It’s no secret that we have some really talented business owners and professionals in Massachusetts. As we approach our fourth anniversary of Massachusetts Business Network, we wanted to do something special for the local, small business community: give them the opportunity to nominate someone they know (or themselves!) as a Massachusetts Mogul.

The Massachusetts Moguls awards spotlight the boldest, brightest, and most impactful entrepreneurs and business leaders shaping the future of the Commonwealth. With that being said, we’re pleased to announce this year’s Massachusetts Moguls!

Adam Russo

Adam V. Russo, Esq. is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Phia Group, LLC, an experienced provider of healthcare cost containment techniques offering comprehensive claims recovery, plan document, and consulting services designed to control healthcare costs and protect plan assets. The Phia Group’s overall mission is to reduce the cost of healthcare through its recovery strategies, innovative technologies, and legal expertise.

Attorney Russo is also the founder and managing partner of The Law Offices of Russo & Minchoff, a full-service law firm. Attorney Russo’s practice is devoted to representing employers, plan fiduciaries, and administrators in employee benefit matters throughout the United States. He is a frequent speaker on employee benefit topics at webinars, conferences, and seminars across the country.

Attorney Russo obtained a Juris Doctorate degree from Suffolk University Law School and a Master’s Degree in Finance from the Frank Sawyer School of Management at Suffolk University in Boston. He also earned an undergraduate degree from Suffolk University, where he double majored in Political Science and Public Relations. He was recognized by Suffolk University with the 2005 Outstanding Alumni Achievement Award.

Attorney Russo was the 2019 Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Self-Insurance Institute of America, Inc. (SIIA) and is the Recipient of the Free Market Medical Association 2024 Be A Beacon Award. He currently sits on the Board of Directors for SIIA and on the Board of Directors at the Boys & Girls Club of Metro South, Massachusetts. Attorney Russo is admitted to the Massachusetts Bar, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States.

Adam enjoys spending time with his wife Kelly and their four wonderful children, Soli, Maeve, Shae, and Samuel, and rooting for his beloved Cleveland Guardians baseball team.

Nina Pfister

Nina Pfister is Co-Founder of MAG PR, a boutique agency launched in 2016. With more than 15 years of industry experience, she helps VC firms and early-stage B2B tech companies leverage communications to drive brand awareness and build lasting credibility with founders, LPs, investors and customers. MAG PR puts senior practitioners on every account, delivering strategy and execution without the typical agency runaround. Nina is also a two-time published children’s author and volunteers as Director of Communications on the board of the Weymouth Libraries Foundation, championing the belief that great stories should be accessible to everyone.

Andrew Cassidy

Andrew Cassidy is a communications executive, entrepreneur, and educator with nearly 20 years of experience helping organizations build trust, connect with their audiences, and navigate complex challenges.

He serves as Senior Director of Digital Strategy and Engagement at the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), where he leads digital communications, multimedia storytelling, audience engagement, and high-stakes crisis communications. He also created and hosts the award-winning podcast Spilling the T, bringing the public behind the scenes to meet the people and understand the work that keeps the region moving.

As president and founder of Cassidy Consulting, a Boston-based marketing, public relations, and communications firm, Andrew helps organizations strengthen their brands, develop digital strategies, and communicate through change and uncertainty. His consulting work draws on experience across government, business, and higher education.

A professor at Emerson College, Andrew teaches graduate and executive education courses in crisis communication and digital strategy, helping prepare professionals to lead through real-world challenges. He previously served as Director of Outreach at Emerson College and Director of Social Media at Miami Dade College. His insights have been featured on BBC World News and in USA Today and The Boston Globe.

Christina Gravina

Christina Gravina is the CEO and founder of Bridging Independent Living Together, Inc. Christina has been working in the Human Service field for the past 12 years and has gained extensive experience with promoting independence in individuals’ lives despite interfering behaviors.

Christina is currently a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) with a Masters of Education in Curriculum and Design in Applied Behavior Analysis. Christina has worked as a direct care staff, residential group home manager, residential area director, and a behaviorist overseeing individuals ranging from adolescents to adults, in clinical and in-home settings.

Christina prides herself on not only providing guidance and education to her staff but also being an advocate for the individuals and their families. Passionate about her work, Christina works to create flexible, person-centered programming that always puts the individual and their wishes at the center of all programming.

With an understanding of the individuals’ and families’ goals, as well as extensive experience with navigating current services and systems, Christina is able to personalize services to deliver innovative and qualified services for every individual served.

Jehan Hamedi

Jehan Hamedi is an inventor and AI entrepreneur who pioneered the use of artificial intelligence to predict how people see and respond to visual content. For more than 15 years, he has built AI systems used by many of the world’s largest companies, driven by a question the industry had never seriously asked: what happens in the instant a shopper first sees a product, before they consciously read a word?

That question became the foundation of Vizit, the company he founded and leads as Executive Chairman, and the origin of Visual Intelligence: a new category of AI for measuring and predicting human response to visual content. Vizit’s underlying Perceptual AI technology enables machines to evaluate product imagery based on how consumers are likely to perceive and respond to it. The research behind the platform has produced 47 issued patents. Vizit’s platform and Vizit Score help brands and retailers predict, measure, and improve the performance of product imagery across the digital shelf. The technology is trusted by 8 of the 10 largest consumer goods companies globally, and Vizit was named Overall Computer Vision Company of the Year by the AI Breakthrough Awards, recognized alongside NVIDIA, Meta, Microsoft, and Databricks from a field of more than 5,000 nominations worldwide.

Before Vizit, Jehan helped define the social media analytics category at Crimson Hexagon, now Brandwatch, one of Fast Company’s 10 Most Innovative Companies, which was later acquired in a transaction valued at $450 million. Over his career, he has built and scaled enterprise AI platforms across more than 15 countries for many of the world’s most recognizable brands, including Google, Microsoft, Disney, Unilever, L’Oréal, Harley-Davidson, Paramount Pictures, and Procter & Gamble.

Jehan has been recognized as a Boston 40 Under 40 honoree by the Boston Business Journal, an Ecommerce 40 Under 40 honoree by the Path to Purchase Institute, and an AACSB Class of 2025 Influential Leader, and is a member of the Forbes Technology Council. He lectures on AI, content analytics, and eCommerce at Boston University and Northeastern University and serves as a judge for MassChallenge, where he mentors AI-native founders.

Susan Kagan

Susan Kagan is the Executive Director of Christopher’s Haven, a Boston-based nonprofit providing a supportive community and temporary housing for families of children receiving cancer treatment at nearby hospitals. With more than 25 years of experience in the nonprofit sector, Susan has dedicated her career to serving children and families and advancing access to recreation, community opportunities, and support for individuals with significant healthcare needs and disabilities.

Susan began her career at Boston Children’s Hospital and holds a Master’s degree in Educational Psychology and a Bachelor’s degree in Rehabilitation Services from the University of Connecticut. Her extensive nonprofit experience includes fundraising, grant-making, strategic partnerships, board development, and community engagement. Her commitment to inclusion and children’s services has earned her fellowships from the Children’s Defense Fund and the German Marshall Fund. She is also a published author and co-author of Don’t Forget the Fun: Developing Inclusive Recreation. Since joining Christopher’s Haven in 2024, Susan has focused on strengthening the organization’s fundraising, partnerships, programming, and long-term sustainability while ensuring families remain at the heart of its mission.

Valentino Perrina

Valentino Perrina is a serial entrepreneur, business leader and innovator with deep roots in the food and hospitality industry and a passion for building companies that create meaningful experiences for consumers. As Co-Founder and CEO of Nutré Meal Plans, Valentino has helped transform a family-driven idea into one of the fastest-growing healthy meal delivery companies in New England.

Nutré was born from the Perrina family’s restaurant heritage and a deeply personal mission. After Valentino’s father was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes at age 40, Valentino and his brothers began preparing healthier meals for him. That experience ultimately evolved into Nutré, with a mission to make nutritious, high-quality food more convenient, accessible and enjoyable for people and families.

As CEO, Valentino leads Nutré’s vision, growth strategy, and brand direction, while serving as a key external voice for the company and building relationships with healthcare organizations, community partners, and fellow business leaders. Valentino has overseen Nutré’s largest geographic expansion to date, including the company’s first statewide delivery launch outside the East Coast in Texas, as well as expanded service throughout Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina. His approach to growth combines food, technology and customer experience, helping Nutré evolve beyond a traditional meal delivery company into a growing nutrition and wellness platform.

Beyond Nutré, Valentino is passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, and identifying opportunities across industries. He actively connects with like-minded founders, investors and business leaders and brings a broad network and diverse set of experiences to evaluating new ventures and investment opportunities. As Nutré enters its next stage of growth, Valentino is also exploring outside capital partnerships to help accelerate the company’s expansion and scale its impact.

Driven by a constant desire to create, innovate and connect, Valentino continues to look for opportunities to build businesses, support entrepreneurs and invest in ideas that have the potential to make a meaningful impact.

Kristen Reed

Kristen Reed is a multiple award-winning Board Certified Registered Nurse, Nationally Certified Health & Wellness Coach, and internationally recognized expert in women’s health and nutrition. Known as “The Wellness Woman” by the Daily Item, Kristen has been named “Boston’s Best Health Coach” by Boston Business Women two years in a row, recognized as a “Powerhouse Woman of Boston” by Quotable Magazine, and is frequently featured in leading media including ABC, NBC, CBS, Glamour, Women’s Health, MindBodyGreen, HuffPost, and Thrive Global.

As the Founder and CEO of sought-after health and wellness practice Nursing Your Way to Wellness, Kristen combines her clinical expertise as a registered nurse with evidence-based health coaching and a whole-person approach to help individuals transform their health and wellbeing.

Through high touch personalized Health & Wellness Coaching, curated wellness programs, corporate wellness initiatives, and keynote speaking, Kristen has helped thousands better understand their bodies, address the root causes behind health struggles and disease, and develop sustainable habits that support nutrition, energy, hormone health, metabolism, strength, and longevity.

Her mission is to help individuals optimize their health, feel their healthiest, and be their best to show up fully in their life!

Dominic Amenta

Dominic Amenta is the founder and principal of DPA Communications, a Boston-based public relations, communications and marketing agency specializing in strategic media relations, brand positioning and thought leadership. With a career built around helping organizations tell compelling stories, Dominic has developed PR strategies for businesses, nonprofits, restaurants, hospitality brands and consumer companies. Under his leadership, DPA Communications has built a reputation for delivering creative, results-driven communications programs tailored to each client’s goals. Dominic takes a hands-on approach to client relationships, working closely with executives, founders and organizations to identify opportunities that elevate their visibility and reputation. His expertise spans media relations, strategic communications, crisis communications, events and executive thought leadership and has been featured in the Boston Globe, Boston Business Journal and countless other media outlets on behalf of DPA’s clients or as an industry expert. He is particularly passionate about finding the newsworthy angle in a story and turning it into meaningful media exposure. Based in Boston, Dominic continues to grow DPA Communications while helping clients stand out in an increasingly competitive media landscape.

Morgen Schroeder

Morgen Schroeder is a Certified Cheese Professional, cheese educator, writer, and content creator based on Martha’s Vineyard. As the founder of Martha’s Vineyard Cheesery, she teaches about cheese through sensory exploration and storytelling. Morgen blends her background in cheese education, communications, and parenting with a whimsical, engaging persona: The Fairy Cheesemother. Through this persona, she creates approachable, joyful content that helps children, caregivers, and folks of all ages explore cheese with curiosity, confidence, and delight.

Jonathan Garland

Jonathan C. Garland, President & Founder of Boston-based MBE firms: JGE Development and JGE Architecture + Design, maintains over 25 years of professional practice in the architecture, urban design and commercial real estate development industries. He founded JGE as a vertically integrated real estate development, architecture and interior design firm with a broad range of award-wining multi-family housing, mixed-use commercial, academic, and institutional projects across the greater Boston, New England and Mid-Atlantic regions. Throughout his career, Jonathan has cultivated a seasoned approach to transforming neighborhoods and building with community through high-quality collaborative design and development strategies.

In 2025, Jonathan was appointed by Boston Mayor Michelle Wu to the Boston Civic Design Commission (BCDC) where he lends his guidance and urban design expertise on the most impactful and consequential real estate projects across the city of Boston. He also serves on the board of Economic Mobility Pathways, (EMPath), where he chairs the Real Estate Committee.

Prior appointments include his service as a Trustee for the Boston Architectural College, the Edward Brooke Charter School Network, and additionally as Co-Chair of the Boston Chapter of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA). He was recently recognized by the New England Real Estate Journal’s “One’s to Watch” Industry Leaders Award.

Tara Bodine

Tara Bodine is the Founder and CEO of True North People Consulting.

As a fellow business owner, Tara understands how exciting and how overwhelming it can be to run and grow a company. You’re expected to lead your people, move the business forward, make tough decisions, and keep track of every moving piece. You shouldn’t have to carry all of that alone.

Tara and her team provide fractional HR and Chief of Staff services, which means they step in as your trusted right hand wherever you need experienced support. That might mean helping you hire the right people, navigate challenges, clarify roles and priorities, turn ideas into action, or keep important work moving when your plate is already full.

Because their team brings expertise across HR, business operations, strategy, and coaching, you gain the value of several specialized roles through one trusted partnership, without the cost or commitment of building a full-time internal team.

They also coach owners and leaders one-on-one, combining practical business experience with support around mindset, communication, confidence, relationships, and decision-making. The goal is to help you lead in a way that feels grounded, effective, and true to who you are.

The TNPC approach is shaped by Tara’s 20+ years of experience, work coaching more than 2,000 leaders, master’s degree in Industrial-Organizational Psychology, and advanced certifications in coaching, Neuro-Linguistic Programming, clinical hypnotherapy, Emotional Freedom Technique, and breathwork. Together, their team combines business expertise, people strategy, and an understanding of human behavior to support both the business and the people behind it.

At the heart of their approach is a simple belief: compassion and accountability belong together. They help leaders build stronger businesses while creating positive, fulfilling experiences for their people. Their mission is to empower small-business success and foster thriving families and communities—because when businesses succeed, families and communities thrive.

Natalie Breen

Natalie Breen is the Executive Director of Cummings Executive Suites, and also leases space to small and midsized businesses across Cummings Properties’ 11-million-square-foot commercial portfolio north of Boston. A lifelong Medford resident, Natalie serves as President of the Medford Chamber of Commerce during its 100th year and sits on the board of the Medford Public Library Foundation. She is a passionate autism advocate and an angel investor focused on women-led ventures.

Alexander Ficarelli-Danberg

Alexander Ficarelli-Danberg is the co-founder of Catboat Coffee Co. in Vineyard Haven.

Erin Defoyd

Erin Defoyd is the founder of The Bird & Bear Collective.

Congratulations to all! We look forward to seeing what you continue to achieve for the remainder of 2026 and beyond.

If you’re a business owner and there’s anything we can do to support you, please don’t hesitate to fill out our contact form.