A story broke in January that shocked computer security experts around the world. Google, Adobe and dozens of other extremely sophisticated companies had been penetrated by a group of well-funded and highly disciplined attackers. The culprits sought e-mails, source code and other material that made it likely the attacks were politically motivated.

"Operation Aurora" raised alarms around the world, not only for executives in the private sector but also for those in government. The attackers had successfully evaded every defense shield imaginable: firewalls, antivirus, intrusion prevention and many other layers of protection. One commentator called it "the closest thing to an act of war to happen since 9/11."

Insiders have pinned the blame on the Chinese military, i.e., the People's Liberation Army (or PLA), presumably operating at the behest of top government officials. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton went so far as to issue a statement condemning the attacks and requesting an explanation from China.

The implications for private enterprise are wide-ranging. If your company deals with any type of sensitive information in meaningful volumes, it could be a target. The characteristics of a high-value target include: a large number of financial transactions; large quantities of personally identifying information (PII) like social security numbers; or valuable intellectual property.

So if your IT staff isn't aware of "Operation Aurora", or isn't familiarizing itself with extrusion prevention, data-loss prevention and next-generation firewalls, pass this article on to them. We're in the early stages of what can only be called the militarization of cyberspace. This is one party you don't want to show up late for.

The sound of the classroom bell interrupted our discussion. Three students and I had been discussing different forms of government: whether a power-sharing agreement among three charismatic individuals would qualify as a dictatorship or not. Perhaps it was an oligarchy. No matter, the Economics class had ended and it was time for the students to go to their next class and time for me to go back to work.

I said goodbye to the students and shook the hand of my mentee, an affable, witty 16-year-old, and told him I'd see him next week. Each week for the past several years I've joined dozens of other Western & Southern Financial Group (Western & Southern) associates and taken a short drive to Withrow University High School. The school - despite its impressive history, illustrious alumni, and stellar location at the edge of Hyde Park - faces challenges familiar to us all.

One of the challenges is ensuring that students with high potential get the kind of personalized attention that can help drive their academic careers to the next level. At Withrow University High School, the school is designed to do just that. It focuses on ensuring every student who attends is doing the right things to prepare for college. Each volunteer from Western & Southern is paired up with a student, sometimes throughout the student's entire four-year career.

While mentors can specialize in a subject, I've personally found it gratifying to work through problems in every course. When was the last time you balanced a chemical equation? My memory may be hazy, but I think the periodic table only had about nine elements when I was in school. In all seriousness, I find it interesting and challenging to relearn a wide range of topics with my student. It almost feels like reliving those halcyon days that had faded into the past.

When I was younger, I'd made promises to myself. I'd give back to the community when there was more time or when a certain career objective had been met. But I was procrastinating then. There's always enough time for important work like this. And it rewards you in ways you'd never anticipated. Like rediscovering a favorite subject.
Or recapturing a sliver of lost youth.

Have you made a similar promise to yourself? This could be the reminder you've been waiting for.

In 1987, two friends and I decided to start a software company.  Our idea was to create a graphical user interface that could be used to create, simulate, automate and debug factory manufacturing systems.  Because of our experiences in this area - working with robots, CNC systems, conveyors, etc. - we were convinced this integration software would save manufacturing companies vast amounts of time and effort when putting together a new line.

Our company's ostensible president (he was the one with the Harvard MBA!) had excellent ties from grad school to some of the nation's top venture capitalists.  As we pitched the idea, the overall response was quite positive.  But there was one hitch - we couldn't stay in Cincinnati. We would have to move to either Boston or San Francisco so the people providing the funding could provide oversight and guidance.

Fast forward 23 years. Today a great idea can get pitched, funded, incubated and even experience a vaunted "liquidity event" within the friendly confines of I-275 in Cincinnati. Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc. (Fort Washington), a subsidiary of Western & Southern Financial Group (Western & Southern) has a private equity arm, funding both venture funds ("indirect investments"), as well as a select group of private companies through direct investments. In fact, a wide range of venture capital firms in the area work closely with academia and large corporations like Kroger and Procter & Gamble to grow great ideas into true innovations.

Today, I serve on the board of Zebra Mobile Marketing LLC, a mobile technology startup that provides real-time news, interactive applications and advertising for publishers.

Dozens of other exciting startups, including Construction Software, a comprehensive online preconstruction management service, ThinkVine, a marketing simulation and planning platform, Zakta, a personal and social Web search engine, Blackbook EMG, an experience management company, and Technology Medical Partners, a value-added information technology solutions and services organization for the healthcare industry, are poised to thrive even in a difficult economic environment. Put simply, the last two decades have positioned Cincinnati as a front-runner for mainstream tech investment. Entrepreneurs no longer need to move to other larger cities to grow a thriving company.