months of the award.

“We hope both will be open by the fall,” Ferguson says. “We know that the chocolate shop is shooting to be open in September. And I suspect the clothing store will be opened close to the same time as well.”

The Downtown Ithaca Alliance is now working to negotiate with individual property owners to find places for runner-up businesses, according to Ferguson. He isn’t yet sure how many runners-up will receive offers or what their award packages will be.

“There may be another four or five coming out of this,” he says. “We won’t be able to give them a year’s free rent, but we might be able to provide partial rent assistance.”

Ferguson didn’t share the financial details of the Race for the Space competition or the winning entrants’ revenue projections. The program wasn’t particularly expensive for the Downtown Ithaca Alliance to operate, he says, as the landlords involved offered free rent.

“It really was an idea to identify talent and get them focused and interested in trying downtown Ithaca,” Ferguson says. “We knew there’s a lot of entrepreneurial talent not only in our community, but in the upstate area.”

Newsflash: Obama is tightfisted with taxpayer dollars

Opinion, Subscriber Only

I felt like Rip Van Winkle, waking up from a 20-year sleep and seeing a world I didn’t recognize. On May 22, Rex Nutting, the international commentary editor for MarketWatch, a financial website affiliated with the Wall Street Journal, published a column entitled “Obama spending binge never happened.” The author posited that he had reviewed

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I felt like Rip Van Winkle, waking up from a 20-year sleep and seeing a world I didn’t recognize.

On May 22, Rex Nutting, the international commentary editor for MarketWatch, a financial website affiliated with the Wall Street Journal, published a column entitled “Obama spending binge never happened.” The author posited that he had reviewed data of presidencies covering the last 60 years and concluded that President Barack Obama had presided over the smallest increase in federal spending. Within hours, the column had gone viral on Facebook, and the media dutifully reported Nutting’s findings as the truth delivered from Mount Sinai.

Hitting the campaign trail in Des Moines, Iowa, President Obama declared: “Federal spending since I took office has risen at the slowest pace of any president in almost 60 years.”

I quickly checked to see whether I had taken my medication that day. I had. I then checked to confirm that I was wearing my latest optical prescription. Affirmative. How, I asked, could my president be cast as the biggest spender of federal dollars one day and then be cast as a miser the next? The answer was in the details.

First, Nutting made the decision that a president’s first year in office is not really his, since the fiscal year is already four months old at the swearing-in ceremony. This made President George W. Bush largely responsible for the economic-stimulus package, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the 2009 expenditures under the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP). In short, Nutting raised the Bush expenditure baseline and decreased that of President Obama.

Second, Nutting cast roughly $110 billion of bailout money, which was paid back to the federal government, as “spending cuts.” If you combine the TARP lending in 2009 and the money paid back in 2010, Nutting says that President Obama spent $261 billion less than the record shows.

Third, the federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac also makes Obama’s record look better than it was. Uncle Sam spent $96 billion in 2009 on the takeover, but only $40 billion in 2010. Guess what? Nutting claims the $56 billion as a spending cut. If you combine the TARP bailout and the Fannie-Freddie takeovers, these two bailouts account for another $72 billion in spending “cuts” in 2011.

Fourth, the MarketWatch analysis incorporates the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) annual “baseline” as its estimates for fiscal years 2012 and 2013. The CBO assumes $65 billion in automatic, across-the-board spending cuts that will take effect in January, cuts in Medicare payments to doctors, and the expiration of refundable tax credits that are “scored” as spending in the federal ledgers. The likelihood of these spending cuts occurring is, at best, dubious.

Douglas Holtz-Eakin — a former professor at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School; former Congressional Budget Office director; and current president of the American Action Forum, a free-market think-tank — believes that a better analysis of federal spending is to view TARP and Fannie–Freddie as one-time budget anomalies and remove them from the comparison. The result is an explosion of federal spending under the Obama Administration.

Are there benchmarks Nutting ignored? How about the fact that the federal debt has increased 14.6 percent each year President Obama has presided in office? How about the explosion of federal spending as a percentage of GDP, which has reached levels not seen since World War II? How about the budgets presented by the president, restrained only by a House of Representatives controlled by the Republicans?

Nutting and the press call President Obama “tightfisted.” Maybe this is what the president meant when he campaigned on “hope and change.” Hope for the best and change reality.

Norman Poltenson is publisher of The Central New York Business Journal. Contact him at npoltenson@cnybj.com

CNY BEST AWARDS

Subscriber Only

SYRACUSE — The following are the winners of the fourth Annual CNY BEST Learning and Performance Awards, presented by the Central New York Chapter of the American Society for Training & Development (CNY ASTD) at an awards ceremony on Thursday, June 7. The awards recognize excellence in learning and performance practices in the region. The

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The awards recognize excellence in learning and performance practices in the region. The program honors organizations, internships, consultants, and individuals who have linked learning to strategic growth or success through a demonstrated commitment to helping employees enhance their skills and continue learning.

LEARNING AND PERFORMANCE INDIVIDUAL

– Christy Rohmer

Christy Rohmer is senior business professional instructor at New Horizons Computer Learning Center of Syracuse & Rochester. This award recognizes contributions to internal or external customers’ learning progress or success. Rohmer saw a need for, developed, delivered, and fine-tuned a new Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Designer Workflow Workshop, which is now offered as part of New Horizons’ training schedule. The judges complimented Rohmer “on taking the initiative to develop and successfully execute a program that benefits external and internal clients with significant measurable results.”

CONSULTANT

– Dale Sherman, EnergyWright, Inc.

The consultant recognized for helping link learning to clients’ strategic growth or success was Dale Sherman, EnergyWright, Inc., for its Zonal Pressure Diagnostics House. EnergyWright is a Manlius–based energy education and design consulting company that designs and manufactures innovative instructional props to support energy efficiency and green-technology curriculum. The judges acknowledged EnergyWright’s “creative idea that positively impacts learning efficiency.”

INTERNSHIP

– LaFayette Big Picture School

LaFayette Big Picture School was recognized for its “Real Learning Internships,” which provide internship opportunities for college or high-school students. At LaFayette Big Picture School, internships enable students to improve their education and personal growth while addressing their interests, passion, and curiosity with personalized learning plans under the guidance of school advisers and work-force mentors. The judges noted that these internships were “an integral part of their students’ education, preparing them well for their post-high school lives.”

ORGANIZATIONS

(not-for-profit)

– Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University

The Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University was recognized for linking learning for its internal and external stakeholders to the organization’s strategic growth and success for its Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities and Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans’ Families. The aim of the program is to open the door to economic opportunity for veterans and their families by developing their competencies in the many steps and activities associated with creating and sustaining an entrepreneurial venture. The judges commented on how this program “highly enhanced the performance of its graduates.”

ORGANIZATIONS

(for-profit)

– Oneida Nation Enterprises, LLC

– Saab Sensis Corporation

– SavOn, LLC

Three for-profit organizations were recognized for linking employee learning to their organization’s strategic growth or success.

Oneida Nation Enterprises, LLC received the Organization Sapphire Award for its “Leading Through Learning: The Leader Learning Circle program,” which was designed to teach core leadership skills and create personal accountability for applying these skills on the job. Using the book “Monday Morning Leadership: 8 Mentoring Sessions You Can’t Afford to Miss,” by David Cottrell, as its basis, leaders are accountable for setting goals each week to change one of their own behaviors as it relates to the book. The judges called it a “very simple, yet well thought-out program with impressive results.”

Saab Sensis Corporation received the Organization Emerald Award for its “Listening to Learners” program. The Saab Sensis training group undertook a challenge to improve student satisfaction, and training effectiveness while maintaining the organization’s cost-reduction strategies. It conducted a front-end analysis and acquired insights by reviewing student surveys, observing classroom behaviors, assessing students’ cultural backgrounds, and asking for ways to improve existing training. Outcomes included increased student engagement, enhanced development of skills and knowledge, and a re-engineering of training design that has improved the effectiveness of training. The judges mentioned the “high degree of commitment to providing and sustaining high-quality learning outcomes.”

The CNY BEST Learning and Performance Organization Diamond Award recognized SavOn, LLC for its “Exceptional Customer Service: Shopping for the BEST!” program. When through observation and customer focus groups, SavOn learned that its main competitive advantage was low cost versus its competition, which rated highly on customer service, it knew it needed to make changes to remain competitive. In response, SavOn launched a customer-service training and mystery-shopper program. The judges’ observations included: “a well-designed program covering performance, culture, and rewards with successful results,” and a “strong link between training practices and positive individual and overall company results.”

In addition to recognizing excellence in learning and performance practices, CNY ASTD awarded the first annual CNY ASTD John Burns Memorial Scholarship Awards to Krista Bartlett and Steven DeHart. ASTD established the scholarship program to encourage and support continuing education and professional development in the field of work-force learning and performance. The awards are named in honor of CNY ASTD’s 2010 Lifetime Achievement Award winner John Burns.

The keynote speaker for this year’s CNY BEST Learning and Performance Awards ceremony was Jeffrey M. Stonecash, Syracuse University Maxwell professor of political science, who discussed managing the future work force. Stonecash highlighted the importance of having a work-force development system that includes training, incentive management, and a policy infrastructure.

Confidence improves among learning executives

New York News, Subscriber Only

Learning executives were feeling more optimistic during the first quarter of 2012, according to the latest confidence index from the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD). The index for the first quarter totaled 67.3, up from 66.6 in the fourth quarter of 2011. The first-quarter total matched the all-time high for the index, previously

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Learning executives were feeling more optimistic during the first quarter of 2012, according to the latest confidence index from the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD).

The index for the first quarter totaled 67.3, up from 66.6 in the fourth quarter of 2011. The first-quarter total matched the all-time high for the index, previously reached during the first quarter of 2011.

Overall during 2011, the index varied just 1.4 points, indicating that learning executives remained cautiously optimistic throughout the year, according to ASTD.

The index measures executives’ outlook and expectations for the learning function. ASTD surveyed 237 learning executives about their expectations for their effect on corporate performance, ability to meet learning needs, status as a key strategic component, and availability of resources.

More than 84 percent of the executives surveyed expected either the same or better availability of resources to meet learning needs, according to ASTD, and more than 67 percent believe the creation of new learning content will moderately or substantially increase.

Still, executives in the survey recognized they’re not immune from continuing economic pressures. Sixty-seven percent of them said their organization’s funding for workplace learning and development will either stay the same or moderately or substantially decrease.

Overall, the executives were feeling good about their company’s prospects. More than 68 percent said their profit expectations will be moderately or substantially better.

The confidence that learning executives displayed in the recent survey reflects the fact that they’re viewed now as key partners with management in many companies, says Melanie Brunet Relyea, training manager for Oneida Nation Enterprises.

Businesses have increasingly identified learning as an important part of corporate success, she adds. Companies have recognized that their people are resources and that to perform well, they need to be trained.

That means that learning executives now often have a seat at the table when critical corporate decisions are made, Relyea says. It doesn’t mean that companies will start throwing lots more dollars at learning, but it doesn’t mean the likelihood of drastic declines is lower.

It’s important to remember as well that it’s not just about money, Relyea adds. Employees need the time to participate in learning activities, whether it’s a classroom session or a project meant to stretch their capabilities.

Because businesses have been running lean during difficult economic times, demand for those time resources is at a premium, Relyea says. That situation is likely to improve as firms begin to hire again, she adds.

Many learning departments themselves didn’t experience deep cutting during the recent economic downturn, Relyea says. That’s partially because businesses slashed or outsourced training during previous economic dips.

It’s also because learning is increasingly recognized for its important corporate role, she adds.

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