Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation's recent Fall Signature Event explored the region’s science and technology industries, and spotlighted how STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, math) education is critical to developing the talent those sectors need for the future.
About 240 people attended the Oct. 10 event, “Tech & Talent for Tomorrow’s Lehigh Valley.” It was held at the new Da Vinci Science Center in Allentown, and sponsored by Lehigh Valley Health Network, now proudly part of Jefferson Health.
The centerpiece of the evening was a panel discussion by executives from leading Lehigh Valley companies Evonik Corporation; Olympus Corporation of the Americas; OraSure Technologies, Inc.; and Shift4.
Here are the key takeaways from their discussion. 
Lehigh Valley Companies Need More Talent, and are Finding it in Lehigh Valley
The panelists said they will need more engineers, scientists, technology experts, and other specialists to continue to innovate and grow their global operations. They are confident they can find that talent in the Lehigh Valley.
"Lehigh Valley is so rich in talent," said Amy Steigerwalt, Senior Vice President, Human Resources, OraSure Technologies, a medical diagnostics manufacturer based in Bethlehem that produces at-home tests for COVID-19, Ebola, HIV, and Hepatitis C, among others.
Lehigh Valley’s Colleges and Universities Produce In-Demand Talent
The Lehigh Valley is home to 11 colleges and universities, which collectively graduate more than 10,000 students annually in a wide range of disciplines.
Lehigh Valley companies are partnering with those institutions to build a pipeline of future employees.
Olympus Corporation of the Americas, which has its headquarters in Center Valley and its main distribution center in Breinigsville, has developed a successful fellowship program with area college students.
“We put them on a two-year program which exposes them to every area of the organization, with a commitment from us that at the end of that, we would provide them with a junior management position,” said Richard Reynolds, President of the Medical Systems Group at Olympus.
The retention rate is exceptional, Reynolds said, with some fellows who started 18 years ago now serving in senior executive roles.
Quality of Life Draws, Retains Talent in Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley’s quality of life is a selling point for recruiting employees, panelists said. Shift4, a financial technology company with its global headquarters in Center Valley, recently held a talent talk on LinkedIn that showcased the company’s headquarters via live video with an operations manager explaining everything that life in the Lehigh Valley offers, said Allison Valentin, Shift4’s Director of Talent Acquisition.
Olympus employees who have relocated to the Lehigh Valley act as ambassadors for the region and promote it to others.
“Once people come into the Valley and join us, it's very rare that they leave. Because it's a wonderful place to raise a family. It's close to metropolitan cities, so that you can enjoy that, but it's got that rural element to it and some really great places to go out and eat so it kind of ticks all the boxes,” Reynolds said.
Lehigh Valley’s Location a Selling Point
Lehigh Valley’s proximity to major metro areas in the Northeast is an attractive point for companies as they recruit talent, said Robert Cuscino, Senior Vice President Regional Development – North America at Evonik, a producer of specialty chemicals that located its North American research and development facility in Upper Macungie Township.
“It is an absolutely fantastic area,” he said. “Before you even hire these people, you want to share all these wonderful attributes that the Valley has to offer. We have proximity to New York City. We have proximity to Philadelphia, proximity to Boston. So, when you think about innovation, those are three critical areas around the United States where innovation occurs. We're in the middle of all of it, and that, in and of itself, is a wonderful retention attribute.”
Da Vinci Science Center
LVEDC’s Fall Signature Event was held at Da Vinci Science Center because it is an asset for developing the Lehigh Valley’s workforce of the future, exposing young visitors and their families to the possibilities available to them.
Among the 67,000 square feet of interactive experiences are several that showcase the innovative businesses leading the Lehigh Valley’s growing economy, and highlight the diverse, in-demand career opportunities in science-related fields.
The center’s STEAM Learning Center includes fully equipped classrooms, a Fab Lab, a media production studio, a science kitchen, and an Early Learning Center. A STEAM Career Pathways program is available to students in grades 6 to 12.
Also sponsoring LVEDC’s Fall Signature Event were Cocktail Sponsor Fitzpatrick Lentz & Bubba P.C.; Gold Sponsors HNL Lab Medicine, J.G. Petrucci Co., Inc., Klunk & Millan Advertising, MKSD architects, and Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development; and Silver Sponsors Boyle Construction, BSI Corporate Benefits, Crayola, EARTHRES, JULABO USA, Inc., OraSure Technologies, Inc., and QNB.
(Photos by Marco Calderon Photography)