From left, Tom Muller, executive of Lehigh County, Don Cunningham, president and CEO of LVEDC, and Frank Kane, director of community and economic development of Lehigh County, attend a presentation on Olympus products during a July 1st Business Outreach Program visit.

LVEDC officials met with several Olympus Corporation of the Americas representatives July 1st as part of a comprehensive Business Outreach Program (BOP) visit in Upper Saucon Township.

“LVEDC has a unique position in the Lehigh Valley to conduct these business retention interviews,” said Dawn Ferrante, director of regional competitiveness. “We are fortunate to have a 30,000 foot view of the region’s business environment that can be an asset for any company, large or small, in the Lehigh Valley.”

Ferrante was accompanied at the “Super BOP” event by Don Cunningham, president and CEO of LVEDC, Tom Muller, executive of Lehigh County, Frank Kane, director of economic development of Lehigh County, among others.

“The visit was well organized on the part of Olympus and really told the story of their organization from top to bottom,” Ferrante said. “It featured an array of company officials from various divisions and there’s no question that LVEDC and our public sector partners are better connected with Olympus than ever before.”

That story showcased the totality of the company’s diverse operations which includes its role as a leading manufacturer of innovative optical and digital equipment for the health care and consumer electronics sectors.

“There’s no question based on the visit that the company has made employee retention a top priority,” Ferrante said. “It’s pretty amazing. Considering the size of the company and their commitment to technology, they still recognize that talent is a vital component of their success. That loyalty between employees and the company is a two-way street.”

Facts would back that up. The company was recently recognized as one of the top workplaces for 2014 by The Morning Call. That recognition came not from outsiders but from the company’s employees themselves. More than 84 percent of the workers participated in the survey.

LVEDC and Lehigh County officials also learned that Olympus continues to evolve as it makes significant investments in its medical sector and optimizing the profitability of other businesses to better address the needs of changing markets. Their Lehigh Valley location is responsible for achieving these goals across their businesses in North and South America.

The BOP is expected to roll out a full advertising campaign to introduce the program to Lehigh Valley businesses this September.

“This will include a formal announcement, advertising and direct mail campaign,” Ferrante noted. “The bottom line is we want companies to know that we are here to help them grow and improve their profitability. It’s part of our mission as an economic development organization to retain and expand the companies that call the Lehigh Valley home. Besides just wanting to do it we are capable of doing it.”

That capability is born from the partnerships that LVEDC has forged with a team of well-respected and connected economic development professionals over the last 20 years.

“The BOP is usually going to have the answers and the resources you company needs, whether that be in workforce development, procuring financing or streamlining your company’s supply chain operations,” Ferrante said. “Put it this way: If LVEDC doesn’t have the solution, chances are we know someone who does.”