NE Ohio economy picking up, hiring consultants says


By Brandon Klein

bklein@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Northeast Ohio’s economy appears to be picking up, according to one talent and performance management consultant group.

Predictive Synergistic Systems helps companies find the right person for the right role, said CEO Dan Courser, who founded the company in 2008.

Courser said some of their clients in the region plan to increase their workforce by 30 percent in 2015. Other companies also are interested in using Predictive Synergistic’s services.

“The phone is ringing off the hook,” he said.

The company plans to add two additional senior-level hires to handle the demand.

“2015 is bringing a ton of work to Northeast Ohio,” Courser said.

Predictive Synergistic specializes in finding a potential candidate from a behavioral standpoint, said Beth Friel, the chief operating officer.

The company uses psychometric tools for psychological evaluations to determine whether the candidate will prosper in the company. The main challenge is not just filling new positions but also keeping the workers at their job, Friel said.

The company also provides training for the company’s management to not only hire the best person for the job, but to keep them as well to avoid turnover.

“We teach how to be great managers,” she said.

Additionally, as the population has declined in the region, companies have been growing, Friel said.

It’s made finding the best hire challenging for some businesses in the region, Courser said.

“They’re really scrambling to find people,” he said.

Based in Pittsburgh, Predictive Synergistic has 8,800 clients globally with about 400 in Northeast Ohio and Western Pennsylvania.