Alan Wenger of Harrington, Hoppe & Mitchell is a fixture on the Vindicator’s Shale Sheet and in other local and regional news coverage of the shale boom.
Developments in the national and local economies are creating excellent growth opportunities for Pecchia Communications in the year ahead, company president Dan J. Pecchia said.
Nationally, spending on major corporate technology projects – the major market for the firm’s change management communications services – is rebounding after three mediocre years.
Locally, a slow rebound in the local economy after several tough years is being supercharged by oil and gas exploration activity.
“We’re fortunate to be in a growth mode, as both local and global factors drive a greater need for effective communication by business leaders,” Pecchia said.
Tech Spend Drives Change Management
Pecchia Comm provides change management communications services that support major organizational changes at larger companies. For example, since late 2010, the firm has spearheaded communications for AkzoNobel Paints, owner of the Glidden and Dulux paint brands, in support of a new technology platform throughout its U.S. operations, based in Strongsville, Ohio.
Previous change management comm programs have supported Whirlpool Corp. in Benton Harbor, Mich., and the Timken Co. in Canton, Ohio.
SAP, the world leader in enterprise software and a bellwether for corporate tech spending, last week announced surprisingly good 2011 financial results and a bullish outlook for 2012.
“This is a valuable niche market in which we’ve built some good credentials and relationships,” said Pecchia, who was quoted extensively on change management in a PR News article last year. “We’re seeing more requests for proposals than we’ve seen since early 2008.”
Oil & Gas Drilling Sparks PR Action
Meanwhile, the shale boom continues to boost business activity in the Youngstown area. That bodes well for the firm’s public relations and marketing services.
The latest U.S. Labor Department numbers showed Mahoning Valley unemployment falling toward 8 percent, compared to well over 10 percent a year earlier. The drilling activity has sparked national media coverage of the economic recovery in the Midwest. One story even called northeast Ohio a “boom town.”
Pecchia Comm ramped up in July by merging with Strategic Communications, a Youngstown PR firm, and adding its founder, Aundréa Cika, as a PR strategist. In December, Jim Houck joined the company as senior consultant, following work with two top Ohio PR firms and Delphi Packard Electric.
Pecchia Comm continues to support Harrington, Hoppe & Mitchell, the region’s largest law firm, and particularly its oil and gas law practice group, now a leading voice in the conversation about Ohio’s shale gas boom.
Other leading local clients include Aim NationaLease, a national transportation services provider based in Girard; Youngstown Orthopaedic Associates, the region’s largest orthopedic surgery practice; Ankle & Foot Care Centers, the area’s largest podiatry group; and several smaller medical and professional groups. Several new clients will be announced in early 2012.
Pecchia Comm also supports, on a pro-bono basis, the campaign to renovate Rayen Stadium on Youngstown’s North Side, working with former Ohio State and Youngstown State football coach Jim Tressel, Youngstown pastor Dr. Lewis Macklin II and Youngstown City Schools officials.
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