Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | Novermber 27, 2017 | Worcester Business Journal 5 Knowledge + Experience + Trusted Advice. It all adds up. Large enough to serve the needs of most businesses and individuals; small enough to offer the personal attention you expect and deserve. Greenberg, Rosenblatt, Kull & Bitsoli, PC Certified Public Accountants 306 Main Street, Suite 400 • Worcester, MA 01608 508.791.0901 • www.grkb.com B R I E F S Woman-owned businesses need financing According to the 2017 State of Women-Owned Businesses Report, commissioned by American Express OPEN, the number of woman-owned businesses in Massachusetts has grown by 50.4 percent since 2007, compared to 114.4 percent nationally. When polled online, the plurality of WBJ readers said the best approach is to set up special financing programs for woman-owned businesses. F L A S H P O L L Ecotarium president Joe Cox to step down Joe Cox, president of the Worcester children's museum Ecotarium, will resign from his position on Jan. 26. Cox has accepted an appointment as president to one of the largest museums in the south, the Ecotarium said, but did not disclose which museum. Trustee Patty Eppinger will serve as interim president and will work with Cox and the leadership team on a tran- sition plan. Eppinger has been a leader in the nonprofit community since she moved to the region in the mid-2000s and the Hanover Theatre's new $5 mil- lion conservatory is named after her and her husband -- former Hanover Insurance CEO Frederick Eppinger. Cox began his tenure with the Ecotarium as president in 2012 and has been instrumental in its growth and suc- cess since then, including a record 167,000 visitors in 2016. Cox is credited with establishing the Alden Digital Planetarium, the first National Geographic partner planetarium in New England. Other exhibits opened during Cox's time as president include City Science and Nature Explore. Another exhibit, Wild Cat Station, will open in the spring. "It was ultimately the EcoTarium's current vitality and stability that makes this the right moment to [leave]," he said. "I am now ready for new challenges." Continued on next page Inspiring a way forward. 10 Hammond Street Worcester, MA 01610 508-798-0191 www.ccworc.org New Vision New Future What would be the best way for Massachusetts to increase the number of woman-owned businesses? Encourage more women to study business degrees at younger ages. 19% Nothing. That number will rise on its own as times change. 32% "Change the details to qual- ify for woman-owned. For old businesses, because of the documentation demanded, the process is prohibitively expensive! (Or we would have done it already). They need to amend the language of the law." - Howard Products, 7 Brookfield St., Worcester COMMENTS: Joe Cox, outgoing EcoTarium president Provide leadership training programs for professional women. 13% "We are hesitant in hiring women what with the current spate of legal challenges of sexual harassment, valid or invalid. There is less risk in hiring men. Reality is a tough master." "All of the action items are needed." Create special financing mechanisms and change regulations to make it easier for women to start a business. 36%

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