Business as Usual: Allegheny Conference, Stefani Pashman

Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to business as usual, this is Audrey Russo hosting every day and having fun, and it's the middle of February and who knows what's going on in everyone's lives. But I'm thrilled to be here, we have a great guest today, I'm very excited to have a chance to speak with Stefanie Pashman. I'll formally introduce her in a moment. But before I do, I wanted to get some housekeeping out of the way. So thank you goes to Huntington bank for the work that they've done in supporting us right from the onset. They've been incredible partners, and always believing in many of our experiments, who would have thought that this experiment would have lasted 10 months, but here we are. And we're going to talk a little bit about that today as we do each and every day. Also, thanks to 40 by 80, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of the tech Council, you're going to hear more and more about 40 by 80. But our focus is on workforce development, as well as supporting entrepreneurs, and 40 by 80, is actually the longitude and latitude of Pittsburgh. So Jonathan Kersting is with us today. And he is the Vice President of all things media and marketing for the tech Council. He's been around for a long time, he knows a lot of stories. And that's what he does best. In addition to all the work that he does, and supporting the tech community, he'll be keeping his eye on the chat. And he will be keeping his making sure that if there are questions that we want to ask our guests, we will, you know, he will be able to manage that. So we've muted your microphones and we're using this as as an opportunity just to speak with our guests. This is not for selling your wares. This is not for, you know, pitching your any of your services or products. We'll do that in another time. So today, we have Stefanie Pashman. And I am going to jump in and just say first of all, welcome. Thank you so much for joining us. We actually took a day off. Earlier this What day is today, Saturday, Tuesday, Wednesday. What day is today, Jonathan? Tuesday,

Tuesday, all day, yesterday, we had

all day. Okay, so it's Tuesday, and we took a day off yesterday, Brian Kennedy on our team thought it would be a great day for a snow day. So that's what we did. Even though many people didn't, you know, have the luxury of having a snow day, we built snowmen outside, it was fine. So we have Stefanie passman, where she is at the helm of the Allegheny conference on community development, you'll hear me use the term the conference, instead of saying all that during our interview, but if you want to know more about it, we'll make sure that we put the link to the conference up. And if Stephanie wants to point us to any other resources, we'll put that in the chat as well. So welcome, Stephanie. I have actually known Stefanie, prior to her role at that she's in at the Allegheny conference and served on a board with her for a few years, right, Stephanie at the Jewish community center. And we've known each other for I don't know how many years Stephanie,

and I haven't had pets for 15 years, and you probably are one of the first people I met Audrey. So it's been a while. Gosh,

it is wow. for 20 years. That's sort of crazy. Okay, so thrilled to have you here. Thank you so much for joining. And one of the first things that I love to do that I find really important is just check in, I want to check in with you. And talk a little bit about who's Stefanie professionally, tell us a little bit, you know, you have a lot of workforce experience. And there are some things that I think people you know, should be reminded of if they don't know about your history.

Sure. Well, it's great to be with you, Audrey, thank you. And I like Audrey, I live in squirrel Hill, just a couple blocks from her. However, I am a Philadelphia native. And I my career was originally focused in the healthcare industry, I spent about 15 or so years in healthcare, both on the business and strategy side and then moved to DC and spent a bunch of time in policy actually worked at the White House Budget Office on Medicare and Medicaid and helped launch the Global AIDS program under President Clinton. So I have this really deep history in healthcare, and which is very interesting coming, you know, doing this job from pandemic because I feel like I have these words and these ideas in here that they come back from ancient history. And after spending time in healthcare, I ended up in Harrisburg working for Governor Rendell for eight years, primarily on Health and Human Services policy. And then I moved to Pittsburgh, and I wanted to really get into the action in Pittsburgh and to the mix of, you know, really what was driving change in our region. And so I took over the reins of our local workforce development system, then the Three Rivers Workforce Investment Board and kind of relaunched it into the partner for one partner for work, which we all know quite well today as our workforce development system and did that for about eight years. And then three years ago, came here. The Allegheny conference. So I've really spent my career I think using public policy to solve real problems and been very much I think of a change maker and an intrapreneur. In typically bureaucratic fields. But I think it's what, you know, I'd like to sit at the intersection of business and public and private and really understand how to drive change, you know, by building consensus and taking on real issues.

Okay, great. Thank you for that. And thank you for staying in Pittsburgh. So I mean, for 15 years, I guess you still don't get the you know, you're a pittsburgher yet. But what I like

Someone once told me that the firt, you know, you're a pittsburgher, when you actually introduce to people who don't know each other. So I didn't happen maybe five years ago, I started to realize that I knew some people other people didn't know and I could be a connector. So you know, that's how you know you've kindly arrived in Pittsburgh.

So what about personally, you're also a mom, I am a mom,

I have three teenagers, which, I guess is probably better than three toddlers getting through a pandemic. But we live in tornadoes I mentioned, I also have this wonderful dog that I has been my sanity throughout the This is 10 months. And I have a really great husband who is an attorney at PNC, and my kids are actually fifth generation squirrel Hill. So we have deep family roots here. And you know, they they remind me that all the time. But

yeah, I am. That's amazing. So how are you? How are you holding up during this this past year? I like to ask that before we get into any of the questions. Yeah, you know,

I think like everybody goes in waves, right? I mean, I am a real social being. And so at the very beginning, it hit pretty hard to not be out and about and doing and interacting and entertaining. And then somewhere along the way, we just kind of found a groove and having the ability to to sit at home and have these crazy long family dinners and rediscover my love of cooking and entertaining, but in a smaller way. We retrofitted our garage so I can have a few people over here and there. I picked up got a peloton I picked up cross country skiing recently I've been doing a lot of yoga. So I feel like just the combination of making sure I can keep some level of engagement how I take care of myself and really use this time to connect with my kids has been just you know, made it made it manageable.

That's awesome. I don't know what I do without my peloton. I've had it for like three years. And now I'm maniacal about it.

I know we could talk about peloton instructors and which classes to take for a few minutes. I really want to get on a riff. But yeah, it is right now.

Yeah, now. So let's talk about let's talk about the Allegheny conference. Let's talk about describe the organization and sort of talk about the pieces and parts of the organization what your mission is, if you could do that fairly quickly.

Yeah. So what I like to say about the conference is that we market and sell a region and we fix the region. So we are kind of the front door for business investment through the Pittsburgh regional Alliance. And so we're trying to bring businesses in here and attract talent and grow jobs in the region. But we always find barriers to that. So we are then working on solving those problems, whether it's through public policy solutions through our Chamber of Commerce, or figuring out how to address our workforce and talent, challenges to our talent programs, or any myriad other of issues. So we're we're always kind of trying to be the front door and make sure the region continues to thrive.

And so you know, it's interesting, because the conference has been around for a long time. I think it's 75 plus years, and maybe 78. Is that right

now we're actually on 76. But yeah, we just made the 77 coming up.

Yep. Okay. So but they've the conference has really been a part of the biggest inflection point for Pittsburgh and Southwestern Pennsylvania, in terms of its history, and I actually would think that 2020 is and was one of those points in time, right, that, you know, what are we going to do? Look at what we've been confronted, you just released your your annual report, you just had your annual conference? What about what are your reactions to all that? And what about plans for the upcoming year? I like to think in short spurts, I don't like to think about, like, what's in 10 years, because what we saw happen this year in 2020, in the digitization, and the transformation, people change their businesses in months rather than years.

So I mean, that's, that's a great point, Audrey. I mean, we never could have predicted the rapidity with which we adopted technology and flex our workplaces and redefined our organizations. And we at the conference, just like you at the tech council had to find all new ways of connecting with the region of thinking about the future. And I think we did that. You know, I wouldn't say it was seamless, but we did it you know, with a level of resilience and try not to redefine So, you know, we as a region have An incredible breadth of assets. And I think what we hear all the time from people is, it is the moment not only to put them together, but to really seize the day to propel Pittsburgh, you know, to where it needs to be. And,

you know, we

one of the things I know, we worked on together with our partners at the airport and visit Pittsburgh, is making sure we're telling the story of Pittsburgh well, right, which I know is something that is near and dear to your heart, we don't want to be the best kept secret, we want to be the place that people know, they can create really flourishing lives and careers. And we are on the future, you know, future oriented industries. And that's really what we're thinking about is how do we make sure that story gets out that we can grow our economy in the way that we need to, and that we can make sure that we are creating what we like to call a next generation economy for all which is really grounded in inclusion and equity and all the things that are very top of mind now. So. So it's a balance of people and place and job creation.

So what are some of the findings that came out of the end report? Any highlights? And then any actions for this year?

Yeah, so So obviously, last year was pretty overwhelmed by pandemic response. But what we really know and what we all agree on is that it on Earth, so much opportunity. And so one of the things that's been quite encouraging is how robust our business investment pipeline is right now, how much more we are seeing interest from companies in, in AI in life sciences and advanced manufacturing, in technology. I mean, just think, zoom want to, you know, come here during the pandemic, and some really great opportunities and great companies landed in Pittsburgh last year, which people may not realize, because we were so drowned out in the noise of the coup we're all facing, or like Mandera, like a couple of Sciences companies that I'm forgetting off the top of my head like zoom. So there were several really great wins. But at the same time, it was also just the level of interest, like the number of people knocking on our doors is pretty loud right now. And that's really a tribute to the work you're all doing, and making sure the region gets out there and our messages out there and people know we're out there, but it's also because I think we're starting collectively to really seize the day. So that is one great story coming out of last year. Okay,

so Scott Dietz has a question like, let's, I don't mean to cut you off. I'm just thinking, that's fine. Yeah. So Jonathan, grab that question. Absolutely. Stephanie,

thanks for joining us today. It's always a pleasure to be hanging out with you. And so Scott Dietz from catalyst connection wants to know, what the President's announcement about bolstering American manufacturing. What is the conference doing to promote the region for those wanting to relocate manufacturing from overseas or even places like California, where there's been a mass exodus of companies?

Yeah, Scott, thanks for the question. So well, first of all, advanced manufacturing is, you know, is one of our priorities for business growth and attraction. And so we have some really targeted ways we market to that industry. So that's number one. Number two, we actually work with the state of Pennsylvania to get some legislation pushed out last year that we're hoping will actually get passed this year on reshoring. So we can take advantage of shifting supply chains to create some incentives for companies to recoat relocate in the Commonwealth. So we're hoping that we can get that you know, over the finish line this year. And, and the final thing that I would just mention is just making sure that we are positioned in terms of our economic development tools that we have in the toolbox to be able to bring in the opportunity. So we're kind of trying to work on all fronts. And then finally, we're relaunching some of our foreign direct investment activities, and targeting some different markets with tools. And I think all of those things taken together will give us the chance to really capitalize on some opportunities in the manufacturing and other sectors as well.

So but so, you know, we also had, and I know that you've been been active in terms of articulating the disparities in our region, and that is something that became very, very evident to each and every person who's obviously alive today, right? And we saw no difference. I mean, the maternal health report for black women, we saw the bifurcation of people who had access to technology and didn't the you know, the decimation of schools and access etc. Where are you playing in that in that space? Because you're talking about inclusion and diversity? You You're now hiring someone who's a vice president, I think you're looking for you're recruiting for a Vice President, for diversity and inclusion. Are there are there some tactics and vision there? Yeah, they share?

Sure. So we we adopted a pretty aggressive plan at the end of 2020 with the Allegheny Conference Board, and the board, just so everyone understands it's big companies in the region, but it's also our university presidents, our foundation leaders. So it's a really good mix of you know, people who are really driving the region forward. And so, we are focusing on along three lines when it comes to racial equity. The first one is just what are the things that are Organizations businesses like all of you could do to actually improve the challenges and you know, reduce the disparities, and, and address racial equity and create an anti racist culture. So these are things like making our talent pipelines more diverse thinking all the way from entry level through management through our C suite through our board, how do we diversify? How do we elevate? How do we have the policies within our recruitment and retention functions to continue to support our black and brown colleagues? And how do we make sure that those policies are sound, so it's a whole framework around that. There's also the whole set of just, you know, cultural change that we all need to make that we are doing anti bias, anti bias training, unconscious bias training, that we are making sure that we are talking about these issues, that we're setting up structures in our institutions to create the right cultures and the right frameworks for people to thrive? And then it's also of how do we support diverse supply chains? How do we think about investing in local minority owned businesses? How do we invest in our communities that are left behind, make sure that our philanthropic investments, you know, through our even our companies are going into making that change. And so being intentional about all of these, then there's a whole category of things that we're taking on, that are through the voice of our Chamber of Commerce. So the set of policies that we are going to advocate for that can kind of address some of our challenges might not minimum wage, affordable housing, police reform, criminal justice reform, parental leave policies, things that really get to the core of how we make our culture more equitable. And then finally, there's a set of activities that my team is really tasked to take on. So this is how do we approach our economic development in an inclusive framework, making sure we have principles to guide all of that work? How do we make sure that we are invest our governance models, our engagement models, and our partnership models at the conference itself, are diverse throughout adding seats to our board for minority of run minority business leaders, making sure that we are bringing in companies and engaging talent in a thoughtful way through the process, and also creating the ecosystem for diverse individuals to thrive here. So what organizations could come to this region that could create gathering places and better cultural amenities for people of color within our region? So it's really a three part strategy. And each one of those has a set of action items under

it. And in the end, we can find those on your website.

I can, yeah, they're mostly in our work plan. So I can send you all of that. Okay.

And so if anyone wants to have access to that, they can just reach out to Jonathan or myself or Brian. And we'll, we'll get that. What about measurements? I'm big on measurements. Yep. Yep.

So all of so in terms of the actions that we're expecting our businesses to make, because we've already surveyed them all, they've already told us what they're going to commit to. And then that way, we have a baseline to go back next year and say, Hey, did you do XYZ. So we're really trying to be very intentional about this, and hold ourselves accountable. All of our workplace angles and directives are aligned this way. Part of the reason we're hiring a VP is because we need that person, not to tell us what to do. But to help us get there to be a keep the eye on the ball all the time, make us uncomfortable, and force us to change. And it's also about partnership, partnering with organizations like vibrant Pittsburgh, to make sure that we are supporting our companies to make the change happen to make sure that we are measuring as much as possible and to hold ourselves accountable. So we're trying to put in place multiple structures for each of these pieces, so we can see the change happening.

Okay. Yeah, I mean, we there's a couple of questions out there. And then I'm gonna jump into another question about measurement. Jonathan, you want to grab Dan's question was answered. So if you could just go to the first to

start with a dirt cap here. He wants to know he says the inflection point report from five years ago stated the need for 80,000 advanced manufacturing jobs by 2026. Is that still the expectation? And how are we preparing people to fill for this need?

Yeah, so unfortunately, the numbers are probably a little bit not fresh, given the fact that we are still at 5000 jobs down so far, sorry, 60,060, about 60,000 jobs down from the beginning of the pandemic, we're really, you know, in some ways, not caught up to pre pandemic levels from a year ago, so I wouldn't hold ourselves to that particular number. That being said, what we are really focused on and I see my colleague, Linda poleski, here who leads spearheads our talent activities, is making sure that we are working on having a viable talent pipeline across the board, not just for manufacturing, but for all industries. And then it is diverse. So for example, we launched a talent council last year, that is has about 40 companies coming together regularly to cross fertilize ideas, share ideas, and launch new programs that we can move the region forward in our town in our talent space. So for example, our Passport program had 1700 college students in it virtually this year, we need to keep our college students we need the markets of reason to them, they need to see the job opportunity, really, really significant opportunity for us to partner on moving the region forward. So talent is always top of mind for us, but more more of across the board across industries and trying to really align How can we do this in a best practice model?

So how about Second Chance hiring for those who may have criminal records or conviction records?

Yeah, we've been one of our great successes in policy. And our actually our Chamber of Commerce got some national recognition for this has been in moving the needle around criminal justice reform. So there's been several bills passed in the legislature over the last few years, one helped create expungement of criminal backgrounds for certain misdemeanors, that unlock potential for I bet about 20,000 people, there was another one that helped get people access to driver's licenses that affected about another 17,000 people, we worked on occupational license or consistencies this year that can help minority businesses launch better. So there have been about three or four pieces of legislation. And if anybody wants the actual bill numbers and specificity, just shoot me an email, and I can get that to you offline. But essentially, we pass it up for Bill's already working on expungement of background checks in different ways and trying to really unlock potential for people who have you know, mistakes in their past with criminal records, but knowing that they need full access to our workforce

as well. So what do you think? So a couple of things I was going to jump into, into asking you what keeps you up at night as it relates to your role? And I have a second part to that. So the second part is, at the end of this year, if you're just going to create a finite period of time, and I know it never works out that nicely. What at the end of the year, what would you hope the three things are that we accomplished? What what are they but we can all wrap our heads around? And so and then what keeps you up at night? It could be those are the same things?

Yeah, I mean, I would say they're a little different. Obviously, the disparity question keeps me up at night. And I've talked a lot about that. So I won't really focus on it. But I really, I don't like the exclusionary wins and winners and losers culture, right. I mean, we need to all be to, you know, successful and inclusion. But But I would say the other thing that keeps me up at night, I mean, we have half the number of jobs that we did, you know, back in our heyday, and our population still hasn't quite isn't growing the way we need it to. And unfortunately, when you're operating from kind of a place of scarcity, right, a tax base, it isn't as big as it could be. And we aren't really propelling our opportunities we see within our industries, the ones you talk about all the time, Audrey, right, whether it's, you know, automation and Internet of Things, and machine learning and life sciences, those industries or robotics, they're all on the cusp, but we have to start seeing the job growth, because the job growth grows, our tax base grows, our opportunity grows, our ability to invest back into this place. And so I that really, that whole dynamic of how we can start to propel our economy in a more robust way, is a real concern, top of mind. And so the things we're trying to do this year, are very much focused on accelerating our economy. So policy change at the fact the tax at the state level to improve our tax framework, which is very uncompetitive, you know, higher corporate income tax rate, limits on the ability to, to take net operating losses off the books, I mean, things that we know, sound really specific, but they affect startups, they affect large businesses, they affect everybody in the region's ability to grow their companies. Number two, we have to see more aggressive opportunity and growth in some of our key sectors. So really trying to lay the groundwork for this year in particular on life sciences, you know, more wet lab space, hoping for some really key announcement about some company relocations, we need to see some some specific activity in that arena, which I think will be really positive. We're also really focused on hoping we can seize the moment on to really great policies at with the Biden ministration. Immigration Reform and infrastructure. Right. So we think right now that all the challenges we've been having about h1 b visas and not being able to really take advantage of talent from overseas and a variety of policies, we hope this is the moment to get back to, you know, really being able to leverage some policy changes or immigration reform, and then getting some infrastructure dollars into the region for broadband, for roads, for bridges for transportation infrastructure overall. So those are just a few of the really Top of Mind things that we're heavily focused on getting done, you know, in the near

term. So, so here's the thing, and then we'll have some time, Jonathan said there's a good question that's in a private shot. But as you and you think about all these things, all these things that need to happen in Pittsburgh, we're competing with the world. We're just we're not competing with our ourselves, right? And you and I have talked about this over time, literally, we are competing with the world. What should we be doing materially in in the in the roles that I've had the pleasure of serving in, in that you're serving in? What can we you cannot do this alone at the conference, we need to have partners. But what what would you like to say to all of us here, that what we could be doing, as you hear the kind of, of concern that people say they love Pittsburgh, they love it here they see the assets, they know how to embrace it with but with the shrinking population, as anyone who runs a business knows you have to grow. What you're doing.

So first of all, I think one of the things we can be doing is really being the best cheerleaders and ambassadors for this place that we can be. I know, Andre, something you do every single day. I mean, even just having this week, this daily show where we're showcasing all these incredible leaders and opportunities here, and I know how much you and I share our passion for what is so amazing about this place, and all the incredible things happening. So we need to unearth all those stories, right. So we can tell those stories, that the best thing about Pittsburgh and this is very much embedded in sort of how we try and market is that there's so much opportunity to see all kinds of ways you and any kinds of people can grow here. So the more we can demonstrate the range of opportunity here, the ways that people can, can make their future here, and we can tell those stories and get them out the better. We need to open doors, right? We need people to give us those leads to tell us where they hear of opportunities. But we also need to know that when we need you there, you're there for us, right? If you we need to sell somebody that you'll help us, you know, provide that that entryway and that connection. And so I think the more we can partner around just this this piece, and then there's this question of, you know, what we're gonna do about this remote talent issue? You know, it's something that we don't have a good answer to today, you know, I know, it's something we're all wrestling with, right? This question of, you know, how do we make sure that we gain and don't lose from the fact that people can all work from home, right, and that we're really shifting a lot of people to home? How can that benefit Pittsburgh? That's something we have to problem solve together and really think about what it is.

None of that has a question, though. Let's, let's go to the there's a couple of questions. I want to nab them as such. Okay, sorry to cut you off.

Fantastic. Um, yeah. So I've got one here from the private chat from Rick Williams, he wants to know a little more about what types of funding or technical assistance? Can you expand on this being provided for minority women and veteran owned businesses?

So I'm not a great person to answer that. Because we don't really have any money to give out. We're just like a membership organization. So I might have to get back. I might have to refer him somewhere else. I just honestly don't have a good handle on what I know that the PvP is available. I know that there are, you know, the small business development organizations, I know some of our banking colleagues can help. Unfortunately, I'm not a good person to help with, you know, what opportunities for funding there are? This is not my area of expertise. I'm sorry.

Another good question.

Um, how successful has the conference been in hiring diverse talent into its organization

into certification itself, I think we've made a lot of progress on that, you know, in recent years, we only have 40 people. So it's not like we get a lot of hires. So I should just be clear. But the head of our economic development activities is, you know, black male, the head of our HR is a black woman, which is, you know, very helpful when you're trying to identify diverse talent to have somebody that really can help us, you know, open those doors. But we are, we are, you know, I'd say we have a pretty broad diverse workforce overall of people of color of individuals and various backgrounds of age of, you know, a variety of, you know, LGBTQ we try very hard to make that happen. But more important, I think, is that we are very invested in our culture. We've been through about six trainings of our own recently to try and really enter with any of our own biases. And that has helped us I think, to really practice what we preach in terms of making sure we have a culture of inclusion.

Okay, so is there anything we're coming up into the half hour? And I'd like to be sensitive to everyone's time? I know, we try to pack a lot in here. So is there anything that you would like to say to us that you know, to the tech community, anything that you think we overlooked? Anything that, you know, you want to you want to share?

No, I think the one thing I'd want to say is that you know, the partnership with with ardrey, with your team with the folks that you represent, you know, you're the future of this region, and you're the people that we really need to hear from and learn from and partner with, to make sure that we are moving to together in the right direction and that we are appropriately, you know, benefiting and serving and meeting your needs because I think the more that we can forge the right partnership of all of our companies, of all of our employers, of all of our organizations. The more successful we are as a Pittsburgh, I mean that we are built on collaboration that is in our, in our fabric and in our DNA. And I truly believe that that will continue to help us thrive.

Okay, well, I want to thank you for taking the time out with us, I really appreciate it. People want to contact the conference, you can just go to the website, lots of ways to contact the people who are on your team, if not Stephanie, and we will look to measurements, we will look to these outcomes, because that's, that will tell us how we're doing that will tell us whether it's you know how well we're doing in terms of people getting vaccines, to how well we're doing in terms of maternal health, for black mothers to equity, in terms of jobs, and leadership, etc. So anyways, that we can help sort of share those metrics, and get that out there because I think we can all rally around those points. So tomorrow, we want thank you, Stephanie, for joining us and taking the time really appreciate your candor, and your time with us. And then tomorrow we have john, strong, right, what do you want to say about Justin tomorrow? First off me, Justin

founded the Chateau lounge back in 2000, which is kind of blowing my mind. But he's also in the dry cleaning business and talk about being impacted by COVID-19. So he's gonna have some awesome insights as to how his industry has been navigating it. also curious, pick his brain about what's happening, you know, in Pittsburgh's creative industries as well, too.

That's great. So we've got a packed schedule for February go out. If you haven't signed up for our daily updates, you can see every day Brian and the team are populating who our guests are. So I want to thank everyone stay safe. We didn't get a snow storm, even though Philly did. And I'm, I'm happy I'm bullish on Pittsburgh. That's all I'm gonna say. But we got it. We got to have metrics. We got to all be in this together and we have to have impact. So thank you, everyone, and we'll see you here tomorrow.

You guys

Transcribed by https://otter.ai