June 24, 2024Edition

Kasia Dodman’s life has been a series of unexpected twists and turns. An immigrant from Poland, Dodman had no family in the U.S., no money, and could not speak a word of English when she first moved to Worcester.

Central Massachusetts business leaders are mildly optimistic as to where the economy has gone and is going in 2024. According to results from WBJ's Midyear Economic Survey, 64% of respondents said the local economy would improve either significantly or slightly in 2024.

In U.S. election years, little on the political front seems to be subtle or nuanced. Complex policy proposals can easily get whittled down to single sound bites, as partisans cast fear when attacking the other side’s position. However, there seems to be one issue where of late both sides of the aisle seem to be on the same page: China=bad.

Yes, newspapers, the institutions we generally think of when considering the state of media, have seen more than their share of declines. However, most of us who care about local news and for a generation have been longing for what was, we are missing what's taking place right in front of us.

Employees at Glickman Kovago & Jacobs, Fidelity Bank, and Walker Development & Construction Management are on the move.

So, how can business owners meet their revenue expectations as we head into the second half of 2024?

Companies are seeing a transformation in their workforces as Gen Z and Millennials join the ranks Baby Boomers once held. Since each generation has different characteristics, managers are using a myriad of tactics to attract younger professionals.

Janelle Drolet, vice president of operations and sales for Towerwall cybersecurity consulting firm in Framingham, offers some advice regarding compliance risk.

Anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment is on the rise nationally. Despite being known as a leading state for LGBTQ+ rights, that sentiment has trickled down to Massachusetts.

To help prepare new nurses for the reality of the profession and combat the growing problem of burnout, UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester offers its New Graduate Nurse Residency Program, which over the course of 12 months seeks to center education, community, and support for those entering the field.

Cautious optimism. These two words are perhaps the most succinct way to summarize how some of the region’s economists and business figures feel about the state of the Central Massachusetts economy.

Compared to WBJ’s year-end Economic Forecast survey published in December, Central Massachusetts business leaders aren’t quite as optimistic as they were six months ago.

MassHousing and the Massachusetts Housing Investment Corp have teamed up to launch what they say is the largest publicly led financing program of its kind in the country.

Economic projections and forecasts are a funny exercise. Trying to predict how the economy will look in the future is certainly a worthy effort, and many professionals’ lives are centered around figuring out what comes next for business and industry.

Rise Bakery Co. is part of the portfolio of Olympus Partners, a private equity firm founded in 1988 and based in Stamford, Connecticut.