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Dear Friends:

It is our pleasure to report to you on the efforts and accomplishments of MassEcon for 2017.

With the economy having exhibited steady growth, MassEcon continued to invest in initiatives that are essential for the long term. Celebrating the achievements of businesses that invest in Massachusetts; welcoming companies new to Massachusetts; and promoting the assets of all regions of the state are foundational elements of MassEcon’s work.

During 2017, 53 companies planning for future growth relied on MassEcon’s services to evaluate the Commonwealth as a location for expansion and relocation. Our progress over the year reflects the efforts of a team that includes public officials; industry and trade associations; the business community; state, regional, and local economic development professionals; and our dedicated corps of members. We are fortunate to work with so many capable parties in promoting the assets of Massachusetts.

Drawing on MassEcon’s experience with expanding companies, this year we released our first research publication, Choosing Massachusetts for Business: Key Factors in Location Decision-Making, that we hope will serve as a meaningful resource for economic development officials seeking to market their locations and for public officials and policy leaders who are charged with keeping Massachusetts competitive.

Looking ahead, with projections of continued — but measured — economic expansion, it is essential that the entire Commonwealth be poised to capture its fair share of growth. Retaining and attracting business requires an organized effort of an informed and creative economic development team. Working in partnership with our sixth gubernatorial administration, MassEcon brings a consistent, non-partisan voice to the enterprise, and we are proud to bring value to the team.

As we enter our twenty-fifth year, we thank our members, staff, and partners for making our work possible. We also welcome our incoming Chairman, Stephen Flavin of WPI.

Sincerely,

Susan Houston Executive Director

Brian Cohen Chairman

Susan Houston Executive Director

Brian Cohen Chairman

In the electronic version of this report you will find links to additional content. Please visit our website massecon.com for your copy.

Site LocationMassEcon’s statewide Site Finder Service — including the ReadyMass 100 — is an economic development resource for companies seeking to expand or locate within Massachusetts. MassEcon staff work cooperatively with real estate brokers, site location consultants, and state, regional, and local economic development officials to enable companies to access property information that supports their real estate and location needs.

Massachusetts AmbassadorsMassEcon oversees the Massachusetts Ambassadors program, a network of senior executives throughout the Commonwealth who serve as peer contacts for companies evaluating the state as an expansion location. Ambassadors can volunteer their time by hosting visiting executives, providing media testimonials on Massachusetts as a place to live and work, sponsoring welcome receptions for companies new to Massachusetts, and other activities.

MassEcon founded in 1993, is a non-profit, non-partisan entity that champions Massachusetts as the best place to start, grow, or locate a business. Bringing the public and private sectors together, we work to create a supportive culture, enhance business growth, promote investment in communities, and spread prosperity throughout the state.

Marketing MassEcon celebrates the achievements of Massachusetts companies from all regions of the state through its annual Economic Impact Awards; takes the Massachusetts story on the road through selected trade show and business development missions; hosts an annual reception for companies new to Massachusetts; and serves on the board of the Massachusetts Marketing Partnership.

Research & InformationMassEcon provides expanding and relocating companies with information about demographics, workforce, education, infrastructure, industry sectors, and other matters relevant to the location decision. In comparing Massachusetts to other states, MassEcon ensures that the full value proposition for a Massachusetts location is evident. Providing more than data, this service links companies with people and resources on the state, regional, and local levels.

Services: what we do

For more than two decades, MassEcon has developed relationships with trusted and

innovative economic leaders from across the state and played an instrumental role in bringing new

businesses and jobs to the Commonwealth.”

GOVERNOR CHARLIE BAKER

IN CONJUNCTION with the Massachusetts Office of Business Development and other state, regional, local, and industry partners, MassEcon is proud to have provided services this year to 53 companies considering Massachusetts as an expansion location; these companies represented a total of 9,000 jobs and came from within Massachusetts, out of state, and abroad.

Insulet Corporation Acton

Astellas Institute for Regenerative Medicine Westborough

Choosing

Massachusetts in

Results: by the numbers

Meet the companies

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Where they want to locateWhere they come from

Central 5%

Greater Boston 39%

MetroWest 10%

Southeast 8%

Northeast 11%

International 9%

In State 40%

MassEcon is a supremely knowledgeable and valued resource for us when we are evaluating Massachusetts for our corporate clients. They have been a steady partner for us over the years.

BRETT BAYDUS, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT & PRINCIPAL SITE SELECTION GROUP, LLC

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2017

Out of State 51%

West 5%

Statewide 22%

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Insulet Corporation Acton

Astellas Institute for Regenerative Medicine Westborough

Choosing: Massachusetts

The ReadyMass 100, an online resource, showcases a continually refreshed portfolio of up to 100 market ready properties that provide location options for expanding and relocating companies. These properties are zoned, permitted, infrastructure served,

and in Class A condition. Representing diverse property types, and selected by a committee of real estate experts twice yearly, they send a concrete message to the marketplace that Massachusetts can meet the real estate needs of growing companies in all parts of the state. MassEcon markets these properties through massecon.com, earned media, and through a series of receptions with national site selection advisors.

Spotlight: Astellas Institute for Regenerative Medicine In December 2017, the Astellas Institute for Regenerative Medicine (AIRM), announced plans to convert a 250,000 square foot building at 9 Technology Drive in Westborough into a biopharmaceutical research and development facility. AIRM is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Astellas Pharma Inc. and serves as the company’s global research and development hub for regenerative medicine and cell

therapy research in ophthalmology and other therapeutic areas. AIRM’s search for a location, which began in June 2016, exemplifies MassEcon’s services at work. After being contacted by AIRM’s consultants, Chicago-based MB Real Estate and True Partners Consulting, MassEcon and its partners, including the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, provided location assistance in the areas of real estate, labor, and incentives. The new Westborough facility will house more than 250 employees upon construction completion.

MassEcon is a great business development partner to the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center. Their location intelligence and extensive, diverse membership base have been invaluable as we work to extend the Massachusetts life sciences ecosystem beyond Cambridge and Boston.”

TRAVIS MCCREADY, PRESIDENT AND CEO, MASSACHUSETTS LIFE SCIENCES CENTER

ReadyMass100

Private Sector EngagementA UNIQUE element of MassEcon’s services is the ability to rally its private sector membership to support business recruitment and retention. Under the Team Massachusetts umbrella, MassEcon members volunteer to provide labor force data, real estate market overviews, site tours, cost estimates, community information, sector knowledge, and more — all on behalf of growing jobs in Massachusetts.

The Massachusetts Advantage In March 2017, MassEcon released Choosing Massachusetts for Business: Key Factors in Location Decision-Making, undertaken in collaboration with the UMass Donahue Institute. The report drew on a unique body of intelligence from companies that had expanded in Massachusetts over the past 10 years.

Through a combination of surveys and interviews with company executives, the research yielded rich information on the dynamics of companies’ decisions to locate, stay, and grow in Massachusetts. While housing, transportation, and health care costs were identified as business challenges, more than three out of four companies said they would choose Massachusetts again for their expansion location. Talent is king, the report found, with 96% of companies choosing Massachusetts for the quality of its workforce.

MassEcon is an outstanding partner of the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts.  Through their marketing efforts and relationships with location decision-makers, we have many opportunities to successfully market the assets of western Massachusetts to the global marketplace.

RICK SULLIVAN, PRESIDENT AND CEO, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL OF WESTERN

MASSACHUSETTS

Partners: building connections

(from left) VHB’s Justin Dufresne and Brittany Gensler with Tiffany Gallo of Cutler Associates and Mike DiGiano of NAI Hunneman

CHOOSING MASSACHUSETTS FOR BUSINESS: KEY FACTORS IN LOCATION DECISION-MAKING

RESEARCH BY

Economic and Publ ic Pol icy Research

L E A D S P O N S O R

MARCH 2017

Conveners: world-shaping industries

MassEcon’s Annual Conference MassEcon’s Annual Conference, The Future is Now: How Massachusetts Technologies are Shaping the World, was held for more than 100 attendees on June 2 at the Newton Marriott Hotel. The conference, sponsored by TD Bank, drew from the insights of CEOs from the Commonwealth’s leading-edge industries. Executives from energy, medical devices, and robotics engaged in a lively discussion on topics ranging from federal policy shifts on energy and immigration to Massachusetts’ unheralded manufacturing sector.

Conference Panelists

ModeratorCurt Nickisch Senior Editor Harvard Business Review

Featured Speaker Dan IsenbergProfessor of Entrepreneurship Education Babson Executive Education

Panelists Chris GahaganCEO of Symbotic

Ana MaiquesCEO of Neuroelectrics

Emily ReichertCEO of Greentown Labs

(from left)Neuroelectrics CEO Ana Maiques displaying her company’s products

Dan Isenberg, Professor of Entrepreneurship at Babson Executive Education

Emily Reichert, CEO of Greentown Labs

2017 MassEcon Annual Conference 2017 MassEcon Annual Conference panelists, moderator, and featured speaker

Curt Nickisch, Senior Editor at Harvard Business Review, moderates 2017 MassEcon Annual Conference

Lead Sponsor

Each year, MassEcon honors growing businesses from each of the Commonwealth’s five regions that make outstanding contributions to the Massachusetts economy. This event, which is the only celebration of its kind in Massachusetts, has recognized dozens of companies from throughout the state that have been leaders in job growth, financial investment, and community involvement. The process is launched with a Finalists Reception in September, when all finalists have an opportunity to tell their stories before their peers, and it culminates with an awards luncheon on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. On November 21, before 400 guests, MassEcon presented the Fourteenth Annual Team Massachusetts Economic Impact Awards to 15 companies that invested in the Commonwealth through job creation, facility expansion, and community involvement.

CENTRAL Gold Cumberland FarmsSilver SMC LtdBronze Instrumentation Laboratory GREATER BOSTONGold ThermoFisher ScientificSilver Brammer BioBronze Clarks Americas

Marketing: celebrating Massachusetts

NORTHEASTGold KronosSilver EMD SeronoBronze Abiomed

SOUTHEASTGold Cold Chain TechnologiesSilver Metropolitan Cabinets & CountertopsBronze New England Ice Cream Corporation

WESTGold U.S. TsubakiSilver InterprintBronze Avista Pharma Solutions

Instrumentation Laboratory, 2017 Central MA Bronze Economic Impact Award Winner

ECONOMIC IMPACT AWARD WINNERS

PRESENTING SPONSOR CITIZENS BANK GOLD SPONSORS TRANSWESTERN WPI SHIRE

Presenting Sponsor

Governor Charlie Baker Delivering Remarks at 2017 Economic Impact Awards Luncheon

Each year, MassEcon welcomes companies new to Massachusetts at its Annual Corporate Welcome Reception. The event brings together over 100 private sector leaders and senior state officials to welcome companies that have recently opened offices in the state and to introduce them to the rich Massachusetts network.

WESTGold U.S. TsubakiSilver InterprintBronze Avista Pharma Solutions

Companies New to Massachusetts with Governor Baker at MassEcon 2017 Corporate Welcome Reception

3Decor | Air Berlin | BeWell Connect’s Visiomed Group | Biognosys | Brammer Bio | Duro-Last | DONG Energy | Eataly | Founders Science Group | For the Record | LEO Pharma | Moby Dick Brewing Co. | Nexthink | Smartick | Signature Healthcare Services | Prodrive Technologies | Vcanbio

Annual Corporate Welcome Reception Helping the Commonwealth grow its rich economic base, MassEcon each year hosts out-of-state events that introduce the assets of Massachusetts to corporate site selectors, those professionals on the front lines representing companies considering expanding or relocating. Our goal is to ensure that Massachusetts is on the short list as companies consider their expansion. As a result of relationships developed at these events, MassEcon is called upon as a credible resource for information about the Commonwealth.

Over the course of 2017, MassEcon hosted hospitality receptions in New York City in conjunction with the Medical Device and Manufacturing Show; in Dallas in conjunction with the AUVSI convention; and in Chicago. MassEcon also participated in the CoreNet Global Summit in Philadelphia and the BIO International Convention in Seattle. Helping to tell the Massachusetts story were MassEcon members from the Marlborough EDC, VHB, Cutler Associates, and Union Point.

Thank you to host Sanofi Genzyme and sponsor WPI

MassEcon on the Road

Governor Baker Delivers Remarks at 2017 Corporate Welcome Reception

Eataly Representatives at 2017 Corporate Welcome Reception

Thank You to Our Sponsors

You are cordially invited to an exclusive cocktail and hors d’oeuvres reception with Massachusetts economic development officials and business

leaders. Learn more about what Massachusetts has to offer your clients.

Date: June 15, 2017 Time: 6:00-8:00 pmLocation: The Bryant Park HotelTerrace Loft40 West 40th StreetNew York, NY 10018

You Are Cordially Invited

To attend contact Doug Kehlhem, Senior Director, MassEcondkehlhem@massecon.com • 617-924-4600 x12 • www.massecon.com

Highlights: 2017

January 20 Members Meeting Dr. Alan Clayton-Matthews Professor, Northeastern University

March 1 MassEcon Mixer Transwestern

March 9 Hospitality Reception for Site Selectors in Chicago

March 17 Members Meeting Stephen Pike, CEO MA Clean Energy Center

April 12 Corporate Welcome Reception Sanofi Genzyme

May 10 Hospitality Reception for Site Selectors in Dallas

May 12 Members Meeting GE Healthcare Life Sciences Michael Kennealy Assistant Secretary for Business Growth

June 2 Annual Conference The Future is Now: How Massachusetts Technologies are Shaping the World Newton Marriott Hotel

June 15 Hospitality Reception for Site Selectors in New York City

July 12 Summer Reception Tim Connelly, Executive Director/CEO, Massachusetts Technology Collaborative

September 13 Economic Impact Awards Finalists Reception Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

September 28 Members Meeting Rosalin Acosta, Secretary of Labor & Workforce Development

November 21 Economic Impact Awards Luncheon Boston Renaissance Waterfront Hotel

December 13 Annual Holiday Lunch Stephanie Pollack, Secretary of Transportation UMass Club

Lauren Liss of MassDevelopment, MC Lisa Hughes, Governor Charlie Baker, and Jerry Sargent of Citizens Bank at 2017 Economic Impact Awards Luncheon

Sabrina Bauer of VHB at 2017 Economic Impact Awards Luncheon

Denise McGeough of Citizens Bank with Jessica Strunkin of the 495/MetroWest Partnership at 2017 MassEcon Annual Meeting

Lauren Jones of the City of Boston with Southeast Region Judge Laura Canter of MassDevelopment at 2017 Finalists Reception

Assistant Secretary for Business Growth, Mike Kennealy, Featured Speaker at 2017 Finalists Reception hosted by Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

Photo Credits: Janet Stearns and Carly Gillis

Mike Carragher of VHB with MassEcon Chairman Brian Cohen and Secretary of Transportation Stephanie Pollack at Annual Holiday Lunch

Incoming Chairman Stephen Flavin of WPI with Past Chairman Fred Mulligan of Cutler Associates (and a WPI Alum) at Annual Holiday Lunch

Past and Present MassEcon Interns at 2017 Summer Reception

Highlights: 2017

Leaders of every industry should be involved with MassEcon. MassEcon is uniquely positioned — because of its statewide reach and collaborative ethic — to make important contributions to the state’s business climate.

JERRY SARGENTPRESIDENT, CITIZENS BANK, MASSACHUSETTS

Ernst & Young’s Anthony Santacrose, Xin Gong, and Jessica Craw at Annual Holiday Lunch

Karl-Henry Francois and Sean Riordan of Citizens Bank at 2017 Economic Impact Awards Luncheon

Travis McCready and Beth Nicklas of MA Life Sciences Center at Annual Corporate Welcome Reception

Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Jay Ash at 2017 Economic Impact Awards VIP reception with WPI President Laurie Leshin and her Team

Adrian Walters and Been Wang of ARC/Architectural Resources Cambridge at Annual Holiday Lunch

VHB team at 2017 Economic Impact Awards Luncheon

Northeast Region Judge Mike Houllahan of Chase Bank with Southeast Region Judge Greg Buscone of Eastern Bank, Matt Hunt of Eastern Bank, and Mike Jones of Presenting Sponsor Citizens Bank

Rick Donovan of the Framingham Economic and Industrial Corporation with Town of Framingham Mayor-Elect Yvonne Spicer and Art Robert of the Town of Framingham

Lucy Servidio of Capaccio Environmental Engineering with Katie Joyce of Shire, Bonnie Sullivan of Middlesex Savings Bank, and Dorrian Cohen Fragola of Janitronics Building Services

495/MetroWest PartnershipA/Z CorporationAerotekAGC of MassachusettsARC/Architectural Resources CambridgeAtlantic ManagementBioMed Realty TrustBowditch & DeweyBrockton 21st CenturyBSC GroupCampanelliCapaccio Environmental EngineeringCBRE/New EnglandChase BankCitizens BankCity of BostonCoreNet Global, New England ChapterCutler AssociatesDacon CorporationDLA Piper LLP USEastern Bank CorporationEconomic Development Council of Western MAEconomic Development Incentives, Inc.Ernst & YoungEversource EnergyGreater Boston Chamber of CommerceGZA GeoEnvironmentalHinckley AllenInvestment Consulting AssociatesJ. Calnan & Associates, Inc.Janitronics Building ServicesKendall Square AssociationMarlborough Economic Development CorporationMassDevelopment

MassMEDICMassportMetroWest Chamber of CommerceMiddlesex Savings BankN2 Innovation DistrictNAI HunnemanNAIOPNewmark Knight FrankNorth Central MA Development CorporationNutter McClennen & Fish LLPPatriot PlacePerkins + WillPittsfield Economic Development AuthorityPM GroupSanofi GenzymeSantanderSentry CommercialShireSouth Shore Chamber of CommerceTaunton Development CorporationTD Bank GroupTown of FraminghamTranswesternUMassUnion PointUnitilVHBWestborough Economic Development CommitteeWinterWymanWorcester Regional Chamber of CommerceWPIWyman Street Advisors

STAFF

Susan Houston Executive Director

Douglas Kehlhem Senior Director

Annie O’Connell Communications Director

Marketing and Research Assistants Emma Brin Greg Gao Anna Jen Katelyn Ramos Mike Silveira Jackie Tran

2017 BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CHAIR Brian Cohen Transwestern

TREASURER Michael Scott Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

CLERK Geoff Howell DLA Piper LLP US

Paul Bauer Bowditch & Dewey

David Begelfer NAIOP

Robert Brustlin VHB

Greg Buscone Eastern Bank

Timothy Ceurvels Eversource Energy

Michael DiGiano NAI Hunneman

Stephen Flavin WPI

Rebecca Frisch TD Bank

Joseph Gaetano Aerotek

William Harris Perkins + Will

David Hayes BSC Group

Marty Jones MassDevelopment

David L’Heureux Santander

Taidgh McClory CBRE/New England

Denise McGeough Citizens Bank

Fred Mulligan Cutler Associates

Christopher Steele Investment Consulting Associates

Bonnie Sullivan Middlesex Savings Bank

MassEcon 101 Walnut Street Watertown, MA 02472 (617) 924-4600www.massecon.com