Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | August 19, 2024 | Worcester Business Journal 37 4 0 U N D E R F O R T Y How WBJ selected the 40 Under Forty, Class of 2024 is year's winners were chosen from 398 nominations submitted for 221 professionals in 2023 and 2024. To be eligible, a nominee has to work in Central Massachusetts, live in or near Massachusetts, and be under the age of 40 on the date of the awards ceremony, which is Sept. 25 this year. Since the awards were not held in 2023, WBJ extended the age-limit eligibility by one year for last year's nominees. Each year's nominees were reviewed by separate three-judge panels, who scored each nominee independently. WBJ then verified the eligibility of the top-scoring nominees and combined the results from the two years to select the Class of 2024. Giselle Rivera-Flores Rivera-Flores is director of communications for State Sen. Robyn Kennedy. She is responsible for developing communication strategies to help advance Kennedy's efforts to catalyze broad impact through the sharing of effective ideas and practices. Rivera-Flores is a certified health & wellness coach. She publishes her reflective writings on the Afro-Latina experience on Substack called "Hispanic-ish". She is a 40 Under Forty alumna from the Class of 2017. Julie Bowditch Bowditch is the executive director of CASA Project Worcester County, a nonprofit organization advocating for 2,000 foster children. Bowditch serves on the board for Women in Development of Central Massachusetts, is a corporator and grant reviewer for Greater Worcester Community Foundation, and co-chairs the development committee for Habitat for Humanity Metrowest/Greater Worcester. She is a 40 Under Forty alumna from the Class of 2018. Darryl Caffee Caffee is senior vice president, director of retail lending, and Community Reinvestment Act officer for Auburn-based finan- cial institution Webster Five. He is a board member and chair of the legislative committee for the Massachusetts Mortgage Bankers Association. Caffee earned his law degree from the Massachusetts School of Law and his bachelor's degree from Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania. He is a 40 Under Forty alumnus from the Class of 2022. Dr. Alexis Vallejos Vallejos is senior vice president for program management at Westborough contract manufacturing firm Columbia Tech. He also co-owns and operates the eatery Brilla Coffee with his wife Osiris Vallejos. Brilla has three locations in Gardner, Holden, and Northborough. Vallejos earned his MBA from Assumption University in Worcester and a M.D. from the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua. He is a 40 Under Forty alumnus from the Class of 2016. Satya Mitra Mitra is the president and CEO of e Guru Tax & Financial Services in Worcester, which he founded 34 years ago in the basement of his home. Today, the company serves more than 400 clients across the U.S. and globally. He serves as board chair of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce and founded the nonprofit Joy Guru Humanitarian Services. Mitra was inducted into the WBJ Hall of Fame with the Class of 2019. David Oliva Oliva is the general manager of Organomation, a Berlin man- ufacturer of laboratory instru- ments. He led Organomation to receive Company of the Year for 2023 from Sales and Marketing Professionals in Science, in recognition of its innovative solutions to life sciences and research. One of Oliva's favorite responsibilities is visiting academic institutions and environmental laboratories around the world. He is a 40 Under Forty alumnus from the Class of 2022. A lot has changed for Santa Maria since he was named one of WBJ's 40 under Forty awardees more than 20 years ago. After putting in two decades as general manager of Worcester Fitness, Santa Maria officially set out on his own to make his passion for photography into a full-time business. When starting his web design and commercial photography agency, Kill the Ball Media, Santa Maria wasn't entirely sure he could consider himself a photographer. Now, 10 years later, his work has been featured in The New York Times, Ring Magazine, Worcester Magazine, and a number of independent news sites. Though no longer a Worces- ter Fitness employee, Santa Maria still works closely with the company as it hired Kill the Ball Media to serve as its full-service ad agency. In addition to its core offerings, his company provides free digital marketing and photography services to nonprofits and volunteer groups, including the Central Massachusetts Hous- ing Alliance, the Worcester Public Library Foundation, and the Worcester Public Schools Mini Olympics. Santa Maria writes a blog for Kill the Ball Media, producing educational content aimed at making the fast-changing world of digital marketing easier to understand. – M.K.M. What did getting the 40u40 award mean to you at the time? I was thrilled! To be a part of the 2002 class makes me very proud. They are an incredible group of people. What does it mean to you now? It means I'm 22 years older. The guy in the picture looks about 17 and is wearing a shirt two sizes too big. Every year, when I get the issue, I remind myself I was once one of those young people doing his best to do his best. What advice do you have for this year's 40u40 winners? Either remain humble or learn to be humble. You don't have to be the smartest person in the room and shouldn't want to be anyway. Work with and/or for people who inspire you. Class of 2002 Joe Santa Maria Then: General manager and vice president business development, Worcester Fitness, in Worcester Now: Owner and creative director, Kill the Ball Media, in Holden 2024 2002 Nicole Zea first joined French manufacturing firm Saint-Gobain in 2002 and has played an important role in the company's Mass. presence ever since. She was first honored in 2016 by WBJ for her work as a plant manager at the firm, where she was responsi- ble for annual sales of more than $40 million and 145 employees. After a brief stint at a New Hampshire machinery manufacturer between 2019 and 2021, Zea has since moved on to a role as a project management director for CertainTeed Roofing, a sub- sidiary of Saint-Gobain. In a quest to meet the ongoing need for roofing materials, CertainTeed's Norwood facility has expanded its employee headcount by 30% under Zea's watchful eye. Her commitment to the male-dominated world of manufacturing has received national attention, as Zea was awarded with a Women MAKE America award in 2024 by the The Manufacturing Institute in Washington D.C. for her work in narrowing the industry's gen- der gap. In her free time, Zea helps shape the minds of the next generation of workers through her work with Destination Imagi- nation, a creative problem solving nonprofit for youth seeking to develop STEM-related skills. – E.C. What did getting the 40u40 award mean to you at the time? I had spent that year engaging with and working with our local community around manufacturing awareness, and to win that award at that time meant I was considered part of the community. I was a leader making my mark in an area important to me. What does it mean to you now? I'm older and no longer qualified … Just kidding! The award gave me confidence as a first-time site leader. That confidence has helped me to move into newer, more challenging roles and has solidified my commitments to support- ing manufacturing futures not only in Massachusetts, but across the country. What advice do you have for this year's 40u40 winners? Dance down the aisle. Own the moment. Class of 2016 Nicole Zea Then: Plant manager at Saint-Gobain Abrasives, in Worcester Now: Project management director at CertainTeed Roofing, in Norwood 2024 2016 The 40 Under Forty judges for 2024

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