Worcester Business Journal

4 Worcester Business Journal | Book of Lists 2022 | wbjournal.com A bout a month before our annual Book of Lists gets sent to the printer, we discuss what should be fea- tured on the cover of this publication. Each year, the conversation centers around one question: What one thing best embodies the changes in the Central Massachusetts economy over the last 12 months? Last year, it was the Worcester Red Sox; in 2020, it was the economic shutdowns forced by COVID; in 2019, street art was featured on the cover; 2018 was local craft breweries. This year, the life sciences industry leads the way. Bioscience and biotechnology are hardly new to Central Massachusetts. The seminal moment for the industry came in 1977 when UMass Chan Medical School was officially opened and dedicated in Worcester. In the last 45 years, public and pri- vate research dollars have flowed into the region, a Nobel Prize was awarded to a UMass researcher, and spin-off companies, startups, and established players have set up shop. Now, life sciences is all the rage in 2022. Two high-profile Worcester developments – The Reactory and the Left Field Building at Polar Park – are seeking biotech companies to anchor their facilities, while new developments with established companies are popping up all over the region, from Bristol Myers Squibb's 244,000-square-foot expansion in Devens to California firm National Resilience's $20-million invest- ment in Marlborough. In February, Fitchburg received platinum certification from the Massachusetts Biotechnology Institute, as a city ready for life sciences development. Central Massachusetts has long billed itself as the affordable alternative to Greater Boston, including as a place where growing startups can spread their wings and find less costly facilities for manufacturing, office expansions, and laborato- ries. Since Eastern Massachusetts has become an international life sciences hub, it stands to reason our region should cap- ture some of that growth. The public-private agency Massachusetts Life Sciences Center has been putting money into better facilities and workforce development in Central Massachusetts for almost 20 years, and those investments are paying off. The economy is constantly evolving, as companies discover new revenue streams and discard old ones. New players pop into the region while older ones move away, close, or simply age out. These shifts are subtle, where one year doesn't look remarkably different than the last; but as those years turn into decades, the economic evolution is readily apparent. The WBJ Book of Lists is designed to reflect this slow change, where the 40-50 lists comprising each edition are relatively the same year after year, but old ones fall off while new ones come on. This year, the two new lists cover property managers and culture-focused nonprofits. Life sciences still hasn't taken over as a top industry in the Central Massachusetts economy, as durable goods manu- facturing, real estate, health care, and education lead the way. Yet, biotechnology has come a long way since 1977 and certainly has the attention as the industry of the future. - Brad Kane, editor C O N T E N T S Everyone's favorite, buzzy industry BANKING & FINANCE ......................................... 7 Top banks ......................................................... 8 Top credit unions ............................................ 11 Notable 2022 mergers & acquisitions .............. 14 Top SBA 7(a) lenders ....................................... 16 Top SBA 7(a) loans .......................................... 17 PROFESSIONAL SERVICES ............................... 19 Top accounting firms ....................................... 20 Top law firms .................................................. 22 Top insurance agencies ................................... 23 Top IT services providers ................................. 25 Top incubators ................................................ 28 Top commercial cleaning services .................... 29 Advertising, marketing & communications firms .. 30 Top chambers of commerce ............................ 33 MANUFACTURING ........................................... 37 Largest manufacturers .................................... 38 Largest biomedical companies......................... 40 Largest breweries ........................................... 42 Largest marijuana businesses ......................... 44 REAL ESTATE ................................................... 47 Notable commercial sales................................ 48 Notable commercial leases .............................. 49 Largest property managers* ............................ 50 Top commercial contractors ............................. 51 Largest MassDOT projects .............................. 52 HOSPITALITY .................................................... 55 Largest meeting facilities ................................. 56 Top tourist attractions ...................................... 60 Largest hotels ................................................. 62 Toughest golf courses ..................................... 63 EDUCATION & NONPROFITS ............................ 65 Top colleges and universities ........................... 66 Largest private high schools ............................ 67 Vocational-technical high schools .................... 68 Top human services nonprofits ........................ 69 Largest grant-making foundations and nonprofits . 70 Top arts and culture nonprofits* ....................... 71 HEALTH CARE ................................................... 73 Largest hospitals ............................................. 74 Top health insurers.......................................... 78 Largest physician groups ................................. 79 Largest addiction treatment centers ................. 80 GENERAL INTEREST ........................................ 83 Highest-paid CEOs .......................................... 84 Highest-paid nonprofit chief executives ............ 85 Largest minority-owned businesses ................. 86 Largest woman-owned businesses .................. 87 Temporary staffing firms .................................. 88 Veteran-owned businesses ............................. 89 Largest labor unions ....................................... 90 Highest-paid state employees .......................... 91 INDEX ............................................................... 92 *New list created for first time in 2022 INDEXED BY INDUSTRY CATEGORY 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 2022. 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 $72.00. 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. A division of: Editor, Brad Kane, bkane@wbjournal.com Senior Staff Writer, Monica Benevides, mbenevides@wbjournal.com (Health care, diversity & inclusion) Staff Writers Timothy Doyle tdoyle@wbjournal.com (Real estate, higher education) Alexander MacDougall amacdougall@wbjournal.com (Health care, diversity & inclusion) Editorial Interns Sadie Leite sleite@wbjournal.com Ellie Lester elester@wbjournal.com Worcester Business Journal 172 Shrewsbury Street • Worcester, MA 01604 508-755-8004 tel. • 508-755-8860 fax • www.wbjournal.com Worcester Business Journal WBJ Contributors Giselle Rivera-Flores, Ramon L. 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