Communispace has been named as a Gold Winner for the Team Massachusetts Economic Impact Awards, awarded annually by MassEcon (Massachusetts Alliance for Economic Development). The awards celebrate companies that have made an outstanding contribution to the Massachusetts economy. The winners from each region will be recognized at an awards luncheon on November 22nd at the Seaport Hotel in Boston. Over 400 are expected to attend, including featured speaker Governor Deval Patrick.
“New England is outpacing the rest of the country in economic recovery,” said Greg Bialecki, Massachusetts Secretary of Housing and Development. “The Impact Awards recognize the progress that Massachusetts is making by honoring businesses such as Communispace that are contributing to this growth.” Winners were selected from five regions from Boston to the Berkshires – from a multitude of business sectors.
Communispace was chosen because of its significant multi-year growth, its expansion to a new 80,000 square foot space on Boston’s Waterfront, its commitment to Massachusetts and its addition of over 100 new jobs in 2011, with another 100-150 planned for 2012.
“We are honored to receive this recognition,” said Diane Hessan, President & CEO of Communispace, which builds online consumer communities that help over 100 major brands get continuous consumer insight. “Massachusetts has been a phenomenal place for us to grow and find great talent – and it is thrilling to have gone from being a local startup to a company that is recognized for impacting our economy.”
MassEcon selected the winners based on job growth, facility expansion, and investment since January 1, 2010, as well as other criteria including community involvement. Finalists compete on a regional basis, defined as West, Central, Southeast, Northeast, and Greater Boston.
“As we climb out of the recession, it is important to recognize that there are businesses across the state that are expanding,” Susan Houston, Executive Director, MassEcon added. “Growth in the Commonwealth is not limited to one region or one industry; these finalists come from every region of the state and represent a diverse group of industries.”
The complete list of winners for the 8th ANNUAL TEAM MASSACHUSETTS ECONOMIC IMPACT AWARDS is listed below:
NORTHEAST:
Gold: Kiva Systems - North Reading
Silver: Jessica's Brick Oven - North Andover
Bronze: GT Advanced Technologies – Salem
WEST:
Gold: Smith & Wesson – Springfield
Silver: Coca-Cola – Northampton
Bronze: General Dynamics AIS – Pittsfield
SOUTHEAST:
Gold: Airxchange – Rockland
Silver: Horizon Beverage – Norton
Bronze: Reinhart Food Service - New Bedford
CENTRAL:
Gold: A123 Systems – Westborough
Silver: Acacia Communications – Maynard
Bronze: Simonds International – Fitchburg
GREATER BOSTON:
Gold: Communispace – Boston
Silver: Dassault Systèmes – Waltham
Bronze: HubSpot – Cambridge
Chairman’s Award: Jerry Sargent, President, Citizens Bank
Gateway City Champions: Solectria Renewables – Lawrence; Biomedical Research Models – Worcester
About MassEcon
MassEcon, founded in 1993, is a non-profit partnership of the private and public sectors dedicated to marketing Massachusetts as a competitive location for business. Its services include the state's only Site Finder Service, which helps expanding and relocating companies find appropriate sites throughout the Commonwealth; the Research & Information Service, which provides companies with the information they need to evaluate the Commonwealth as a location to grow; and the Massachusetts Ambassadors, a network of civic and corporate leaders who help market Massachusetts as a place to do business. Through these channels, and in conjunction with state, regional, and local partners, MassEcon has helped facilitate the location of over 250 companies including Bristol-Myers Squibb, Straumann USA, Merck, and American Superconductor.
About Communispace
The world's most admired brands turn to Communispace, the leader in generating game-changing insights via private online customer communities. Founded in 1999, the company has created more than 400 customer communities for industry leaders such as Kraft, Hewlett-Packard, Charles Schwab, Hallmark, Unilever, GlaxoSmithKline and Hilton Hotels Corporation. Headquartered in Watertown, Massachusetts, the company has offices in Atlanta, Chicago, London, New York, San Francisco, as well as Imperia, Italy and Sydney, Australia. For more information, please visit: www.communispace.com.