Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1527921
22 Worcester Business Journal | October 28, 2024 | wbjournal.com 35th Anniversary WBJ BY MICA KANNER-MASCOLO WBJ Staff Writer A s the second-largest city in New England, Worcester, along with its surrounding cities and towns, is one of the most diverse regions in the state and home to thousands of busi- nesses. While Central Massachusetts business leaders have seen substantial diversification among small business owners in the past three decades, the same cannot be said for those among the area's highest-paid. At the same time, the future holds promising potential as more funding, programs and initiatives aimed at bolstering owner diver- sity become more prevalent throughout the region. "It's important because it helps bring kind of economic stability and opportunity and ladders for people from different back- grounds and populations, and that makes us, you know, stronger and a more vibrant community, both in the short and long, long run," said Timothy Murray, president and CEO of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce. Stark executive wage-gap No female CEO has been among Central Massachusetts' highest-paid CEOs in the last six years, per data tracked by WBJ. Since 2003, TJX Cos. executive chairman Carol Meyrowitz, former president and CEO of the Framingham behemoth, was the lone woman among the highest-earning for seven of the 11 years a woman made the list. e year with the most women ranked was 2011 when Laura Sen of Marlborough-based BJ's Wholesale Club, Susan Vogt of SeraCare Life Sciences in Milford, and Anna Chagnon of Bitstream in Marlborough joined her on the list. is lack of female representation was very similar within the region's highest-paid executives for the time WBJ ranked them by total compensation from 1996 through 2014. For five of those 19 years, no woman made the list, and for 10 of those years, only one woman did, being either Meyrowitz or Sen (before becoming CEOs), Marita Zuraitis of Worcester-based e Hanover Insurance Group or Christine Komola of Framing- ham-based Staples Inc. e most female executives to be ranked on the list were two in the years 2013, 2014, and 2015. ese trends are not far off from what is reflected nationwide, as e New York Times reports only one woman made the publication's 2024 list of top 10 U.S. chief executives by compensation actually paid in 2023: Safra Catz, CEO of Texas-based cloud technology company Oracle. On a more specific, industry level, Central Mass. banking and retail sectors also have room for growth in diversifying leadership, Murray said. In 2024, only two of the 25 largest banks (ranked by local deposits as of June 30, 2023) in Central Massachusetts are led by women. Female leadership is far more prevalent at the region's credit unions where women head eight of the top 20 largest credit unions (ranked by assets as of March 31) with three women among the top 10. e area's real estate industry is lacking in diversity as well, Murray said, reflecting More diverse businesses The complex journey toward diversifying Central Massachusetts business leadership Alice Lombardi, founder of Bean Counter Bakery, decided to close her Shrewsbury location earlier this year to focus efforts on the Bean Counter's two Worcester stores and its online business. ALL COURTESY WORCESTER REGIONAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE Owners Son Vo and Tam Le are joined by Worcester Mayor Joe Petty and friends at the 2020 ribbon cutting of their Franklin Street restaurant Chashu Ramen + Izakaya.