Worcester Business Journal

www.wbjournal.com February 2, 2015 • Worcester Business Journal 3 I remember the date well. June 15, 2011. It was a hot, sunny Wednesday afternoon as I walked into the offices of the Worcester Business Journal to be interviewed for the job of editor. On that same day, I stopped at a local watering hole, which was festooned in the black and gold colors of the Boston Bruins. Later that night, the Bruins defeated the Vancouver Canucks, 4-0, to capture their first Stanley Cup in 39 years. I saw it all — including the pit stop at the bar — as a good omen. I was offered the job a month later. Some Worcester residents may cling to a long-held belief that the state's two largest cities are as different as different could be. But when it comes to sports loyalties, as I discovered in the bar that day, Central Massachusetts is as part of the widespread fandoms of the Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics and Bruins as the thousands of Bay Staters to the east are. Central Massachusetts appears to be on the verge of losing its minor league hockey team for the second time in a decade. But there's a good solution to filling this potential void: approaching the Bruins about bringing their mid-level minor league team here. On Page 29, read our editorial on why this would make sense for both the team and the region. Also inside this issue … Our Focus section shines a spotlight on banking and finance, the lifeblood for any economy. On Page 12, Sam Bonacci explores what local banks are doing to drum up more business on the commercial lending side. And, what does the future hold for the auto- mated teller machine as more banking customers move away from cash? Livia Gershon has answers for you on Page 13. ~ Rick Saia (rsaia@wbjournal.com) This Week In The WBJ Editor, Rick Saia, rsaia@wbjournal.com Web Editor/Columnist Christina H. Davis, cdavis@wbjournal.com Staff Writers Sam Bonacci, sbonacci@wbjournal.com (Banking & Finance, Real Estate, Manufacturing, Technology) Emily Micucci, emicucci@wbjournal.com (Health Care) Staff Writer/Copy Editor Carol McDonald, cmcdonald@wbjournal.com (Education) Contributors Susan Shalhoub, sshalhoub@wbjournal.com Livia Gershon Research Director, Roger Magnus rmagnus@nebusinessmedia.com Research Assistant, Heide Martin hmartin@wbjournal.com Art Director, Kira Beaudoin kbeaudoin@wbjournal.com Graphic Designer, Mitchell Hayes mhayes@wbjournal.com Manager of Video/Multimedia Services, Matthew Volpini mvolpini@nebusinessmedia.com Director, Major Accounts Bonnie Leroux, bleroux@wbjournal.com Senior Accounts Manager Matt Majikas, mmajikas@wbjournal.com Custom Publishing Project Manager Christine Juetten, cjuetten@wbjournal.com Marketing & Events Manager Kris Prosser, kprosser@wbjournal.com Sales Admin & Account Coordinator Susan Munyon, smunyon@wbjournal.com Controller, Mary Rogers mrogers@nebusinessmedia.com Accounting Assistant, Valerie Clark vclark@nebusinessmedia.com Collections Manager, Raki Zwiebel rzwiebel@nebusinessmedia.com Human Resources, Debbie Amorelli damorelli@nebusinessmedia.com Publisher, CEO, Peter Stanton pstanton@nebusinessmedia.com Associate Publisher, Mark Murray mmurray@wbjournal.com Group Publisher, Joseph Zwiebel jzwiebel@nebusinessmedia.com Worcester Business Journal (ISSN#1063- 6595) is published bi-weeky, 24x per year, including 5 special issues in April, July, September, November and December, by New Engand Business Media. 172 Shrewsbury St., Worcester, MA 01604. Periodicals postage paid at Worcester, MA. Copyright 2014. 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 $49.95. 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. Worcester Business Journal • 172 Shrewsbury Street • Worcester, MA 01604 • 508-755-8004 tel. • 508-755-8860 fax www.wbjournal.com A division of: WBJ on the Web From news to information about events and awards, we have it all at WBJournal.com. Want to buy or sell a business? Turn to the WBJ Business BUY/SELL Exchange, a new section on our website where readers can find helpful articles. You'll also find listings of businesses for sale, as well as other resources. Check it out at www.wbjournal.com/exchange. ON PAGE ONE For knowledge and community Colleges in Worcester are undertaking multimillion-dollar building projects whose benefits extend beyond their campuses. They're also seen as boosts to their neighborhoods, and the city as a whole. What can influence hospital revenues? One of the most complex aspects of paying for health care is how hospitals take in revenue. Based on data from a key state agency, part of the answer lies in the agreements hospitals work out with insurers. NEWS & ANALYSIS 9 Tuition-free community college? The leaders of Central Massachusetts' two community colleges like President Obama's proposal to fully fund two years of college. But politics aside, they want to see more details from The White House. SHOP TALK 8 Q&A with Barry Clapp, president and CEO of Centage Corp., Natick THE LIST 17 Top banks in Central Massachusetts COLUMN 22 THE RAINMAKER How much can advertising influence sales? It can open the door to building relationships with prospective clients, Ken Cook writes. What's the outlook for 2015? Jeff Fuhrer, executive vice president and senior policy advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, will deliver the keynote at our annual Economic Forecast event, which will be held Friday, Feb. 13 at Worcester's Beechwood Hotel. A panel discussion will follow. Register today at www.wbjournal.com/event/ecoforecast. Y O U R R E G I O N A L R E S O U R C E F O R B U Y I N G O R S E L L I N G A B U S I N E S S Your resource for buying or selling a business How to take the sting out of a shark bite Banking & Finance FOCUS DEPARTMENTS 21 Accolades & Honors 4 Briefing 29 Editorial 28 Flash Poll 22 Fresh Beginnings 25 Incorporations 19 Knowhow 26 Movers & Shakers 23 Networking/Events 30 Photo Finish 5 Real Deals 8 Ticker 29 Viewpoint 12 12 Banks in Central Mass. rise to meet growing demand for business lending The commercial lending market is up, and banks in Central Massachusetts are bulking up and muscling in for a bigger piece of the action. 13 Remember the ATM? It's not going away We may be moving slowly toward a cashless society, but banks in Central Massachusetts say their customers are still using automated teller machines. CLARIFICATION/CORRECTION: Our "Best of Business" description of Tufts Health Plan's membership (Jan. 19 edition, Page 13), said it had nearly 312,000 members as of the end of 2013. That's only for its health main- tenance organization. Membership, covering all offerings, included more than 1 million as of September 2014. Also, the address for Tufts' headquarters, 705 Mount Auburn St., Watertown, was reported incorrectly. '15

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