When the COVID-19 pandemic began to spread across the nation in early March, the reaction of many state governments was like a hammer: Across-the-board closures of any activities where human congregation would allow for the virus to spread to new hosts.

Now as cases flatten – at least in New Jersey and its neighboring states – the response needs to be precise and targeted, like a scalpel honing in on specific areas.

“Had there been a more surgical take on the situation, would it have helped?” Luis San Vicente Portes, an economics professor at Montclair State University, asked at NJBIZ’s June 17 “Reopen, Recover and Redefine” virtual event.

“As we’re going into the future, we cannot afford to keep going with the hammer,” which smashed the virus, but also the economy and commerce, an increasingly undesirable consequence.

That specific approach has become evident, as the state under the administration of Gov. Phil Murphy attempts to boost the amount of testing and contract tracing to track down and isolate new cases, thereby nipping potential outbreaks in the bud.

“As we learn more and more about how the virus works, and where the real high risk is, why can’t we get much more tactical, surgical, strategic?” added Patrick Ryan, president and chief executive officer of Hamilton-based First Bank.

The state shutdown, although gradually scaled back across New Jersey, is still largely in place.

Restaurants can only open for outdoor dining, and malls and casinos remain shuttered. Office workers have to telecommute indefinitely, and the jury is still out on gyms and fitness centers and movie theaters.

“There needs to be a healthy public debate, and from my view, I see arguing rather than a healthy debate on where to go,” said Greg Lalevee, business manager at International Union of Operating Engineers Local 825.

It’s led to much unease and antsiness for shops to reopen, as played out last week when Asbury Park said indoor dining could resume at reduced capacity – in violation of Murphy’s executive orders.

“How does a business that was scraping by at 80 percent occupancy get by at 25 percent?” Ryan asked.

The “surgical” approach has helped in many aspects beyond health care, as state government, local leaders, industry heads and business officials speculate about New Jersey’s post-pandemic economy.

Key industries, like energy and infrastructure, have been effectively targeted as priorities by state and local governments, according to Lalevee.

The “New Jersey Wind Port,” which Murphy announced Tuesday for construction in South Jersey on the Delaware Bay, is just the kind of large scale infrastructure shot in the arm that could help the state.

“Salem County is uniquely positioned – with every East Coast state looking to develop offshore wind – Salem County stands at the middle of it all and has the ability to become the logistical center for the entirety of each state’s development,” Lalevee said.

The Wind Port would permanently employ up to 1,500 workers in manufacturing, assembly and operations, and generate up to $500 million of economic activity for the region, the Murphy administration said. It would handle the production of all the essential parts of the windmills, and of shipping them out to the rest of the nation.

A push toward “Made in New Jersey” products to help the state and many local businesses weather the widely expected second wave of the virus would be another boon for a previously struggling manufacturing sector.

That means building up the supply of available personal protective equipment – masks, gloves and face shields, for example – according to Dennis Hart, executive director of the Chemistry Council of New Jersey.

It means looking at what is “keeping us from doing that,” Hart said.

“Not exacerbating the problem,” he added. “But saying ‘hey, here’s some policies that maybe can allow companies to stockpile some inventory or allow manufacturing to return in New Jersey, or what’s really keeping people from hiring more people.”