www.wbjournal.com June 8, 2015 • Worcester Business Journal 3
Family-run businesses in the United States are as old as the U.S. itself. ey were more pronounced during the
first 150 years after the Revolutionary War, given that ours was a largely agrarian economy during the 19th century.
e Industrial Revolution began to change that.
ere's also, it seems, less of a desire to foist the family business onto the next generation. A study conducted last
year by Big Four firm PricewaterhouseCoopers found that only 40 percent of family-run businesses around the world
intend to pass the baton of management to the next generation. Meanwhile, 20 percent plan to sell, up slightly from
a previous survey in 2012.
Certainly, there are challenges to running a family business. In this issue, starting on Page 12, read how five families in Central
Massachusetts — this year's honorees of our seventh annual Central Mass. Family Business Awards — make both family and business work.
Also, in this issue's Knowhow article, on Page 27, read David Kowal's amusing take on five business clichés that should be dumped from
everyday usage. I laughed for several minutes when I read the original version; hope you do the same with the final product.
~ 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
Alanna Moriarty, amoriarty@wbjournal.com
Research Director, Roger Magnus
rmagnus@nebusinessmedia.com
Research Assistant, Heide Martin
hmartin@wbjournal.com
Production Director, Kira Beaudoin
kbeaudoin@wbjournal.com
Associate Art Director, 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
Accounts Manager
Rena Barbieri, rbarbieri@wbjournal.com
Custom Publishing Project Manager
Christine Juetten, cjuetten@wbjournal.com
Marketing & Events Manager
Kris Prosser, kprosser@wbjournal.com
Controller, Mary Rogers
mrogers@nebusinessmedia.com
Accounting Assistant, Valerie Clark
vclark@nebusinessmedia.com
Collections Manager, Raki Zwiebel
rzwiebel@nebusinessmedia.com
Human Resources, Kim Vautour
kvautour@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.
ON PAGE ONE
Drones take to the sky – for business
Widely used by the military, drones are slowly finding their way into the
world of business, especially with some early adopters in Central
Massachusetts.
The pressures of health care reform
Continued uncertainty behind the Affordable Care Act, along with other
changes in the delivery of health care, are weighing heavily on
Massachusetts employers and top health insurers.
Call for nominations:
Outstanding Women
in Business
This fall, we'll once again honor a group of women who play critical roles
in the Central Massachusetts economy. Know someone who deserves to
be recognized? Fill out a nomination form at www.wbjournal.com/
womeninbusiness. Nominees should be senior-level executives, CEOs
or entrepreneurs based in Central Massachusetts.
The evolution of family businesses
DEPARTMENTS
34 Accolades & Honors
4 Briefing
37 Editorial
36 Flash Poll
35 Fresh Beginnings
30 Incorporations
27 Knowhow
31 Movers & Shakers
28 Networking/Events
38 Photo Finish
5 Real Deals
8 Ticker
37 Viewpoint
SHOP TALK
8 Q&A with Bob Fields, founder and president of CommCreative,
Framingham
COLUMN
26 There's "selling," then there's "buying," but they need not be mutually
exclusive, Ken Cook writes in The Rainmaker
NEWS & ANALYSIS
9 The new ways of corporate philanthropy
Younger employees are forcing businesses to rethink their approaches to
corporate giving. Some experts in Central Massachusetts see that as a
potential problem.
11 Senator in the spotlight
Karen Spilka chairs an influential legislative committee that writes the
state's tax laws. But the senator from Ashland is also an advocate for
technology who is viewed as empathetic to business.
More HEALTH on the way
In March, we launched a quarterly
publication, Central Massachusetts
HEALTH. The second issue will be
published next week. Read the digital
version of the March issue at
www.wbjournal.com/health.
Business
Women In
2009
Business
Women In
2009
Business
Women In
2009
Business
Women In
2009
Business
Women In
Outstanding
FAMILY
BUSINESS
A
W
A
R
D
S
C
E
N
T
R
A
L
M
A
S
S
.
2015
12
FOCUS
Family Business Awards
AdCare Hospital, Worcester ............................................................................ 12
Aimtek Inc., Auburn ........................................................................................ 14
Fuller Automotive, Auburn ............................................................................ 16
Knight's Airport Limousine, Shrewsbury ...................................................... 18
Worcester Fitness ............................................................................................ 20
Families that work together
For our seventh annual Central Mass. Family Business Awards,
we honor five families from five different industries.
