Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | APRIL 7, 2025 37 POWE R 50 45 Jill Adams J ill Adams is one of Connecti- cut's top advertising and marketing executives. She is the longtime CEO and co-founder of Avon-based integrated market agency Adams & Knight, the largest ad firm in Greater Hartford based on gross billings. In 2023, the 65-employee company reported $86.7 million in gross bill- ings, in what Adams described as the firm's "best year ever." "Much of that growth has come from our expanded array of in-demand publisher and president since 2019. He's led the company through an acquisition spree. In February, Hearst Connecticut acquired the Republican-American newspaper in Waterbury, cementing its status as the largest news orga- nization in the state. The storied Waterbury daily had been owned by the same family since 1901. The acquisition followed Hearst Connecticut's purchase of the Journal Inquirer in Manchester and Meriden- based Record-Journal in 2023. Hearst Connecticut, a subsidiary of the privately owned media monolith Hearst Communications, now owns more than 30 local newspapers and websites, including daily newspa- pers in four of the five largest cities in the Nutmeg State — Bridgeport, Stamford and New Haven, in addition to Waterbury. It also owns Connecticut Magazine. Hearst Connecticut boasts that it employs more than 200 journalists across the state, including reporters, photographers, page designers and editors. Prior to his current role, DeLuca served as senior vice president of digital, and then executive vice pres- ident of advertising sales for Hearst Newspapers. Before that, he served as chief revenue officer at Savored, a restaurant reservations and discount provider that was acquired by Groupon in 2012. marketing services," Adams told the Hartford Business Journal last September. "We built out our in-house programming team, so we could offer more tech-powered solutions. We created a channel strategy team, so we could provide more holistic solutions that connect the dots among earned media, paid media and social media. We expanded our content marketing/storytelling skills. And, we've developed innovative offerings to help clients build total brand experiences that encompass their employees' experience as well as their customers' experience." The firm's key clients include Hart- ford HealthCare and Webster Bank. With a master's degree from Boston University, Adams worked at several agencies and corporations before starting her own business. Her guiding business principle is: "Good is the enemy of great — but perfection is the enemy of accomplishment." 46 Vincent Candelora & Stephen Harding A s House Republican leader, Rep. Vincent Candelora (R-North Branford) found himself with a new partner in the Senate just after the 2024 legislative session began. First-term Sen. Stephen Harding (R-Brookfield) was named Senate minority leader in late February last year after Sen. Kevin Kelly (R-Stratford) was surprisingly ousted. Harding was re-elected to a second term in November, and once again leads the Senate GOP. Candelora, elected to his 10th term in November, was the unanimous choice to serve as House Minority Leader for a third, two-year term. Unfortunately for the GOP, Demo- crats this past November gained addi- tional seats in the House and Senate, giving them veto-proof majorities in both chambers. Candelora and Harding, though, are nonetheless adamant about backing policies intended to make the state more affordable for residents and businesses. That includes lowering the state's rising electric rates, for which both legislators joined in proposing a seven-point plan to address the issue. Outside the legislature, Candelora helps run two family-owned busi- nesses — a manufacturing company and a sportsplex. He has also prac- ticed municipal and transactional law at a New Haven-based law firm. Harding, a New York Law School graduate, recently joined a new law firm, Zabel Schellenberg PLLC in Orange. 47 Susan Jackson S usan Jackson is the office managing partner of KPMG LLP in Hartford, a Big 4 public accounting firm. She has been an audit partner for over 25 years and serves insurance clients, both public and private. She is the first woman to hold KPMG's managing partner role in Hart- ford, and the first to lead two separate Fortune 100 public company audits (both Hartford insurers). She also serves in several leadership roles at KPMG, including as a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission review partner, human resources leader and community service champion. Jackson began her career with the firm in 1993, and became a partner in 1999. She also serves on nonprofit boards, including as board chair of Junior Achievement of Southwest New England. The Quinnipiac University graduate grew up in southern Connecticut and lives in the Hartford area with her family. 48 Melissa L. Ferrucci M elissa Ferrucci is one of several women managing partners of major accounting and advisory firms in Connecticut. With over 20 years of experience in public accounting, Ferrucci is the office managing partner of CohnRez- nick's Connecticut offices, a position she has held since April 2022. Ferrucci currently manages a team of approximately 200 employees in the Hartford and Stamford offices. In addition, she continues to serve clients in commercial real estate and affordable housing, and provides auditing services and guidance on critical industry issues to a range of stakeholders. In March, she told the Hartford Business Journal that one of her next big goals is to double the revenues of Continued on next page

• Cover