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BY NORM POLTENSONJOURNAL STAFF

JOHNSON CITY — The Walsh family is thinking big, really big. That is the mantra behind the recent push to obtain a new ca-sino license from New York state to create the Traditions Resort and Casino.

Flash back to last summer when Gov. Andrew Cuomo proposed the “Upstate New York Gaming Economic Development Act,” an initiative designed to boost the Upstate economy by award-ing casino licenses. Four table-gaming licenses were designated in three re-gions: Albany–Saratoga, the Catskills/Hudson Valley, and the Southern Tier/Finger Lakes region. Seven years later, the state would grant another three li-censes Downstate. The only impediment was a vote by the citizens to amend the constitution in order to permit state casi-nos. The voters responded in the affirma-tive on Nov. 5, 2013.

What’s the next stop? “The process now moves to the [New York] State Gaming Commission, an agency that reg-ulates the lottery and horse racing,” says William Walsh, a principal and owner of the Walsh & Sons Construction Co. and of the Traditions at the Glen Resort and

Conference Center. “The commission is tasked with creating a Gaming Facility Location Board, a panel that has 90 days to issue a request for proposals. The final step is for the board to review the applica-tions and grant the licenses. The process may take six to 12 months.”

The bids will be evaluated based on three criteria: projected economic impact counts for 70 percent, local support is 20 percent, and other issues such as hiring practices represent 10 percent.

Peter Walsh, a third-generation Walsh

employed at Walsh Construction and who sits on the board of Traditions, says the decision could have a big impact on the region. “If Traditions receives a license, it would rejuvenate the greater Binghamton area,” he opines. “Everybody knows that Broome [County] needs an economic boost that will create jobs and tax reve-nue. This is really a golden opportunity.”

Matt Walsh, Peter’s older brother who returned from a stint as an investment

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Lily-Pad Strategy: Upstate Shredding accelerates acquisitions. Page 3.

See WALSH, page 10

Walsh family bets big on casino license for Traditions

Nonprofit Corner: Food Bank of the Southern Tier. Page 9.

NORMAN POLTENSON/THE GREATER BINGHAMTON BUSINESS JOURNAL

William Walsh, center, flanked by his sons Matt, left, and Peter, right, stand in the old IBM Homestead, now renamed Traditions at the Glen Resort & Conference Center. The Walsh family is applying for a gambling license to convert Traditions into a resort and casino.

Tioga State Bank: 150 years of navigating a community bank

BY NORM POLTENSONJOURNAL STAFF

SPENCER — How do you mark your 150th birthday?

If you are Tioga State Bank (TSB), you celebrate for an entire year, starting with a ribbon-cutting, press conference, and gift of $20,000 to local food banks. The kick-off event took place Jan. 28 at the bank’s headquarters in Spencer.

During 2014, TSB will promote a travelling display about the bank, launch contests for adults and children, publish a cookbook with

See TSB, page 8

NORMAN POLTENSON/TGBBJ

Bob Fisher, president and CEO of Tioga State Bank, greets staff and guests at the bank’s 150th anniversary celebration.

2 • The Greater Binghamton Business Journal February 14, 2014

By norm poltensonJournal staff

ONEONTA — Alan H. Cleinman can’t help it; he is a serial entrepreneur.

At age five, he held a yard sale at his home in Gilbertsville in Otsego County and sold his mother’s jewelry. (She later recov-ered the items.) At age 13, he hawked pop-corn from a wagon at the local speedway. By the time he was 16, Cleinman worked as a salesman for Brillen International Optical, selling imported eyeglass frames over the phone to optometrists. He soon found him-self the national sales manager, with six em-ployees reporting to him. At age 18, the boy from Gilbertsville went off for four months to try his hand as a carnival barker, before returning to the world of optometry.

Cleinman launched his first company — Co-Optics of America — when he was 23. “I had just read ‘How to Borrow Your Way to a Fortune,’ ” says Cleinman. “The book recommended walking into multiple banks on the same day to ask for a loan. I … [visited] three, and two gave me $5,000 loans. The $10,000 let me create a buying group for eye frames and lenses, so that small optometrists could compete with the large retailers whose volume purchases warranted a discount. Co-Optics charged a one-time membership fee and took a per-cent of the purchase price.”

Co-Optics pioneered a new field when it made its first sale. On Dec. 1, 1979, the firm was able to get 15 of 19 optometrists attend-

ing a sales pitch in Tampa to sign up on the spot. “Membership grew very quickly,” remembers Cleinman. “By 1984, the com-pany was strapped for capital and had a negative net-worth of $600,000. I brought in investors, led by Chemical Venture Partners (now Chase Capital), which ini-tially committed $1.3 million.” Co-Optics subsequently received multiple venture-capital investments to fuel its growth.

Between 1985 and 1989, Cleinman cre-ated four new businesses within Co-Optics. “I launched Sight magazine, a quarterly, glossy publication with a circulation of over 1 million subscribers. The magazine was mailed to our members’ patients in advance of their next appointment. Co-Optics also created a lab, and the company offered managed services to HMOs (health-main-tenance organizations). The fourth busi-ness was a computerized patient recall that mailed reminders to our members’ patients.”

When Cleinman left Co-Optics in 1989, the company had 50 employees, between the Oneonta site and an acquired business located in Seattle. His next venture was starting Cleinman Performance Partners, Inc (CPP), an Oneonta–based consultancy specializing in the business of optometry.

How would the company stand out from the crowd?

“Unlike most consultants, who take a narrow focus on an industry, CPP was designed to offer a wide array of servic-es to just one industry,” states Cleinman.

“We provide services to [industry] leaders and to organizations through six business units: ‘Solutions’ offers custom consulting in areas such as planning, organizational develop-ment, agreements, succession, and dives-titure strategies; the ‘Network’ offers sharing of best practices and benchmarking; the ‘University’ is fo-cused on education through training work-shops and staff events; ‘Resources’ is the publishing arm, which includes white pa-pers, webinars, data-mining, and research; ‘Services’ renders support services, such as IT, facilities design, real-estate develop-ment, accounting, and merchandising; and the ‘Connections’ unit handles supply-side, marketing support.”

Today, CPP is North America’s largest, general-business consultancy specializing in the vision-care industry, according to Cleinman. The company currently has a staff of 20 and another 15 professional consultants in its national network. CPP is currently looking to fill another five posi-tions. The company operates from an 8,000-square-foot building in downtown Oneonta, which is owned by Cleinman. The Business Journal estimates annual revenue at more than $3 million.

“CPP is very segmented in its market-ing,” continues Cleinman “We don’t handle start-ups, and we don’t consult with classic chains. We focus on those private optom-etry practices that generate more than $1 million a year [in revenue]. In the U.S., there are currently about 40,000 retail opti-cal doors, with about 20 percent in our target market. Half of all practices are still independent, which gives us a large domes-tic market. The demand for optometric ser-vices is also growing as more Americans age and as they require more eye care. In addition, the international market is explod-ing as developing countries like India and China develop a middle class. With 300 cli-ents, we have barely scratched the surface of this market.”

CPP’s leadership team includes Cleinman as the company president, Pamela Sparaco as the vice president of finance and adminis-tration, Kathleen Avery as the senior direc-tor of client development, and Ginamarie Wells in the role of senior director of client services.

Cleinman has spent more than four de-

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Foundations award grants to Family & Children’s Society in Binghamton

BINGHAMTON — Two organizations have awarded the Family & Children’s Society, Inc. of Binghamton grant awards for capital im-provements at its facility.

The Steward W. and Willma C. Hoyt Foundation, Inc awarded a grant of $25,000 to remove asbestos ahead of upcoming renovations at the Society’s office at 257 Main St. in Binghamton.

The renovations follow water and smoke damage at the building due to a fire next door last February, according to a news release.

The fire forced the Family & Children’s Society to move its Binghamton office to 229 State St., the agency said on its website.

Additionally, the Conrad and Virginia Klee Foundation awarded the organization $58,000 to help replace its heating and cool-ing system.

The Family & Children’s Society says it provides assistance, care and counseling to strengthen and support individuals and healthy relationships in the Southern Tier.

The agency provides counseling services at offices in Binghamton and Owego and home care services at its office in Johnson City.

Emerson Foundation awards Ithaca College grant for civic engagement

ITHACA — The Fred L. Emerson Foundation has awarded the Ithaca College Office of Civic Engagement (OCE) a grant of $500,000.

The foundation, based in Auburn, has sup-ported “a number” of Ithaca College initiatives over the years, the college said in a news re-lease.

The grant seeks to help Ithaca College in its efforts to improve service learning and volun-teerism opportunities for students in the com-munity.

Ithaca College in 2012 established its OCE, which it says serves as the “catalyst” for all stu-dent civic-engagement opportunities.

They include volunteer community service, course-related service learning, and community-based research.

The OCE is a “significant” component of the college’s IC 20/20 initiative, which seeks to ensure that all student commitments, both on and off campus, are “fully utilized” for their edu-cational value, Ithaca College said.

The Emerson Foundation awarded the grant as part of the school’s plans to establish a permanent endowment for the OCE, providing support for staffing as well as for civic-engage-ment activities.

The OCE develops “cultural competency” orientation modules for students to prepare them for community engagement; collaborates with community partners to identify service partnerships with community agencies and organizations; and assesses the “effectiveness” of various service-learning and community-service activities, according to Ithaca College.

News of note for and about Greater Binghamton businesses

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February 14, 2014 The Greater Binghamton Business Journal • 3

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Adam Weitsman accelerates his lily-pad strategyOne man’s junk is another man’s treasure.

— Proverb

By norm poltensonJournal staff

OWEGO — On Jan. 22, Adam Weitsman, CEO and owner of Upstate Shredding, LLC. and sister company Ben Weitsman & Son, Inc., announced the acquisition of Jack’s Recycling located in Mt. Morris, Penn. Jack’s, an auto and scrap business recycling ferrous and non-ferrous materi-als, is located 65 miles south of Pittsburgh. Weitsman bought the scrap yard from Rick Smith in an all-cash transaction. The acqui-sition at Mt. Morris marks Upstate’s 17th location. The deal should close in 30 days.

Even though the enterprise is known as Upstate Shredding and Ben Weitsman, each location is structured with an operat-ing company and a real-estate company.

Weitsman has ratcheted up the pace of his acquisition activity just in the last 13 months. In December 2012, the com-pany bought the Ferromet site in New Castle, Penn., followed by the announce-ment in the same month of the signing of a long-term lease for 18 acres in the port of Albany. (The 20-year lease is valued at $6.8 million.)

In July 2013, Weitsman scooped up Valley Recycling in Allegany County, and in August, he bought Reamer Recycling, Inc. in Ithaca. In January 2014, he closed on the Hornell Waste Material Co. in Hornell and

announced the Mt. Morris deal and the ac-quisition of Capitol Scrap in Albany. Upstate Shredding is also currently negotiating a

deal in Wilkes-Barre, Penn.The rapid pace of acquiring scrap and re-

cycling yards is being driven by Weitsman’s

decision to invest in new shredders. “The Albany deal is something I have dreamed about for 14 years,” says Weitsman. “Until now, the company was forced to use com-petitors such as Schnitzer [Steel Industries, Inc.], which controlled access to loading our materials on ships. Albany is so im-portant to our strategy that we didn’t buy a company to start. We opened the yard in August of last year, and I was shocked with the reception. Customers lined up an hour before we even opened. I anticipated 100 to 125 customers a day, not the 350 to 400. Within four months, Albany became our number one yard based on the customer count.”

The success of the Albany yard spurred Weitsman to modify his plans. “I had planned on ordering a shredder for New Castle, but the Albany demand convinced me to order a shredder for the Capital Region first,” continues Weitsman. “Upstate ordered the shredder in November 2013, and we expect to go into production by April of this year. The shredder, the infra-structure, and the downstream investment are a $25 million commitment.”

Upstate Shredding commissioned the Wendt Corporation of Buffalo to build the 2,500-horsepower shredder and down-stream sorting to recover wire, plastics, non-ferrous metals, and other materials. Weitsman financed the deal, in part, with a $12 million loan from a banking syndicate

business journal file photo

Adam Weitsman, Ceo and owner of Upstate shredding, llC and sister company Ben Weitsman & son, Inc., seen atop the company’s mega shredder in owego, announces another acquisition.

see WeItsmAn, page 6

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NBT Bancorp net income rises nearly 37 percent in fourth quarterBy AdAm RomBel

Journal Staff

NORWICH — NBT Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ: NBTB) reported that its net income rose to $17.9 million, or 41 cents a share, in the fourth quarter, from $13.1 million, or 39 cents, in the year-ago period.

The Norwich–based bank-ing company boosted loan growth, improved its credit quality, and benefited from

increased assets following a major acquisi-tion completed last year.

For the full 2013 year, NBT earned $61.7 million, up from $54.6 million in 2012. The banking company’s 2013 re-

sults included the impact of the acquisition of Alliance Financial Corp., a $1.4 billion financial holding company headquartered in Syracuse, last March, including about $12.4 mil-lion in merger-related ex-penses. NBT’s reported

earnings per share for the year totaled $1.46, down from $1.62 in 2012.

NBT said it generated organic loan growth of 5.3 percent in 2013, consumer loan growth of 4.8 percent, and commercial loan growth of 5.5 percent. Its net charge-offs to average loans rate was 0.44 percent for 2013, down from 0.55 percent in 2012.

NBT Bancorp had total assets of $7.7 billion as of Dec. 31. The company pri-marily operates through NBT Bank, N.A., a full-service community bank with two geo-graphic divisions, and through two financial services companies. NBT has 157 branch-

es, including 125 NBT Bank offices in upstate New York, northwestern Vermont, western Massachusetts, and southern New Hampshire.

NBT’s Pennstar Bank division operates from 32 Pennstar Bank offices in north-eastern Pennsylvania. EPIC Advisors, Inc., based in Rochester, is a 401(k) plan record-keeping firm. Mang Insurance Agency, LLC, based in Norwich, is an insurance agency. q

Contact Rombel at [email protected]

QUARTERLY REPORT

By Journal Staff

ELMIRA — Chemung Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: CHMG), the parent company of Chemung Canal Trust Company, reported net income of nearly $1.5 million, or 32 cents per share, in the fourth quarter.

That’s down 30 percent from the $2.1 million, or 46 cents a share, the banking company earned during the same quarter in 2012.

Excluding certain one-time gains and acquisition expenses, Chemung Financial’s core net income for the fourth quarter was $1.7 million, or 37 cents per share, it re-ported.

Chemung Canal Trust Co. completed its acquisition of six former Bank of America branch offices located in Auburn, Cortland,

Ithaca, and Seneca Falls in the fourth quar-ter.

The bank acquired nearly $178 million in deposits and $1.2 million in loans in the transaction.

Chemung Financial expects the acquisi-tion to add to its earnings in 2015. The com-pany now operates 31 branch offices in New York and 3 branches in Pennsylvania.

It’s Chemung Financial’s fourth acquisi-tion over the past five years.

For the entire year, Chemung Financial earned net income of $8.7 million, or $1.87 per share, down 21 percent from $11 million, or $2.38 per share, during 2012, the company said.

As expected, 2013 was an “eventful and challenging” year as earnings came “under pressure” from net-interest margin compres-

sion, Ronald Bentley, president and CEO of Chemung Financial, said in the earnings report.

“The single best strategy to combat margin compression is to grow our balance sheet, so we were pleased with the acquisition of six branch offices in contiguous markets during the fourth quarter of 2013. This transaction becomes increasingly accretive to earnings as we channel the acquired deposits into loans over the next few years,” Bentley said.

Besides the acquisition, Chemung Financial generated “solid” organic growth in both loans and deposits during 2013, Bentley said.

“Commercial loans increased $64.5 million, or 14.2 percent, and consumer loans increased $42.4 million, or 17.7 percent. Excluding the deposits acquired in the branch acquisition,

organic growth in deposits was $40.9 million, or 3.9 percent,” he added.

As of Dec. 31, 2013, Chemung Financial reported $1.4 billion in total assets and $1.89 billion of assets under management or administration within its Wealth Management Division.

Those figures are up from the $1.2 bil-lion in total assets and $1.74 billion of assets under management or administration within the Wealth Management Group at the end of 2012.

In addition to retail and commercial bank-ing products, Chemung Canal Trust pro-vides wealth-management products, as well as trust, estate, retirement, and investment services.

Chemung Canal Trust currently has 34 total bank branches in Broome, Chemung, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga, and Tompkins counties in New York and Bradford County in Pennsylvania.

Chemung Financial also operates five branches, under the name Capital Bank, in Albany and Saratoga counties. q

Chemung Financial profit falls in Q4

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Concern for bringing the Albany shred-der on line has not slowed Weitsman’s appe-tite for other investments. “Now that Albany is coming on line, we went ahead and ordered another 2,500-horsepower shred-der for New Castle, which should be op-erational in the fourth quarter of this year. These shredders and the 10,000 horsepow-er mega-shredder in Owego have a huge appetite for scrap. Our feeder scrap yards are economical if they are located within 200 miles of a shredder. In Albany, I need at least four feeder yards to keep the shredder busy. In Pennsylvania, the plan is to expand west from Scranton to Pittsburgh.”

At the same time, the CEO of Upstate Shredding is in negotiations with Kinder Morgan, the third-largest energy company in North America, which holds the master lease at the Port of Newark. “I think it may take up to two years to ink this deal,” opines Weitsman. “Newark is important, because we can load our ships in Albany and top them off in Newark before they proceed down the East Coast or overseas.” Currently, 95 percent of Upstate Shredding’s sales are domestic, based on the premium prices paid for scrap materials.

Weitsman’s approach to growing Upstate Shredding has been defined by business consultants as a lily-pad strategy. An en-trepreneur decides that a market is large enough and the timing is right to grow

rapidly. Scrap recycling is a $100 billion business in America, and the prices for scrap are at an all-time high. In addition, except for a few very large publicly held companies, scrap recycling is a still largely a mom-and-pop business with a generation of owners looking for an exit option. The solution for the entrepreneur is to broaden the product footprint. That means jumping to the lily pad near you, rather than trying to jump across the pond, while leveraging your existing customers and creating more items to sell from the scrap processing.

Weitsman is also in an excellent posi-tion to finance his growth, because he is funding most of his acquisitions and improvements from cash flow. Not only is he not burdening the company with outsized indebtedness, but he is also not distracted by spending a lot of time chas-ing after investors. Finally, Weitsman has been assembling a professional team in anticipation of scaling up the enterprise, including Stephen Green as the president; Joel Root as a vice president and senior buyer; Dan Innarella as CFO; Bill Dizer as a vice president for the Main Street op-eration in Owego; Kim Weitsman to handle accounts receivable and rail shipments; Natassia Bowman as the export manager; and Stephen Donnelly as the director of marketing and public relations.

Perhaps most unusual is Weitsman’s ability to manage both the cash and human capital of Upstate Shredding without bring-ing in an outside CEO.

The pace of Upstate’s growth is impres-

sive. When Weitsman joined his father in the late 1990s, Ben Weitsman & Son gener-ated $3 million in annual sales. “In 2013, the company generated $750 million,” asserts Weitsman. “This year, I expect we’ll reach the $1-billion level. When I joined my fa-ther, we had 30 employees in two locations. Now we have 400 in 17 locations, and most of that growth came within the last five years. In fact, we have doubled our sales and geography just in the past three years. We currently process 100 million tons of ferrous metals and 200 million pounds of non-ferrous material.” Weitsman bought the company from his father in 2005. His grandfather started the business in 1938. Today, Upstate Shredding is the largest, privately held, scrap-metal processor on the East Coast.

As Upstate accelerates its growth, the competition seems to be struggling. Upstate’s competitors include two pub-licly traded companies — Sims Metal Management, Ltd. (OTC: SMSMY) and Metalico, Inc. (NYSE: MEA). Sims report-ed a net loss of $426.6 million in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2013, following a $638.1 million net loss the previous year, ac-cording to Yahoo Finance data. Meanwhile, Metalico’s stock is trading at below $2 a share (as of Feb. 11), down about 50 per-cent from two years ago and off more than 70 percent from its early 2011 level above $6 a share.

Privately held European Metal Recycling Ltd. (EMR) is another competitor. The UK–based company says on its website

that it employs 3,500 people at 150 locations around the world. That includes two facili-ties near Albany and one in Poughkeepsie.

Keys to successWeitsman’s explanation for his success is

straightforward: “I have kept my debt low, we’re a non-union company, and we’re agile, adapting quickly to changes in the market-place.” He then adds in a blog: I like to win … We have taken a company in a town of 4,000 [people and] gone head to head with the biggest companies in the world and kicked them in the head really, really hard (Weitsman, in another blog, refers to a dif-ferent part of the competition’s anatomy.) … I really get off competing against these guys who underestimated us … They can’t beat my team’s passion to win.”

Weitsman, 45, has grown his business over the last 15 years without asking for any government assistance. His prospects for continued rapid growth are excellent, considering on the day I interviewed him he had on file 131 solicitations from scrap-yard owners eager to sell their businesses. He is also buoyed by the prospect that the economic climate overall should improve in 2014, increasing the demand for recycled scrap.

Adam Weitsman has certainly proved the proverb that one man’s junk is another man’s treasure. In the process, he is shred-ding the competition. q

Contact Poltenson at [email protected]

WEITSMAN: Funding most of his acquisitions and improvements from cash flowContinued from page 3

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BY ADAM ROMBELJOURNAL STAFF

ONEONTA — The Bank of Cooperstown recently announced that it plans to open a new full-service branch office on Main Street in Oneonta in mid-2014.

“This expansion is a testament to the hard work that Scott White [president of the Bank of Cooperstown] and his bank team have done,” Mike Briggs, president and CEO of USNY Bank, the parent of the Bank of Cooperstown, said in a news release.

Since its formation in 2007, the Bank of Cooperstown has “been able to generate consistent growth in the Cooperstown–Oneonta market,” accord-ing to Briggs. The bank currently has one branch office at 73 Chestnut St. in Cooperstown. The bank ranked fifth in de-posit market share in Otsego County, with a nearly 6 percent share of the county’s total deposits, as of June 30, 2013, accord-ing to FDIC data.

“We’ve had bank customers and share-holders in Oneonta for many years. We view this proposed new branch as a natu-ral extension of our market area and a great way to better serve our existing bank customers,” he said.

The Bank of Cooperstown’s applica-tion for the new full-service branch office in Oneonta has been approved by the New York State Department of Financial Services and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), according to the news release.

The new office will be located at 34-36 Main Street in the city of Oneonta. The Bank of Cooperstown recently purchased these two properties and will begin the site-preparation process soon, according to White.

“We are currently working with our architect and general contractor on this construction project. Necessary approv-als have been obtained to construct a new banking facility with a drive-thru ATM and two drive-thru lanes,” White said. “We’re eager to open the branch and con-tinue to build additional new relationships in the Oneonta market.”

In the release, Briggs noted the bank’s overall strength and strong financial per-formance. Bauer Financial has continued

to award USNY Bank a “5-star” (superior) rank-ing for financial sound-ness and SNL Financial ranked the bank among

the 100 top-performing banks in the coun-try with assets totaling less than $500 mil-lion for the past three years, he said.

USNY Bank, which also operates the Bank of the Finger Lakes in Geneva, gen-erated net income of more than $665,000 in

the fourth quarter of 2013 and more than $2.35 million for all of 2013.

USNY Bank says it specializes in pro-viding banking services for small- and mid-sized businesses, professional prac-tices, agribusinesses, farms and wineries, in addition to residential mortgage and retail lending. q

Contact Rombel at [email protected]

Jessica HerrinCEO and Founder, Stella & Dot

Melinda EmersonSmallBizLady,

CEO of Quintessence Multimedia

W hat kind of leader are you? And, how do you go about making decisions that gain fol-

lowers? Recently, I was reading about Teddy Roosevelt and found myself in-trigued by his no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is leadership style, which at times cost him an election, while other times won him widespread support for doing what he thought was right, often without regard for the consequences. He was certainly a big personality, which brought along with it a large shadow and lots of volume. But, he was also pretty authentic.

As I was reading, I found myself think-ing about the select number of elected of-ficials and business leaders I have looked up to and really respected. Sadly, there haven’t been many. But, I have known

a few who were intelligent, driven, and down-to-earth like Teddy Roosevelt. They were comfortable in their own skin to hear arguments on both sides of an issue, even as they acted upon their convictions.

Not a bad way to be.Every day, we make decisions that af-

fect our organizations. When we do, we are watched by those who are looking for some leadership, a lot more closely than we think. How we conduct ourselves can have a huge ripple effect throughout our orga-nizations or with our constituents. People don’t expect to agree with us all the time. In fact, they often respect us more if they only agree with us some of the time, yet they see us as real people dealing with real issues in a balanced way. They want to see us as smart, driven, ethical, and open-minded, even when they don’t agree with us.

Being an authentic leader does not mean we adapt an unwavering “my way, or the highway” view which is driven by our party or our historic corporate culture. It means we carefully weigh the component parts of a difficult or sensitive decision and act in a principled way simply because it makes sense to us. Not to anyone else.

Most of the time, our employees and

constituents will re-spect that kind of independence, even more than we think. For Roosevelt, that kind of authentic-ity, carried out with “openness with con-viction” enabled him to make tough calls and win respect as an honest broker during a tough time.

So, the next time you have a decision to make, think about Teddy Roosevelt and the benefit of a no-nonsense, down-to-earth, straightforward response. You might be surprised at the reaction you’ll receive and the breath of fresh air it provides to those around you.

Are you being heard? q

Michael Meath is president of Strategic Communications, LLC, which says it pro-vides trusted counsel for public relations, crisis communications, government rela-tions, and business strategy. Contact Meath at [email protected].

Authentic Leadership

MICHAEL MEATH

THE STRATEGIC MINUTE

Bank of Cooperstown to open new branch in Oneonta this year

“We’ve had bank cus-tomers and sharehold-

ers in Oneonta for many years. We view this pro-posed new branch as a natural extension of our

market area and a great way to better serve our

existing bank customers.”n MIKE BRIGGS

president and CEO of USNY Bank, the parent of the Bank of Cooperstown

http://www.preferredmutual.com


proceeds donated to the United Way, and participate in local parades.

Celebrating your sesquicentennial with five generations of the same family guid-ing a company is a rare event. “Tioga State Bank has survived the Civil War, two World Wars, the Great Depression, the Great Recession, and numerous other events and milestones,” says TSB’s current president and CEO, Robert M. Fisher. “During these 150 years, there have been many changes in the social fabric of our communities … The one thing that hasn’t changed is our mission to provide community banking at its best.”

The headwinds facing TSB today may be different, but no less difficult than in the past. “There is increased competition from other banks. We all have money to lend, but not enough borrowers, resulting in more competitive deals … Interest rates continue at historically low numbers caus-ing compression in our margin,” Fisher says. “These low rates have a negative impact not just on TSB but also on the entire community-banking industry, which relies heavily on net-interest income for the majority of its profits … Credit unions con-tinue to pursue more authority for commer-cial lending, meaning that they compete for many of the same deals we are pursuing … Technology is changing rapidly, requiring a constant investment in hardware, software, and training … [And] the regulatory bur-den continues to grow at a rapid pace.”

“Onerous” regulationsFisher’s comment about the regulatory

burden is best described as understate-ment. In an interview with The Business Journal in December 2012, he expressed concern about the recently established Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB), set up to protect the “little guy” from predatory financial firms.

Since then, the CFPB has moved quickly to open the floodgates of regulation. In January of this year, the regulators issued new rules clarifying when a borrower is considered able to repay a mortgage. The regulations run to hundreds of pages of opaque and complex rules, which leave lenders liable to repay all mortgage pay-ments and precludes foreclosure on a prop-erty if regulators determine that the rules were not followed properly.

Two months ago, the CFPB reached a settlement with Ally Financial for $98 million, because the bank discrimi-nated against minority customers. How did the regulators determine this since Ally collects no information on the race or eth-nicity of its customers? The answer was to extract data published by the U.S. Census Bureau using surname “geocoding” to infer the race of Ally’s customers. Based on this,

minorities paid interest rates 0.29 percent-age points higher than those who were probably not minority customers.

Next on the drawing board are rules requiring financial firms to submit plans to the CFPB confirming that their staffs and suppliers are sufficiently diverse and new rules covering small businesses which, ap-parently, are now defined as “consumers.”

“Banking regs are onerous,” laments Fisher. “All banks are held to the same standard. I have two full-time employees who spend all their time complying with regulations and many other staff spending time on compliance. It’s very expensive.”

Despite these headwinds, TSB contin-ues to be fiscally sound and profitable. “In its latest statement, TSB Services, Inc. [the holding company that owns the bank] posted assets of about $400 million and a net income of $4.4 million,” states Fisher. “We generated these numbers from 11 locations in Broome and Tioga Counties and 97 employees, who staff the bank and a subsidiary, Tioga State Investment Services (it offers a wide variety of financial planning options, life- disability- and long-term-care insurance plans, and brokerage services.) … We achieved these numbers

even while mortgage-refinancing revenue and transactions dropped significantly, only to be offset by increased commercial lend-ing. Our revenues are now tilting toward the commercial side over the retail side, 55 to 45 percent.”

As for soundness, “Our tier-1 numbers have never been stronger,” asserts TSB’s president. “Historically, the bank has main-tained an eight percent ratio; today, the number is 11 percent. (Tier-1 capital is the core yardstick of a bank’s financial strength as measured by its common stock, retained earnings, and some preferred stock.) On top of that, BauerFinancial has given us a 5-star rating for the past 22 consecutive years as recognition of our fiscally conser-vative policies.”

Fisher applauds his staff for the bank’s success, particularly the management team. In addition to Fisher as president, Anne E. McKenna is the CFO, George Bowen serves as chief lending officer, Lisa Welch is chief credit officer, Sharon Y. Yaple is a senior vice president responsible for retail banking and business development, and Christopher P. Powers is the senior vice president for human resources. Fisher also cites support from outside professional ser-

vice providers: Hinman, Howard & Kattell, LLP for its legal work and the Syracuse office of The Bonadio Group for its ac-counting.

The futureTSB is well positioned for growth. “There

is no plan to issue an IPO,” muses Fisher. “The bank has always had a long-term focus on our direction. We don’t want to be guided by quarterly results. [The holding company] … currently is closely held with the majority interest owned by the Fisher family. This allows us to control our des-tiny and be flexible in our decision-making. Historically, our growth has been organic, except for a merger in 1961 and the acqui-sition of a branch in Waverly in 1991 from Fleet/Norstar. Our branch expansion has been largely de novo, which runs contrary to the industry, but we think it’s a less ex-pensive way to grow in the long-term.”

TSB’s strategy for growth is to con-stantly look for opportunities. “We made the move into Broome County 10 years ago. We studied the potential carefully and then committed the bank’s resources. If we grow geographically, I assume we are looking at contiguous areas, because we know the market best. Or we could buy a mortgage company if it were a good fit … Bottom line, however, is that we really understand banking best.”

Fisher says he runs a “boring” bank. A visit to any of the branches or TSB’s web-site would suggest otherwise. Customers have access to all the technology and fea-tures of the “big banks” with online and mobile banking, online bill paying, ACH processing, telephone banking with 24-hour access, and talking ATMs. If you are looking for investments, life-, disability-, long-term-care or health-insurance, tax or estate planning, retirement planning, or business planning, Tioga State Investment Services offers a wide range of options. “In 2014, we’re adding ‘TSB Mobile Deposit Anywhere’ (e-mail checks for deposit), smart ATMs that handle both checks and cash, and ‘iChat,’ where you can talk to a real person in our service center when you are online with a problem,” adds Fisher.

Is there a sixth generation in the wings? Fisher’s son Josh is currently a sophomore at the University of Pittsburgh. Daughter Kate is a freshman at Nazareth College. Both have already worked at the bank when not in school. Daughter Allison, who is 10, has yet to intern at TSB. Fisher says it’s too early to determine whether the fam-ily tradition will reach six generations.

The 46 year-old president of TSB re-sides with his wife, whom he met at the University of Notre Dame and married in 1991, in Owego. q


TSB: Fisher applauds his staff for the bank’s success, particularly the management team

Continued from page 1

NORMAN POLTENSON/THE GREATER BINGHAMTON BUSINESS JOURNAL

Bob Fisher, third from left, president and CEO of Tioga State Bank, stands among representatives of local food banks. The bank donated $20,000 at the inauguration of its year-long sesquicentennial celebration. The presentation was made at the home office in Spencer.

Reach us on the Webwww.bizeventz.com


Profiling local

nonprofit organizations

NonprofitFINANCIAL DATA

Fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2012Food Bank of the Southern Tier

388 Upper Oakwood Avenue Elmira, NY 14903

Phone: (607) 796-6061Foodbankst.org

KEY STAFFPresident & CEO Natasha R. Thompson(President & CEO compensation not available)COO Tim CurrieDirector of Marketing & Communications Gina SantodonatoDirector of Agency Services & Programs Matthew GriffinDirector of Business Services Janet WellsDirector of Resource Development Eleanor Cicerchi

BOARD OF DIRECTORS OFFICERSCHAIRPERSON

Krista L. Niles-Updyke Mengel Metzger, Barr & Co.VICE CHAIRPERSON

A. Joseph Antos Corning IncorporatedTREASURER

Stephen Fowler Corning IncorporatedSECRETARY

Nancy Miller Lockheed Martin (retired)

BOARD MEMBERSJohn Alexander The CBORD Group (retired)A. Joseph Antos Corning IncorporatedMark Bordeu Broome-Tioga BOCESMary Pat Dolan Tompkins County Department of

Social Services (retired)Stephen Fowler Corning IncorporatedBob Grissom WETM-TVTara Masters Tompkins Trust CompanyKrista Matia WelliverPatty McLellan Kraft FoodsNancy Miller Lockheed Martin (retired)Peter Newman M&T BankKrista L. Niles-Updyke Mengel Metzger, Barr & Co.William R. Powell Corning IncorporatedDavid A. Radin Corning IncorporatedTodd Reasons Cargill SaltRobert A. Roemmelt, Jr. Chemung Canal Trust Company

MISSIONWorking together to build and sustain hunger-free communities throughout the Southern Tier. The Food Bank of the Southern Tier distributes food and other grocery products to people in need through a network of more than 165 member agencies including food pan-tries, soup kitchens, shelters, and other hunger-relief organizations in Broome, Chemung, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga, and Tompkins counties. The Food Bank is a member of Feeding America and a regional agency of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Rochester. The Food Bank helps fulfill Catholic Charities’ commitment to create a just and compassionate society rooted in the dignity of all people by working together to build and sustain hunger-free communities throughout the Southern Tier.

SERVICE AREABroome, Chemung, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga, and Tompkins counties

PROGRAMS & SERVICESThe Food Bank administers several direct-service food distribution pro-grams including the BackPack Program and Mobile Food Pantry.

RECENT ORGANIZATIONAL HIGHLIGHTSIn November 2013, the Food Bank announced the completion of its first-ever capital campaign: “Strengthening The Root of Local Hunger Relief,” which raised $5.8 million to acquire and renovate its current fa-cility and expand hunger-relief programs. In February 2011, the Food Bank relocated to its 65,000-square-foot facility located at 388 Upper Oakwood Ave. in the town of Horseheads (Elmira mailing address) The Food Bank’s former 14,690-square-foot facility was located on County Route 64 in the town of Big Flats (also had an Elmira mailing address.)

Revenue SourcesFood-in-kind assistance $6,982,735Program Fees $1,405,508Grants and Contracts $1,598,276Fundraising/Donations $1,691,926Other Income $36,595Net assets released from restrictions $279,781

Total Revenue $11,994,821

ExpendituresProgram $11,371,001Management and General $451,486Fundraising $339,191

Total Expenses $12,161,678Deficit for the Year -$166,857

BY NICOLE COLLINSJOURNAL STAFF

HORSEHEADS — This month, the Food Bank of the Southern Tier celebrates three years in its new 65,000-square-foot building on Upper Oakwood Avenue in the town of Horseheads.

Almost 80,000 people in the Southern Tier rely on the Food Bank, an Elmira–area organization that works to end hunger by distributing food and other grocery products to people in need through a network of more than 165 member agencies in Broome, Chemung, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga, and Tompkins coun-ties.

For nearly 17 years, the Food Bank had been located on County Route 64 in the town of Big Flats. With 14,690 square feet, the facility could hold up to 5 million pounds of food. By 2008, the nonprofit surpassed that limit when it increased its food distribution 30 percent to 6.7 million pounds to meet growing demand.

“The need was greater than our ability to meet it in our previ-ous location,” says Natasha R. Thompson, presi-dent and CEO of the Food Bank of the Southern Tier.

At the former building, Thompson says the nonprofit “exhausted every nook and cranny” it could find to store food, and sometimes had to turn away volunteers and donations. In an effort to stop having to turn down donations,

the Food Bank used storage trailers to stock some products.

Based on the poverty rates in the Southern Tier, the Food Bank esti-mated that eventually it would need to be able to distribute as much as 16.8 million pounds of food annually.

The search for a new facility began in 2008, Thompson’s first year as presi-dent and CEO. In 2010, the nonprofit’s board of directors approved of the ac-quisition and renovation of the Seneca Beverage Corp. facility located at 388 Upper Oakwood Ave. in Horseheads (Elmira mailing address). The Food Bank of the Southern Tier moved into the facility in February 2011.

With an additional 50,000 square feet, the new headquarters has a maximum capacity of up to 23 million pounds of food.

“Our new facility positions us for growth,” says Thompson. “We’re well-suited for the long term.”

In 2013, the nonprofit distributed 8.7 million pounds of food, an increase from 7.85 million pounds the previous year.

The same year it moved into its new building, the Food Bank also kicked off its first capital campaign to raise $5.75 million. Of the funds raised, $4 million would go toward paying

for the new facility and the remaining $1.75 million would be dedicated to expanding current programs.

By the time the campaign for-mally opened, the nonprofit had al-ready raised $3.8 million in a “silent phase” of the campaign, according to Thompson.

In November 2013, the Food Bank announced it had completed the cam-paign, raising a total of $5.8 million. In additional to meeting the campaign goal, Thompson said the organization also paid off the mortgage on the new facility in mid-2013, only two and a half years after purchasing the building.

With the capital campaign com-plete and the Food Bank settled into the new building, the nonprofit is now working on expanding hunger-relief programs, like its Backpack Program and Mobile Pantry program.

“The average donor wants to know that we are feeding the hun-gry, not paying down interest,” says Thompson.

Additionally, Thompson says she is shifting her focus internally to see what the future looks like for the orga-nization and to seek ways to position it for further growth.

CornerFood Bank of the Southern Tier expands operations

Food Bank factsn Founded: 1981n Employees: 32 full timen Volunteers: 2,000

See FOOD BANK, page 11

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE FOOD BANK OF THE SOURTHERN TIER

The Food Bank of the Southern Tier headquarters, at 338 Upper Oakwood Avenue. The mortgage on the facility is already paid off.

Thompson


manager at Lehman Brothers and now, like Peter, spends 100 percent of his time on ac-quiring the license, says the family is totally committed to the project. “We have already spent a substantial amount of money on design and on studies for feasibility, local impact, and the environment. The applica-tion requires a non-refundable fee of $1 million. Traditions Resort and Casino will offer a full casino experience including slot machines and a variety of table games.”

“The construction phase will add new amenities to the [existing] facility at Traditions,” adds the father, “including restaurants, fitness, and leisure activities. Our research says we can attract several thousand visitors a day to the area. The entertainment venue will have a capacity to seat 5,000 to 15,000 attendees at perfor-mances by world-class performing artists. Then, add to this 1,500 new jobs, em-ployee wages of $60 million [annually], and $3.7 million in local tax revenue.”

William Walsh notes that “… we’re not the only parties vying for a license. Jeff Gural [the chairman & CEO of American Racing & Entertainment, LLC and owner of Tioga Downs] owns a ‘racino’ in Tioga [County], which he hopes to convert to a ca-sino. The Visram brothers [owners of Vista Hospitality whose American headquarters is in Binghamton] have also said they

would pursue the license. In December, Wilmorite … [unveiled] a proposal for a casino in Seneca County, just off exit 41.”

Despite the growing competition, the Walshes feel confident that their proposal makes the most sense. “We hired Michael Soll of The Innovation Group, [a national consulting firm to the leisure and hospitality industry] back in August of last year to con-duct an in-depth study of this project,” notes Peter Walsh. “Soll has decades of experience at leading hospitality companies negotiating licensing agreements, developing projects, and financing. His data shows that the ben-efit both to the state’s … [coffers] and to the local economy are greater with Tioga Downs and Traditions operating together and complementing our two counties. There is no doubt that Traditions’ casino would generate the most economic impact.”

For his part, Gural contends that the area cannot sustain both a racino and ca-sino 25 miles apart (See letter to the editor, published in the Jan. 17 issue of The Central New York Business Journal.)

Lining up community supportThe Walsh family is working diligent-

ly on garnering public support for the project. “Community support for our proj-ect continues to build,” posits William Walsh. “The Broome County Legislature has overwhelmingly endorsed us as well as the Greater Binghamton Chamber of

Commerce. The Broome County Fire/Police Association has also added its seal of approval.” And on Feb. 6, the Johnson City Village Board passed a resolution for a casino in the Southern Tier and voiced its “strong support for Traditions Resort and Casino … to receive the coveted license from the state.”

Walsh adds, “Our focus has been on edu-cating the local community that Traditions can be the vehicle for truly revitalizing the economy. In addition, we are part-nering with SUNY Broome’s new ‘casino management and hotel/restaurant man-agement programs’ as well as hospital-ity programs at Cornell, SUNY Delhi, and SUNY Cobleskill.”

The Walshes are also turning to the community for investment funds. “This is a $150 million project,” William Walsh stress-es. “We need to raise a third of the total, and then we can leverage the rest.”

The construction businessWalsh and his brother James are the

second-generation owners of Walsh & Sons Construction Co., founded in 1956 by their father as a custom-home builder and cur-rently headquartered in Vestal. William joined the company in the early 1970s as the third employee. The company ventured into commercial construction in the late 1970s. Walsh & Sons, a full-service con-struction company, is now complemented

by other ventures: AuraTek, which sells security products against outdoor perim-eter intrusion; DeTekion, which provides perimeter-detection security solutions; and REWJ, a real-estate development arm that owns 250,000 square feet of office space, 150,000 square feet of industrial space, and over 1,000 acres of vacant land. The Homestead Development Group, an arm of the Walshes, bought the former IBM Homestead in 2004 and renamed it Traditions at the Glen. The consolidated operation now employs 200 to 250 people and The Business Journal estimates that it generates between $30 million and $50 mil-lion in revenue annually.

The purchase of Homestead included 650 acres, of which 200 acres were donated to a conservation group. The Traditions’ property currently includes a spa, a “salt sanctuary,” a conference center with lodg-ing accommodations, restaurant, and a town-home development. Thomas J. Watson, the founder of IBM, bought the property in 1935 as an employee country club. In the summer, up to 30,000 IBM employees of the 100-percent club camped on the grounds as a reward for achieving their sales goals. The Walsh family hopes to bring back those days when thousands enjoyed the venue. q



WALSH: The Walsh family is working diligently on garnering public support for the project

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THE LISTResearch by Nicole Collins

[email protected] (315) 579-3911

Twitter: @cnybjresearch

Look for the Largest empLoyers list in the next Greater Binghamton issue, due out on April 18.

aBoUt tHe LIstInformation was provided by representatives of listed organizations and their websites. Other groups may have been eligible but did not respond to our requests for information. While The Business Journal strives to print accurate information, it is not possible to independently verify all data submitted. We reserve the right to edit entries or delete categories for space considerations.

WHat constItUtes tHe gB regIon?For the purpose of this list, we included institutions in adjacent counties that serve students in our readership area. For this list, Greater Bingham-ton includes Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Delaware, Otsego, Tioga and Tompkins counties.

need a copy of a LIst?Electronic versions of all our lists, with additional fields of information and survey contacts, are available for purchase at our website, cnybj.com/Research.aspx

Want to Be on tHe LIst?If your company would like to be considered for next year’s list, or another list, please email [email protected]

GREATER BINGHAMTON COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIESRanked by Full-time Enrollment (undergrad./grad.) 2013-2014

Rank

NameAddressPhone/Website

FT EnrollmentUndergrad./

Grad.

PT EnrollmentUndergrad./

Grad.

Faculty:Full-TimePart-Time

2013-2014Budget In-State Tuition1

FTEmployees President or Top Official

YearEstab.

1.Cornell University120 Day HallIthaca, NY 14853(607) 255-2000/cornell.edu

21,59314,393/7,200

NANA/NA

NANANA

$3,483.1 $28,990 9,100 David J. Skorton, President 1865

2.Binghamton UniversityP.O. Box 6000Binghamton, NY 13902(607) 777-2171/binghamton.edu

14,38312,559/1,824

1,694438/1,256

917635282

$295 $5,570 5,000 Harvey G. Stenger, President 1946

3.Ithaca College953 Danby RoadIthaca, NY 14850(607) 274-8000/ithaca.edu

6,7236,234/489

161103/58

785490295

$88.3 $38,400 1,210 Thomas Rochon, President 1892

4.SUNY Oneonta108 Ravine Pkwy.Oneonta, NY 13820(607) 436-3500/oneonta.edu

5,7955,688/107

260132/128

494274220

$108.5 $5,870 857 Nancy Kleniewski, President 1889

5.SUNY Broome Community College907 Upper Front St.Binghamton, NY 13905(607) 778-5001/sunybroome.edu

4,0434,043/0

2,6562,656/0

430143287

$50.6 $3,954 751 Kevin E. Drumm, President 1946

6.SUNY Delhi454 Delhi DriveDelhi, NY 13753(800) 96-DELHI/delhi.edu

2,6272,627/0

748748/0

423318105

$23.1 $5,870 427 Candace S. Vancko, President 1913

7.Tompkins Cortland Community College170 North St.Dryden, NY 13053(607) 844-8211/tc3.edu

2,3872,387/0

924924/0

25072178

$38.3 $4,300 NA Carl E. Haynes, President 1968

8.Hartwick CollegeOne Hartwick DriveOneonta, NY 13820(607) 431-4150/hartwick.edu

1,5761,576/0

3939/0

20111289

$49.9 $38,120 353 Margaret L. Drugovich, President 1797

9.Elmira CollegeOne Park PlaceElmira, NY 14901(607) 735-1800/elmira.edu

1,2001,188/12

342220/122

18510085

NA $36,600 325 Ron Champagne, President 1855

10.Elmira Business Institute4100 Vestal RoadVestal, NY 13850(607) 729-8915/ebi-college.com

475475/0

8080/0

601248

NA NA 35 Brad C. Phillips, President 1858

11.Davis College400 Riverside DriveJohnson City, NY 13790(607) 729-1581/davisny.edu

232232/0

163163/0

23815

$4.6 $11,990 37 Dino Pedrone, President 1900

12.Empire State College, Binghamton44 Hawley St., Fifth FloorBinghamton, NY 13901(607) 721-8651/http://esc.edu/central-new-york/

6767/0

131111/20

18711

$0.9 $5,870 7 Merodie Hancock, PresidentNikki Shrimpton, Central New York

Center Dean

1974

Thompson’s 16-year journey in food bank-ing started at the Rhode Island Community Food Bank. After three years there, she ap-plied for a position as program coordinator at the Food Bank of the Southern Tier and started in December 2000. Her role prior to becoming president and CEO was as direc-tor of agency services and programs.

While in the middle of completing an MBA program at the University of Rochester’s Simon Business School, Thompson applied for the position of presi-dent and CEO of the Food Bank of the Southern Tier. Her first year in the new role was also the start of her final year of the MBA program.

Although Thompson said it was not her intention to seek an executive-level posi-

tion so soon in her career, the opportunity presented itself and she took it. Since then, Thompson says, “It’s been a wild ride.”

The Food Bank of the Southern Tier employs 32 people full time, and has a net-work of 2,000 volunteers. The organization generated almost $12 million in revenue in 2012, a 3 percent increase from $11.6 million in 2011. Ninety percent of every dollar donated goes toward the nonprofit’s

hunger-relief programs.Financial figures for 2013 were not avail-

able as of press time.The Food Bank of the Southern Tier is

a member of Feeding America, a national food-banking network, and is a regional agency of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Rochester. q

Contact Collins at [email protected]


FOOD BANK: Employs 32 people full time, and has a network of 2,000 volunteers

cades in the optometry industry and has branded his name recognition not only nationally but also internationally. “When I started this business back in 1989, my telephone began ringing as soon as I let it be known that I was leaving Co-Optics. The press had already recognized my in-novations in business development. I have written and continue to write extensively and blog regularly on subjects of inter-

est to our industry, including addressing controversial topics. After 42 years in the industry, I don’t believe we have any [real] competition. Yes, like the construction busi-ness where anyone with a hammer and pickup truck can call himself a contractor, optometry has many who call themselves consultants. Most come into the industry as optometrists. CPP is comprised of busi-ness people with a diversity of backgrounds and experience.”

According to Cleinman, CPP is a knowl-

edge business. “We’re a clean business, one that can operate virtually anywhere. We employ unique people from diverse backgrounds. The economic future of our area is tied to attracting similar types of knowledge businesses, businesses that can provide opportunity outside the norm. CPP has accumulated a vast storehouse of knowledge and continually seeks to mon-etize its asset. I’m a numbers guy. If you look at the numbers long enough, they’ll start talking to you.”

Cleinman, 57, doesn’t need to borrow his way to a great fortune. The numbers are speaking to him. As the founder of more than 25 enterprises and the creator of scores of products and services, he is always focused on creative ideas that will help his clients see their businesses more clearly. That’s what serial entrepreneurs do. q



CLEINMAN: According to Cleinman, CPP is a knowledge business

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