Springfield, MA -- The Vann Group, a business advisory firm serving businesses in transition across the country, has announced the addition of two new team members to their consulting team and expanded services to their portfolio.
Dan Yacuzzo, former owner of the Eastside Grill restaurant in Northampton, MA has joined the Vann Group to lead the firm’s restaurant and hospitality consulting offering. A long time advisor in this sector, the Vann Group now offers a comprehensive suite of services to people looking to buy, sell, create new restaurants or make strategic improvements to current operations. Yacuzzo is a well known and respected name in this sector; having created and managed one of the region’s most successful restaurants for more than 20 years with his partner and wife, Gail Yacuzzo; and consulting to additional restaurants in other markets. The new offering covers virtually every aspect of restaurant management and transactions; from identifying qualified operators, to business plans and market assessments, to inventory management and monitoring systems, to arranging financing and negotiating the buying and selling of restaurants.
John Carella, formerly of Hines, one of the world’s largest commercial property management groups, has joined the Vann Group to head up the firms’ construction and commercial real estate advisory services. With 15 years of experience in this vertical, John is a significant addition to the Vann Group’s already substantial track record serving the construction and real estate industry over the past 30+ years. The expanded offering assists property owners, investors, lenders and contractors in protecting assets, mitigating risks and unforeseen expenses, and increasing economic value. This expansion encompasses a long list of specific services including property asset assessment and management, project management, coordinating the work of specialists like environmental and structural engineers and elevator maintenance experts, process engineering and systems for contractors, lease assessments and dispute resolution.
Dan and John join Principals Kevin B. Vann and Michael K. Vann and senior advisory team members, Nicholas Carella and Thomas J. Lippie; in helping companies in transition to unlock their value. The firm defines transitional companies as those who are growing rapidly, at a plateau, in crisis or contemplating an exit. “We are extremely careful in selecting advisory team members for the Vann Group,” said Michael K. Vann, “and we are very fortunate and pleased that Dan and John have agreed to join us. We know they share our passion for business and possess tremendous expertise and work with impeccable integrity in their respective fields.”
The Vann Group is a leading strategic advisory firm and a national expert on transitional businesses, serving privately held companies and non-profit organizations across the country. These expanded offerings further bolster the firm’s portfolio that includes strategic planning; ongoing trusted advisory services; intermediary services for buying, selling and financing businesses; and crisis and turnaround planning and management. The Vann Group has been building, buying, selling and advising businesses for 30+ years and is the culmination of the Vann family’s 150-year history of business experience and entrepreneurial spirit.
Vann Group Company Announces New Affiliation - Sept, 2007
Springfield, MA -- Ann Holland; formerly Director of Organization Development for Balise Motor Sales, currently an adjunct professor at Bay Path College, and previously named one of Coast Magazine’s “Top Women in Business”; has announced her affiliation with Client First Associates, a Springfield-based Organizational Development firm and a Vann Group company.
Client First Associates, founded by Tom Lippie, is a Springfield-based Organizational Development firm that helps companies run better by improving relational and organizational effectiveness. Specifically, the company specializes in organizational conflict resolution, leadership development, strategic facilitation, organizational assessment and design, team building, hiring models, training and employee development, and compensation systems.
Ann has an extensive business background in operations, marketing, and training and development. She holds a Master’s degree in Organizational Management and has received her certification as a business and life coach through IPEC and the International Coaching Federation. Prior to her post at Balise Motor Sales, she was a part of the Executive Management team that led Grand Casinos, Inc. to be named “The Fastest Growing Company in America” (1995) by Fortune magazine. Other positions held include: Deputy City Manager, City of Las Vegas; Sr. VP of Operations, Stratosphere Hotel; Regional VP of Marketing, Grand Casinos, Inc.; as well as owner of several businesses as a consultant, coach, and retail entrepreneur. Ann is also an adjunct professor at Bay Path College in Longmeadow teaching Organizational Behavior.
“We are thrilled to have Ann working with us,” said Tom Lippie, Founder of Client First Associates. “She will be a tremendous asset to our clients and will expand our capacity to serve more companies throughout the region and the country.”
“I am pleased to join forces with Tom Lippie and Client First Associates,” said Holland. We share the same philosophy about organizational effectiveness and customer centricity, and our skill sets are very complementary. I’m also pleased to be affiliated with the Vann Group family of companies.
Client First Associates is owned by the Vann Group, a Springfield-based business advisory firm specializing in helping companies in transition. The firm is run by Kevin B. Vann and Michael K. Vann, long known in the area for their family’s 150+ year history of building, buying, selling and advising businesses.
Business West names Michael Vann to the inaugural class of Forty Under 40
Business West, the leading business journal in Western Massachusetts, named the Vann Group’s Mike Vann, to its inaugural “Forty Under 40” class, a compilation of some of the region’s brightest young rising stars.
The 40 were selected by a distinguished panel that included Debbie Bellucci, dean of Continuing Education and Distance Learning at Springfield Technical College; Russell Denver, president of the Affiliated Chambers of Greater Springfield; and Michael Katz, a partner with the Springfield-based law firm Bacon & Wilson.
