Obama chooses Pittsburgh to host G-20 Summit

As I'm sure you've heard already- unless you've been living under a rock for the last 8 hours- President Obama has chosen our fair city to host a major, prestigious economic summit. The G-20 Summit, which features leaders from 20 countries who represent 85 percent of the global economy, who will gather to discuss ways of recovering from the global economic and financial crisis.

Obviously, this is a great honor and a rare opportunity for us to show off our city and its progress over the years. Let's make sure we take full advantage of it.

This is, of course, all over the news in many different national and international sources, but I think the Associated Press article did a nice job summing it up- everything from Obama's reason for choosing Pittsburgh to the history of Pittsburgh in a nutshell.

But let's let out a big fat BOO! to the USA Today article, which completely missed the point of why Obama chose Pittsburgh. USA Today said the reason was because Pittsburgh has economic problems, which is not true. We were chosen because we recovered from severe economic problems and Obama wants to hold up Pittsburgh as an example of what can happen with a recovery.

(Note: Before any negative person points out that we still have problems, let me cut you off at the pass and say "Yes, we understand Pittsburgh is not perfect. We understand we are not completely where we want to be yet." But we are in much better shape than the rest of the country- read any of my previous posts- and we are headed in the right direction.)

Pittsburgh area adds two Fortune 500 companies in 2009!

Congratulations Pittsburgh!

The new 2009 Fortune 500 list was released to today and two Western Pennsylvania headquartered companies joined the Fortune 500 while another joined the Fortune 1000. The Pittsburgh area now boasts 8 Fortune 500 headquarters and 13 Fortune 1000 headquarters up from 6 and 12 respectively in 2008.

The newcomers are Mylan Pharmaceuticals at 462 (736 last year), Consol Energy at 497 (577 last year), and Atlas America at 864 (not ranked last year). Mainstays US Steel (up 41 spots to to 105), PPG (up 56 spots to 161), PNC (down 14 spots to 278), Heinz (up 26 spots to 267), Wesco (up two spots to 406) and Allegheny Technologies (down seven spots to 448) all retained their Fortune 500 status as well.

Here is the complete list of Fortune 1000 headquarters in Pennsylvania.

Here is a list of the Pittsburgh area ones:

1. US Steel, Pittsburgh, 105
2. PPG Industries, Pittsburgh, 161
3. Heinz, Pittsburgh, 267
4. PNC, Pittsburgh, 278
5. Wesco, Pittsburgh, 406
6. Allegheny Technologies, Pittsburgh, 448
7. Mylan, Canonsburg, 462
8. Consol Energy, Canonsburg, 497
9. Dick's Sporting Goods, Pittsburgh, 562
10. Allegheny Energy, Greensburg, 630
11. American Eagle, Pittsburgh, 690
12. Kennametal, Latrobe, 732
13. Atlas America, Moon Township, 864

No wonder we're weathering the economy better than most regions. In addition to these 13 "official" Fortune 1000, we have several more that basically are at the same level. We have BNY Mellon and Alcoa, both of which are "on paper" HQ'd in NYC, but really are still HQ'd here. Plus we have Giant Eagle and Highmark, both of which would be a Fortune 500s if they were public and EDMC which would be a Fortune 1000 if it was public.

Exciting stuff. Pass this on!

Pittsburgh weathers recession well

As has been pointed out many times, Pittsburgh is in very good shape compared to the rest of the country.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_612126.html

Pittsburgh home prices buck national downturn again

Old news at this point. You can see several other posts on this blog talking about the same subject. But I always like to reinforce the points.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_613270.html

Pittsburgh Commercial Real Estate Market #1 in the U.S.

Makes sense. With a strong economy (relative to the rest of the country), it make sense that office and retail properties would be doing better in Pittsburgh than elsewhere.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/breaking/s_608350.html

2008 biggest year yet for Pittsburgh Film Office

Anytime movies are filmed in Pittsburgh, that's pretty cool. Not sure I'm sold on the huge economic impact they have, but I think the PR value for the city is great.


http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_608437.html

NY Times: Pittsburgh Thrives After Casting Steel Aside

Great NYT article about the resilient Pittsburgh economy and about how it can be a model for what Detroit is going through right now. Great that Pittsburgh is finally starting to get national recognition for performing better than the rest of the country in this downturn.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/08/business/economy/08collapse.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2

Pittsburgh's Fifth & Forbes Renaissance Nearing Completion

This talks about all of the construction projects near completion Downtown and their expected benefits and impact.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09004/939503-53.stm

Downtown Pittsburgh Real Estate: A Hotbed of Activity

Offices are full. Hotels are full. Condos are selling out. New construction everywhere you look in Downtown Pittsburgh. Sounds like a comeback to me! Or is that a renaissance? Anyway, read this P-G article for all the details.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08363/937860-28.stm

Are Bad Economic Times Good for Pittsburgh?

Interesting premise in this P-G article. Could the stability of the local job and real estate markets bring some talent back to town?

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08361/937758-294.stm

No Recession in Pittsburgh...

...as evidenced by these two articles. Again, the Pittsburgh economy and jobs outlook is better than the rest of the country.

First, a Trib article about the Pittsburgh region ADDING 5,000 jobs in October while the rest of the country faces hard times.

Then, a PG article talking about how Pittsburgh area manufacturers are holding up well in this economy compared to the rest of the country.

(Note: The same day this article was published, Sony announced they were closing their Westmoreland County plant. So, while most of the news is still good- no region can come out of this economy completely unscathed).

More Good News for the Pittsburgh economy...

Trib Articles:

Amid economic downturn, bright spots for jobs in Pittsburgh
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_600194.html

Pittsburgh Tech companies create 343 jobs
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/breaking/s_599358.html

Au Revoir Pittsburgh, Bonjour Paris!

Delta to begin nonstop flights from Pittsburgh to Paris in June. Great from both a business and leisure perspective.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08311/925813-147.stm

Pittsburgh Jobs picture beats National Average again

Absolutely amazing, isn't it? Even Johnny Positive isn't THIS optimistic in this economy.

The Pittsburgh region gained another 7,000 jobs last month year over year. The region's unemployment rate is at 5.4% compared to the national average of 6.1%. You can read more details in the Trib article below, but this is an interesting tidbit from it: "The increase in residential employment could be an indication people from other regions are coming to the Pittsburgh area in search of work"

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_595471.html

As a side note- in typical, negative Post-Gazette fashion, here was their headline: "Dip in jobless rate here may be shortlived". I'm not going to help them by giving the link here.

What bad economy? Pittsburgh businesses still thriving

We've heard many times about how the Pittsburgh housing market has been immune to the crisis that grips the rest of the nation. But what I think has been very under reported- especially by the Post-Gazette- is that the region's economy as a whole and the jobs outlook is much more positive than most people think and is doing much better than most regions in the country right now. While the rest of the nation comes to the realization of job losses and high unemployment, here are some of the business stories reported in Pittsburgh over the last few weeks. And again- mad props to the Trib for being the leader in reporting on this.


Pittsburgh region ranks in Top 20 in freight movement, Pittsburgh Trib, October 25, 2008

Rostraver firm to add 1,500 jobs, Pittsburgh Trib, October, 24, 2008

Pittsburgh rises as convention location, Pittsburgh Trib, October 20, 2008

Office vacancy rate drop optimistic, Pittsburgh Trib, October 19, 2008

Pittsburgh Airport mall leads nation in per-passenger spending, Pittsburgh Trib, October 18, 2008

Starkist Tuna moving HQ back to Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Trib, October 7, 2008

Pittsburgh: #4 U.S. city in Tech Job Growth

The Post-Gazette reported today that Pittsburgh is #4 in the country in tech job growth. This is according to the leading tech job website Dice.com.

Hartford, Conn. led the way with 30 percent growth, followed by Cincinnati, 28 percent, Miami, 23 percent, Pittsburgh at 22 percent and Charlotte, N.C. at 21 percent.

Pennsylvania Comes in #1 in Building Biotech

If you follow the local economy and business sector then this won't come as a shock to you, but Pennsylvania has been named the top state in the country in 2008 for building its biotech industry, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

This honor comes from Business Facilities Magazine's 2008 Rankings Report. Of course, this isn't ALL because of Pittsburgh. It is a statewide ranking and Philly is also a biotech powerhouse. The combination of two strong biotech markets in the state helped us beat out California, Massachusetts and Texas as well as every other state.

Pittsburgh one of few cities where hotel industry has been growing

In another story about Pittsburgh defying nationwide downtrends, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that the local hotel industry is growing rapidly while the industry in other markets is receding.

The Post-Gazette reports that in addition to an explosion in new hotel properties being built locally, demand for hotel rooms in Pittsburgh is rising as well. The PG quoted Smith Travel Research as saying that of the 100 largest cities in the country, only 11 saw their hotel occupancy rates rise. Pittsburgh was one of those. Pittsburgh had the ninth highest increase in occupancy rates at 1.3 percent.

This coincides with previous reports documenting the increase in tourism to Pittsburgh and the good reviews it gets from national travel writers (read my two recent posts about good travel reviews from The New York Times and USA Today).

Need a job? Come to Pittsburgh

OK, time to throw out the old perceptions and look at reality. While the economy in the rest of the nation takes a tumble, Pittsburgh's economy continues to stay stable. It's been reported many times that the Pittsburgh housing market bucks all of the downward trends nationally, but the numbers show the Pittsburgh job market is healthier than most as well.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports that in June the Pittsburgh region added 5,600 jobs, the fifth consecutive month of job gains in the region. That compares with over 463,000 jobs lost nationally since the beginning of the year. Although the job creation is still small, it is better than 16 of the top 40 regions.

Young People Can't Find a Job in Pittsburgh? Wrong!

Great news for new college graduates in the region. According to CollegeGrad.com, three local companies are among the top 100 nationally in 2007 for entry-level hiring. The complete list is here.

So who are these local companies where you young folks should apply? PNC, 84 Lumber and Education Management Corporation (EDMC). 84 Lumber is projected to hire 1,700 new graduates; PNC- 1350; and EDMC- 625. Obviously, all of these positions being filled are not local. But according to last Friday's Pittsburgh Business Times, 60% of PNC's new grad hires will be local and about 400 of EDMC's will be.

In addition, there are many other companies on the list who have a local presence and will be hiring new grads in the Pittsburgh area.

While we're on the subject, I have to address an issue for young people setting out to interview soon. My wife is a manager in her company and she has recently been interviewing/sifting through resumes (95% of whom are new grads) deciding who she is going to hire. You wouldn't believe the horror stories she has about clueless new grads and their interviewing skills. Let me give you a few tips:

1. Wear a suit! Whether you're male or female doesn't matter. EVERYONE should wear a suit. And khakis do not count and are not acceptable.

2. Answer the question! I don't care how idiotic a question you are asked in an interview, DON'T refuse to answer it (as one of my wife's recent, young interviewees did).

3. Remove personal interests from your resume. Honestly, no one cares that your hobbies include being the biggest Harry Potter fan in the world. In fact, it will creep most people out.

4. Your resume must be PERFECT! Punctuation and grammar MUST be 100% perfect. Running it through a spell-check doesn't count. Look it over in detail and have other people look at it too.

5. Don't say what your REAL goals are! If you're applying for a job that is not related to your field and that you don't plan on making a career, KEEP THAT TO YOURSELF. Am I telling you to lie? Yes, if you want to get hired. No one wants to hire someone who is going to quit in four months after they find a job in their field. Let me clarify- I am not telling you to lie about your accomplishments and credentials, just your intentions.

Good luck, young bucks! I hope you find a good job and stay in the region.