/ By Lauren Thompson / Cambria County • Event • Somerset County/ 0 Comments

Creating Customer Delight and Enhancing Relationships

Dr. Randy Frye, Saint Francis University, will present “Creating Customer Delight and Enhancing Relationships” on Tuesday, February 20th, at a JARI Lunch & Learn event. Workshop participants will learn the salient principles of customer service/satisfaction and relationship building and maintenance; understand the difference between customer service and the customer experience; and will be inspired to do their best to create the finest customer experience in their respective organizations. Customer service and relationship management concepts are explicitly applied to their organization settings.

This Lunch & Learn will be held at JARI Center (160 Jari Drive, Johnstown, PA) from 12:00 PM to 1:15 PM. The cost to register is $5 per person and lunch will be provided. Click here to register. Please register by February 19th. No shows on the day of the event that have registered will be billed.

/ By Lauren Thompson / Cambria County • Event/ 0 Comments

Millennials and Other Generations – Insight into Working Together

Corey Christman, Vethos LLC, will present Millennials and Other Generations – Insight into Working Together on Thursday, February 8th. Attendees will learn about introverted versus extroverted leadership, how to motivate millennials in the workforce and at home, and how to incorporate millennial employees and other generations into the company succession plan.

The workshop will be held from 12 PM to 1:15 PM at JARI Center for Business Development. The cost to register is $5 per person and lunch will be provided.

If you are interested in attending, please fill out the registration form and email it to Lauren Brewer at .

/ By Lauren Thompson / Cambria County • Entrepreneurship • Event • Financing & incentives/ 0 Comments

Preparing Your Personal Financial Statement

Patti Hudson, CPA of Wessel & Company and Jeff Cramer of 1st Summit Bank, will present Preparing Your Personal Financial Statement on Tuesday, January 23rd. Attendees will learn how to complete a personal financial statement, understand what the bank is looking for when submitting a loan application and how to meet the bank’s individual reporting compliance requirements. The financial statement would include the proper reporting of assets, liabilities, income and expenses.

The workshop will be held from 12 PM to 1:15 PM at JARI Center for Business Development. The cost to register is $5 per person and lunch will be provided.

If you are interested in attended, please fill out the registration form and email it to Lauren Brewer at .

/ By Lauren Thompson / Cambria County • Entrepreneurship • Event/ 0 Comments

Federal Tax Reform

Wessel & Company Representatives will present Federal Tax Reform on Tuesday, January 30th. Attendees will learn about the most comprehensive update to the tax code since 1986, including cuts to corporate tax rates, a special 20% deduction for pass through entities and increase in capital expensing. Attendees will also learn about the significant reduction in income tax brackets, the doubling of the child tax credit and how the tax code strengthens Section 179 deductions.

The workshop will be held from 12 PM to 1:15 PM at JARI Center for Business Development. The cost to register is $5 per person and lunch will be provided.

If you are interested in attended, please fill out the registration form and email it to Lauren Brewer at .

/ By Lauren Thompson / Event/ 0 Comments

Legal Structures for Business…The Pros and Cons

On Tuesday, December 19th, Attorney George Gvozdich, will be discussing the pros and cons of various legal structures for businesses. Attendees will also learn about the liabilities and benefits, as well as discuss the tax implications of each.

This Lunch & Learn will be held at JARI Center (160 Jari Drive, Johnstown, PA) from 12 PM to 1:15 PM. The cost to register is $5 per person and lunch will be provided.

If you are interested in attending, please fill out the registration form. Registrations are due by December 18th. No shows on the day of the event will be billed.

/ By Lauren Thompson / Cambria County • Entrepreneurship • Event • Financing & incentives • Media Releases • New business • News • Somerset County/ 0 Comments

Big Idea Contest Winner to be Chosen November 16th!

The ten finalists in Ben Franklin’s 2017 BIG IDEA Contest will be making presentations to a panel of area judges beginning at 1:35 PM on Thursday, November 16, 2017.

If you know any of the finalists listed below, or if you are just excited about the Startup Alleghenies initiative in general, please stop by the Bottle Works, located at 411 Third Avenue in Johnstown, to hear the presentations:

  • Joseph DiGangi with AssureTech
  • Justin Capouellez with Boomerang Beacon
  • Heather Moyer with Crossroads Consulting
  • Mark Kasterko with MT Arms
  • Adam Stokes with muonSoft
  • Donald Nixon with Nixon’s Technical Service
  • Hunter Swisher with Phospholutions
  • Ryan Kieta with Real Design
  • James Wang with SimplrTechnologies
  • Anthony Biddle with Siterite

The finalists’ presentations will conclude at 5:00 PM, and a catered reception will immediately follow.  While the judges deliberate, you are invited to enjoy the refreshments and network with the finalists.  This will allow you to learn more about all of them in preparation for casting your vote for the People’s Choice Award which will close at 6:15 PM.  All of the winners will be announced at 6:30 PM.

This year’s cash prizes will be awarded to four winners:
First Place: $25,000; Second Place: $15,000; Third Place: $7,500; and a People’s Choice Award: $2,500.

In addition to the $25,000, the first place winner will also receive:

/ By Lauren Thompson / Cambria County • Event • Somerset County • Vision 2025 • Workforce Development/ 0 Comments

Community Resource & Job Fair

Greater Johnstown United Neighborhoods and Vision2025 will host a Community Resource & Job Fair on Wednesday, November 8th from 5 to 7 PM at the Christ Centered Community Church (531 Somerset Street) in downtown Johnstown.

Approximately 140 available job openings will be featured at the fair. Representatives from various agencies will be able to provide information on a variety of topics such as education assistance, job seeker services and more.

For more information, click here. If you have any questions or would like to participate as an exhibitor, please contact Debi Balog by phone at (814) 262-8366 or by email at .

Hosted by:       

Coordinated by:      

/ By Lauren Thompson / Cambria County • Entrepreneurship • Event • New business • Somerset County/ 0 Comments

JARI/SBA Host Power Hour Session: Starting a Business


JARI, the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Saint Francis University Small Business Development Center (SBDC) will host their first Power Hour session titled Starting a Business. If you have always wanted to open your own business now is your chance to learn the basics of small business ownership in just 60 minutes. This session will cover the various topics that a startup company or expanding business should know. Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet face-to-face with our team.

This session will take place on Thursday, October 5, from 9 to 10 AM at the JARI Center for Business Development (160 Jari Drive, Johnstown). The cost to attend is free but registration is required. If you are interested in attending click here to register.

If you have questions or need more information, please contact us at (814) 254-4023.

/ By Lauren Thompson / Cambria County • Event • PTAC • Somerset County/ 0 Comments

From Defense to Offense – Sales Training

The SAP&DC, along with regional economic development partners and the support of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, have received a U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Office of Economic Adjustment (OEA) grant to assist defense contractor’s transition into new markets. There will be a two part training series available to eligible businesses at no cost if company representatives successfully complete the training. Please note – there is a cost to purchase the materials. Part 1: Building the Sales Infrastructure will be held Wednesday, October 11, 2017 and Part 2: Hiring a Sales Superstar will be held Wednesday, October 18, 2017.  Both sessions will be held in two locations – Johnstown (In Person Instructor) and Altoona (Live Streaming Broadcast). Please see the attached flyer and registration forms to learn more about this two part training series presented by John Moore of Moore Power Sales.

If you have questions or would like government contracting assistance, contact us at (814) 254-4022 or (814) 254-4023 or via email at .

/ By Lauren Thompson / Cambria County • Event/ 0 Comments

Bringing the World to PA, Upcoming Seminar Sessions

Landed Cost and Import Operations and Compliance Seminar

Join us for two ½ day seminars on Tuesday, September 12. The cost to attend this event is free and registration is required by September 6!

Bringing the World to PA

Don’t miss this opportunity to meet with 14 of our Pennsylvania Authorized Trade Reps covering over 46 countries for one-on-one appointments to explore, expand or develop new international markets! This event will be held on Monday, September 18.

For registration information, click the corresponding links. If you have any questions, please contact Tina Taylor via email at  or (814) 949-6517.