I wanted to take an opportunity to inform our loyal readers and business information sources about some changes currently underway in The Business Journal’s newsroom. There have been some personnel changes as well as a new technology partner that will affect the way people interact with our research department.

First, reporter and former researcher Edward Smith has left the company for an opportunity with GV Wire here in Fresno. Smith served the company with distinction for nearly six years, starting as our researcher and reporting on agriculture and real estate — winning several awards along the way.

Ben Hensley will cover his commercial and residential real estate beat in an interim basis, while I will cover his agriculture beat as we search for a new reporter.

Hensley can be reached by phone at 559-490-3461 and by email.

We are also looking to hire a new reporter. If you or someone you know is interested, please contact me at 559-490-3467 or by email.

There’s another change that is more apparent for local businesses that appear in our weekly ranked lists and annual Book of Lists. The Business Journal has signed on with a new technology provider called Legendary Data out of Denver, Colorado, to help us send surveys to thousands of contacts in the Central Valley.

If you are one of the very important people at your company who receive our surveys, the emails you receive may look a bit different moving forward.

We previously used a company called Data Joe for this service for the last 17 years or so. They have been a great partner for us, but we are excited about some of the extra features that will be available through Legendary Data. We look forward to sharing more about them later.

Alex Scott is our current researcher in charge of compiling the information for our lists. She’s also going through a change. As a recent newlywed, she is in the process of changing her name, and will soon be known as Alex Light.

She is the one to contact if your business would like to appear on our lists free of charge. If you operate a business in Fresno, Kings, Madera and Tulare counties, the lists represent a free opportunity to appear in front of thousands of readers in print and online.

Alex can be reached at 559-490-3493 or email. Please see our 2023 Editorial Calendar for a schedule of our upcoming lists.

We are confident these changes will result in a better experience for our business information sources and improved news coverage overall. Thanks for reading!