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CMM’s Joe Campolo has joined forces with John Miller, CEO of the Guide Dog Foundation and America’s VetDogs, to moderate the monthly meetings of the HIA-LI Gold Membership. The Gold program is open to CEOs and Presidents of HIA-LI member companies that currently have 10 or more employees. Members enjoy camaraderie, support from fellow business leaders, access to high-profile speakers and elected officials, as well as a forum to network and collaborate. Below, read Campolo’s article from the March 2021 HIA-LI Reporter about the benefits of Gold Membership. To learn more, call the HIA-LI at (631) 543-5355.

A Golden Opportunity

By Joe Campolo

In 2019, midway through my term as Chairman of the HIA-LI Board of Directors, I began to focus on getting the HIA-LI Gold Membership Program off the ground. Working closely with my friend and HIA-LI President Terri Alessi-Miceli, we envisioned the Gold Membership as not just another networking group, but an exclusive CEO forum: a comfortable environment for decisionmakers to discuss issues only fellow CEOs can understand, without being pressured for business. This forum would bring together business leaders with high-level speakers at impeccable events, offer direct interaction with elected officials and other influencers on policy issues, and foster collaboration among elite executives and business owners.

In January 2020, we held a fantastic kickoff event at Jewel in Melville. Over delicious sushi and hors d’oeuvres, CEOs of some of Long Island’s most influential companies mingled and looked forward to a full calendar of sophisticated speakers, delectable food, and immense opportunity.

Then 2020 laughed at us.

But since then, HIA-LI Gold Membership has transformed from an event-driven program into a critical resource for Long Island leaders continuing to navigate the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognizing the truth behind the adage “It’s lonely at the top,” we have been meeting monthly on Zoom to discuss solutions to the very real challenges these businesses owners and leaders are facing. These range from economic concerns (“How can I better manage my cash flow?”) to employment issues (“How do I manage the return to the office for remote workers?”) and everything in between. The support we’ve given and received from the group has made all the difference when facing difficult decisions that would otherwise be paralyzing.

We have also continued to bring the high-level speakers we had always envisioned as part of Gold Membership. In January 2021, Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul joined us to discuss the New York State vaccine rollout, and following her remarks, members stayed on the call to discuss their current issues and share advice. As of press time, we are gearing up for our next meeting featuring HIA-LI board member John Bauer of Littler discussing employment concerns, as well as Roy George, Assistant Vice President of Clinical Initiatives at Northwell Health, who will address post-COVID healthcare issues. Upcoming meeting topics include a focus on the restaurant/hospitality industry, a deep dive into healthcare, and future investment in Long Island.

Gold Membership is offered to CEOs and Presidents of HIA-LI member companies that currently have 10 or more employees. While the look of membership has evolved from our initial vision (although we’re hopeful we can resume in-person meetings sooner rather than later), the goal remains the same. Gold members have the opportunity to brainstorm and innovate with fellow leaders in a comfortable environment where the focus is on collaboration and learning, not trying to get business. We hope you’ll join us.

Joe Campolo, Chairman of the Innovation Park Task Force, delivered these remarks at the HIA-LI “Tradable Sectors & How They Impact the Economy” conference on February 10, 2021. Joe addressed the importance of tradable industries in the LI Innovation Park at Hauppauge, HIA-LI’s relentless efforts to grow these business clusters, and the momentous accomplishments the Task Force has achieved thus far. The panel included Matthew Brown, Vice President of Network Solutions & Technology, John Finn, Director of Leasing & Acquisitions at Damianos Realty Group, LLC, Devin Kulka, CEO of The Kulka Group, Anne Shybunko-Moore, CEO & Owner of GSE Dynamics, Inc, and Marc Blitstein, President & CEO of American Diagnostic Corp.

Good morning. Today we are here to discuss the tradable sectors that anchor the Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge, which in turn anchors the Long Island and regional economies.

Contained within the Park’s 11 square miles are about 1,400 companies run by some of the most innovative minds in the country – several of whom we are fortunate to have on our panel today.

Thanks to the HIA-LI’s tireless efforts, including those of the Innovation Park Task Force which I proudly chair, the economic output of the Park has been well documented over the past few years. So has the fact that it is the second largest industrial park in the country, the first being Silicon Valley. These facts attracted the interest of our friends at the Suffolk IDA who, along with the RPA, commissioned an Opportunity Analysis to do a deeper dive into the businesses that reside in the Park and come up with initiatives to further anchor the Park to Long Island’s revitalized economy.

Nearly two years ago, the IDA released the more than 160-page report, and the conclusions were staggering – in addition to verifying the prior economic analysis that had been conducted, this report also found that the Park has the largest concentration of tradable businesses not only on Long Island, but also is a full 20% above the national average for tradable business clusters. 

Why is this so monumental? Well, to a region’s economy, tradable industries are a very big deal. Every ecosystem must include non-tradable businesses – the things that directly support the personal needs of the neighborhood. Thus, every community will have barbers, gas stations, delis, laundromats, 7-11s, and so on. And while these businesses play an important role, they typically employ local people who don’t require enhanced skills and who on average receive lower wages. These businesses are also fully dependent on the immediate residents of that location to consume their goods or services; there is simply not a synergy of either workers or customers who are going to commute a great deal for them. Therefore, dollars from non-tradable industries are non-growth dollars – they are simply being circulated around an area, without new dollars coming in.

High performing ecosystems, however, will also include tradable businesses, which are the businesses that aren’t dependent on customers from their immediate neighborhoods to thrive – these industries include aerospace, biopharma, manufacturing, IT, and others who have chosen to be there for reasons other than direct access to customers. These businesses enhance any community they are in because they vastly increase the local tax base by paying higher wages – all of which greatly stimulates the local economy. Tradable industries also attract skilled workers to relocate here from other states and cities, which also greatly helps grow our tax base without having to continue to raise taxes. An ecosystem with too few tradable businesses suffers greatly because it finds itself simply recirculating dollars rather than growing the pie.

The Opportunity Analysis has shown that while the national average for tradable business clusters is 38%, that percentage is much higher – 58% – in the Park.  Having realized this staggering disparity, a large part of the investigation into the report focused on the “why” – why is this little 11-square-mile tract of land in the middle of Long Island such a hotbed for tradable industries, and the answer, almost uniformly, was this area’s access to a highly skilled workforce.

The excitement we all felt when the report was released two years ago seems more like two decades ago now that COVID dominates our daily lives. But the economic devastation of the past year only makes even more apparent just how critical these tradable businesses are to Long Island’s long-term sustainability. An economy with no tradable businesses will eventually collapse.

Thus, the Opportunity Analysis set forth a very detailed action plan of ways for all stakeholders – private business, government, education, and the HIA-LI – to partner and make sure that we keep this vitality alive in our Park and on Long Island.

I am proud to report that immediately following the Opportunity Analysis, our Task Force rolled up our sleeves and got to work. Already, we have presented the possibility of a workforce development center in the Park to the Long Island Regional Planning Council, which declared this project one of regional significance and issued a grant to further develop the initiative. We have achieved a renewable energy milestone in the Park with the installation of solar panels on the 35,000-square-foot roof of Long Island Cares. We have also worked with the Town of Smithtown to reclassify zoning in part of the Park, allowing developers to apply for exemptions to construct apartment buildings with ground-level retail space.

Just yesterday, our Task Force met to outline our plans for 2021. This is a group made up of leaders in business, education, and government who are dedicated to collaboration and finding points of engagement to move the needle and make an impact. I look forward to sharing the progress of the Task Force with the HIA-LI community.

During this process I have learned that not only is Long Island a national treasure, but we are a national model for how business and government should partner, and how bipartisan cooperation and support, rather than insults, is how we on Long Island operate and get things done.

Achieving an excellent result for a client is always rewarding, but it’s particularly gratifying when that excellent result helps a client hit hard by COVID keep their business afloat.

CMM represents a fence installation company that was sued for various wage claims, including non-payment of overtime, by two individuals claiming to be former employees. Our client steadfastly denied that the plaintiffs were employees, explaining that they worked instead for a subcontractor. The plaintiffs’ attorney argued that our client and the subcontractor were “joint employers” and thus both subject to liability for unpaid wages.

These cases are often uphill battles for employers, but after discovery and depositions, it was clear that our client had not employed the plaintiffs. CMM’s litigation team, including Jeffrey Basso and Richard DeMaio, moved for summary judgment (essentially, asking the Court to find that there are no facts in dispute and to rule in our favor). In the motion, CMM argued that there was no evidence to support the “joint employer” theory.

This month, the Court agreed, issuing a decision that dismissed all claims. The Court wrote a detailed analysis of the factors of the various “joint employer” tests and found that CMM had clearly shown the absence of any triable issues of fact as to the plaintiffs’ employment. In granting our motion, the Court relied on much of what CMM argued and the cases we cited.

This outcome is a huge win for a client whose business was severely impacted by the pandemic. Had the case proceeded to trial, the client would have had an extraordinarily difficult time moving forward with their business. Thanks to CMM’s efforts, liability for the payment of wages to the plaintiffs is with the subcontractor, where it belongs, and our client’s business can continue on.

On January 22, 2021, CMM Managing Partner and HIA-LI‘s Immediate Past Board Chairman Joe Campolo moderated the 43^rd HIA-LI Annual Meeting and Legislative Breakfast, attended by over 150 members of the business community. Joe reported on Long Island’s relentless push for recovery and hope in 2021. He then led a discussion with elected officials about the issues most affecting the business community. Panelists included U.S. Congressman Lee Zeldin, Nassau County Executive Laura Curran, New York State Assemblyman Mike Fitzpatrick, and New York State Senator Mario Mattera, with additional remarks by NYS Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul and Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone. Read Joe’s full remarks below.

Good morning everyone. I’m Joe Campolo and I’d like to welcome everyone to our Annual Meeting and Legislative Program.

For the past three years, I have had the privilege of serving the HIA-LI and the Long Island business community as the Chair of the Board and it has been the honor of a lifetime. As my term as Chair now ends, and as we embark on a new and hopefully more prosperous year, I’m proud to continue to serve on the HIA-LI Board and as chair of the Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge task force. This task force is comprised of stakeholders and decision-makers from both the public and private sectors who will work together to help ensure the park is being utilized in the most productive way to help boost Long Island and the entire region’s economy. Unlike many other task forces, this one will be rolling its sleeves up and getting things done.

2020 tested all of us, to say the least – and things didn’t magically go “back to normal” when the calendar turned to 2021. Fortunately, Long Island has proven that we are a community of leaders. The way the business community adapted to the realities of the pandemic, took a deep breath, and kept moving forward – rather than be paralyzed by fear – is a testament to the strength of the human spirit. The dedication of our colleagues and neighbors is an example to our country and to the world. And while the national news would have us believe that humanity has turned on its head, we Long Islanders are more united than ever. We may have our disagreements, but in the end, we all have stuck together and helped each other through what will likely be the toughest year of our lives, and gave new meaning to the hashtag #LongIslandStrong.

Through it all, we have also seen that Long Island is a national model for how business and government should partner and that bipartisan cooperation with our elected officials is how we on Long Island operate and get things done. Terri [Alessi-Miceli] and I spent a good part of this past year interacting with many elected officials and agencies to advocate for the business community and never once did politics get in the way – there was only a true desire from all to want to help make our economy as robust as possible while keeping our families safe. Again, notwithstanding what the national news would have you believe, here on Long Island there were no Republicans and Democrats, only people helping other people, and families helping other families. In today’s world, this is a huge accomplishment and something we as Long Islanders should all be aware of and proud of.

So while our recovery continues to be a long and daunting road, our belief in our country and our democracy must remain strong, and we must continue to oppose injustice at every turn but also oppose hypocrisy with the same passions. Our resolve must remain fierce and our efforts must be relentless to move our economy and our initiatives forward. To help guide those efforts, we at HIA-LI are lucky to have my good friend Rich Humann, President and CEO of H2M Architects and Engineers, as our next Board Chair. Rich is a smart and well-respected leader, and, most importantly for this position, has been a tireless advocate for the Long Island and regional economy. His deep knowledge of Long Island and its infrastructure will be invaluable as we rebuild our way past COVID. And so, in our own version of a peaceful transfer of power, I’d like to introduce my friend and HIA-LI Board Chair Rich Humann.

Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP, a premier law firm with offices across Long Island – and recently recognized by Forbes as a Top Corporate Law Firm in America – is delighted to announce that Donald J. Rassiger, Esq., has been promoted to Partner, effective January 1, 2021.

Leader of the firm’s sophisticated Construction group as well as Managing Attorney of its widely recognized Corporate group, Rassiger joined CMM as Counsel in 2016 and quickly became an indispensable resource for clients and colleagues alike. Having previously worked in operations and production, as well as having served as Chief Legal Officer of four companies, Rassiger has a unique understanding of the difference between business risk and legal risk. This special skill enables him to find creative solutions that achieve his clients’ desired results while complying with applicable laws, minimizing risk, and saving time and money. As a client recently described him, “Don’s ability to see where business needs intersect with legal compliance is well worth taking into your future and he can help cut the cord to the past.”

Rassiger has represented a wide range of construction clients including owners, developers, general contractors, subcontractors, engineers, architects, construction managers, and program managers, and has also negotiated countless collective bargaining agreements with union representatives. At CMM, in addition to his construction-related work, he draws on his significant experience drafting and negotiating business deals, transactions, and contracts including financing transactions, teaming arrangements, joint ventures, insurance placement, IT matters, bank loans, and construction claims. In addition, he has successfully closed over one billion dollars in M&A deals, both acquisitions and divestitures. As a member of the firm’s COVID Response Team, Rassiger has also helped many businesses renegotiate their financial instruments and bank lines as a result of the economic fallout of the pandemic.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Don as a Partner,” said Managing Partner Joe Campolo. “Not only is his well-earned promotion a milestone professional achievement for him, but also for the firm. Despite the difficulties of 2020, CMM was able grow this year and become even stronger. Don is an excellent lawyer and valued colleague, and we look forward to growing together in 2021.”

Closing out a busy year of mergers, acquisitions, and buyouts as business owners changed course in response to the pandemic, CMM has completed another deal.

In a transaction that closed just before Christmas, CMM’s Joe Campolo and Vincent Costa represented a husband and wife in their buyout of three partners in three separate sheet metal and mechanical businesses as well as a real estate holding company. Paralegal Katharine Campolo kept the deal moving by keeping track of the myriad documents related to the transaction.

“Thank you, all of you, for all your support, hard work, and most importantly friendship and guidance through this whole thing,” the client shared after closing. What a wonderful way to end a challenging year!

For guidance on your merger, acquisition, business divorce, or reorganization, please contact us today.

In a busy year for M&A despite the pandemic, CMM is pleased to announce that the firm has closed a deal involving the acquisition of RR Health Strategies, a medical coding, compliance, and operational excellence management consulting firm, by VMG Health, a leading full-service healthcare valuation and transaction advisory firm. VMG Health is a portfolio company of Northlane Capital Partners, LLC. Joe Campolo and Vincent Costa advised RR Health Strategies (“RRHS”) and its President, Pam D’Apuzzo, in the transaction.

Longtime CMM client RRHS provides a full suite of medical coding compliance focused and operational excellence management (“OpEx”) services to health systems, academic medical centers, law firms, CPA firms, billing vendors, private equity firms, and healthcare practices. D’Apuzzo and the legacy RRHS team will now lead VMG Health’s new Coding, Compliance, and Operational Excellence service line.

“RRHS is uniquely qualified to augment VMG’s existing capabilities with new, compliance-driven offerings. Pam’s industry reputation and service capabilities made RRHS a top priority to add to VMG’s platform, and our entire client base will benefit from having RRHS as part of VMG,” said Greg Koonsman, Founder and CEO of VMG Health.

“We view the strategic partnership with VMG Health as only improving our capabilities, and it will give our current clients access to VMG’s wide-range of resources. We hope to leverage the VMG Health network to expand our reach and continuously improve our service quality,” D’Apuzzo added. “Working with Joe, Vinny, and the CMM team gave me tremendous comfort and enabled me to continue focusing on running my business rather than be consumed by the day-to-day demands of the transaction. I can’t thank them enough!”

Read more about the deal here. Learn more about how CMM’s M&A team can bring value to your next deal here.

Image by Bruno /Germany from Pixabay

CMM has successfully defended our client before the New York State Division of Human Rights, culminating with the Division’s Determination and Order that a discrimination complaint be dismissed in the absence of probable cause to believe our client engaged in a discriminatory practice.

Our client, a technology company in the healthcare space, employed the claimant for less than a year, ultimately terminating the employee for poor performance. The former employee filed a claim with the Human Rights Commission, alleging that the termination was based on racial discrimination. The internal investigation by CMM’s Christine Malafi and Vincent Costa clearly demonstrated that the termination was based on poor performance. CMM submitted numerous position statements to that effect, supported by evidence including work records, our client’s need to hire a temporary worker to assist the employee in fulfilling the job duties, written warnings about the employee’s confrontational behavior, and witness statements.

After reviewing the submissions from both parties, the Division of Human Rights ultimately issued a Determination and Order dismissing the complaint, determining that there was no probable cause to support the former employee’s contention that our client had engaged in a discriminatory practice. The Order noted that “the evidence adduced does not support Complainant’s allegations of discrimination,” demonstrating the critical role that CMM’s investigation and submissions played in the case.

CMM has significant experience representing both employers and employees in employment-related investigations, claims, and litigation. Learn more and contact us today.