Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | May 2, 2022 | Worcester Business Journal 13 H E A L T H C A R E P O W E R 5 0 Top 10 in primary care education 2023 Best Graduate Schools U.S. News and World Report Top 3 in New England for NIH research funding Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research DR. ERIC DICKSON PRESIDENT & CEO UMASS MEMORIAL HEALTH, IN WORCESTER Residence: Princeton Colleges: Merrimack College, UMass Medical School, Harvard University As the head of an organization with $1.8 billion in annual revenues and locations from Leominster to Southbridge, and Marlborough to Worcester, the decisions Dickson makes impact the entire Central Massachusetts region. When he decided to mandate COVID-19 vaccines, Dickson was directly impacting the lives of 17,000 employees and contractors, as well as providing a blueprint for other large employers. Over the last two years, Dickson has prioritized diversity and equity initiatives, hiring the organization's first-ever chief of diversity and focusing on hiring individuals from the disadvantaged areas of the community. His organization's Anchor Mission initiative seeks to both address social determinants of health, as well as make sure the local economy benefits from UMass Memorial's largesse buying power, including setting aside 1% of its investment portfolio – the equivalent of $4 million – to invest in local projects. In August, UMass Memorial bought the $24-million Beaumont Rehabilitation and Skilled Nursing Center in Worcester, one of many steps to add 200 medical-surgical beds to its campus. Dickson proved himself as a community leader in times of crisis, and now he moves his organization forward, improving it in nearly every area. n What sets the Central Mass. business community apart from the rest of the world? The partnership between the private sector and the public sector is very strong. The business community is big enough to get substantial, meaningful projects off the ground, but we're also the right size to be nimble to respond to the needs of the community at any given time. n Medical inspiration: I joined the Army Reserve shortly after high school and spent most of my time in the service as a medic and respiratory therapist, which inspired me to go to medical school. ODILE SMITH VICE PRESIDENT AND DEVENS SITE HEAD BRISTOL MYERS SQUIBB, IN DEVENS Headquarters: New York City Residence: Worcester County Colleges: University Louis Pasteur, Strasbourg, France; Ecole Europeenne des Hautes Etudes des Industries Chimiques de Strasbourg, France Bristol Myers Squibb's ongoing 244,000-square-foot expansion in Devens promises to define the former military reserve and further draw the state's blossoming life sciences industry into Central Mass. In total, BMS's campus sprawls 89 acres, with its cell therapy manufacturing addition slated to open in 2023. Overseeing it all is Smith, who most recently led biologics manufacturing for the vaccines division of French firm Sanofi Pasteur. Smith's direction of the Devens site will not only dictate the success of life sciences in Central Mass., but it will shape the Devens community, as BMS is already an employer of 1,100 people locally. The impact of BMS, a global company with $46 billion in annual revenue, on the region's workforce continues to multiply. In 2021, the firm has partnered with Middlesex Community College and Worcester Polytechnic Institute to develop training and education programs. It provided a grant to MassBioEd, a Cambridge- organization which focuses on building workforce talent, to launch the new Life Sciences Apprenticeship Program. n What sets the Central Mass. business community apart from the rest of the world? The life sciences industry is thriving in Massachusetts, and that makes this state and the Central Massachusetts region good locations for growing and expanding Bristol Myers Squibb biopharmaceutical operations here. n Championship pedigree: Smith raises and shows Briards, a French breed of large herding dogs. Her dogs have been champions over the years, winning Best of Show in the World Dog Show in Paris, Best of Breed honors at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, and have claimed top prizes at other international and national competitions.

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