Andy Smith, Author at Providence Business News

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PBN'S HEALTH CARE SUMMIT was held online on Wednesday morning with panelists from the health care and business arenas.

PBN Summit: R.I.’s real pandemic test still to come

Coronavirus 04/01/2020

PROVIDENCE – Panelists at PBN's online Health Care Summit on Wednesday gave Gov. Gina M. Raimondo high marks for her efforts to slow down...

CREATIVE CAPITAL: Margaret Hartigan, co-founder and CEO of Marstone, a digital financial platform with offices in Providence, speaks with Benjamin Baker, head of sales. Hartigan says she chose to base her company in Providence because of the “incredible level of creativity and diversity here.” / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Hartigan’s fully invested in fintech firm she created

Business Women 03/06/2020

Margaret Hartigan found a lot to like about Providence. Hartigan, the co-founder and CEO of the financial-technology company Marstone Inc., is a New Hampshire native...

CANNABIS CONVERSATION: PBN editor Michael Mello, right, moderates a panel discussion at PBN’s The Business of Cannabis Summit at the Omni Providence Hotel on Feb. 26, featuring from left: Karyn Rhodes, of Complete HR Solutions; Mitzi Hollenbeck, of Citrin Cooperman; Benjamin L. Rackliffe, an attorney at Pannone Lopes Devereaux & O’Gara; and Kristyn Glennon, of BayCoast Bank. / PBN PHOTO/RUPERT WHITELEY

PBN panel: R.I. will legalize recreational pot eventually

Economic Activity 03/06/2020

Even though the General Assembly leadership is attempting to put brakes on the legalization of recreational marijuana in Rhode Island, it’s just a matter...

HURDLES AHEAD: Steven J. Hoffman, chairman of the Cannabis Control Commission in Massachusetts and keynote speaker at PBN’s The Business of Cannabis Summit at the Omni Providence Hotel on Feb. 26, says there are formidable obstacles for anyone considering a cannabis enterprise, partly because the federal government still considers it an illegal drug, which has negative implications for banking and taxes. / PBN PHOTO/RUPERT WHITELEY

Mass. cannabis chief offers guidance for Ocean State

Economic Activity 03/06/2020

When Massachusetts voted to legalize recreational marijuana in 2016, many felt that Rhode Island would shortly follow suit. But that hasn’t happened yet. And the...

BENJAMIN L. RACKLIFFE, second from right, an attorney at Pannone Lopes Devereaux & O’Gara LLC, speaks during a panel discussion at Providence Business News' Business of Cannabis Summit on Wednesday in Providence. Also on the panel was, from left, Karyn Rhodes, of Complete HR Solutions; Mitzi Hollenbeck, of Citrin Cooperman; and Kristyn Glennon of BayCoast Bank. / PBN PHOTO/RUPERT WHITELEY

PBN cannabis summit: Legalized recreational pot is only matter of time...

Economy 02/26/2020

PROVIDENCE – It’s not a matter of whether recreational marijuana will be legalized in Rhode Island, it's a matter of when. That conclusion emerged from...

ECONOMIC CONCERNS: Panelists, from left, Kristen Urbach, Thomas O. Sweeney, Stefan Pryor, Mark K. W. Gim and Luke Ebersold discuss a variety of concerns at the PBN Economic Trends Summit while moderator Thomas Zitzouris looks on. / PBN PHOTO/MIKE SKORSKI

PBN summit: High business costs, education are concerns in R.I.

Economic Activity 02/21/2020

The Rhode Island economy has come a long way since the dark days of the Great Recession, when the unemployment rate was among the...

SUNNY OUTLOOK: Thomas Tzitzouris, director for Strategas Research Partners in New York, tells attendees at the Providence Business News Economic Trends Summit that although the year has gotten off to a sluggish start, he predicts a 2% growth rate in the gross national product in 2020. / PBN PHOTO/ MIKE SKORSKI

Economist doesn’t believe recession in the forecast

Economic Activity 02/21/2020

Some businesspeople might feel there’s an economic downturn looming ahead, but Thomas Tzitzouris doesn’t see it that way. “There is no reason to suspect there...

PANELISTS DISCUSS the outlook for 2020 during Providence Business News' Economic Trends Summit at the Crowne Plaza Providence-Warwick on Thursday morning. The panelists included, from left, Kristin Urbach, North Kingstown Chamber of Commerce executive director; Thomas O. Sweeney, founder of Sweeney Real Estate & Appraisal; R.I. Commerce Secretary Stefan Pryor; Mark Gim, The Washington Trust Co. president and chief operating officer; Luke Ebersold, Rhode Island managing partner at blumshapiro; and Thomas Tzitzouris, Strategas Research Partners director. / PBN PHOTO/MIKE SKORSKI

PBN economic summit keynote: Recession not in the forecast

Economic Activity 02/13/2020

WARWICK – “There is no reason to suspect there will be a recession in the U.S. anytime soon,” said Thomas Tzitzouris, a Rhode Island...

DIVERSE DISCUSSION: Panelists discuss the evolution of diversity and inclusion initiatives in the workplace at Providence Business News’ Diversity & Inclusion Summit & Awards Program at the Crowne Plaza Providence-Warwick in Warwick on Dec. 5. From left: moderator PBN Editor Michael Mello, Guillaume Bagal, Marianne Monte, Kim Lee and Nirva LaFortune. / PBN PHOTO/PAMELA BHATIA

PBN panelists: Companies need top-level commitment to break diversity, inclusion barriers

PBN Award Winners 12/13/2019

As the workforce in contemporary America changes rapidly, diversity and inclusion initiatives have taken on new dimensions, and more significance. Now they mean more than...