Staff Biographies

The MSBDC Network's Western Regional Office is staffed by professionals with extensive business experience and excellent educational backgrounds.

Dianne Fuller Doherty
Regional Director and Business Advisor

Ms. Doherty is the regional director of the Western Massachusetts Regional Office of the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center Network.

Ms. Doherty served as president and CEO of Doherty-Tzoumas Marketing, a full service, award winning advertising and public relations firm based in Springfield. Prior to that, Ms. Doherty was executive director of Downtown Springfield Marketing, an organization whose mission was to promote downtown Springfield. She was previously employed as New Business director at a Hartford Connecticut advertising agency.

Active in civic affairs in the Greater Springfield area, Ms. Doherty is a founder of the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts, a $6 million endowment to support women and girls, based on the values of the International Women’s Conference in Beijing. Dianne co-chairs the Small Business Strategy team of the Pioneer Valley Plan for Progress, where she was a founding trustee. She chairs the Board of Glenmeadow, a senior housing community in Longmeadow, and is on the board of the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities. She is a board member of Digital Divide Data, a U.S.-based company which offers employment and education to physically challenged in Cambodia and Laos. She is a trustee of Bay Path College, a member of the Development Committee of the Community Foundation of Western Mass and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Grinspoon Entrepreneurial Initiative, a foundation which encourages entrepreneurship among 14 Pioneer Valley Higher Education Institutions.

Ms. Doherty has previously served on the boards of WGBY-TV/Channel 57, the Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield, the World Affairs Council, and the YMCA. She was a recipient of the 2004 Girl Scouts of Pioneer Valley Woman of Distinction award. She is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College and received her MBA from Western New England College.

Lyne J. Kendall
Financial Analyst/Senior Business Advisor

Ms. Kendall has over 15 years of experience in business, assisting companies in all sectors of business from manufacturing to retail and service, and providing financial, marketing and technical assistance. She was director of the Small Business Institute Program at Western New England College and is on numerous committees for local Chambers of Commerce and women’s organizations. Ms. Kendall was part of the adjunct faculty at Western New England College and Holyoke Community College teaching courses in small business finance, marketing, management and how to start your own business. She currently is teaching a course in marketing at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and conducts seminars and workshops in finance, marketing, management and small business start-ups. 

Allen Kronick
Senior Business Advisor

Mr. Kronick has an extensive business background. He has held senior financial and management positions at a Fortune 500 company, worked for one of the “big five” accounting firms, has experience in business turnarounds, and has taught accounting at the State University of New York for several years. He currently is an adjunct faculty member of the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and conducts seminars and workshops in finance, marketing, management, and small business start-ups. Mr. Kronick serves on several community boards including the Advisory Board at the Springfield Enterprise Center and the Western Massachusetts Venture Forum. He is also a past president of the Springfield Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants. Mr. Kronick holds a bachelor’s degree from American International College and an MBA from the University of Connecticut.

Peter Cokotis, PTAC Manager

Mr. Cokotis has over 15 years of contract management experience in the aerospace and defense industry, primarily with United Technologies Corporation. He worked directly on multi-million dollar contracts with the United States Air Force and other Department of Defense agencies as well as major aerospace companies such as Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Orbital Sciences. While working at United Technologies Corporation, Mr. Cokotis was a three-time recipient of the Employee Recognition Award for his dedication and efforts contributed to special projects. He received his MBA from Western New England College and is currently a member of the Association of Government Marketing Assistance Specialists (AGMAS).