FAIRFIELD COUNTY
BUSINESS JOURNAL YOUR ONLY SOURCE FOR REGIONAL BUSINESS NEWS | westfaironline.com
September 30, 2013 | VOL. 49, No. 39
CFO SPOTLIGHT
FCBJ this week SPARE A BUCK? Credit eases, but those seeking loans are wary … 9
THE POWER OF SHEER NUMBERS
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TAKE A SEAT Benches are only part of the livable community equation … 11 STARTING FROM SCRATCH A fire’s consequences go on and on … 15
WE DON’T SLEEP WE DON’T SLACK NORWALK! NORWALK! NORWALK!
NEWSMAKERS Achievers and achievements that matter … 24
MEDIA PARTNER
Tad Diesel with his collection of ceremonial groundbreaking shovels.
THE CITY SHAKES OFF THE RECESSION By Bill fallon bfallon@westfairinc.com
TAKING A LEFT TURN OFF bustling Main Avenue in Norwalk and then a quick right up Creeping Hemlock Drive, Tad Diesel, the city’s director of business development and marketing, offered a dichotomous take on Norwalk. “Behind us is six million square feet of
office space,” he said. “Here, immediately, you feel like you’re in the middle of New England.” The car wended past Cobblers Lane. “This could be Vermont. And so much of Norwalk is like that — you leave a very commercial zone and end up in New England. It’s a wonderful mix of city and town.” He pointed to the harbor and said, “It could be Gloucester.” Diesel has promoted business in Norwalk » Norwalk, page 12
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EYE, EYE, EYE, EYE...
ompany financial officers are the keepers of spreadsheets and the lords of lockboxes. They bear bad news, but are the first to know when things are looking up. To recognize Fairfield County’s best, Westfair Communications Inc., hosts with sponsors TD Bank and McGladrey, the second annual CFO of Year Awards Oct. 2 at Hotel Zero Degrees in Norwalk. From a pool of 14 nominees that were vetted, judges will announce three winners representing small, medium and large companies. Last year’s winners included Babcock & King’s Brian Feidt; Bigelow Tea’s Donald Janezic Jr.; and Oni Chukwu, then CFO of Triple Point Technology.
AND THE NOMINEES ARE: Paul J. Brody is CFO of Interactive Brokers Group Inc. in Greenwich. Brody is responsible for finance and banking relationships, clearing, accounting, financial compliance, credit, and internal administration, as well as certain aspects of new product development spanning the group’s businesses in North America, Europe and the Far East. Prior to joining the group, Brody spent five years with Mocatta Metals Corp., an international commodities trading firm. He received a B.A. in economics with distinction from Cornell University in 1982. » CFO, page 6