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Worcester Business Journal Hall of Fame MATILDE "MATTIE" CASTIEL, MD, Commissioner of Health and Human Services, City of Worcester 1. "You will never experience success until you experience failure." This is a mantra that my dad, Israel Castiel, would always share with me. I truly believe that our failures are the greatest teachers in our lives as those experiences are the ones that, in many occasions, help us reflect on the purpose and intent of our actions. Our failures are the ones that keep us grounded and humble. 2. "Dignity and justice is a way of being, a way of life." We must always treat ourselves and others with love and respect. It is our duty to honor our existences, value our lived experiences, and actively undo the legacy of racism and oppression. We must do so by amplifying each other voices, thinking, and acting in ways that seek to do better by all; especially those who have been historically dehumanized and oppressed. 3. In the words of James Charlton,"Nothing for us without us." Regardless of your field of work, we must always remember that there is no project, initiative, business, or policy that should be done behind doors and without input of those involved and/or impacted. In order to do better, we must act better, therefore, always including community in a transparent and honest way is a great starting point. 4. "Reflection is key to being a better human being." I consider myself a lifetime learner and one that has many questions and very little answers. I try to constantly ask myself questions about what I am doing, how I am doing it, what I can do better, who I can learn from, and who should come along. Also, I always ask questions because that is the only way I learn and can contribute to collective change and greater good. 5. "Everytime you move a step forward, make sure you are bring someone along with you." Change will only happen if we disrupt business as usual, so I make a point to bring along those who historically are no the ones in power or making decisions. "A good leader is one that is in the trenches with their team." I firmly believe that building with community, motivating others, and getting things done only can happen if as leader I lead by expample rather than simply talking. 6. In the words of Gabby Rivera,"There is no revolution without joy." Make sure to always center joy, laughter, and good company. We can't do good work if we don't take care of ourselves individually and communally. Worcester Business Journal Hall of Fame SUSAN WEST ENGELKEMEYER President, Nichols College Leadership Insights from the "other side of life" I believe we bring lessons learned from our "other side" of life into our leadership philosophy and style. As a horse enthusiast, my "other side" perspective comes from horseback riding. I grew up riding bareback and competing in a western (think cowboy) saddle. My favorite event was barrel cutting, a timed event where the horse races at breakneck speed around 55-gallon barrels while the rider is leaning either left or right as far as possible. Hitting the dirt hard or bouncing off the barrel and out of the saddle are always a risk. Later in life I learned a more refined riding discipline in an English saddle, Prix Caprilli, which is a combination of jumping and dressage. When preparing for a jump, steady but firm pressure is needed on the bit and with the rider's legs. Too little leg pressure and the horse becomes unbalanced over the jumps. Too much pressure on the bit with tight reins and the horse's pace will be too slow to clear the jump. Loose reins increase the likelihood the horse will balk at the jump and the rider risks a sudden fall. The rider must focus her eyes well beyond the jump, so the horse follows through after clearing the jump. An observer of dressage cannot easily detect the signals the rider is giving the horse. The horse's gait, posture, and direction change as a result of imperceptible leg movement and placement and through the amount of pressure with one or both legs and reins. Something as subtle as the wiggle of a pinkie finger is a command the horse is ready to respond to, and the rider must continually adjust to her horse's mood, movement, reactions, and sometime, overreactions. I believe effective leadership is embedded in the riding principles outlined above: • Focus on the end point. • Subtle but continual guidance is necessary. • Firm and steady pressure is crucial. • Adaptation to reactions is essential. • Expect the unexpected. • When you hit the dirt, get up, dust yourself off, get back in the saddle, and try again. • Relish those exhilarating moments during and at the end of a good ride. • Give that gorgeous creature a hug or special treat before leaving the barn. Worcester Business Journal Hall of Fame INGEBORG E. HEGEMANN Senior consultant, BSC Group, Inc. My personal opinion is that a leader should be authentic. This may take time to develop and, in my opinion, should be reassessed as needed. Specifically: • Be aware of who you are – be self- aware. And know that you and your situation will change! Get input from your team. Have passion for what you do, for your responsibilities. This may not be easy, but I've learned a lot from my peers and my team. We laugh about some comments now, but at the time, hmm. Some comments were just observations made in passing and some of them I loved hearing. • Listen – listen to pros and cons regarding decisions. Listen to your team's comments about how things are going in the company, in the team, in the market place. Over time I've found that other people may have much better ideas that I do, or more passion about a subset of information than I am, or thinks of a new market area or idea I never would have. As part of this, give feedback. Don't be afraid to say "Wow, great idea" or "I need time to think about this" or "I don't know". Ask for help. And, in the end, be prepared to make a decision. • Be honest. I wish this was easy. What I mean is be honest about your intention. Be honest with feedback. Provide data to your team; let them learn and participate. • Value and work for your team. Build your team, promote your team, give feedback, hold them accountable. Encourage them to challenge you. Your team should be better than you in different and, ideally, complementary, ways. Make people laugh. Trust people. At the same time, lead. Lead by example. Pull your weight. Does this always work? No. Is it easy? No. Will disagreements/ schisms/tears come about? Yes. But, bottom line, I really do believe in The Golden Rule. Worcester Business Journal Hall of Fame CHIP NORTON, Managing director, Franklin Realty Advisors LLC Investment into Worcester: I've been active in the Central Massachusetts real estate market for over 30 years which includes the City of Worcester. The area has offered me an opportunity to acquire, develop and expand my real estate holdings instead of Boston (and its suburbs) which is more challenging from a permitting, competition and valuation standpoint. Central Massachusetts has not historically reflected the same appreciation in value as other larger urban markets but has been more of a stable, long-term investment environment. It has also not attracted new investment capital until more recently as more investors have come to appreciate the economic strength and growth opportunities in this area. Assisting During the Pandemic: I have been fortunate and honored to assist the healthcare community and primarily UMass Memorial Healthcare both here in Worcester but also in Southbridge where we provided hotel rooms for front line workers during the surge last April at the Southbridge Hotel & Conference Center. It's been very important to me and my company that we assist in any way we can to mitigate this pandemic and help the community recover physically, mentally and economically. Leadership: I had to develop my leadership characteristics early in my business career as I ran a family real estate business coming out of college and have owned my own "Best Ideas & Key Philosophies" from 2021 Business Leaders of the Year

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