Worcester Business Journal

B efore he was a management professor at Nichols College, Leonard Samborowski worked for the head of army intelligence at the Pentagon, where he used data analytics to pre- dict the outcome of possible military moves. "We would look at information in a computer and see what the bad guys would do next," he said. It was this work, plus his passion for sports, that inspired Samborowski to create a sports analytics class for management students at Nichols. The new class linked students up with Nichols sports teams, as well as the semi-pro football Worcester County Wildcats, to analyze sports data, like Brad Pitt's character did in the movie "Moneyball." "[Coaches are] too busy to look at numbers Bad Internet 7 Central Massachusetts businesses are paying more attention to what customers are saying online. WBJ >> To Subscribe Central Massachusetts' Source for Business News Janaury 4, 2016 Volume 27 Number 1 www.wbjournal.com $2.00 More developers are seeing the benefits of catering to sports fields and rinks to entice outsiders to city. 12 Q&A with Michael Lussier, president and CEO of Webster First Federal Credit Union Shop Talk 8 Changing of the Guard in Fitchburg Outgoing Mayor Lisa Wong has ended her eight-year stint running Fitchburg while incoming Mayor Stephen DiNatale seeks to focus on the details to encourage more business development in the city. DiNatale to return city to local roots, focus on economic development In four terms, Wong took control of city finances, righted education ship From 'Moneyball' to MathWorks, area colleges focus on big data BY EMILY MICUCCI Worcester Business Journal Staff Writer BY EMILY MICUCCI Worcester Business Journal Staff Writer I n the mid-2000s, Fitchburg City Hall, and the community itself, was a much different place than it is today. Traditionally, the city had been run by local politicians hailing from Fitchburg or immediately surrounding communities; finances were precari- ous; and the city had almost no cushion. Meanwhile, like many once-great Massachusetts industrial cities, Fitchburg battled ongoing economic depression as F itchburg Mayor Stephen DiNatale, a 63-year-old Leominster native who moved to Fitchburg in his mid-20s, is a rare breed: A local politician with deep roots in the community, who also has statewide and global perspec- tive and lot of experience schmoozing with the state's top officials. His many supporters hope these traits will bring Fitchburg to new heights in DiNatale's next stint in public office – this time, the corner office. He was sworn >> Continued on Page 10 >> Continued on Page 10 BY LAURA FINALDI Worcester Business Journal Staff Writer >> Continued on Page 9 P H O T O / M A T T V O L P I N I Leonard Samborowski, Nichols College man- agement professor Diversifying real estate

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