Change has joined death and taxes as an inescapable fact of life. There’s still an academic debate about when that happened to us but there can be no debate that change has become a constant of business here in Central Connecticut in 2010.
We here at the Hartford Business Journal are not immune. In fact we embrace change. And today I’d like to tell you about some changes that relate to the paper you hold in your hands:
• On the personnel side, longtime writer Keith Griffin is taking more time at home to be with his children as they grow up. He’ll still be writing several regular features for us — like the ‘Retail Notebook’ and Q&A column in this edition — as well as contributing some larger pieces. Watch for his upcoming look at tech gadgets in the workplace. Taking over some of Griffin’s duties, particularly in the nonprofit area, will be Joanna Smiley, who also will continue to write the Local Insight column for our weekly Business Strategy page.
• That change of bylines coincides with a content change we’ve been discussing for some time. This week’s piece on Everybody Wins CT Inc. will be the final installment of the nonprofit profile series to run in the print edition. For the past nine months, we’ve had the pleasure of calling attention to some of the worthy but lesser known nonprofits in the region. We’ll continue to do so in an online-only setting starting July 5. We’re not cutting back on our interest in or coverage of the nonprofit community. Rather we’re making way for a new and expanded ‘Nonprofits Notebook.’ Here, Smiley will report on developments and issues within the nonprofit community. And she’ll find room to salute the worthy accomplishments that formed the basis of Griffin’s ‘Nonprofit Scoop’ column, which ends with today’s issue. As we go forward, our emphasis will be on philanthropy and the business of nonprofits. We look forward to your comments on this approach and on Smiley’s column which debuts in the July 5 edition.
• Also we’re going to be delivering a summer series called ‘Road to Recovery.’ Our reporters and photographers have been out taking the pulse of business along U.S. 5, the historic commercial route that traverses Central Connecticut from New Haven to the Massachusetts state line. Along the way, we’ve talked with business men and women about the changes they’re seeing as the economy struggles to escape the ‘Great Recession.’ We’ll showcase our finding in a six-week series, beginning July 12. We’ll look at everything from global business to mom-‘n-pop business, from demographic changes to style and taste changes, from career changes to bottom line changes. We think it’ll be a great ride, both informative and a nice change of pace for the season.
As we make changes, our constant goal is to improve the information products we’re serving — in print, online and in person. After all, the one thing that doesn’t change is that if the customer isn’t satisfied, we haven’t done our jobs.
Norm Bell is editor of the Hartford Business Journal. Reach him at nbell@HartfordBusiness.com or at 860-236-9998, ext. 43.
