Meet Jeffrey Stern. Principal at The O.H.I.O. Fund.
Ohio Tech Summit Spotlight:
Jeffrey Stern
Jeffrey joined us on a short Q&A for the Ohio Tech Summit Spotlight Series to talk about reindustrialization, and why Ohio needs better storytelling.
Name: Jeffrey Stern
Title: Principal
Company: The O.H.I.O. Fund
Hometown: Manhattan, New York
Current City: Cleveland, Ohio
About The O.H.I.O. Fund
The O.H.I.O. Fund is an investment firm building a permanent pool of private capital laser-focused on investing in Ohio's economic growth, strengths, and potential.
With an experienced team and a robust network of entrepreneurs, founders, owners, family offices, investors, and partners from communities across the state, we connect Ohio's leaders who know what’s happening across Ohio and want to invest in its progress to catalyze growth for businesses and returns for investors.
Our multi-asset investment strategy is designed to help fuel Ohio’s most promising growth opportunities, from advanced manufacturing and biotech to real estate and infrastructure projects and opportunities in between – carrying Ohio's DNA and committed to sectors where Ohio leads; we believe that Ohio’s future will continue to build on its legacy of innovation and prosperity.
Role at The O.H.I.O. Fund
As a principal of The O.H.I.O. Fund, Jeffrey works to help The O.H.I.O. Fund identify the most compelling investable opportunities across the state, and to ultimately back those reflecting Ohio's greatest growth and potential!
Q: What’s a trend in tech/innovation that you think more people should pay attention to?
Reindustrialization.
In the span of a single lifetime, Ohio underwent a remarkable transformation. From natural wilderness, it emerged as an industrial force, riding successive waves of technological innovation, each reshaping the state’s economic landscape. The early 1800s saw the rise of steam-powered canal navigation, only to be swiftly jettisoned, rendered obsolete by the railroads of the 1840s and 1850s, which in turn ushered in an era of unprecedented manufacturing might. Ohio emerged as a global crucible of industry and builder of things — the epicenter of oil, home to the world’s greatest iron port, producer of roughly half of the world’s rubber, and a formidable leader in steel.
Today, we witness the stirrings of a new industrial renaissance, harkening to the spirit of the industrial revolution that powered Ohio and much of the Midwest’s transformation and a renewed appreciation of our know-how and capacity to build tangible things better, faster, and cheaper and that advanced manufacturing capability is a important strategic initiative Ohio should be leading in!
Q: What’s one “moonshot” idea that would help put Ohio on the map as a leading tech hub?
Doesn't take a moonshot — we need better storytelling. Pessimism and optimism are prescient self-fulfilling forces, and the best stories ultimately win — if the first thing people think of when they think of Ohio is the ironic banal namesake meme of weird, that isn't the story we want to win.
Ohio is exceptional and has excellence all around — I've seen it! We need to tell better stories and celebrate the excellence and success of entrepreneurs here.
Q: Outside of work, what’s a favorite hobby or activity that you enjoy?
While it may seem like work to some, it feels like play to me! I host the Lay of the Land podcast, which celebrates and amplifies stories of entrepreneurship in Northeast Ohio. I also love to run!
Q: If someone were visiting your city, what’s one can’t miss coffee shop or restaurant people should try?
(I recommend) Mitchell's Ice Cream!
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Learn more about Jeffrey’s work by connecting with him on LinkedIn.