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VOICES FROM THE INDUSTRY: New tax break makes Indiana more attractive than ever

Rapid growth in the high-tech fields of biotechnology and life science has made Indiana a shining example of how promoting emerging industries can transform an agricultural and manufacturingbased economy into a national leader in innovation. It has done so by creating an environment in which knowledge-based businesses can thrive. Building on this success, Indiana continues to position itself as a leader in emerging technologies. A new tax law that took effect this year will present another major step toward this…

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INVESTING: Dear Fed boss Bernanke: Read this and take heed

I know you have a good heart. Evidence is beginning to mount, however, that we are sliding down a path we cannot easily climb back up. In the vernacular of my old hood, Ben you are killing us! The world is faced with two problems, massively slowing growth and accelerating inflation. You picked the slowing growth side to attack head on. You and your back-room cronies slashed interest rates from 5.25 percent in August to 3 percent now, with more…

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Tech innovator tries entrepreneurship again: iGoDigital software already used by major retailers

Eric Tobias, the IT architect behind Carmel-based online battery supplier Technuity Inc., now is energizing another startup, Indianapolis-based iGoDigital, a fast-growing player in “recommendation” software for retailers. Tobias, 31, was chief technology officer of Technuity, which distributes batteries, carrying cases and electronics accessories. He left the company, once known as Batteries.com, after it was acquired in November by Hauppauge, N.Y.-based Audiovox Corp. for $16.5 million, plus the repayment of $4 million in debt. The deal added $30 million to Audiovox’s…

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STATEHOUSE DISPATCH: Lawmakers left lots of touchy issues for waning days

As we prepared this column at midweek, there still was no certainty about a property tax relief and reform package resulting from the regular session, set to adjourn sine die March 14. While some lawmakers were proclaiming no hope of enacting a package before time expired in the regular session, others were seeing movement toward a plan that was structured largely along the lines of the original package offered by Gov. Mitch Daniels. Democrats altered strategy as the scheduled adjournment…

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RETURN ON TECHNOLOGY: Just when you thought airport lines couldn’t get any longer

This isn’t a column about business technology per se, but I couldn’t resist the temptation to write about a half-dozen states thumbing their noses at the federal government and potentially backing up travel this spring at airports all over the country, including some of the world’s busiest, all over a piece of plastic. After the tragedy of 9/11, one of the 9/11 Commission’s recommendations was to create a hard-to-fake identity card for Americans. In 2005, Congress passed a huge defense…

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Importing workers to Indianapolis

Hereâ??s something that might surprise you, considering that Indiana is sometimes viewed by people outside the
state as insular and unwelcoming to strangers.

Indianapolis has a higher percentage of income earners at least age 15 who were born in another state…

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Newcomers to suburban counties

Lots of people are flocking to the eight suburban counties that surround Indianapolis, a new report from
the Indianapolis Private Industry Council says.

More than 16,000 showed up in 2005 alone, said the report, which tracks the work force.

But the council…

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Local IKEAphiles in mourning

So much for IKEA dropping one of its stores in the Indianapolis area anytime soon.

A store opening today in a Cincinnati suburb is about as close as Indianapolis is going to see, at least
for a while, IBJ Associate…

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INVESTING: Process of deleveraging creating lots of carnage

The deleveraging of America continues with unpleasant consequences for consumers and investors who are overextended. One problem with a mass deleveraging is that the repeated selling of an asset to repay a debt burden leads to further declines in the price of that asset. That, in turn, forces others to sell, as the lower asset values no longer support their debt obligations. It’s otherwise known as a vicious circle. The Federal Reserve, the U.S. Treasury and Congress are scrambling to…

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Finish Line escapes one crisis, but challenges abound: Indianapolis-based athletic-wear retailer now shifts its attention to reinvigorating sales after prolonged slump

Executives at locally based The Finish Line Inc. felt a weight lifted after escaping a potentially ruinous attempt to acquire Genesco Inc., a company more than twice its size. But there’s no time for rest: They now must focus on a core business that was floundering even before Finish Line bid $1.5 billion in June 2007 for the Tennessee-based parent company of mall chains Hat World, Lids and Journeys. Finish Line this month reported its eighth consecutive quarter with declining…

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NOTIONS: Variations on the theme of March Madness

March Madness is upon us-that glorious season born in a Springfield, Mass., peach basket and now headquartered, literally and spiritually, in the Hoosier state. That means, of course, high-pressure conference tournaments; Big Dance brackets and pairings; controversial selections and exclusions; friendly wagers; blowouts; upsets; scoring runs; dry spells; lead changes; come-frombehind victories; heartbreaking defeats; and last-second, game-winning three-pointers. But in only the first week of the third month of the Gregorian calendar, it’s clear-from personal life, to the recession (er…

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EYE ON THE PIE: Waiting for evidence of recession

Save the date: March 27. That’s when the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis will release the latest data on Indiana’s economy. At that time, we’ll get the first estimate of personal income for the last three months of 2007, plus revisions of previous quarters. If there is a recession, that’s where we will see the first clear indications. If? Yes, it is still not clear if there is a recession because the data, our photos of economic performance, are not…

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Borshoff is latest communications company to diversify: Firm known for public relations seeks creative growth

An Indianapolis-based firm long known for public relations and crisis communications work is now trying to make its mark as a full-service advertising agency. Borshoff, formerly Borshoff Johnson Matthews, last month hired Art Haynie, a veteran Los Angeles-based creative director, to bolster the effort. “Public relations has been our handle for a long time,” said company founder Myra Borshoff Cook. “Now, we have to get the word out that we’re just as strong in other areas. To grow we feel…

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Energy and farmland values

You probably arenâ??t begrudging farmers and others for the record farmland prices theyâ??re enjoying.

But those prices wouldnâ??t be so high if the ethanol plants popping up across Indiana and elsewhere in the
Midwest werenâ??t using so much corn.

Now weâ??re…

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Indiana avoids budget shortfall list

A new report by a Washington, D.C., think tank shows 25 states expect budget shortfalls in their 2009 fiscal
years. Illinois and Kentucky are on the list issued by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, but Indiana
isnâ??tâ??at least…

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University foundations and tuition

College and university foundations have been raking in the dollars in the past few years due to big investment
returns. Millions of dollars have flowed in.

As IBJ reporter Tracy Donhardt wrote in this weekendâ??s paper, critics say more of…

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SURF THIS: At this networking site, ‘Smaller’ is the new better

Several years ago, I had a conversation with a friend about “The Tipping Point,” a now-famous book by economist Malcolm Gladwell. During this conversation, my friend casually mentioned that he thought it would be beneficial (though I think he may have actually said, “Wouldn’t it be cool…”) to get together with other people in the community to discuss the ideas put forth in this book and a variety of other “businessrelated” titles. I admit, I agreed that it would, indeed,…

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Many of state’s new jobs are at call centers

The state’s economic development leaders have been touting 2007 as a banner year that brought commitments for more than 22,000
new jobs, including positions in manufacturing, logistics and life sciences. But almost 20 percent of the announced jobs would
be in call centers–jobs that typically pay near or below the state’s $35,000 average annual wage.

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Oppose Daniels, oppose change?

A new statewide poll shows a high correlation between registered voters who intend to vote for Democratic
presidential candidate Barack Obama and incumbent Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels.

Obama and Daniels are almost polar opposites philosophically, so what gives? Mostly…

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Right time for REITs?: Some predict beaten-down sector is ready for another winning streak

For seven years, real estate investment trusts delivered returns that clobbered the overall stock market. Then, last year, the winning streak came to an end. Between January 2007 and January 2008, REITs as a whole lost 24 percent of their value. An index of the companies took a bigger hit than most every other sector. Among local REITs, Duke Realty Corp. was the hardest hit, with its stock price falling 44 percent, from about $41 to $23, during the one-year…

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