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  • Adventurer Rohan Freeman Gives Back

    Adventurer Rohan Freeman Gives Back
    2025/07/24
    As president and CEO of Freeman Companies, Rohan Freeman runs three successful engineering, construction, and real estate firms. He’s also an accomplished mountain climber and the first African-American to climb the Seven Summits—the highest mountain on each of the seven continents. And he’s completed the so-called “explorers grand slam” which includes treks to the North and South Pole. “Sometimes I pinch myself, I feel pretty fortunate to get here and for some of the things I've accomplished,” Freeman told the CBIA BizCast. Freeman grew up in Jamaica, moving to Hartford after high school and graduating from the University of Connecticut with a degree in civil engineering. He said he started his firm in Hartford because it was home and his mother and brother both worked for the city. “I started my firm, and then starting to get more into the fabric of Hartford and the community and understanding some of the major issues that were impacting the city and realized that maybe I could help in some small way,” he said. Since then, the Freeman Companies has been involved in major projects in the city including Dunkin’ Park and a number school, housing, and redevelopment projects. He also founded Seven Summits Construction, which centers on nonprofits, schools, and community based work and Seven Summits Realty, which develops housing to provide access to those less fortunate. “I felt feel so connected to the city, and that's why I also want to give back,” Freman said. “I lived here, my mom lived here. So it's important to me to give back, especially with the way my career has been shaped by the city.” So how does someone who grew up on the island of Jamaica end up becoming a mountain climber? “Good question,” Freeman said. He said winter in Connecticut was a culture shock, but instead of moving somewhere warmer, he decided to embrace it and learn to snowboard. “I'm like, ‘okay, so this is how you enjoy winter,’” he said. “I'm like, ‘okay, I gotta do something else.’ And then my friends got me into ice climbing, and cross-country skiing.” Eventually, one of his friends asked him if he wanted to climb Kilimanjaro. “When I was a kid, we would talk about Kilimanjaro as some mythical place,” he said. "I'm like, 'Yeah, I want to go.'" He said after doing his research and training, they successfully climbed the mountain. And that got him excited for more. “I wanted to replicate that challenge,” Freeman said. “My mind always goes to, ‘am I saying I can't do it because I'm afraid? And also physically, could I accomplish this?’ “So I have to prove those things to myself.” Over the years he achieved the feat of climbing the Seven Summits. “It's knowing that I could break through these barriers,” he said. “Sometimes you find yourself in some really challenging situation where you feel like you have your last ounce of energy to give, but you really have more. “Going through these situations let me know that no matter how bad things are, there's always a little bit more to give.” Freeman said the lessons he’s learned through mountain climbing have helped him as as a leader as he’s grown Freeman Companies. “You may say, ‘physically climbing Denali, climbing Everest doesn't relate professionally,’” he said. “But I would disagree with you." “When we climb, we climb in a rope team,” he said. “So, when we move, we move together.” “It doesn't matter how strong you are as a leader. You cannot move faster than the weakest guy is capable of moving.” Freeman said that it’s the same in business and everybody on the team has equal importance. “You need everybody to be contributing, and so you have to find that balance for your team," he said. Related Links: Freeman Companies Website: https://freemancos.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/freeman-companies-llc/ Rohan Freeman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohanfreeman/ CBIA Website: https://www.cbia.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cbia/
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    34 分
  • Reflecting on a Bioscience Career

    Reflecting on a Bioscience Career
    2025/07/10
    He’s not calling it retirement. But after a successful career as CBIA senior counsel and executive director of the Connecticut Bioscience Growth Council, Paul Pescatello is ready for “a little bit of rebalancing.” Pescatello joined the CBIA BizCast to reflect on his career and the state of the biotech industry. Pescatello started his career as a banking and insurance regulatory lawyer with Shipman and Goodwin. “They needed somebody to do some lobbying to start a new bank,” he said. “There was actually legislation needed to make it happen. “So, I volunteered and that's sort of how I learned how to lobby in Connecticut.” Pescatello’s interest in the bioscience and pharmaceutical industry arose from a family crisis. “My oldest brother, who I was really close to, came down with glioblastoma, which is a really, really terrible form of brain cancer,” he said. “I think when something like that happens to you or to somebody you know really well— you want to do something. “You want to channel your energies into something that would help this person or help people in the future.” He said being involved in his brother’s care and treatment drew him to the research that pharmaceutical companies were doing. “I really love the industry. It was such a fascinating industry,” he said. Pescatello started doing pro bono work in the area and ran a bioscience advocacy organization. He joined CBIA in 2014, and started managing the Connecticut Bioscience Growth Council. Pescatello said his goal was to educate people that the innovation and research done by the pharmaceutical industry was key to solving the healthcare crisis. “People here at CBIA have heard me talk about it over and over again—as costly as some drugs are, they really are a cost saver to the overall health system,” he said. Pescatello said that a major expense in the cost of drugs is the vast amount of research and development that goes into the process. “It's just hard to wrap your mind around the really unique research and development arc of bringing a drug from idea to FDA approved products,” Pescatello said. It takes $2.7 billion and about 10-12 years to bring a drug from idea to product. “When legislators ask, ‘why are drug prices so high here?’ It’s true, we really do pay the world’s R&D.” Pescatello credited the buy-in from legislatures and administrations to understand the importance the industry carries in the state. That buy-in has led to Connecticut being at the forefront of research and development tax credits for biotech companies. “They're spending tons and tons of money, but they have no income coming in,” Pescatello said. “So those research and development tax credits—they can carry them forward into the future.” He said it’s critical for the state to stay competitive to support and grow the industry. “Things like the research and development tax credits—other states have copied that,” he said. “We have to keep in the game on that.” Pescatello said it’s been satisfying to see the growth of the industry in Connecticut. “I drive a lot of satisfaction from the range of companies that are here and the range of products that come out of Connecticut,” he said. “We should all really take a victory lap for how big the industry is in Connecticut and how sustainable it is.” As he “rebalances,” Pescatello said he's looking forward to spending more time with his five grandchildren. But he said he plans to continue his advocacy for the bioscience industry. “I love the industry,” he said. “I really care about it in terms of its effect on all of us and on patients and disease—understanding the mechanisms of disease and finding treatments and cures for disease.” ________________________________________ The CBIA BizCast is made possible through the generous support of Google. Please rate, review, and subscribe to the BizCast wherever you get your podcasts—we appreciate your support!
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    29 分
  • Improving Operational Excellence

    Improving Operational Excellence
    2025/06/26
    For many warehouse companies and distribution centers, dealing with logistics, and facilities, and workforce development can be a challenge. That’s where The TAC Group comes in. “We’re a supply chain operations consulting firm,” Grace Napolitano, the company’s principal and business development executive, told the CBIA BizCast. “We are focused on operational excellence within distribution and fulfillment centers.” Napolitano and her husband Zack started the company in 2023 after he spent his career working with FedEx and other distribution companies. That experience included working with companies to implement new management systems. “He really kind of fell in love with that area and working with different companies to help with their operational excellence,” Napolitano said. “He had so much care for the people that worked for him. He really cared about what their life story was, not just how they could perform for him and for the operation.” Napolitano had a background in business operations, sales and marketing. She previously worked in the media industry including as publisher and lead national ad director for the Chicago Sun Times. “So, I said, ‘If you trust what I can do, I trust what you can do,’ and The TAC Group was born,” she said. Napolitano said the company focuses on helping businesses with third-party logistics, facility layout and design, leadership development. But she said they are most proud of their labor optimization programs. “We’re very passionate about making sure people enjoy coming to work and not just being kind of like a racehorse being whipped go faster, go faster,” she said. She added their goal is to give them “the why behind what we’re doing.” She highlighted the high-paced environment of working in a distribution center. “Distribution is a grind,” she said. “It’s 24/7—it’s multiple shifts. There are reports coming in at 3 am, there are holidays being missed, there’s birthdays being missed. “With The TAC group, it’s really our focus to connect with the frontline workers on a personal level.” Napolitano said that workforce retention is a significant challenge for distribution centers. She said when workers leave for a different company, it costs an average of $8,000 to replace and train them. “If we could just put that investment into coaching and training the managers to work with their frontline workers, to make them feel like they’re part of the organization, that they’re valued and that they matter—that really will help the businesses keep jobs here in Connecticut,” Napolitano said. Napolitano said a big part of their work is to train managers to work with and support their employees. She added many of those managers were previously frontline workers themselves, and don’t necessarily know how to coach and guide other workers. “We’re giving them that skill set to be great leaders and great managers of the next generation of managers and executives,” she said. Related Links: The TAC Group Website: http://thetacgrp.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/tacgroupconsulting/ Grace Napolitano on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gracenapolitano/ CBIA Website: https://www.cbia.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cbia/
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    24 分
  • 2025 Legislative Session Review

    2025 Legislative Session Review
    2025/06/12
    More than 4,000 bills were introduced during the 2025 General Assembly session, with only 286 gaining final legislative approval. The CBIA BizCast team sat down with CBIA vice president of public policy Chris Davis to break down the session and some of the important bills that will impact the business community. “There were a lot of long nights right at the end of session, especially in those last few days,” Davis said. Much of the focus in the last days of the session centered on the state budget. The $55.8 billion budget adopted by the state legislature uses fiscal guardrail workarounds and business tax hikes to increase state spending by $2.6 billion over the next two years. Davis said the workarounds to the fiscal guardrails are troubling for businesses. “For us in the business community, they’re not just talking points these caps,” he said. “They are truly what gives us predictability, sustainability, and stability. “Boosting up that spending beyond what we can really afford is what gives us a lot of pause, because that’s going to lead to future tax increases, something that we know that businesses simply can’t afford here in Connecticut.” The budget did create a new endowment that will pay for early childhood development programs. “We’re happy to see that this expansion happens because getting more people back into the workforce, having them have the ability to afford that childcare in order to go back to work is very important,” Davis said. “We just felt like there was much better ways that we could have funded it and be more sustainable over a longer period of time.” Davis said the session did feature some important “wins” for the business community and state economy. Those bills include reforming the apprenticeship hiring ratios for trades industries, raising the R&D tax credit for bioscience companies, and addressing potentially costly changes to the workers’ compensation system. Davis also highlighted the importance of key permitting reforms and replacing the outdated Transfer Act with new release-based cleanup regulations. “We really see this as one of the biggest economic wins that we’ve had in decades here,” he said. “We’re really looking forward to working with our partners in state government in order to implement them.” Davis did note that there was a lot of focus on preventing costly labor mandates and healthcare policies from being enacted. While the 2025 session may be over, that does not mean the work ends for CBIA’s policy team. They’re working with state agencies to implement the new regulations and other bills. And the team will also spend the coming months engaging with members and legislators. That includes coordinating legislator visits at businesses around the state, listening tours, and reviewing CBIA’s annual Survey of Connecticut Businesses. Those conversations and feedback will help inform CBIA’s policy solutions for the 2026 legislative session. “It’s important for businesses to know that we are here getting your feedback, not only from things that just passed this past session, but also things that you would like to see change going forward,” Davis said. Related Links: CBIA Website: https://www.cbia.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cbia/ Chris Davis LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-c-davis/
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    25 分
  • Hall Neighborhood House Enriches Bridgeport

    Hall Neighborhood House Enriches Bridgeport
    2025/05/29
    For nearly 140 years, Hall Neighborhood House has been a staple in the Bridgeport community. “It’s a busy place,” the community center’s director of development Nick Sentementes told the CBIA BizCast. “We serve about 500 people on a daily basis.” Hall Neighborhood House got its beginning in the 1800s when a woman named Sarah Hall opened her doors to immigrant women and children. Hall helped them find jobs and enroll children in school. Sentementes said over the years, the center expanded to serve people across the east side of Bridgeport. Today, the center features numerous programs for people of all ages from preschool and childcare to elementary, middle, and high school students, as well as a senior center, health and dental clinic, university partnerships, and sports clinics. “It’s busy from 7 am to 9 o’clock in the evening,” Sentementes said. One of the center’s most popular programs is its STEM classroom. “We have 3D printers, we have I-Bots, we have microscopes, and the kids really love it,” Sentementes said. “I think they love STEM as much as they love gym.” And Hall Neighborhood House’s impact goes beyond the center’s walls. The organization is working to bring STEM classrooms to Bridgeport’s public schools. The initiative was started by a prominent donor and named in honor of Alan Wallack, a longtime Bridgeport educator who passed away several years ago. Sentementes said Hall STEM classroom teachers train staff at the schools and provide the curriculum and equipment at no cost to the schools. “The goal was to put a STEM classroom in all 30 of the Bridgeport K through eight public schools, and today, there are 22,” he said. “We have eight more to go, and we've had nothing but great results and good publicity regarding it.” Sentementes joined the center after a 30-year career in the banking industry. “I wanted to do something else,” he said. He joined Hall Neighborhood House after speaking with executive director Bob Dzurenda. “I found a sense of camaraderie," Sentementes said. “Everyone's helping each other, sharing their thoughts and ideas, best practices, and everyone's looking to assist each other.” The center has about 120 employees—Sentementes said many of them used the center as kids. “It’s kind of a family environment,” he said. As director of development, Sentementes works with businesses, executives, and philanthropic organizations to build support for Hall Neighborhood House. And he said the response from the business community has been great. “The most rewarding for me is going out and meeting interesting, successful, generous, philanthropic people that want to help, and that makes it worthwhile,” he said. Sentementes said it’s a busy time as the center looks to expand. “We have a waiting list for all our programs, so we're in the process of trying to add 10,000 square feet to our building,” he said. They’re also looking into the possibility of using a piece of property next door to add a soccer field, a playground, or a splash pad for the kids. Sentementes called Hall Neighborhood House a “hidden gem” and said it’s his job to make sure people know what the center is all about. “Our mission is to educate, empower, and enrich the local residents of the east side of Bridgeport,” he said. “So we're bringing in people, and I really don't have to say much—the place kind of speaks for itself.” Related Links: Hall Neighborhood House Website: https://hallneighborhoodhouse.org/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hall-neighborhood-house-inc./ Nick Sentementes LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-sentementes/ CBIA Website: https://www.cbia.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cbia/
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    21 分
  • ‘Trying Hard’ to Figure Out Tariffs

    ‘Trying Hard’ to Figure Out Tariffs
    2025/05/15
    The landscape surrounding tariffs and international trade has been at the forefront of conversations since President Donald Trump came back into office in January. Within the last week, the U.S. and China agreed to a temporary pause on triple-digit tariffs as the two countries work to negotiate a trade deal. Despite the pause, the administration’s tariff policies and trade negotiations have led to increasing uncertainty for businesses. To get a better understanding of tariffs and their impact on businesses in Connecticut, Ulbrich Steel board chair Chris Ulbrich joined CBIA president and CEO Chris DiPentima May 5 on the CBIA BizCast. Ulbrich Steel imports about 30% of its products from outside the U.S. including China and Europe. “We’re trying hard to figure this all out,” Ulbrich said. And Ulbrich added that the economy is just starting to feel the increased costs from the tariffs. Ulbrich said the company recently shipped metal from China at $100 a pound, but by the time it reached the U.S. the actual cost was closer to $300 a pound. He added that the only company in the U.S. that makes the product sells it for $400 a pound, leaving companies with a difficult decision to make. “Then the trick is—the domestic producers—are they going to tailor what they need?” Ulbrich asked. “Will we start seeing them increasing their prices?” Ulbrich added that they are currently “a couple million dollars behind” with costs that haven’t moved down the supply chain. But he said the added costs of tariffs will impact customers. Ulbrich said the way their supply chain flows, it can take six-to-eight weeks for them to bring in raw materials and another six-to-eight weeks to get it out of their facility to the customer. “You’ve got to make the product,” Ulbrich said. “You’ve got to collect the money from the customer.” Ulbrich said adding to the unknowns is what happens to the products they ship to China from Connecticut. “All our orders are basically on hold because the customer, the Chinese customers, do not want to pay 145% tariff on our product,” he said at the time of the recording. Ulbrich said he can see positives from Trump administration trade policies. “We are seeing reshoring,” he said. “People want to buy from the U.S. So there are jobs coming back.” Still, Ulbrich said that reshoring brings its own set of challenges and uncertainty. A lot of the materials they use are not made here, noting that 90% of stainless steel rod is imported. “You don’t build a billion-dollar steel mill here overnight,” he said. Ulbrich also said that a big concern is finding the workforce needed to take on the potential new demand. “Even if all this works, and they negotiate great treaties this week and in the months ahead, and more reasonable tariffs are put in, we need a workforce,” he said. “Where are the people going to come from?” With 82,000 open jobs, Connecticut is already dealing with a labor shortage. Ulbrich said the state can help by addressing important issues like housing, workers’ compensation, and finding ways to develop and get polluted sites back on municipal tax rolls. “I’ve heard Gov. Lamont say, ‘76,000 people, if we can find jobs for those people, that’s 76,000 people paying taxes,’ and it’s wonderful,” Ulbrich said. As the tariff situation unfolds, Ulbrich said its important for business leaders to meet with their employees regularly. “Everybody knows,” he said. “They see on the plant floor maybe the jobs are half what they used to be. “Full communication, I think, helps so much.” Related Links: Ulbrich Website: https://www.ulbrich.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ulbrich-stainless-steels-&-special-metals/ Chris Ulbrich LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-ulbrich-66a21b11/ CBIA Website: https://www.cbia.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cbia/
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    25 分
  • CBIA BizCast: Taking a Leap of Faith

    CBIA BizCast: Taking a Leap of Faith
    2025/05/01
    Twenty five years ago this summer, The Latimer Group CEO Dean Brenner thought he’d be in crunch time training for the Olympics in Sydney, Australia. He was sailing professionally and he and his wife quit their day jobs because they thought he had a shot. While their second place Olympic selection trial finish wasn’t the outcome they’d hoped for, it led them on a journey to starting their own business, one that is thriving, and helping other teams achieve their goals. “One door closes, another door opens is the cliche,” said Brenner on the CBIA BizCast. Brenner and his wife, Emily, built their business around their strengths and what they believed in–the power of effective communication. Today, The Latimer Group employs 15 people and works with corporations around the world to provide training and coaching to people and teams on powerful and persuasive communication skills.
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    26 分
  • Homecoming for University of Hartford's Ward

    Homecoming for University of Hartford's Ward
    2025/04/02
    Lawrence Ward will mark his first year as University of Hartford president in July. Ward sat down with the CBIA BizCast to discuss his journey to lead UHart, his first year, and his goals for the university. UHart is something of a homecoming for Ward, who grew up in Vernon and graduated from the University of Connecticut. Ward’s career actually started in sales and marketing at Aetna. But said the “seeds for being an educator were first planted as a young child.” Ward said growing up, he looked up to his mother—a high school social studies teacher. With the help of several mentors, Ward shifted to consulting for an organizational training company, and ultimately becoming an associate dean at American University and a dean and vice president at Babson College. Ward said he was drawn to UHart's ethos of being a private university that works to serve the public good. He also said coming back to Hartford was a full-circle moment for his family. Ward’s grandmother, who didn’t have more than an eighth grade education, worked as a chambermaid to help put three children through school. “The only thing that makes my story possible, and that of my family, is the promise of higher education,” he said. “So it's really important, it's very personal, and it is a tremendous honor to come back as president.” Ward became president during a period of transition for the university. That includes post-COVID financial realities and the controversial decision to shift from Division I to Division III athletics. “I have a challenge of rebuilding confidence in this institution and rebuilding confidence in ourself organizationally,” he said. “That’s a cultural challenge.” Ward said its been important to him to be present, engaged, and accessible to really understand the community. "I really prided myself on these first nine months, on doing exactly that," he said. "I have been really heartened by the university community's response to me and my leadership." Ward said his immediate goal is to make UHart a preferred destination for students and families. A big part of that is developing programs that prepare students for in-demand careers like nursing, robotics, and business. “We've got some really strong market-facing in-demand programs, and we need to match that with really high-quality student focused experience on campus,” he said. To do that, Ward said they are stepping up their efforts to engage with companies to create unique partnerships that will create career pipelines for students, benefitting the businesses and the university. Ward said as the university evolves, it’s important they live up to their name and help lift up the Hartford community. “We feel as though we have a responsibility as a University of Hartford to be supportive,” he said. “Success for the region will mean success for the University of Hartford.” The CBIA BizCast is made possible through the generous support of Google. Please rate, review, and subscribe to the BizCast wherever you get your podcasts—we appreciate your support! If you have a story to tell, contact Amanda Marlow. Related Links: University of Hartford Website: https://www.hartford.edu/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/school/university-of-hartford/ Lawrence Ward on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lawrencepward/ CBIA Website: https://www.cbia.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cbia/
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    27 分