Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | March 4, 2019 | Worcester Business Journal 3 Worcester Business Journal (ISSN#1063-6595) is published bi-weekly, 24x per year, including 4 special issues in May, September, October, and December by New England Business Media. 172 Shrewsbury St., Worcester, MA 01604. Periodicals postage paid at Worcester, MA. Copyright 2019. All rights reserved. Postmaster: Please send address changes to: Worcester Business Journal, PO Box 330, Congers, NY 10920-9894. Subscriptions: Annual subscriptions are available for $54.95. For more information, please email wbjournal@ cambeywest.com or contact our circulation department at 845-267-3008. Fax: 845.267.3478 Advertising: For advertising information, please call Mark Murray at 508-755-8004 ext. 227. Fax: 508-755-8860. Worcester Business Journal accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts or materials and in general does not return them to the sender. Worcester Business Journal 172 Shrewsbury Street, Worcester, MA 01604 508-755-8004 tel. • 508-755-8860 fax www.wbjournal.com A division of: Worcester Business Journal WBJ O ver the past three years, the WBJ Hall of Fame has grown to 10 members. It is supposed to be 11. In 2017, aer WBJ decid- ed to create a hall of fame, we anguished over the inaugural class. Since WBJ was throwing its journalistic credibility be- hind such an endeavor, we wanted those original inductees to leap off the pages as the clear cut leaders of the Central Mass. economy over the past generation. We ended up choosing four heavy hitters who would set the tone for WBJ Hall of Fame classes for years to come. Getting those honorees to sign on for the recognition was almost as difficult as deciding who they would be. Since we just started the WBJ Hall of Fame, and most didn't know they were nominated, when I reached out on a Friday in January 2017, the collective reaction was more befuddle- ment than jubilation. Aer multiple phone calls and emails, Michael Angelini, Frances Anthes and Frank Carroll understood the magnitude of what we were trying to do, and the happy reactions came. e fourth would-be honoree was far more hesitant. Although he listened to my voicemails and read my emails, he never responded to me directly. Finally, aer multiple attempts to reach him through those closest to him, he send a message through an intermediary. David "Duddie" Massad – who passed away in December at the age of 90 – was honored to have been selected, but he respectfully declined. Few other Worcester natives had the long-term success in building a business empire. An entrepreneur who didn't need much sleep, Duddie owned multiple car dealerships and assembled a large port- folio of real estate holdings before buying Commerce Bank in 1993. He turned the struggling financial institution into a $2-billion power player, which he sold to Berkshire Bank in 2018. Inviting Duddie into the inaugural Hall of Fame class was a no brainer, but the process of being photo- graphed, interviewed, and then honored in front of a crowd didn't suit his style. We've never had another chosen member of the WBJ Hall of Fame decline induction, and the list of people under consideration each year numbers in the dozens. We've never revealed this back- I N T H I S I S S U E story, but with Duddie no longer with us, we wanted to give one last tip of the cap for his drive and determination, and the success that brought him, his organization and the Greater Worcester community over a long career. - Brad Kane, editor W DOES YOUR COMPANY'S RETIREMENT PLAN STACK UP? As a plan sponsor, don't let your fiduciary responsibility get hung up solely on fees. Our ar cle on benchmarking can help you discover why periodically reviewing your plans is an important step to take to ensure they con nue to be relevant to your company and its employees. Let our experts show you how your defined contribu on plan ranks against similar plans with a FREE benchmarking report. Learn more at hhconsultants.com/benchmarking NEWS & ANALYSIS DEPARTMENTS 4 Central Mass. In Brief 5 Flash Poll 11 Focus on Business Leaders of the Year 18 Focus on WBJ Hall of Fame 24 The List: Highest-paid state employees 27 Know How 28 Movers & Shakers 32 Photo Finish 33 Opinion 34 Shop Talk: Manafort Bros. 26 The man who gave me hives doesn't get enough credit In her The Struggle is Real column, Renee Diaz reflects on the people who keep her going and ego in check. 33 Anti-descrimination law will create more uninsured Opinion columnist Ryan Wagner says a new gender-equality law will drive up the cost of disability insurance. The WBJ Hall of Famer who never was Editor, Brad Kane, bkane@wbjournal.com News Editor, Grant Welker, gwelker@wbjournal.com (Real estate, higher education, health care) Staff Writer Zachary Comeau, zcomeau@wbjournal.com (Manufacturing) Contributors Susan Shalhoub, Livia Gershon, Sarah Connell Research Director, Stephanie Meagher, smeagher@nebusinessmedia.com Research Assistant, Heide Martin, hmartin@nebusinessmedia.com Production Director, Kira Beaudoin, kbeaudoin@wbjournal.com Art Director, Mitchell Hayes, mhayes@wbjournal.com Senior Accounts Manager Matt Majikas, mmajikas@wbjournal.com Senior Accounts Manager Christine Juetten, cjuetten@wbjournal.com Senior Special Accounts Manager Mary Lynn Bosiak, mlbosiak@wbjournal.com Marketing & Events Manager Kris Prosser, kprosser@wbjournal.com Distribution and Database Coordinator A Guide to STUFF, a publication of New England Business Media Patty Harris, pharris@nebusinessmedia.com COO, Mary Rogers, mrogers@nebusinessmedia.com Accounting Manager, Valerie Clark, vclark@nebusinessmedia.com Accounting Assistant, Rae Rogers, rrogers@nebusinessmedia.com Collections Manager, Raki Zwiebel, rzwiebel@nebusinessmedia.com Human Resources, Jill Coran, jcoran@nebusinessmedia.com Publisher, CEO, Peter Stanton pstanton@nebusinessmedia.com Associate Publisher, Mark Murray mmurray@wbjournal.com President, Joseph Zwiebel jzwiebel@nebusinessmedia.com CORRECTION: A Feb. 18 article about Karen Spinelli and her new CPA firm incorrectly said Spinelli CPAs was the only certified woman-owned CPA firm in Worcester and one of 11 in Massachusetts. CORRECTION: A Feb. 18 article about women in the brewing industry incorrectly said CraftRoots Brewing in Milford was the only Massachusetts brewery fully owned by women.

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