May 2022 issue of In Business Magazine

MAY 2022

Design for Business: Materials Matter in Combating Climate Change

Our Industrial Market Is How this CRE sector is building jobs & more

Ransomware Readiness and

Recovery

Unique Challenges in

Hiring for Sales

This Month’s Guest Editor

Paul Komadina

Senior Managing Director CBRE Arizona

Powerful

Compensation Strategies $7.95 INBUSINESSPHX.COM

THIS ISSUE Tempe Chamber of Commerce

In Arizona, small business is a big deal.

The Arizona Commerce Authority offers a wide range of programming to support entrepreneurs and small business owners. Find tools to help launch, operate and scale your business with our online, interactive Small Business Checklist. View webinars in our Small Business Bootcamp to help you master everything from finances, to leadership, to business plans. If you want to improve your digital footprint, our Small Business Digital Academy offers hands-on training to help grow your presence online. Plus, we’ll connect you with fellow Arizona business leaders who can share valuable insights and growth strategies to help you find success.

Whether you have questions about getting started or you’re looking for a strategic plan to take your business to the next level, we’re here to help.

azcommerce.com/small-business

something’s different.

Precision. Strength. Artistry. Performing for our clients at the highest level through a nimble and adaptable approach.

Experience the Difference.

WILLMENG.COM | A Z ROC B-01 082904 | AZ ROC A 323741

MAY 2022 GUEST COLUMNISTS

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A Footprint for a Sustainable Future This month spotlighting Footprint, Tyler Butler’s series explores the myriad ways businesses give back and the positive ways their programs impact our community.

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Sizing Up the Competition Don Henninger taps into his deep knowledge of our business community and its leaders in his ongoing Metro feature.

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Materials Matter in Combating Climate Change In the ongoing guest column from Gensler, Kaley Blackstock discusses the ways reuse, locality and smart material selection are critical factors in the building industry.

22 COVER STORY

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Our Industrial Market Is Booming

What’s fueling the explosive activity in commercial real estate’s industrial sector in Greater Phoenix? We also examine examples of projects throughout the Valley, including why those locations were attractive for the project and what the projects bring to the local economy.

FEATURE

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Beyond Cyberattacks: Ransomware Readiness and Recovery

Bryce Austin offers eight do’s and don’ts to help businesses in today’s cyber age.

53

Hiring for Sales ‘Just Doesn’t Work Like That’

Sara Wesche discusses why and how salespeople operate in a uniquely challenging reality.

DEPARTMENTS

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Guest Editor

Briefs

“Lack of Child Care Impacting Arizona’s Post-Pandemic Recover,” “Dailies Top Stories,” “Local Standouts Recognized for Achievements and Philanthropy,” “New High-Vibe Burger Concept in Town” and “Sustainable Earth Platform Empowers Small Business”

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Technology

“Growing Responsive Fundraising at Scale” and “Business Owners Can Reap the Many Rewards of Automating Payables”

43

Books

New releases give fresh insights on business thinking.

44

En Negocios

Feature articles in Spanish and English on Liderazgo / Leadership and Economia / Economy

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Economy

Trisha Talbot discusses medical real estate – why it’s one of the hottest asset classes and some potentially costly mistakes to avoid.

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Legal

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Feedback

By the Numbers

After two years of dismal news, are employee well-being and employer support showing signs of improvement?

MAY 2022

Healthcare

“Well-Being Transformation Initiative in South Phoenix” and “Keep Employees Healthy by Maintaining a Tidy Office”

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16

Tempe Chamber of Commerce

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Paul Komadina., senior managing director of CBRE Arizona, introduces the “Commercial Real Estate” issue.

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From the Top

Jennifer Reynolds, award-winning designer and founder of Ideation Design Group, looks back on her career building one of the design industry’s few woman-owned global design firms.

Attorney Andy Kvesic explores the “new era” for businesses as Arizona opens the door to non-lawyer ownership of law firms.

Mayor Cathy Carlat, Jason Morris and James Murphy respond to In Business Magazine’s burning business question of the month.

PARTNER SECTION

CRE

“Designing for Senior Communities – Revel,” “Camelot Homes Plans Three Luxury Communities in Scottsdale,” “MAK Homes’ New South Mountain Community Celebrates Area History,” “Landsea Homes Breaking Ground on Communities East and West,” “George Oliver’s Arbor to Bring ‘Urban Organic’ to Downtown Tempe” and “Phoenix Data Center Numbers Are High”

Startups

“Connect-UV Sanitizes with the Power of Natural Light” and “Puzzle Rides’ Unique Adventures also Support Other Old-Town Small Businesses”

Nonprofit

Social media challenges make philanthropy accessible for everyone.

57

Assets

2022 Lucid Air Grand Touring Plus: Under-desk fitness equipment can make exercising convenient.

58

Power Lunch

Etta – Hearth-Driven from Kitchen to Dining Room

66

Roundtable

Jake Guttman discusses compensation strategies to attract and retain high-value employees in this era of diminishing workforce.

Cover image: Lot 37 Hangar at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, developed by Wetta Ventures

Demand for industrial space in Phoenix has spiked considerably in recent years, with low vacancies and major investments contributing to the metro’s role as a regional distribution and manufacturing center, according to a recent report from CommercialSearch. commercialsearch.com

Together, we’ll find new possibilities The health and well-being of your employees matters. UnitedHealthcare is here to help you guide them toward brighter days ahead. From finding new ways of controlling costs to connecting them with medical care and mental health support, it’s good to have a health plan that’s on their side — and in your corner.

Learn more at uhc.com

Insurance coverage provided by or through UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company or its affiliates. Administrative services provided by United HealthCare Services, Inc. or their affiliates. Health Plan coverage provided by or through UnitedHealthcare of Arizona, Inc. B2B EI211205447.0 12/21 © 2021 United HealthCare Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 21-1202769-A

Words

OUR CONTENT CREATORS

May 2022

VOL. 13, NO. 5

RaeAnne Marsh Editor, In Business Magazine RaeAnne Marsh became editorial director of Phoenix-based InMedia Company in 2010 and helped launch Valley-wide business resource In Business Magazine. Her journalism career began more than 20 years ago, when she left California and 12 years of teaching to transplant in Phoenix’s vibrant entrepreneurial environment, and includes incorporating her own business, Grammar & Glitz, Inc., through which she has taken writing and editing gigs with business and media clients nationwide.

Holding the magazine to strong editorial standards, she says, “New businesses are founded, out-of-staters bring new strengths, established businesses evolve and expand — all of which contributes to the dynamic vitality that I see as the mission of In Business Magazine to be the voice of and vehicle to nurture, in each monthly edition. It is my challenge to ensure each edition is packed with relevant information on a broad spectrum of issues, aimed at a readership that runs the gamut from entrepreneurial startup to major corporation.”

Edgar R. Olivo Editor, En Negocios

Publisher

Rick McCartney

Editor

RaeAnne Marsh

En Negocios Editor Graphic Design

weekly content for Spanish-preferred small-business owners in Phoenix. As a first-generation Latinx and native-Arizonan, Olivo’s upbringing was filled with similar challenges that Latino communities in Arizona face when they engage with the economy. An entrepreneur and nonprofit executive, he is leading the charge to help strengthen a diverse, inclusive and sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystem in Arizona. His work is nationally recognized for establishing programs that help advance equitable economic recovery, and increase generational wealth for Latinx/Hispanic small business owners in Arizona.

“I believe today is a moment for leading big change. Business ownership is a critical means to build community and individual wealth. I hope my work will demonstrate to the Latino community that the entrepreneur ecosystem in Arizona has their back.”

Benjamin Little

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Bryce Austin

Merilee Kern

Noah Barnett

Curt Kremer

Mark Bauer

Andy Kvesic

Kaley Blackstock

Mark Lawson

Tyler Butler

Holly Morgan

Steve Clemente Taylor Fareri

As editor of the Spanish section of In Business Magazine, Edgar R. Olivo shares

Edgar Rafael Olivo

Jake Guttman

Johnny Palleres Melissa Rein Lively Brad Smith

Don Henninger

Trisha Talbot

Mike Hunter

Sara Wesche

Christine Johnson ADVERTISING Operations Louise Ferrari Business Development Louise Ferrari Cami Shore Events

Amy Corben

Guest columns are feature articles presented as a special, limited series as well as regular, ongoing series in In Business Magazine.

Tyler Butler

Guest Columnist – Social Impact

A long time corporate social responsibility practitioner, Tyler Butler is known for her expertise in creating, launching and developing successful social impact programs. Her commitment

More: Visit your one-stop resource for everything business at inbusinessphx.com. For a full monthly calendar of business-related events, please visit our website.

Inform Us: Send press releases and your editorial ideas to editor@inbusinessphx.com

to rallying people together to make a positive difference has created sustainable signature programs empowering people to give back in a myriad of ways globally. Butler operates under the ethos of “each one teach one,” and so her contributions to In Business Magazine provide her with an outlet to share the best of what companies are doing to aid humanity. Butler looks to shed light on good corporate citizens and share stories about the magic they are creating through their generous outreach efforts.

Joanna C. de’Shay

Guest Columnist – DEI

Joanna C. de’Shay is executive director of Diversity Leadership Alliance, the premiere education training organization in Arizona dedicated to eradicating racism, bias and prejudice. DLA’s goal is to create an inclusive community where each person is equally respected and empowered.

De’Shay is an avid servant leader who was born in Accra, Ghana, on the western coast of Africa to a Nigerian father and a Russian mother. An immigrant herself, she believes in being a part of the solution to disrupt systems and is on a mission to create bridges and partnerships by educating companies, nonprofits and educational organizations on the vital need for diverse voices and fresh perspectives.

Don Henninger

Guest Columnist – Metro

As a 35-year newspaper veteran in Arizona, Don Henninger has always made journalism his passion as well as his career. Facts matter — especially in this day and age — and information is the foundation that enables citizens to be positive participants in their communities at all levels. Henninger has been fortunate to serve as a community leader and continues in that role today as director of the Scottsdale Coalition of Today & Tomorrow, which convenes leaders to work on issues in that city, and as a member of several nonprofit boards in the Valley.

Bruce Weber

Guest Columnist – Capacity

Bruce Weber sees In Business Magazine as a valuable forum for topics relevant to our business and nonprofit community. “I am deeply interested in organizational capacity and what makes organizations successful and impactful in the work they do. In my work in the community for more than 16 years, I have worked with all sizes of organizations and leaders in helping their businesses grow and expand their impact. My previous careers with Microsoft and Hewlett Packard involved working with business integration partners to design strategies to engage new markets. In today’s complex world, I enjoy exploring the possibilities and opportunities that change can bring.”

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MAY 2022

President & CEO Editorial Director Financial Manager Office Manager Accounting Manager

Rick McCartney RaeAnne Marsh Tom Beyer Allie Schimmel Todd Juhl

Corporate Office InMedia Company

45 W. Jefferson Street Phoenix, AZ 85003 T: (480) 588-9505

info@inmediacompany.com

www.inmediacompany.com Vol. 13, No. 5 In Business Magazine is published 12 times per year by InMedia Company. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to InMedia Company, 45 W. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, AZ 85003. To subscribe to In Business Magazine, please send check or money order for one-year subscription of $24.95 to InMedia Company, 45 W. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, AZ 85003 or visit inbusinessphx.com. We appreciate your editorial submissions, news and photos for review by our editorial staff. You may send to editor@inbusinessmag.com or mail to the address above. All letters sent to In Business Magazine will be treated as unconditionally assigned for publication, copyright purposes and use in any publication, website or brochure. InMedia accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or other artwork. Submissions will not be returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope. InMedia Company, LLC reserves the right to refuse certain advertising and is not liable for advertisers’ claims and/or errors. The opinions expressed herein are exclusively those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the position of InMedia.

InMedia Company considers its sources reliable and verifies as much data as possible, although reporting inaccuracies can occur; consequently, readers using this information do so at their own risk. Each business opportunity and/ or investment inherently contains certain risks, and it is suggested that the prospective investors consult their attorney and/or financial professional. ©2022 InMedia Company, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission by any means without written permission by the publisher.

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May 2022 In Business Magazine is a collaboration of many business organizations and entities throughout the metropolitan Phoenix area and Arizona. Our mission is to inform and energize business in this community by communicating content that will build business and enrich the economic picture for all of us vested in commerce.

Kristen Merrifield, CEO

PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits (602) 279-2966 www.arizonanonprofits.org Jess Roman,

Commercial real estate loans Because every detail makes a difference.

Steven G. Zylstra, President & CEO Arizona Technology Council One Renaissance Square (602) 343-8324 www.aztechcouncil.org Doug Bruhnke, Founder & President Global Chamber® (480) 595-5000 www.globalchamber.org

Visit StearnsBank.com/Phoenix Call (480) 314 - 4200

Chief Executive Officer Arizona Small Business Association Central Office (602) 306-4000 www.asba.com

Rosaria Cain, President

Follow us | Member FDIC Equal Housing Lender Anne Gill, President & CEO

NAWBO Phoenix Metro Chapter (480) 289-5768 www.nawbophx.org

Tempe Chamber of Commerce (480) 967-7891 www.tempechamber.org

Our Partner Organizations are vested business organizations focused on building and improving business in the Valley or throughout Arizona. As Partners, each will receive three insert publications each year to showcase all that they are doing for business and businesspeople within our community. We encourage you to join these and other organizations to better your business opportunities.

The members of these and other Associate Partner Organizations receive a subscription to In Business Magazine each month. For more information on becoming an Associate Partner, please contact our publisher at info@inbusinessphx.com.

Ahwatukee Foothills Chamber of Commerce ahwatukeechamber.com

ASSOCIATE PARTNERS Arizona Chamber of Commerce & Industry azchamber.com Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce azhcc.com The Black Chamber of Arizona phoenixblackchamber.com Chandler Chamber of Commerce chandlerchamber.com Economic Club of Phoenix econclubphx.org Glendale Chamber of Commerce glendaleazchamber.org Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce phoenixchamber.com Greater Phoenix Equality Chamber of Commerce gpglcc.org Mesa Chamber of Commerce mesachamber.org North Phoenix Chamber of Commerce northphoenixchamber.com Peoria Chamber of Commerce peoriachamber.com Phoenix Metro Chamber of Commerce phoenixmetrochamber.com Scottsdale Area Chamber of Commerce scottsdalechamber.com Scottsdale Coalition of Today and Tomorrow (SCOTT) scottnow.com Surprise Regional Chamber of Commerce surpriseregionalchamber.com WESTMARC westmarc.org

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PAUL KOMADINA, CBRE ARIZONA

Building Strong

Arizona native Paul Komadina is the senior managing director and market leader of CBRE’s Phoenix and Tucson offices, where he oversees all aspects of CBRE’s Arizona business operations, encompassing more than 1,000 employees.

Komadina drives the overall strategy across all lines of business, including Advisory & Transaction Services, Investment Sales, Debt & Structured Finance, Asset Services, Valuation & Advisory Services and Project Management.

Komadina received his Bachelor of Science in business administration with an emphasis in finance and real estate from the University of San Diego. cbre.com/en

It’s been an industrious season for the industrial sector of Phoenix’s commercial real estate — more than a year that includes record-setting activity and that also bodes well for Phoenix’s employment numbers.

The Phoenix industrial market continues to surpass expectations, setting records for demand and construction only few markets can rival. Increased tenant demand is the biggest driver for industrial success. Local operators are expanding while out-of-state companies look to relocate their business from neighboring states. Competitive operating advantages, proximity to major markets and a growing workforce make the Valley an attractive metro area in which to locate and grow.

While the Valley has traditionally been a hotbed for e-commerce and third-party logistics operators, interest in high-tech manufacturing, to include semiconductor manufacturing and autonomous vehicles, has grown substantially. The diversified market within the industrial space has led to new investments in the Valley that will create new employment opportunities.

The cover story this month spotlights a sampling of industrial projects throughout the Valley. And new projects are announced seemingly every day. Projects range from large-scale campuses for single users, like the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Center in North Phoenix, to speculative developments designed to accommodate a variety of light manufacturing and distribution.

The guest columnist from Gensler examines another aspect of construction. In “Materials Matter in Combating Climate Change,” Kaley Blackstock discusses the role of reuse, locality and smart material selection as factors the design of commercial structures.

Cyberattacks is also an issue of growing concern, with online hacking resulting in malicious viruses threatening business operations. Bryce Austin addresses this important topic in feature article ”Beyond Cyberattacks: Ransomware Readiness and Recovery.”

Some new developments are hitting the business community. One is a rule that allows law firms in Arizona to be owned by non-lawyers. In this month’s Legal feature, Andy Kvesic discusses changes this offers to successful businesspeople who, for instance, can now provide their human capital to law firms and focus on operations, technology and scaling — and suggests this idea may be taken up in other states. And in the Roundtable feature, Jake Guttman suggests creative ways employers can augment wages to compensate high-value employees in today’s competitive employment market.

With the usual range of relevant information for our business community, this May edition of In Business Magazine includes articles on healthcare, technology, new startups, and much more. I’m very pleased to be part of bringing this information to you, and hope you enjoy the read.

EN NEGOCIOS Manténgase informado sobre temas empresariales en español a través de En Negocios, artículos para los lectores de habla hispana en el área metropolitana de Phoenix.

Visite inbusinessphx.com/ ennegocios para más información.

Stay informed on business topics in Spanish through En Negocios, articles for Spanish-speaking readers in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Visit inbusinessphx.com/ ennegocios for more information.

Sincerely,

Paul Komadina Senior Managing Director CBRE Arizona

CONNECT WITH US: Story Ideas/PR: editor@ inbusinessphx.com

A Valley Attraction

Photo courtesy of

No one was sure what the pandemic would do for the commercial

In this issue, we showcase some

real estate sector, but it was all but guaranteed that no one

of the top projects and ask the tough

thought the industrial sector would rebound and break records.

questions to better understand the

It has become the “main attraction.” From investors and builders

“why here?” in all this record-breaking

to manufacturers and tech companies, all are seeking space and

growth. We want to thank Paul for leading this issue. As the area

Greater Phoenix is ground zero. We have seen million-square-foot

lead for CBRE, he is well suited to advise on the entire Valley

projects announced by the truckloads. Many of the projects are

commercial real estate market and has a team that is playing

forward-thinking and innovative new builds that will house local

a major role in the development of industrial properties and

and global corporations — all good for our economic future.

projects.

DON’T MISS OUT!

Get a year of In Business Magazine Subscribe now at inbusinessphx.com

Business Events/ Connections: businessevents@ inbusinessphx.com Marketing/Exposure: advertise@ inbusinessphx.com Visit us online at www.inbusinessphx.com

—Rick McCartney, Publisher

Let us know what you think of this issue of In Business Magazine. Email our publisher at feedback@inbusinessphx.com.

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SPEAKING OUT We’ve seen a recent record boom in industrial property starts and leases throughout Metropolitan Phoenix. Based on the projects you are involved in, what is your view on what is fueling this? How much is being built for anticipated tenancy versus for a specific user (such as TSMC over in Phoenix)?

FEEDBACK QUESTION: Let us know what you want to know from the Valley’s top business leaders. editor@inbusinessphx.com

CATHY CARLAT

JASON MORRIS

JAMES MURPHY

Mayor City of Peoria, Arizona Sector: Government

Partner and Land Use Attorney Withey Morris, PLC Sector: Law

President and CEO Willmeng Construction, Inc. Sector: Construction

The City of Peoria is a thriving, modern community and it is no surprise that businesses and residents continue to be attracted to our top-rated and exceptional quality of life.

The vast majority of new spec industrial construction in the West Valley has been larger distribution facilities, largely driven by consumer buying habits and Arizona’s business-friendly environment. Although spec building construction is outpacing build-to-suit, due to growth in e-commerce and the need for sizable distribution facilities, Peoria is seeing growth in both areas.

FIRMAN Power Equipment, headquartered in Peoria, recently tripled its facility size to meet its distribution and manufacturing needs due to increased global demand. The Peoria Logistics Park, developed by VanTrust Real Estate, is geared toward large, build-to-suit/lease back facilities, while Hopewell Development is planning three new spec buildings geared toward smaller to medium-sized businesses.

Greystar Development is planning new buildings in central Peoria as well, to meet high demand for industrial space, giving the city the opportunity to attract new companies.

The demand is really the culmination of three important factors coinciding at a very fortuitous crossroads for industrial development.

The first and catalytic reason was COVID, which exposed significant deficiencies in our supply chain and our management of goods, components and distribution.

The second factor for this area was massive improvements in the transportation corridors. With the advent of the Loop 303 and the completion of the Loop 202, logistics within the Valley are vastly improved — not only for local delivery, but also as a function of interstate delivery through Arizona. This means Arizona can serve as an effective inland port from California.

And, from a user’s perspective, the five-hour difference in time from Long Beach Port to a Phoenix metropolitan area is miniscule because of the beneficial atmosphere Arizona has created from a tax and labor standpoint.

When you combine all these elements with the availability of industrial land, it’s the perfect storm for industrial development.

You also cannot underestimate the impact of financing, which is readily available for this market sector.

At Willmeng, we’ve been very fortunate to create strong relationships with some long-established developers here in the Phoenix market, as well as national developers who are expanding into Arizona. What’s driving much of the industrial market is the high demand for land, which Phoenix has — at least for now. Building and operating a facility in Arizona is significantly less expensive than coastal markets, so with high demand for large logistics or manufacturing facilities, Phoenix is an ideal location for a company looking to be close enough to the ports and population of Southern California.

Many of the large-scale projects we’ve had the opportunity to work on are speculative and we can’t build them fast enough to keep up with demand.

In fact, a good number of speculative builds are getting leased up so quickly that they turn into build-to-suits before the shell building is complete. There really aren’t any specific users driving this amount of development. We’re seeing a great number of companies expanding into our state and leasing up industrial space that we’ve been fortunate to work on.

City of Peoria, Arizona peoriaaz.gov

For all past Feedbacks go online to inbusinessphx.com and see what Valley executives think on various business topics.

MAY 2022

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Since joining the Peoria City Council in 2005, Cathy Carlat has prioritized fiscal responsibility and government accountability. Elected in 2015 as Peoria’s first female mayor, she remains dedicated to cutting-edge public safety, attracting quality employment that embraces our educated and skilled workforce, and leadership to strategically plan for Peoria’s finest future.

Withey Morris, PLC witheymorris.com Jason Morris is a land use attorney and founding partner of Withey Morris, PLC. His clients include national homebuilders, master-plan developers, commercial-industrial landowners, national retailers and Fortune 100 companies. Morris has been repeatedly recognized as one of the “Best Lawyers in America” by Best Lawyers®, as well as having earned the highest ranking possible (“AV”) by nationally recognized evaluation organization Martindale-Hubbell.

Sign up for the monthly In Business Magazine eNewsletter at www.inbusinessphx.com. Look for survey questions and other research on our business community.

Willmeng Construction, Inc. willmeng.com President and CEO James Murphy joined Willmeng in 1999 as project manager, hired by owner and founder Jack Willmeng. Murphy spent time in every position in the firm, including project manager, estimator and vice president prior to 2006, when he purchased the company. Under Murphy, Willmeng has gone from $10 million a year in projects to more than $1 billion in just over a decade.

QUICK AND TO THE POINT

DAILIES TOP STORIES

‘In Business Dailies’ Most Views Last 30 Days Here are the stories with the most views over the past 30 days (prior to press time) that were features in our In Business Dailies. The In Business Dailies hit email inboxes twice each weekday — at 9:30 a.m. and updated at 4:30 p.m. Sign up today at www.inbusinessphx.com/dailies-signup Economy & Trends | Cover Story | April 2022

Our Bioscience Economy How this sector is transforming who we are

by RaeAnne Marsh “… because Phoenix is so diversified in so many

Photos courtesy of Primrose Schools

Lack of Child Care Impacting Arizona’s Post-Pandemic Recovery Child care is an essential service, and the pandemic has elevated awareness of the importance of quality early education and care to maintaining a thriving economy.

One in three households is struggling to find the child care they need to return to work, according to a recent poll conducted by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Equally alarming, ReadyNation and Council for a Strong America estimate this unmet demand costs the U.S. economy $57 billion each year in lost productivity, earnings and revenue.

Taking a deeper look into the current state of child care in Arizona, a recent U.S. Chamber of Commerce study estimates working parents’ inability to access child care costs the state $1.7 billion annually. The same study states that, 34% of the Arizona workforce polled cited inadequate access to care as the catalyst for a major career change.

An expansion of quality child care offerings is particularly critical in Phoenix, which has experienced a higher population increase than any other major U.S. city over the last decade.

Therefore, the opportunity for individuals to become early education providers and expand their community’s child care options in Arizona has never been greater.

For local business leaders and entrepreneurs who are seeking to make a meaningful investment in their community’s future, a child

industries, the city manager announced last week we have a $76-million surplus this year. We are moving stronger than we ever have before because we’ve focused the last decade on absolute diversification, with biosciences being a leading sector,” said Christine Mackay, community and economic development director at City of Phoenix, in an interview for this story in late February.

Legal & Regulations | Legal | April 2022

Luxury vs. Affordable Multifamily Housing Arizona’s cities should focus on growing both

by Benjamin Graff It may be surprising to hear that a city or community can be opposed to a luxury multifamily development just as strongly as an affordable housing development, but for very different reasons.

care center is an ideal opportunity to meet these growing needs. However, starting from scratch may seem daunting, especially if this is an owner’s first business venture. Pursuing this passion alongside an experienced and accredited education franchise model can ease that fear by offering the right resources and support along the way as a school is brought to life.

Now more than ever, there is a growing need for early education and child care programs.

Education is the backbone of any community and with the help of a leading child care brand recognized by a reputable source like Entrepreneur’s Franchise 500 list, members of the community can accelerate the next generation of Phoenix’s future by investing in becoming a local franchise owner.

—Steve Clemente, president of Primrose Schools, a leading early education provider with nearly 475 locations in 33 states; offering entrepreneurs impactful, innovative business opportunities, the company is projected to open an estimated 25 new locations in 2022.

One in three households is struggling to find the child care they need to return to work, and this unmet demand is estimated to cost the U.S. economy $57 billion each year in lost productivity, earnings and revenue.

Banking & Finance | inbusinessphx.com | April 7 2022

Sarver Retires as Executive Chair of Western Alliance Board, CEO Signs on for Three Years inbusinessPHX.com Western Alliance Bancorporation today announced that Robert Sarver and Steve Hilton will be retiring from their respective roles as Executive Chairman and Director of the Board of Directors of the company and its principal subsidiary, Western Alliance Bank.

Commercial Real Estate & Development | inbusinessphx.com | March 23 2022

Japanese Izakaya Bistro Going in at The Grove, 44th Street and Camelback Development inbusinessPHX.com The new independent restaurant concept Pyro, a

Japanese izakaya bistro, will make its debut as the first dining establishment coming to Red Development‘s The Grove, a $400 million mixed-use destination on the northwest corner of 44th Street and Camelback Road.

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QUICK AND TO THE POINT

Local Standouts Recognized for Achievements and Philanthropy ACHIEVEMENTS

Pomchies a Fastest-Growing Company Pomchies, the Valley-based fashion accessories and facial masks company, ranked No. 5 on the 2022 Inc. Regionals: Southwest list of the fastest-growing private companies. Heather Logan Clark created Pomchies in 2002 out of a desire to utilize the excess unused swimsuit material from her previous swimwear company. With the onset of COVID-19 in 2020, Pomchies launched the nowpopular POM MASK line of comfortable, breathable facial masks in quick response to the immediate need for face coverings. pomchies.com

Footprint Awarded for Sustainable Packaging Breakthrough Footprint, a global materials science technology company focused on creating a healthy planet, was recently recognized with two awards from the Flexographic Technical Association.

Footprint won the Sustainability Excellence Award and the Excellence in Flexographic Printing Award for its shelfstable cup and print-to-fiber technology, a flexographic print process on molded fiber cups. The breakthrough technology allows Footprint to eliminate the need for brands to label their containers with a separate plastic wrapper, which typically then renders the entire package landfill waste. flexography.org • footprintus.com

Delta Dental of AZ’s Customer Call Center Tops in U.S., Canada Delta Dental of Arizona, the state’s largest dental insurance company, has received multiple awards in BenchmarkPortal’s Top Contact Center Contest for its ability to provide superior customer service to its members. In the 2022 competition, Delta Dental of Arizona earned first place in the prestigious “Top Contact Center” category for contact centers with 2 to 49 agents. In addition, Delta Dental’s call center was also awarded “Lowest Abandon Rate” and “Best Agent Retention” titles. benchmarkportal.com • deltadentalaz.com

PHILANTHROPY

Boeing Co. Grants $125K to Phoenix Children’s Homeless Youth Outreach The Boeing Company recently granted $125,000 to Phoenix Children’s Hospital to support the healthcare system’s Homeless Youth Outreach program. This investment will allow HYO to provide primary and preventive medical services to Arizona’s homeless youth population, and is in alignment with Boeing’s mission to support outreach projects that directly improve access to quality health care to historically underserved communities. boeing.com • phoenixchildrens.org

MAY 2022

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Sustainable Earth Platform Empowers Small Business Sustainable Earth, a collaboration between Arizona State University (ASU) and Wells Fargo, aims to make expert-level sustainability news, research, and education relatable and accessible to consumers, small businesses and educators, with the goal of providing ways for them to take direct action toward creating a more sustainable future.

With content produced by ASU researchers and research students, and other sustainability experts, the platform delivers expert knowledge, innovative research, and science-backed curricula to empower ‘everyday’ sustainability through small changes. The content covers a broad range of topics across lifestyle, sustainable business and education and aims to break down the latest trends, research and reports, making the information more accessible and actionable.

“Fundamentals of sustainable supply chains” and courses on CDP reporting (fundamental, intermediate, advanced) are among the nine micro-courses Sustainable Earth currently offers, with more in development now and a goal to continue adding courses.

Says Sustainable Earth Program Manager Katelyn Armbruster, M.Ed., “Countries and global organizations are struggling to meet climate goals, and climate change is becoming a bigger

threat to humankind and the world. Consumers and small businesses want to take action, but it can be a nebulous topic. Sustainable Earth is on a mission to change that.”

The idea for Sustainable Earth came from several teams at ASU doing work to drive the mission of sustainability forward. Realizing they needed a platform to disseminate important research and information coming out of the university and beyond, Sustainable Earth was born. Earlier this year, the Rob & Melani Walton Sustainability Solutions Service team at ASU reimagined the platform, which now features sustainability research, studies, guides, microcourses, student-led innovations, and solutions to inspire daily actions toward sustainability.

To celebrate the innovative solutions small businesses throughout the US are developing to support their communities and the planet, Sustainable Earth has also launched the Sustainable Earth Small Business Awards.

This year’s inaugural program will award more than $50,000 in prize money, with individual award amounts up to $5,000, to 15 US small businesses making strides toward a more sustainable future.

—Mike Hunter Sustainable Earth sustainable-earth.org

New High-Vibe Burger Concept in Town Hamburgers are, arguably, America’s favorite food. And not only can they be served in a variety of sizes, shapes and sandwich accoutrements, they can be found throughout Phoenix in a vast array of restaurant concepts build around creating their own unique vibe to enhance the culinary experience.

Sid’s Garage is the latest restaurant concept to shake things up on our burger scene. The comfort-food concept from Idaho is bringing its high-energy, full-throttle dining (and music) experience to Phoenix at Desert Ridge Marketplace this month.

Innovation is rampant, from shakes and cocktails to the Boss Hog Burger — made with a half-pound Wagyu/Black Angus Snake River Farm patty, 48-hour-roasted pork belly, onion rings and scratch Sriracha-Bourbon sauce — and Sid’s version of bacon and eggs, which

The Sustainable Earth Small Business Awards will provide $50,000 in prize money to small businesses making an impact in sustainability.

includes four pieces candied bacon suspended above two flash-fried deviled eggs with a honey mustard dipping reduction.

The move to Phoenix was an easy choice for owners Will and Nicole Primavera, who share, “Our core beliefs revolve around supporting local in an area where community means so much. We have family who live in Phoenix, and it gave us the opportunity to see what a hot bed of culinary chops the Valley has.”

—Mike Hunter Sid’s Garage sidsgarage.com

Photo courtesy of Sid’s Garage

LOOKING GOOD

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Are We Turning a Corner on Employee Well-Being?

After two years of dismal news, employee well-being and employer support are showing signs of improvement

by Brad Smith

After two years of dismal news about employee well-being, could we be turning a corner? Here at meQuilibrium, we have been tracking changes in well-being on a bi-annual basis since COVID-19 upended our work lives almost two years ago. Trends have been generally dismal: every six months we’ve seen declines in positivity, motivation and increases in burnout and job stress. There have been few bright spots.

However, for the first time since our semi-annual well-being self-checks began in July 2020, our December 2021 self-check data from 6,369 meQuilibrium members shows what might be the beginning of a reversal in what has been a distressing trend in employee well-being.

In all this, data from the December 2021 self-check continue to confirm the value of strong employer support for employee well-being. However, perceived employer support continues to trend downward.

Taken together with the downward trend in employer support, the finding that well-being trends have shown For more than 15 years, Brad Smith, Ph.D., has been telling stories using health data. His career includes roles ranging from policy-focused work with the U.S. Government Accountability Office to evaluation-related work for dozens of state, federal and private-sector clients using health services research methods.

Dr. Smith currently serves as chief science officer at meQuilibrium, leading efforts to harness data to improve the product, enhance reporting to clients and establish the value proposition.

As the experts in the science and application of resilience, meQuilibrium works with employers to help their employees deal with uncertainty and give HR leaders tools to become more resilient organizations. mequilibrium.com

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Well-being Trends: December 2020 – December 2021 Well-Being Indicators

Top Types of Employer Support Valued by

Dec. 2020

Dec. 2021

Burnout

34%

24%

Job stress

28%

21%

Looking forward to holidays

49%

57%

Intent to quit

17%

14%

Motivation

76%

81%

Want to change work-life balance

37%

35%

Somatic symptoms of stress

36%

34%

The Impact of Employer Support on Wellbeing: December 2021 Well-Being Indicators More positive than negative emotions in a day Want to change work-life balance

Not Strongly

Strongly

Supported

Supported

29%

improvements for the first time in two years presents a paradox.

If employer support is so valuable, and employees report feeling less well-supported, how is well-being on the upswing?

Organizations that had solutions in place before the pandemic had the tools to reinforce employee well-being.

After supporting employees strongly during the earliest months of the pandemic, perceived support is likely ebbing because leaders are turning to face the daunting task of re-tooling their organizations in order to remain competitive in a post-COVID landscape. Perceived employer support may also be dropping due to changing employee needs. After navigating the primary and several secondary variant waves of the pandemic, and getting adjusted to new, more flexible ways of working, employees may be feeling better on average while also feeling less in need of employer support. The most important thing leaders can do is keep an eye on trends and adjust accordingly before they become a bigger problem within the organization.

52%

Policies & Actions

employees

Being able to have a flexible work location

52.2%

Managers showing genuine concern for how I was doing

47.9%

Being able to have a flexible work schedule

45.2%

Communication about the pandemic and safety

35.8%

precautions More company holidays where everybody is off work

13.8%

Reimbursement or funding for a home office

13.8%

New tools for virtual collaboration with teams

11.2%

Expanded access to in-person mental health

7.2%

counseling Extended or expanded family leave policies

6.0%

New ways to get to know co-workers

5.6%

(virtual social gatherings, happy hours) More information to help me understand my

3.8%

employee benefits 47%

29%

Burnout

34%

18%

Job stres

29%

17%

Motivation

74%

85%

Intent to quit

21%

10%

Virtual mental health counseling

3.3%

Other

2.3%

Expanded support for children

0.9%

(e.g., reimbursement, care coordinators) Support for virtual schooling/tutoring

0.7%

Source: www.mequilibrium.com/resources/employee-wellbeing-support-turnaround

Compared to those who do not feel supported, well-supported employees are more positive, in better work-life balance, less burned out, less likely to suffer from job stress, more motivated and half as likely to quit.

ENTREPRENEURS & INNOVATORS

Puzzle Rides’ Unique Adventures also Support Other Old-Town Small Businesses Katie and Gregg Dufort created Puzzle Rides, a mobile escape room-style scavenger hunt, in the middle of the pandemic. When their Old Town golf cart taxi service got shut down in 2020 because of coronavirus, the couple pivoted to bring one-of-a-kind experiences to the city. Puzzle Rides is an adventure game where players are taken on a scavenger hunt via golf cart and must use teamwork to solve a series of puzzles before time runs out. Like an escape room, players only have a limited amount of time to reach their final destination.

The adventures are much more than a game. Katie’s background led her to include historical facts about Scottsdale in the clues, so locals and tourists learn something new about the city. But the couple took things one step further. As a mom-and-pop operation themselves, they felt first-hand the economic blow of the pandemic and the nonexistent tourism season in 2020. Knowing their fellow local business owners were suffering as well, the Duforts decided to include more than 20 locally owned shops on their Puzzle Rides routes to bring new people and potential customers through their doors.

From family-friendly adventures to adults-only rides, participants in Scottsdale find themselves searching for hidden clues at The Spice & Tea Exchange, Giligan’s, The Rusty Spur, The Museum of the West, Rack Pool Hall, Taj Mahal, Zoolicans, Philadelphia Sandwich Company, Boondocks, Bevvy, Kelly’s at Southbridge, RockBar, Wasted Grain, Scapegoat Beer & Wine, BS West, Craft 64, Coach House, Goldwater Brewing, Porter’s Western Saloon and Pattie’s.

The partnerships have proven to be wildly successful and continue to evolve. When Puzzle Rides launched in July of 2020, only four signature mobile escape room-style scavenger hunts were available. Today, Puzzle Rides offers more than 13 rides and new adventures are being added at every turn in Old Town Scottsdale and Historic Downtown Prescott.

—Holly Morgan Puzzle Rides puzzlerides.com

In February 2021, Connect-UV donated three charging carts to Notre Dame Prep to help keep students and staff protected from dangerous germs. The charging carts are in the school’s computer lab, where they clean and charge laptops, tablets and keyboards between uses.

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Nic Brown founded Connect-UV in March 2020 in direct response to the COVID pandemic and the need to keep people safe from dangerous germs. Connect-UV provides UV-C sanitation products for consumers and businesses. UV-C is naturally occurring light that is filtered by our ozone layer. The wavelength of the light destroys the DNA of microorganisms including viruses, bacteria, and mold spores.

“I first learned about UV-C when I was researching solutions for cleaning car interiors for my detailing company, Dr. Shine My Ride,” Brown relates. “When the pandemic hit, I realized that UV-C could be a crucial component to helping people get back to normal.”

The technology has been used in hospitals and water purification for nearly a century. Our products help bring UC-V into the home and office. We offer small, desktop sanitizing chargers for phones, air purifiers, charging lockers, charging carts, and full room sanitizers.

One big challenge Brown faced in starting and growing the company has been educating consumers and companies on how UV-C works — and gaining trust that his products utilize real UV-C lights. “The glut of fake UV-C products capitalizing on COVID to make a quick buck has been harmful to companies

like ours in this regard,” he shares. Another challenge comes, perhaps surprisingly, from his belief that everyone and all companies can benefit from clean air, surfaces and electronics, because that, he explains, “can make it difficult to focus on specific industries to get a foothold.”

The other challenge he names has been balancing building a company with schoolwork. “I’m still a high school senior,” he says. He credits his family for their great help. “My mom, Wendy, is the company CEO; my uncle Tom is leading business development; and my dad, Eddie, is our biggest cheerleader.”

In founding Connect-UV, Brown has put into play advice that he values: “If you have a good idea, act on it. Don’t sit back and allow others to succeed where you could have.”

—RaeAnne Marsh Connect-UV connectuv.com

Knowing their fellow local business owners were suffering from the pandemic just as they were, golf cart taxi service operators Katie and Gregg Dufort decided to include more than 20 locally owned shops on their Puzzle Rides routes to bring new people and potential customers through their doors.

Photos courtesy of Puzzle Rides (top), Connect-UV (bottom)

Connect-UV Sanitizes with the Power of Natural Light

PROPERTY, GROWTH AND LOCATION

GET REAL

by Mike Hunter

Camelot Homes Plans Three Luxury Communities in Scottsdale Camelot Homes recently closed on the purchase of three parcels of land in Scottsdale, with plans to break ground this year on three

Images courtesy of Private Label International (left), Camelot Homes, MAK Homes, Landsea Homes (right, top to bottom)

Designing for Senior Communities: Revel

Six years ago, we began concepting a new type of senior community with the goal of reinventing the look and feel of senior living. We started the process by reading Healing Spaces by Dr. Esther Sternberg and diving into the psychographics of the boomer subgenerations. Our research could be summed up in a couple of key items: The generations that are arguably the most interesting in our society were being reduced to a dangerous stereotype, and senior living spaces, when designed strategically, can help prolong the “active” years of aging.

When we speak of dangerous stereotypes in design, we are referring to outdated mindsets that can hinder our thought process and block our ability to provide appropriate solutions. Sergei Scherbov, deputy director at The International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, pointedly said, “What we think of as old has changed over time, and it will need to continue changing in the future as people live longer, healthier lives.”

When designing for seniors, we have approached the process like we would for any other demographic, while being especially mindful of universal design and classic aesthetics.

An example of this is the brand we created with The Wolff Company called “Revel.”

Revel Communities focus on independence, connection and wellness. Each property is built from the ground up, offering tailored lifestyles to fit each resident with wellthought-out units and strategic, high-end amenities. They all feature a farm-to-table restaurant, bar/lounge and a lobby lounge, as well as core health amenities such as a wellness spa, fitness center and salon. In more recent Revel communities, each property features a flex amenity that is unique to each location, such an ice cream parlor or convenience market. The approach to accessibility was to incorporate it into the design in a way that felt natural and inclusive as opposed to clinical and exclusive, to allow the spaces to feel ageless and comfortable for all residents and their guests. Materials were specifically selected to appeal to all ages as well as aid in memory retention, wayfinding, comfort and sense of place.

A concept that was also introduced as part of the Revel brand is a resident senior program, the first of its kind for senior living properties. As part of the program, residents can choose a three- or six-month stay at any of the other Revel locations in a furnished, pet-friendly, one-bedroom apartment, like an Airbnb experience. This allows the residents a safe and familiar way to travel.

When addressing senior living, there are many different types of properties with varying levels of medical needs. However, we strongly feel that these residents deserve to age gracefully and the design of the spaces they spend their time in should be as interesting and culturally rich as they are.

—Christina Johnson, the creative director of Phoenix- and San Francisco-based Private Label International (privatelabelintl.com), a full-service interior design studio that develops hospitality environments and lifestyle brand experiences for clients worldwide

new luxury gated enclaves with a combined total of 29 homes: Aura, on 8.5 acres at the southeast corner of 128th Street and Shea Boulevard; The Collection, on 4.7 acres at the northeast corner of 74th Street and Valley View Road; and Legacy at D.C. Ranch, on 3.1 acres that is the last remaining residential parcel in the DC Ranch Masterplan. camelothomes.com

MAK Homes’ New South Mountain Community Celebrates Area History Designed by MAK Homes, Heard Farm is an intimate 24-home community offering modern farmhouse- styled homes focused on sustainable living and intently echoing the agricultural history of this property. The five unique home designs of Heard Farm are in direct response to the agricultural context of the South Mountain area focusing on simplicity and elegance. The Heard Farm home design takes full advantage of the views to South Mountain and its adjacent farmland, giving a significance and sense of place for the community. heardfarm.com

Landsea Homes Breaking Ground on Communities East and West Landsea Homes recently broke ground on three new communities in Arizona: El Cidro in Goodyear, 201 homes featuring the small-town charm of single-family homes; Rev at Eastmark, offering 90 modern single-family homes in Landsea Homes’s newest neighborhood in the Eastmark master plan in Mesa; and The Villages at North Copper Canyon in Surprise, 315 one- and two-story single-family homes. landseahomes.com

New in Scottsdale, Revel Scottsdale and Revel Legacy are scheduled to open this summer; Private Label International is in the final stages of installation at these two Revel Communities.

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PROPERTY, GROWTH AND LOCATION

George Oliver’s Arbor to Bring ‘Urban Organic’ to Downtown Tempe Downtown Tempe is one of the nation’s most dynamic office markets and the perfect location for the Arbor’s hightouch design concept and unmatched amenity base. It is exactly what users are asking for as they reoccupy their office spaces. We pulled great inspiration from the Mill Avenue landscape for our development and will be including Instagram artwork features and a signage package that ties into the energy of the urban landscape.

Arbor broke ground in Q4 last year; upon its completion in Q3 this year, Arbor will transform the landmark Hayden Station mixed-use property in downtown Tempe into a one-of-a-kind office and retail destination. With a total 124,189 square feet in four two-story, mixed-use office-and-retail buildings and a five-story office building. Arbor’s “Urban Organic” design theme will balance a natural material palette and indooroutdoor environments. Heavy project amenities will include a lounge with collaborative seating, a test kitchen, cocktail bar and virtual darts; a wellness center featuring meditation pods; a mother›s room; secure indoor bike storage; and a well-equipped fitness room that will include towel service and spa-inspired showers. It will also include a 50-person indoor training room, small and large outdoor conference rooms/cabanas, a rooftop networking patio, yoga garden, dog patio and game areas — all enhanced with hanging daybeds, fireplaces and seating.

Arbor will deliver all the comforts people have grown to love in their home office while also giving them the perfect canvas for safe on-site team collaboration in exceptional meeting areas and workspaces. This will give tenants at Arbor a tremendous advantage in a marketplace where flex schedules and back-to-work programs are requiring a new level of attention to employee recruitment and retention. Arbor’s urban organic design concept will reimagine the best aspects of this property to create the kind of tasteful park setting found at a high-end resort.

—Curt Kremer, managing partner at George Oliver (georgeoliver.com)

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Phoenix, which has been one of the nation’s strongestperforming data center markets for the past many years, continues to shine. Thanks to our booming population, a mix of cloud, social media and technology companies are all vying for space here. This keeps demand always ahead of supply, even within the Valley’s significant inventory of Class A data center product.

This ongoing demand has ranked Phoenix second in the U.S. for data center demand, third in the U.S. for data center job growth and fourth in the U.S. for data center construction activity, according to JLL’s recently released Data Center Outlook report.

Major industry players like Align, NTT, QTS, Compass, CyrusOne, Stream, Iron Mountain and EdgeCore are filling space as quickly as it completes, and new demand continues to emerge from not only the entities noted above but also the financial services, healthcare and software sectors.

With this steady influx of large-scale, multi-site requirements, colocation developers and operators are continuing to expand their footprints with secondary locations throughout Metro Phoenix. As of the start of 2022, the Valley had a total inventory of just over 5.1 million square feet (472 megawatts) of data center space. Over the next several years,

planned construction to the tune of almost 5.8 million square feet (883 megawatts) will more than double that. Look for most of this growth to be in the East Mesa data center cluster and the Glendale-Goodyear area.

For data center users, the message is clear: Be swift with deal execution, because there are likely multiple users pursuing the same inventory. For buyers, it is a game of go big or go home. Because if you build it, they will come.

—Mark Bauer, a managing director with JLL in Phoenix and co-leader with its Data Center Solutions group who has two decades of experience in the data center and colocation industry us.jll.com/en/trends-and-insights/research/data-center-outlook

Roughly 21 million square feet of new office space and 15 million square feet of retail space have been built in Phoenix over the last decade. The Phoenix metro self-storage sector grew exponentially as well, with 11.9 million square feet added to the local inventory over the last decade. More than 1.5 million square feet of self-storage space was added in 2021 alone. storagecafe.com/blog/the-most-active-real-estate-markets-in-the-last-decade

Photos courtesy of George Oliver (top), JLL (bottom)

Phoenix Data Center Numbers Are High

MINDING THEIR BUSINESS

Jennifer Reynolds, Building Success in the Design Industry Award-winning designer and founder of Ideation Design Group looks back on her career building one of the design industry’s few woman-owned global design firms

DESIGN BY DESIGN • Ideation Design Group is a Phoenix-based commercial design firm with global influence.

IDG has completed projects in 48 states and nearly around the entire the globe with work the firm has done to reimagine the dining and shopping experience for airport consumers. The firm has worked on projects in Mexico, China, South America, the Middle East and London.

• The firm works with some of the biggest and best brands in the world, a few of which are Starbucks, Panera, True Food Kitchen, Universal Studios, Bar Louie, Cabo Wabo Cantina, Beekman 1802 and MAC Cosmetics.

• IDG is DBA-certified and one of the few womanowned design firms in the country.

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Since 2004, Ideation Design Group has partnered with the world’s largest brands to execute their vision into functional works of art that deliver innovation through design. At the helm is Jennifer Reynolds, a design industry dynamo responsible for building the powerhouse firm from the ground up.

Her illustrious career can be summed up in two words: passion and perseverance. Reynold’s spent the early part of her career working for high-profile design firms. As a young mom with an 18-month-old, Reynolds made the choice to take a year off from work and move to Oklahoma with her husband.

That didn’t last long as old clients called to check in — letting her know they missed working with her and offering her work.

Thus, Reynolds began consulting from her two-bedroom apartment in Oklahoma. Little did she know it was a decision that would change the course of her career and life.

Eventually, the opportunity presented itself to come back to Phoenix. But starting out here, she says she had to get creative. “I bartered for an office space with a custom fabricator I did some design for,” she recalls. She had gotten in touch with her old boss, and they agreed to partner. “We set up shop in this single office, bought computers, supplies and did our first project, an RFP for Minneapolis St. Paul Airport.“ Perhaps best known for her iconic restaurant designs, she is on speed dial for more than a few celebrity investors and top chefs as the trusted visionary behind some of the most wildly creative, visually-stimulating and most successful restaurant concepts and brands in the world.

One such client is an actual rockstar — Sammy Hagar, recognized for more than 40 years as one of the best and most accomplished lead singers and songwriters in rock music, best known as the front man for the legendary band Van Halen. As he’s built a multi-million-dollar restaurant empire, Reynolds has been the designer by his side, having been introduced by a former client.

“The thing about working for Sammy is that he has bones, a history. Not only with the Cabo Wabo Cantina but his liquor brands, too. So, the vison was to take some elements and revive them, interpret them into a beach bar or a sports bar and build on the Sammy brand,” Reynolds relates. For the beach bar in Maui, for instance, she used Sammy’s vision and hired an artist (Sammy’s son) to create a custom mural of Cabo San Lucas. “It personalized the space and gave it a touch of Sammy.

Having Sammy’s son involved also gave a special touch and real connection to the space that really resonated with Sammy and customers alike.”

Reynolds works on a philosophy of doing whatever it takes. “Part of that goes to the idea that there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do if it needed to be done,” she says, “and that is how our team is, too. I have installed chairs at a restaurant on Christmas eve, I have put someone on a plane across country to deliver a package, I have supported a client when they needed my help but had to pay in installments. That is how we have steered the firm. You do whatever it takes,” she says.

As a woman in a male-dominated field, Reynolds has spent decades enduring the challenges female executives face while breaking through the ever-reappearing glass ceiling, so building up other women in the design industry is important to her. “We try to be cognizant of that element [woman-owned businesses] when hiring and working. Of course, we go with the best and most qualified, but the question I ask myself always is, ‘Is this someone we can lift up?’” she says.

Reynolds also credits the power of mentorship in her rise to success and believes it’s an important role for her to fill. “I like teaching people and guiding them in good design, good decisions and good business,” she says. And helping others develop their skills, she believes, keeps her own skills sharp.

It’s fitting that Reynolds has grown into the role as an inspiring business leader with ease and grace. Growing up, she idolized her own mother’s unique ability to connect with people with her warm and friendly energy. “My mother was one of the most likeable people and I have never met anyone who didn’t love her. She was a strong leader and a role model. She was respected. It was through her calm demeanor that she conveyed her emotions and she never made a distinction between being a strong female leader or a strong male leader. She simply led by example. That is what I try to do,” Reynolds said.

“My philosophy is to treat people like they want to be treated and they will come back,” Reynolds says. “It’s such a simple philosophy, but it absolutely works.”

Ideation Design Group ideationdg.com

The U.S. interior design industry market was worth $40.7 billion in 2020.

After a post-pandemic resurgence, the industry growth rate is expected to skyrocket by nearly 15% in 2022, according to Allied Market Research.

Photo courtesy of Ideation Design Group

by Melissa Rein Lively

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YOUR BENEFIT IN BUSINESS

WELL WELL WELL

Well-Being Transformation Initiative in South Phoenix Equality Health Foundation, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Arizona, and Valley of the Sun United Way recently launched a new Blue Zones Activate effort, a comprehensive policy-based initiative that uses an evidence-based approach to make the healthy choice the easy choice in all the places people spend the most time.

The 15-year gap in life expectancy between South Phoenix and North Scottsdale has been exacerbated

by COVID. Blue Zones Activate begins with the Blue Zones team providing an in-depth assessment of the South Phoenix area that will help determine how to make it a healthier place to live, work and thrive.

Blue Zones employs a proven solution in collaboration with communities to help people live better and longer. The company’s work is based on research and principles developed by Dan Buettner, National Geographic Fellow and New York Times bestselling author, who identified the cultures of the world — or blue zones — with the healthiest, longest-living populations.

Data published by the Centers for Disease Control shows that where people live has greater influence on health than genetics. According to a study by the Virginia Commonwealth University and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, depending on where a person lives in Phoenix, life expectancy ranges from 71 to 85 years; many of the zip codes with the lowest life expectancies in the region are in South Phoenix.

Blue Zones tackles this “zip code effect” using scientifically proven lessons of longevity, health and happiness gleaned from 20 years of research to boost the well-being of entire communities.

The first phase is a community and leadership readiness and prospective transformation feasibility assessment by the Blue Zones team, made up of global experts in food systems, built environment, tobacco, alcohol, health equity, workforce development and happiness. Blue Zones experts will then work with leaders and residents to build a solution and evidence-based plan for change that can drive widespread improvements in well-being, reductions in health-related costs, and improve economic vitality in the region. —Mike Hunter bluezones.com/activate-south-phoenix

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Keep Employees Healthy by Maintaining a Tidy Office In nearly all work environments, there are two types of desks: the ones that are clean and organized, and others that have papers and leftover food wrappers cluttering the desktop.

A dirty office can lead to a loss in productivity as employees worry about their health and lose focus on their daily tasks.

The average office keyboard has 400 times more bacteria on it than a toilet, according to the National Center of Health. These bacteria are usually harmless; however, if an employee does get sick it means the business will suffer, as the person has to take time off to recover.

Here are three additional areas to focus on when cleaning the workplace.

Clean the door handles. One of the mostoften-overlooked places in the office where it comes to cleaning are the door handles. As one of the most-touched places in the office, door handles harbor bacteria and viruses that lead to illnesses. According to a study by the American Society for Microbiology, “Using disinfecting wipes containing quaternary ammonium compounds registered by EPA as effective against viruses like norovirus and flu, along with hand hygiene, reduced virus spread by up to 80 to 99 percent.”

Office cleaning should include wiping down door handles throughout the office with disinfectant spray or wipes on a regular basis, at least three times per week.

Clean the office equipment. It’s important to regularly clean office equipment used by everyone. This includes phones, printers and computer devices, especially the mice. These areas accumulate dust and bacteria quickly. Dust

The average office keyboard has 400 times more bacteria on it than a toilet, according to the National Center of Health.

build-up on these machines can lead to them breaking down.

Dusting and disinfecting these devices on a regular basis, at least three times per week, will help keep the employees safe.

Office chairs, especially adjustable chairs, have many nooks and crannies where dust, lint, crumbs and hair can accumulate. The accumulation of organic material can lead to the formation of bacteria that may cause illness. These should be wiped down at least once a week, making sure to get in all the crevices.

Clean the bathroom. If the office bathrooms are not regularly and thoroughly cleaned, illnesscausing germs can build up and spread. Along with keeping employees safe from bacteria, the office bathroom says a lot about the business.

According to a 2017 Hand Washing Survey

by Bradley Corporation, 89% of Americans believe the condition of the office bathroom is a key indicator of how a company values its employees.

Businesses should have the bathrooms cleaned multiple times per week if not every day, making sure the cleaning service hired uses disinfectants and wipes down all surfaces, including stall doors, soap dispensers, faucets, sinks, floors and mirrors.

By cleaning the workplace on a regular basis, such as with a commercial cleaning business that can clean it on a fixed schedule, businesses improve the focus and well-being of their employees.

— Johnny Palleres, owner of Phoenix-based DLR Commercial Cleaning (www.dlrcommercialcleaning.com), which has serviced more than 500 clients in the Greater Phoenix area

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678790-20

LIFE CAN CHANGE PRETTY QUICKLY. LET US HANDLE THE OTHER STUFF, SO YOU DON’T MISS WHAT MATTERS MOST.

INNOVATIONS FOR BUSINESS

Business Owners Can Reap the Many Rewards of Automating Payables

TECH NOTES

Growing Responsive Fundraising at Scale We created Virtuous in 2014 to provide nonprofit organizations with a platform to grow generosity and build donor relationships through responsive fundraising. We’ve since become the fastest-growing nonprofit CRM and have been adding more tools to the platform to support the entire giving experience, whether that’s with a donor or a volunteer.

Most giving is driven by a personal connection to a cause or mission. The problem is many nonprofits struggle to create this type of personal connection with donors at scale. Most organizations remain handcuffed to traditional fundraising models that are largely impersonal simply because they don’t have the systems in place that enable a personal connection to their entire donor base. Instead, major donors tend to receive high-touch, personal experiences and the rest get the standard monthly email or appeal.

But donor expectations have changed over the past 15 years. Donors have grown accustomed to deeply personalized experiences provided by their favorite brands, news feeds and mobile apps. They have come to crave this type of personalization from the nonprofit organizations they choose to support. When donors don’t feel like a valued part of the organization, they will move on. In fact, the average nonprofit loses 76% of donors after that first gift is given.

Most nonprofit leaders and fundraisers recognize the need to shift to align with donor expectations, but many still struggle to leverage tactics that cultivate rich relationships with non-major donors.

But generosity is about so much more than dollar amounts. “Every day” loyal donors are valuable and champion the cause to the broader community.

The bottom line is today’s givers expect a personalized connection with the organizations they care about ­— and rightly so. But delivering that experience at scale is a challenge without the right tools in place. —Noah Barnett, CMO at Virtuous (www.virtuous.org) — a technology company committed to helping nonprofits grow generosity — and host of its Responsive Fundraising podcast

MAY 2022

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INBUSINESSPHX.COM

The accounts payable (AP) process can look very different depending on the size and nature of an organization. Especially if a business is experiencing growth, is in the middle of a busy season, or working to close out annual reporting, the thought “There must be an easier way to do this” has probably been discussed.

Or an organization may be preparing a budget and business strategy for the new year and looking for ways to optimize the administrative team and lower operational costs. When looking for how and what to optimize, the AP workflow process is often overlooked.

Fortunately, there’s a solution. Utilizing an existing accounting/ERP system, a business can enhance and automate the AP processes using an invoice-to-payment automation technology platform. Traditional AP processes are often manual, paper-based and not organized for growing businesses. These tech platforms can automate the AP process, connecting with accounting systems already in use. Such a platform offers an affordable, integrated and secure endto-end solution that streamlines the process, and provides greater control over workflows and cash management capabilities.

Here are five reasons a business should consider automatic accounts payable through the use of technology: Automating payables means the internal team will have more time to dedicate to critical business matters. Whether solely responsible for a business’s payment processes or a business owner juggling several day-to-day operational tasks, the manual process of routing and entering paper invoices takes time away from other business matters.

Enjoy increased control and increased rebates. A larger monthly rebate generated from a business’s credit card spend can be expected, which in turn helps convert the AP department into a revenue generator. With technology in place, significant savings can be achieved on normal AP costs. With improved efficiency and methodic systemization, the business or organization will have greater control over outgoing cash flow.

Automated payables eliminate the need for paper checks. This allows a CFO/owner to sign checks digitally. This flexibility and convenience not only benefits executives who are

frequently out of the office due to business travel or client meetings, but also enables easier digital record keeping. Instead of executives needing to spend time tracking down the necessary approvals, the technology platform helps manage approvals and notifies the required individuals when their action is required.

The platform directly integrates with the business’s bank and allows for direct payment to vendors. Conveniently, there is no need for intermediary payment accounts, which lowers a business’s risk of falling victim to online fraud. Because of the way transactions are generated and thanks to the integration with fraud protection tools like Check Positive Pay and ACH Positive Pay, the risk of online payments fraud is mitigated and the business is better protected.

Tech platforms often have experienced financial services teams managing them. A dedicated team can work with a business to set up and integrate the existing process and structure and can provide service to unique needs.

A quality financial services institution should serve as a partner to a business. When possible, owners and executives should explore the technology available to assist in automating accounts payable processes. This should include taking an inventory of current systems and processes and asking questions about what opportunities might exist to handle financial needs in a more efficient and cost-effective manner.

—Mark Lawson, SVP, director of treasury management at Enterprise Bank & Trust (www.enterprisebank.com)

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Each team member’s commitment to client relationships takes them beyond business achievement to create a passion for shaping the future. Partner with the innovative professionals at Colliers who dream big and see what could be.

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Bev Jensen Regional Operations Manager

Accelerating success.

Our Industrial Market Is

BoomIng! How this CRE sector is building jobs & more

by RaeAnne Marsh

Valley industrial projects have become much more elaborate and include many more amenities. See a few key projects listed by area of the Valley — north, east, west and south.

Lot 37 Hangar at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, developed by Wetta Ventures

“We are seeing an industrial technologies renaissance, led by semiconductor companies like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company building a massive campus in north Phoenix and Intel expanding with Fab 52 and Fab 62 in the southeast Valley that are driving a whole ecosystem of investment,” says Chris Camacho, president and CEO of Greater Phoenix Economic Council. He notes we also have such stalwart industries as e-commerce and industrial manufacturing as well as distribution moving into the southwestern U.S., pointing out that Greater Phoenix is the number two growing market for industrial development, behind only Dallas-Fort Worth.

“We’re a large-scale market where people want to be, from a lifestyle perspective to pro-business policies, the region is home to a collaborative and supportive ecosystem that has embraced growth and we’re seeing the results of that today in terms of industrial demand.”

Industrial manufacturing has, historically, been a huge contributor to Greater Phoenix jobs, and Camacho points to the 138,000 manufacturing jobs in the region now and continuing growth in advanced manufacturing.

Employment in this sector is expected to increase faster in Greater Phoenix than in any other competitor markets, adding 5,400 jobs over the next five years. “Of the 250 companies from various sectors in GPEC’s business pipeline actively evaluating Greater Phoenix for expansion — representing a potential regional investment of $90 billion and 49,000 new jobs — 177 of those companies are industrial,” Camacho says, adding, “With 30,000 students enrolled in engineering programs across Arizona and investments in STEM education being made across Greater Phoenix, the pipeline of talent feeding into this ecosystem will fuel this growth for years to come.”

Sandra Watson, president and CEO of Arizona Commerce Authority, reports that in 2021 alone, the ACA successfully won more than 90 competitive projects from companies that committed to creating more than 23,500 projected new jobs while investing more than $27 billion in the state. Some notable projects are Intel’s $20 billion expansion in Chandler, KORE Power’s battery manufacturing facility in Buckeye, ElectraMeccanica’s electric vehicle assembly facility in Mesa and United Aviate Academy’s training facility in Goodyear; the state also scored CP Technologies’ North American headquarters in Prescott and Leonardo Electronics’ semiconductor laser manufacturing facility in Tucson.

“Workforce development is a top priority as more companies are establishing a presence or expanding in Arizona,” Watson says, citing as example Drive48, an automotive assembly training faculty in Coolidge, a

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unique collaboration among government, industry and academia to bolster Arizona’s workforce training efforts. “The ACA worked with Lucid and Central Arizona College to launch Drive48 in 2021, and since then, 1,700 Lucid employees have been trained through Drive48.”

According to a report from CommercialSearch last month, Phoenix was only slightly behind Dallas-Fort Worth for projected industrial completions (36.3 million square feet and 38 million square feet, respectively, currently under construction), about 10 million square feet ahead of Indianapolis, Inland Empire and Chicago and well ahead of the other cities in the nation’s top 20 industrial markets. In fact, demand for industrial space in Phoenix has spiked considerably in recent years, with low vacancies and major investments contributing to the metro’s role as a regional distribution and manufacturing center.

CBRE’s Phoenix Industrial Market report for Q1 2022 cites 38 buildings delivered in that quarter, totaling 8.0 million square feet — more than half the total delivered in all of 2021 (14.1 million square feet). At the same time, net absorption hit 8.9 million square feet, which the report notes is a record high level of net absorption recorded in a single quarter for Metro Phoenix.

According to CBRE’s report, construction activity remained strong, with 26.6 million square feet under construction to start 2022. We can expect to see a high volume of construction continue through 2022. Out of all under-construction product, 17.7 million square feet, or 66.5%, is in the Southwest Valley. Construction activity is exploding in the Southeast Valley as well, specifically in the Phoenix Mesa Gateway area where 5.3 million square feet is expected to come online in the future. Currently, 35.2 % of the product under construction is committed, showing how much demand there is in the market for new construction.

Colliers in Arizona’s Q1 2022 industrial market report for Phoenix also examines the sector’s impact on jobs. According to Collier’s report, Phoenix’s industrial labor market is running parallel to its commercial growth, which “remains red hot and consistently performs better each quarter.” As of February of this year, Metro Phoenix had grown its labor force by 89,600 employees over February of last year, a 4.1% increase. Over the same period, transportation, warehousing and utilities supersector jobs increased by 40.3%, manufacturing jobs by 3.9% and construction jobs by 3.0%.

Arizona Commerce Authority azcommerce.com CBRE cbre.com Colliers in Arizona colliers.com/en/united-states/cities/phoenix CommercialSearch commercialsearch.com Greater Phoenix Economic Council gpec.org

INBUSINESSPHX.COM

NORTH TSMC Arizona [Image courtesy of TSMC]

Location: North Phoenix Project start: April 2021 Project completion: Operations will start in 2024 Project cost: TSMC announced in May 2020 that it plans to spend $12 billion on leading-edge semiconductor fab in Phoenix, Arizona.

“The Arizona state government, the Phoenix Mayor’s office, as well as the Arizona Commerce Authority and the Greater Phoenix Economic Council were excellent resources to us in our evaluation of the state.

They have been very supportive and enthusiastic about our planned growth in Arizona,” says a TSMC spokesperson, citing, in addition to strong state incentives, investment options (such as land, green energy) and also effective and efficient labor and environmental regulatory management policies aligned with science-based global benchmarks.

“Another attractive feature of Arizona was the existing semiconductor supplier infrastructure. The greater Phoenix area also offered our employees strong quality-of-life factors, ranging from cost of living, good weather, social and outdoor activities and high-quality K-12 and higher education programs.”

TSMC purchased a plot of land that was more than 1,100 acres. According to the TSMC spokesperson, the company has only confirmed plans to build this currently under-construction five-nanometer semiconductor fab. A “fab” (short for fabrication) is a very unique type of building. It is a massive complex that runs day and night. The cleanrooms within TSMC’s GigaFabs in Taiwan are about 25 standard soccer fields in size. Some of the equipment can weigh up to 60 tons.

“The project will create approximately 2,000 new high-tech jobs and generate thousands of additional jobs in the state for suppliers and other companies within the semiconductor industry,” says the spokesperson, and notes that, in addition, this project is expected to influence the expansion of the semiconductor supplier industry within Arizona bringing the state more economic upside.

Sunlit Chemical Manufacturing Facility

[Image courtesy of Sunlit Chemical]

Location: North Phoenix Project start: January 20, 2022 Project completion: early 2023 General Contractor: Brycon Architect: Brycon Engineering/Design Firm: Brycon Project cost: $100 million

INBUSINESSPHX.COM

“Sunlit is excited to expand into Arizona and this new milestone marks Sunlit’s commitment to our partners that we are ready to expand our reach beyond Asia and set sights on the global front,” said Bryan Lin, President of Sunlit Group. “This new facility enables Sunlit to be the leading main supplier of high purity hydrofluoric acid to semiconductor fabs in the U.S.” The company

contributes to 75 percent of the world’s market share in producing sodium fluoride in the oral care industry and is one of the only two producers globally to obtain US FDA approval.

The 900,000-square-foot facility located on 17 acres in north Phoenix will produce hydrofluoric acid and other high-purity-grade industrial chemicals in the first phase, which will be operational in early 2023. Phase 2, involving raw material purification, will be operational in 2025. The facility will adopt the vertical integration manufacturing process, streamlining operations.

Says Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego, “Sunlit’s decision is a testament to Phoenix’s advancement as a national and global leader in the semiconductor industry. Its new fabrication facility in north Phoenix adds to the quality jobs and research excellence significantly expanding in our region.”

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NORTH LogistiCenterSM at Copperwing Location: Northern Parkway and Dysart Road, El Mirage Project start: Phase I will break ground Q4 2022 Project completion: First buildings available for occupancy as soon as Fall 2023 Developer: Dermody Properties Architect: HPA Architecture Other partners: Pat Feeney, Executive Vice President, SIOR, CBRE Phoenix; Daniel Calihan, Executive Vice President, SIOR, CBRE Phoenix

[Image courtesy of Dermody Properties]

“The West Valley submarket features two of the top 10 fastest growing cities in the U.S.: Glendale and Buckeye,” says Ryan Sikorski, vice president of national accounts at Dermody Properties, noting that the Phoenix metropolitan area is one of the fastest-growing regions in the country and led the entire U.S. in large-city population growth from 2010 to 2020.

LogistiCenterSM at Copperwing is situated within this West Valley submarket, with immediate access to the newly developed Northern Parkway Expressway, approximately 3.5 miles from the Loop 101 and Loop 303 freeways. Says Sikorski, “The park is expected to attract large distribution users and companies with manufacturing operations because of the area’s strong labor base and convenient access to Phoenix and most western markets, including the Southern California region and Los Angeles ports.”

The locations attractions that Sikorski cites are the access that the property provides to all of the southwestern U.S. within a two-day drive; the area’s abundant labor pool, with a workforce of nearly 850,000 people within 20 miles; and the fact that the area is a popular location for data center users, as the region has an attractive power grid, low catastrophic risk and abundant fiber networks. Also, he says, “The property is within an approved Foreign Trade Zone, meaning companies within the park that are active users of FTZ can receive up to a 72% reduction in real estate and personal property taxes.”

The 961-acre site will feature approximately 10 million square feet of modern distribution space, with individual buildings accommodating a wide

range of user sizes up to 2.8 million square feet. “The park will be built to best-in-class standards, through sustainable design and construction, to meet the supply chain requirements of the most innovative companies,” says Sikorski, who notes, “This will be one of the largest industrial parks in Arizona history.”

Approximately 375 acres of land within the industrial park is currently being offered for sale to third-party owner/users and build-to-suit customers. Dermody Properties also intends to bring new electric power, water and sewer sources to the site along with substantial road improvements throughout the park.

“This development will have a significant impact on the Phoenix market, including an influx of jobs and economic benefits,” says Douglas A. Kiersey Jr., president at Dermody Properties. “For Dermody Properties, this investment is consistent with our strategy of sourcing projects dedicated to serving the distribution network needs of both new and existing customers.”

In fact, as the West Valley has emerged as a hub for the supply chains of top global companies, regional and local businesses, and third-party logistics providers, Sikorski sees the LogistiCenterSM at Copperwing supporting further growth in the West Valley as users continue to invest in logistics facilities, technology and human capital that drive efficiency within their supply chains.

“In addition to the buildings designed with Class A features, infrastructure improvements along Dysart Road, Olive Avenue, Joe R Ramirez Road and Northern Parkway will attract both employers and labor looking for opportunity within a newly constructed state-of-the-art industrial park setting,” Sikorski says. “The aforementioned infrastructure improvements and successful development of the LogistiCenterSM at Copperwing will attract other businesses and hospitality amenities to this community to service the growing employment base. And the proximity of this project to Luke Air Force Base will be attractive to occupiers within the park looking for skilled veteran labor.”

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INBUSINESSPHX.COM

WEST G303 Location: Fronting Loop 303 between Glendale Avenue and Bethany Home Road, Glendale Project start: March 2020 Project completion: Phase I completed Q3 2021; Phase II is scheduled to complete Q4 2022 Developer: Hines Builder: Graycor Architect: Ware Malcomb Other partners: JLL (brokerage) Main tenant: Mlily Construction cost: $74 million Located immediately off Loop 303 between Glendale Avenue and Bethany Home Road, the site offers direct access to two full-diamond interchanges and is within one of the hottest logistics corridors in the nation, at the center of millions of residents, a deep pool of skilled employees, and within a day’s drive to Southern California’s ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

When completed, the 1.25-million-square-foot, state-of-the-art manufacturing and distribution facility will be the largest single-building industrial development to date in the U.S. by Hines. The building features 40-foot clear height, 60-foot speed bays, abundant dock-high loading doors, insulated overhead doors and highly functional footprints. With a growing demand for amenities in premier new Class A industrial developments, G303 also has a fenced basketball court and outdoor covered

[Image courtesy of JLL]

patio with picnic tables. The cross-dock facility will have extensive power and has a sleek exterior design.

G303 was designed as a speculative building able to combine twin buildings into a single structure. The G303 site was also carefully planned to support such an expansion. This expandability of G303 was key to attracting global mattress firm Mlily; additionally, the completed Phase 1 allowed the company to occupy and begin operations sooner than any other alternative.

Mlily is rapidly expanding its Arizona footprint. G303 allows them to continue that expansion, which includes hundreds of local jobs. Bill Honsaker, managing director at JLL Phoenix, points out the addition of Mlily to this corridor also continues to strengthen the mega-tenant base of the West Valley industrial market.

Buckeye I-10 Logistics Location: Along Buckeye’s I-10 frontage Freeway, just west of Verrado Way, Buckeye Project start: Phase I already begun, Phase II will start Q3 2022 Project completion: Phase I before end of 2022 Developer: BET Investments Builder/General Contractor: Layton Construction Architect: Butler Design Group Engineering/Design: Hilgart Wilson Engineering

INBUSINESSPHX.COM

BET Investments has started its first phase of a 145-acre project that will be one of the largest industrial developments in Buckeye’s history.

Buckeye Mayor Eric Orsborn sees this is as a statement of confidence in Buckeye’s future, saying, “As the fastest-growing U.S. city in the nation, Buckeye is at the forefront of meeting the infrastructure and transportation needs of its residents.”

“That’s why BET Investments has invested heavily in Buckeye for the last 15 years,” says Scott Moore, executive vice president of the Arizona division at BET Investments.

“Our industrial complex will support Buckeye and the West Valley’s expansion by providing new jobs at a location that is important to the North American supply chain. Product can be transported to consumers in Southern California, Nevada, New Mexico, Denver and Utah all within a day’s drive.”

The industrial park will be constructed with more than 2.2 million square feet of industrial space. The Phase I building will be 641,000 square feet; Phase II, approximately 1,150,000 square feet, adjacent to the I-10 freeway; Phase III, 450,000 square feet, adjacent to Van Buren.

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[Image courtesy of CapRock Partners]

WEST

CapRock West 202 Logistics Location: Within the southeast quadrant of the I-10 Freeway and Loop 202, at thev northeast corner of N. 59th Avenue and W. Van Buren Street, Estrella.

Project start: Groundbreaking was announced February 8, 2022 Project completion: Phase I completion anticipated in Q1 2023; timing of Phase II TBD Developer: CapRock Partners Builder: Willmeng Construction Architect: CAA Architects Other partners: Don MacWilliam and Payson MacWilliam, both executive vice presidents at Colliers International and who assisted CapRock initially in securing the CapRock West 202 Logistics development site, are leading the project’s leasing efforts.

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CapRock West 202 Logistics is a speculative infill industrial development in central Phoenix.

Its position within the southeast quadrant of the I-10 Freeway and South Mountain Freeway/Loop 202 will enable CapRock West 202 to provide a new level of access and efficiency for businesses with a last-mile delivery strategy, according to Jon Pharris, co-founder and president of CapRock Partners.

“While most of the Valley’s comparable new industrial product is located in the outer region of the Valley, along Loop 303, CapRock West 202 Logistics is centrally located, adjacent to two key transportation routes. It is the first large-scale industrial complex to be built along the recently completed South Mountain Freeway,” Pharris says. “Future tenants of the new complex will be able to reach most of the Valley within a 45-minute drive. They will also be within minutes to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and Downtown Phoenix.”

At 3.4-million square feet, CapRock West 202 Logistics is the largest industrial development in Phoenix’s in history. It comprises eight stateof-the art buildings ranging from 228,000 to 1,065,000 square feet across 183 acres. Phase I will include the development of approximately 140 acres, delivering 2.5 million square feet of modern industrial warehouse space across

five Class A buildings with clear heights ranging from 36 feet to 40 feet. Phase II will include an additional three buildings totaling 827,330 square feet on 43 acres. The project is attracting global and local tenants with warehousing needs that range from large-scale to last-mile distribution strategies.

“Phoenix is now a premier destination for Fortune 1000 companies looking to increase their inventory and distribution capabilities, supported by the Valley’s rapid population growth, strong economic fundamentals, business-friendly environment, temperate climate and lack of available industrial product throughout California’s major markets,” Parris says, noting that Phoenix’s geographic position, within a single-day’s drive to primary consumer markets and logistics hubs in Southern California, Dallas, Denver and Salt Lake City, has led it to become a critical node in the North American supply chain.

“CapRock West 202 Logistics will surpass all other large-scale industrial projects within Phoenix’s city limits by more than 1 million square feet,” Pharris says. “As the largest state-of-theart industrial complex in Phoenix, CapRock West 202 Logistics will be an impactful source of Phoenix employment opportunities and support the Valley’s economic expansion as the fastest growing city in the U.S.”

INBUSINESSPHX.COM

Peoria Logistics Park Location: 75th & Northern avenues, Peoria Project start: Phase I start March 2022 Project completion: Phase I completion early 2023; future phases TBD Developer: VanTrust Real Estate Builder/General Contractor: Willmeng Construction (Phase I) Architect: Butler Design Group Major tenants: Undisclosed Fortune 500 company (Phase I)

“With the massive amount of expansion in the West Valley, Peoria Logistics Park is now considered an infill location, so we knew the site would offer industrial users a central location to reach their customers Valley-wide,” says Jenna Borcherding, director of development at VanTrust Real Estate, noting that access to the Loop 101 and Grand Avenue and nearby amenities, including restaurants, hotels and the Westgate Entertainment District, are attractive to users as well as Peoria’s skilled workforce and fastgrowing population.

Peoria Logistics Park represents the largest Class A industrial park to be developed in the Peoria submarket, according to Borcherding. The 150-acre site offers ultimate flexibility to users seeking Class A industrial space ranging from 100,000 to more than 600,000 square feet. At project completion, the Park could accommodate upwards of 2 million square feet. “We are really

focused on maintaining flexibility within our development plans, which allows us to respond to build-to-suit requirements that may not fit within speculative development projects,” she says. “Industrial demand is robust, so offering a wide array of building sizes and configurations to meet the needs of today’s users has given the Park a competitive edge in the market.”

Borcherding sees Peoria Logistics Park having a tremendous impact on the community’s long-term prosperity by bringing new industries and jobs to support the skilled workforce and fast-growing population. VanTrust kicked off the first phase of development in March of 2022 with a 157,000-square-foot distribution center for a Fortune 500 company, which is expected to open in early 2023. Says Borcherding, “We’re already working with other prospects for the Park and look forward to announcing future phases of development.”

Park303 Phase 2 totals 2.5 million square feet in three state-of-the-art industrial buildings. Like Phase 1, two of the Phase 2 buildings can quickly convert into a single, 1.2 million-square-foot facility (with 104,052 square feet of infill space) to meet the needs of a major single user. Building features include 40-foot clear height, touchless technology, generous power, 25-foot-tall glass entries and 5-foot by 10-foot clerestory windows on all elevations, which provide access to sky views and shifting natural light, shown to increase productivity and mental focus. Indoor/ outdoor amenities include a basketball/ pickleball court, barbeque station, shaded outdoor eating area and employee collaboration

spaces. Collectively, Phase 2 will provide 430 dock doors, 778 trailer stalls and more than 1,556 parking stalls (all expandable). All buildings are Foreign Trade Zone capable.

“By pushing the bounds of technology and amenities, this project is positioned to attract top-tier tenants with the potential to bring hundreds of high-quality jobs to the Valley,” Krumwiede says. “Its amenities also allow companies to show their appreciation for their teams by making the workday more comfortable and enjoyable. With demand for industrial space high in all sectors, Park303 Phase 2 delivers not only the present but also the future of logistics real estate.”

Park303 Phase 2

The Park303 site (210 acres in all) was selected for its direct frontage to the Loop 303, offering freeway signage opportunities and convenient ingress and egress via two full-diamond freeway interchanges, according to LPC Desert West senior executive vice president David Krumwiede.

“That location places this project within a single-day truck haul to more than 33 million consumers and less than five hours to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. It also is one mile from the Northern Parkway, a 12.5-mile, highcapacity roadway offering expedited distribution routes and helping the area’s skilled employees (also a site selection factor) to avoid common rush hour traffic delays on Interstate 10.”

INBUSINESSPHX.COM

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[Image courtesy of VanTrust Real Estate]

Location: Northeast corner of Loop 303 and Glendale Road, Glendale Project start: February 2022 Project completion: March 2023 Developer: Lincoln Property Company Builder: Layton Construction Architect: Butler Design Group Project Value: $540.8 million; $228 per sq. ft.

SOUTH Converge

[Image courtesy of ViaWest Group]

Location: 15175 S. 50th St., Phoenix Project start: February 2, 2022 Project completion: Q1 2023 Developer: ViaWest Group Builder/General Contractor: Willmeng Construction Architect: Toby Rogers and Jeff Cutberth at Butler Design Group Engineering/Design Firm: Kimley Horn Other partners: Prospect Ridge

Airport 48

Location: 3232 S. 48th St., Phoenix Project start: February 25, 2022 Project completion: Q4 2022 Developer: ViaWest Group Builder/General Contractor: Stevens Leinweber Construction Architect: Jeff McCall with McCall & Assoc.

Engineering/Design Firm: Kimley Horn Major tenants: Southern Carlson, Monterrey Tile

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four drive-ins. Building B, at 140,941 square feet, has 243 auto parking stalls,180-foot building depth, 39 dock doors and six drive-ins. Building C, at 159,221 square feet situated on 28.6 acres, has 269 auto parking stalls, 210-foot building depth, 46 dock doors and four drive-ins.

“Leasing this land from the Kyrene School District benefits the community through these additional funds being distributed throughout the school system and improving education in the Southeast Valley,” says Steven Schwartz, ViaWest Group founding partner. “Because of the phenomenal location and our plan to build some of the highest-quality industrial buildings in Phoenix, we started seeing leasing activity with large, notable companies before we even broke ground.” He expects a project of this quality and scale will generate significant and sticky job opportunities created by the project’s future tenants.

The site, one of the last remaining available infill sites in Central Phoenix, is also located in an Opportunity Zone. This, says Steven Schwarz, founding partner of ViaWest Group, “provides tax incentives to owners to develop buildings in lower income areas, which was an additional incentive as an organization headquartered in Phoenix to do what we can to help the community.” He notes the location is ideally located minutes from Sky

Harbor International Airport with proximity to multiple freeways and a strong labor pool.

Airport 48 is an approximately 146,526 SF state-of-the-art Class A industrial warehouse with A-1 zoning situated on 9.98 acres. It has 28-foot clear height, a secure truck court, 32 dock-high doors and 12 grade-level doors. The project has 3,000 amps power. Parking ratio is 1.43 spaces per 1,000 square feet.

“We have seen interest from several national and regional suppliers of commodity and specialized goods interested in the Valley-wide highway accessibility this site provides,” says Todd Weiss, ViaWest COO. “Most users and potential users have been looking for last miletype distribution with a light manufacturing or warehousing component and 5 to 10% office.”

[Image courtesy of ViaWest Group]

Explaining that it is nearly impossible to find highly visible, infill interstate frontage in Metro Phoenix anymore, Alex Boles, director of investments and development at ViaWest Group, says, “This project is one of the rare A+ located infill locations left. There is a quarter mile of I-10 frontage at this site and it sits less than a mile from the I-10/202 interchange.

The rectangular shape of the site allowed for easy site planning while maximizing utility and lot coverage at the same time. I believe that this will be the best industrial product built in Phoenix this year.”

Converge will consist of three general Class A industrial buildings totaling approximately 512,710 square feet, with 3,600 amps (expandable) per building. Building A, at 210,670 square feet, has 235 parking stalls, 66 trailer parking stalls, a 240-foot building depth, 38 dock doors and

INBUSINESSPHX.COM

EAST Midway Commerce Center

[Image courtesy of Creation]

Chandler was chosen as the location for Midway Commerce Center because of its freeway access and visibility along with its proximity to an educated workforce and excellent retail amenities, according to Josh Zemon, managing principal of Creation.

Midway Commerce Center is a 301,994-square-foot industrial building in Chandler. With construction beginning this summer, Midway Commerce Center will incorporate building features required by modern light-industrial tenants, including 32-foot clear height, generous truck court depths, clerestory windows, enhanced insulation and electric vehicle charging stations.

“Midway Commerce Center is the exact type of industrial product that prospective occupants are looking for and having a difficult time finding in the southeast Valley,” Zemon says, noting the southeast Valley light-industrial vacancy rate is at historic lows for existing product. “Combine that with% of projects under construction already being preleased, it is becoming increasingly difficult for companies to find space.

Midway Commerce Center will add much-needed inventory to the market and will attract premier employers that will want to take advantage of this location and access to a talented workforce.”

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Park Algodon Location: Loop 101 and Indian School Road, Phoenix Project start: construction will start later this year Developer: Creation Builder: LGE Design Build Architect: LGE Design Group Other partners: J.P. Morgan Global Alternatives

Park Algodon’s location enjoys convenient access to the entire southwest Valley, northwest Valley and north Phoenix, thanks to the new Loop 202 (South Mountain Freeway) extension, notes Josh Zemon, managing principal of Creation. This site can also distribute to the southeast Valley with ease. “Moreover, says Zemon, “Park Algodon gives potential occupants the ability to attract employees from a wide radius as a result of the easy freeway access to the site.

When Creation looked at the alternatives, this location is one of the final infill sites in the southwest Valley with freeway frontage that can be simply acquired.”

Park Algodon is a light-industrial development consisting of two parcels — the northwest and southeast corners of Loop 101 and Indian School Road. Square footage of the northwest parcel is 1,330,080 square feet; square footage of the southeast parcel is 914,160 square feet. Park Algodon will feature bestin-class features that are required by light-industrial occupants, including ample clear height, generous loading, enhanced site maneuverability, robust insulation and reinforced building slabs.

“Beyond having the best of the market building specs, these buildings will boast enhanced architecture design that keeps community, freeway, visibility and legacy at the top of mind,” Zemon says. “As placemakers, Creation is not interested in developing a ‘vanilla’ project that falls flat.”

Zemon cites an economic analysis study prepared by Elliot D. Pollack & Company predicting Park Algodon to have a total economic output and wage impact totaling $547.9 million and total tax revenues to the City of Phoenix totaling more than $9.1 million.

“This section of the Loop 101 corridor has always been targeted for development of employment centers, which is exactly what Park Algodon will provide,” Zemon says. “This development will introduce much-needed light industrial inventory into the market and will attract top-tier employers that will provide high-quality employment opportunities for residents.”

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[Image courtesy of Creation]

Location: Chandler Project start: Construction expected to begin early this summer Developer: Creation Builder: LGE Design Build Architect: LGE Design Group Other partners: J.P. Morgan Global Alternatives

EAST [Image courtesy of Lee and Associates]

Lot 37 Hangar

Location: Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, Airport side Project start: December 2019 Project completion: December 2020 Developer: Wetta Ventures Builder: Fleming Complete Architect: Larson Associates Architects Main tenant: Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation Project cost: $13 million There was a lack of commercial aircraft hangars throughout the country, especially at commercial airports, making this location very attractive.

Plus, Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport is the No. 1 economic driver in Mesa and boasts five higher educational institutions within two miles, providing tremendous workforce development.

This is a Class A “MRO” commercial aircraft hangar with two bays, able to fit two Boeing or Airbus narrow-body aircraft. It features office space and a storage yard and is located on the taxiway.

Providing an employment impact from this project, Gulfstream will have approximately 100 employees in high-paying jobs.

Location: Southwest corner of Pecos Road and Sossaman Avenue, Mesa Project start: May 15, 2022 Project completion: Q1 2023 Developer: ViaWest Group Builder/General Contractor: ClayCo Architect: Cawley Architects Engineering/Design Firm: JMC Other partners: Nicola Wealth Real Estate

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Noting the property was purchased with a fully approved, permit-ready plan set, ViaWest Group development manager Rodney C. Boden says, “The ability to bypass the lengthy municipal review process will allow us to deliver the buildings ahead of the many projects that are currently in the planning phase of development.” He points out that there is pent up demand in the Mesa Gateway submarket for industrial product in the entire range of suite sizes

this project can accommodate.

ViaWest plans three single-loaded Class A industrial buildings on the 20.77 acres. Building A will be 122,690 square feet, building B will be 131,737 square feet and building C will be 80, 639 square feet, for a total rentable square footage of 335,066. Constructed of tilt-up concrete, buildings will have 32-foot clear height, steel deck roof structure, ESFR sprinklers, 5-10% office with ability to increase office square footage if desired, 3,0004,000 amps per building. The parking ratio is 1.71 spaces per 1,000 square feet.

“These buildings are designed for light manufacturing and distribution tenants with the intention of bringing technical, skilled job opportunities with wages commensurate to their higher skills,” says Danny Swancey, a partner at ViaWest Group. “Suppliers and support systems for Skybridge and Mesa-Gateway Airport are likely candidates for tenancy at Advanced Industrial Park.

Also, chip manufacturing (TSMC, for example) and tech company (Intel, for example) suppliers continue to fill the pipeline of users seeking space.”

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[Image courtesy of ViaWest Group]

Advanced Industrial Park

Gateway Interchange “This is arguably one of the East Valley’s best parcels for commercial development but was not appearing in traditional site selection searches due to multiple ownership entities, including a parcel owned by ADOT that had to be purchased at auction,” says EastGroup vice president Mike Sacco. He credits the creativity and diligence of the team allowing EastGroup to secure and consolidate this parcel, which he says was chosen for its freeway-fronting location, the area’s highly soughtafter educated workforce and its growing foundation of advanced manufacturing and supply-chain users.

The speculative development will provide 655, 400 square feet in seven Class A buildings on 50 acres, with 2,600 square feet of Loop 202 freeway frontage. Buildings feature 28- to 32-foot clear height,

abundant power, full concrete truck courts, dock-high and ground-level loading, LED warehouse lighting, ESFR sprinkler systems and glass roll-up doors leading out of break rooms to covered patio areas. The project also includes six outdoor amenity nodes that are interconnected by trails and feature patio tables and chairs for outdoor dining, and turf areas for cornhole and other outdoor games.

With the tremendous demand in Mesa’s Gateway area for large plate industrial space and Gateway Interchange’s strategic location, the City of Mesa’s economic development department believes this development has the ability to attract high-quality jobs and economic stability from a wide range of users, including aerospace, electric vehicle and advanced manufacturing companies.

[Image courtesy of EastGroup]

Location: Northwest corner of Hawes Road and Loop 202, Mesa Project start: Phase I begins Q3 2022 Project completion: Phase I will be completed Q2 2023 Developer: EastGroup Builder: Willmeng Construction Architect: Butler Design Group Other partners: Brokerage by Pat Harlan, Steve Larsen and Rick Collins at JLL

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EAST A Queen Creek development from ES America

TheHub@202

Location: Mesa Project start: Q2 of 2022 Developer: Wharton Industrial Other partners: Financing for the project provided by MSD Capital, LP, the family office of Michael Dell

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While there is often a publicly available project code name for developments in the early stages of agreement, representatives from both Pinal County and Queen Creek cited confidentiality and economic development considerations and declined to provide any identifying details.

While the project is not specifically named in the Board materials, industry watchers suspect it is likely a 1-million-square-foot battery plant that will support a recent agreement between electric semi-truck manufacturer Nikola Corp. and electronics giant LG Energy Solution Ltd. This project will create 2,800 full-time jobs. Plus, direct revenues for the town are estimated to be about $25 million for one-time revenues such as construction sales tax and annual revenues between $3 million and $4 million once the plant is operating.

“Wharton is a strong believer in the growth of the industrial market in the Intermountain West region as more companies and individuals relocate for a more hospitable business climate and better quality of life. Markets like Mesa are becoming part of the ‘digital desert’ where forward-thinking

businesses such as electric vehicle makers, social media companies, aerospace, and chip manufacturers and more are flocking,” says Peter C. Lewis, chairman of Wharton Industrial. “The strategy to invest in this region is emblematic of our 35-year corporate philosophy of focusing on emerging markets poised for significant growth.”

The site is among the last large contiguous land parcels remaining in the area and is centrally located in the highly desirable Southeast Valley submarket of Metropolitan Phoenix — one of the fastest-growing industrial markets in the country and poised to lead the nation in industrial rent growth over the next five years. The area has an extraordinary collection of “new age” companies such as Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, Lucid, Taiwan Semiconductor and Apple attracted by the area’s talented labor pool, low-cost living, favorable business climate and the ability to service major West Coast population centers.

Wharton Industrial plans to invest more than $200 million into the 101-acre site to develop an 11-building, 1.5-million-square-foot Class A industrial park. The buildings will range in size from 65,000 square feet to 270,000 square feet and will feature 28- to 32-foot clear heights, 73 trailer parking spaces, 60-foot speed bays and 1,429 car parking spaces.

[Image courtesy of Wharton Industrial]

Location: Queen Creek Project start: mid to late 2022, following the April 19th land auction Project completion: estimated for December 2024 Developer: ES America (LG Energy Solution Ltd. is principal of ES America; the Arizona Corporation Commission identifies electronics giant LG Energy Solution as the sole member in the LLC.) Main tenant: LG Energy Solution Ltd. (owner-occupied) Project cost: $2.8 billion

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Location: Between E. Pecos and E. Germann roads, Mesa Project start: Q2 of 2022 Project completion: The full site is expected to be completed in late 2024 Developer: CRG Builder/General Contractor: CRG’s parent company, Clayco Architect: Lamar Johnson Collaborative Engineering/Design Firm: Lamar Johnson Collaborative People/companies involved: Shawn Clark, president of CRG; Mark Sonnenberg, CRG senior vice president and partner; Adam Baugh, partner and zoning attorney at Withey Morris led the entitlement efforts; JLL managing director Steve Larsen represented CRG in the land acquisition; JLL managing director Pat Harlan and Senior Vice President Jason Moore to handle leasing for the project Major tenants: Lowes; JX Nippon Project cost: $300 million

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Strategically located between E. Pecos and E. Germann roads in southeast Mesa, The Cubes at Mesa Gateway is five miles from the PhoenixMesa Gateway Airport and just south of the now under-construction AZ 24 freeway expansion, which will offer direct access to Loop 202 and the greater Phoenix area. “The Cubes will be a tremendous addition to southeast Mesa and the region, providing more jobs and more business development opportunities in the fastest-growing part of the East Valley,” says Adam Baugh, partner and zoning attorney with Withey Morris PLC, who led the entitlement efforts. “With its proximity to Gateway Airport and the nearby freeways, this is the perfect location for a major project like this.”

The Cubes at Mesa Gateway will bring up to four million square feet of speculative and build-to-suit space to a 268-acre site in Mesa, 20 miles southeast of Phoenix. According to Baugh, this will be the largest master-planned, development-ready industrial park delivered in the southeast Valley hyper-growth submarket of Phoenix, which is expected to add more than 120,000 residents by 2025.

Catering to a wide range of users in bulk distribution, e-commerce fulfillment and specialized manufacturing, the development will be constructed by CRG’s parent company Clayco. Offsite infrastructure improvements to all four sides of the property will begin immediately and include road widening, installation of traffic signals and utility expansion. The first phase of vertical construction is slated to begin in the second quarter of 2022, with delivery of the first building expected to coincide with the completion of the AZ 24 expansion in the fourth quarter of 2022. The full site is expected to be completed in late 2024.

Says Baugh, “The southeast Valley is booming, with strong gains in high-tech industrial sectors such as semiconductor, aerospace, electric vehicle, defense and data centers, but most of the area’s current industrial inventory caters to smaller users. The Cubes at Mesa Gateway will fill the need for a large, multi-phase, development-ready industrial park to satisfy these growing requirements.”

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[Image courtesy of CRG]

The Cubes at Mesa Gateway

INNOVATIONS FOR BUSINESS

Beyond Cyberattacks: Ransomware Readiness and Recovery Eight do’s and don’ts to help businesses in today’s cyber age

by Bryce Austin

Bryce Austin is the CEO of TCE Strategy, an internationally recognized professional speaker on technology and cybersecurity issues, and author of the book Secure Enough? 20 Questions on Cybersecurity for Business Owners and Executives. He is the named chief information security officer for companies that range from 40 employees to S&P 500 organizations.

Austin actively advises companies on effective methods to mitigate cyber threats. bryceaustin.com

MAY 2022

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There were seven people seated around the table: the CEO, the VP, the CFO, the Special Agent from the FBI, the owner, the forensics technician and the company’s CISO (Chief Information Security Officer).

“Don’t pay,” was the CEO’s vote. Same for the VP. “Pay it,” was the owner’s response. The CFO nodded in agreement.

“Paying could be a violation of federal law,” stated the FBI representative.

The CISO had a hard time getting words out, as this was the largest ransom he had dealt with at the time. The amount — $1,200,000 — was a lot of money. “I don’t see another option given the status of our backups. Either we pay the ransom or we begin liquidating the assets of the company as soon as possible. Which is the lesser of two evils?”

The CISO negotiated the ransom down to $410,000. The Bitcoin took several hours to amass. The cybercriminals delivered a decryption key, but 30% of the company’s data was gone forever — some of their hard drives filled up during the ransomware encryption process, and the encryption software kept running after the drives couldn’t hold any more data. Every file encrypted after that point was irretrievable.

The total recovery took three months to ensure that no backdoors were left in the company’s systems, and the lawsuit to get the insurance company to cover the incident lasted almost two years.

Stopping ransomware includes three key areas: cybersecurity hygiene of the business’s employees, proper practices by its IT department, and its data backup strategy.

Here are eight ways to prevent a ransomware attack, and eight ways those who fall victim to an attack can recover from it.

RANSOMWARE DEFENSES TO HELP PREVENT ATTACKS

1. Add Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) on all company email accounts and on all external access to its network (VPN, TeamViewer, WebEx, etc.). This will help prevent a cybercriminal from taking over an email account using a compromised username/password.

2. Those companies that use Windows Active Directory should NOT log in to computers with Domain Admin accounts. There is an attack called “Pass the Hash” that will steal encrypted (hashed) credentials left behind. If it should be necessary to log in with a Domain Admin account, it’s important to change the password.

3. Patch the PCs. Workstations and servers. Every month.

No exceptions. That includes conference room PCs, loaner PCs, HVAC computers, etc.

4. Patch the networking gear. Firewalls, switches, UPSs, phone system, etc.

5. Install good antivirus software everywhere. All PCs. All Macs. All servers. Everywhere.

Multi-factor authentication on all company email accounts and on all external access to its network will help prevent a cybercriminal from taking over an email account using a compromised username or password.

BETTERING YOUR BUSINESS 6. Geofilter the internet traffic and emails. Companies that don’t do business with a foreign country should block traffic and emails to and from it. This keeps out lazy cybercriminals. No, it won’t keep out the cybercriminals that VPN into the country before attacking the company, but it’s surprising how many cybercriminals don’t take the time to do that.

7. Companies with many workstations should use the Microsoft Local Administrator Password Solution (LAPS) to randomize the local administrator password on all PCs. If the same initial local admin username/password is used for every workstation, then if one machine gets compromised, it’s very easy for them to all get compromised.

8. Businesses whose users have local admin credentials may want to rethink that. Today. Right now. Once cybercriminals compromise a computer, they normally inherit the permissions of the user for that computer. If that user is a local administrator, the bad guys are going to use that access to do more damage.

Email Marketing That Doesn’t Suck In Email Marketing That Doesn’t Suck, Harvard Law-gradturned-online-entrepreneur Bobby Klinck uses his lawyering skills to convince readers that the old-school rules for email marketing are just plain dumb. He shows how to do email right, teaching the five phases of email marketing and how to infuse purpose into one’s message. Readers will learn how to tell a really good story that people want to read. But fair warning: Those who are a conversion copywriter, an online marketing guru, or have a serious problem with laughing at themselves should probably not read this book. And those who cringe at the occasional curse word definitely should not read this book. Warning delivered.

Email Marketing That Doesn’t Suck: Have Fun Writing Emails Your Subscribers Will Want to Read (and That Will Actually Make You Money!)

Bobby Klinck

If all companies followed the specific recommendations above, ransomware cybercriminals would become a thing of the past. With proactive action and a good cybersecurity awareness training program for the employees, cybercrime is a solvable problem!

Many cybersecurity liability insurance policies contain a clause stating that the customer must inform the insurance company of a suspected incident within 24 hours of the initial discovery.

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RANSOMWARE VICTIMS NEED TO ACT

Businesses should note, however: Most of these need to be done before the attack takes place.

1. OFFLINE backups. These are backups that are kept off the business’s network. Cybercriminals try to delete a business’s backups.

If the backups are not on the business’s network, the bad guys can’t destroy them.

2. Tested restore procedures. Businesses that try to restore their backups only when they’re needed are rolling the dice every time they are in a real bind.

3. Offline restore methodology. It’s important to not begin a restore with the company’s network still attached to the internet.

Ransomware cases often unfold where the cybercriminals still have hooks into a company’s network, and they destroy the used-to-beoffline backups as soon as the restore process begins.

4. Workstation reimages. Businesses will need a clean workstation image to restore workstations quickly if they suspect the workstations have been compromised.

5. Server rebuilds. Businesses will need a clean server image to recreate the servers quickly.

6. Pre-negotiated incident response team contract. Businesses should find a cyber incident response company and get a contract in place. That way they will know how to “call in the cavalry” very quickly as opposed to going through contract negotiations in the middle of a crisis.

7. Thirty-five percent free drive space on all network drives.

Ransomware often bloats the data on the drives it encrypts. As soon as a drive fills up, the encryption process will keep trying to move forward, but every file it encrypts after the drive is full will be unrecoverable.

8. Companies that have cybersecurity liability insurance should call their insurance company ASAP! There are many stories of insurance policies with a clause stating that the customer must inform the insurance company of a suspected incident within 24 hours of the initial discovery. If they take a few days to confirm that the incident was real, it can be an expensive mistake.

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With everything else businesses have to do for their customers, they also need to communicate with those customers to retain them and market their business to potential new customers. And in the digital age, there are dozens of new and ever-changing ways to accomplish those things. Who has time for it? Who even understands what needs to be done? Author Jon Martinsen has guided hundreds of small and medium-sized businesses through the countless and continual changes in media and marketing in the digital age. This book is a practical guide for those who want to get an easy-to-read insight into the basics of marketing today. It outlines a simple approach that any business owner can adopt to best reach their customers and prospects, making it possible for business owners to develop effective strategies for maintaining and growing their businesses.

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MAY 43 2022 INBUSINESSPHX.COM

En Negocios

LIDERAZGO / LEADERSHIP

Edgar R. Olivo es un educador empresarial bilingüe, asesor económico y colaborador de varios medios de comunicación. Es apasionado por la educación y comunidad.

Está certificado en finanzas y análisis de datos y posee un título en negocios de la Universidad Estatal de Arizona.

Edgar R. Olivo is a bilingual business educator, economic advisor and contributor for several media outlets.

He’s a nonprofit executive who is passionate about education. He is certified in finance and data analytics and holds a business degree from Arizona State University.

MAY 2022

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4 señales de que necesita desarrollar un mejor estilo de liderazgo por Edgar R. Olivo

El liderazgo es una habilidad interesante que requiere reflexión y un refinamiento constante. Al comienzo de cada año, los líderes de equipo se benefician al tomarse un momento para reflexionar sobre dónde pueden mejorar su estilo de liderazgo. Desafortunadamente, hay momentos en que un gerente o jefe es simplemente un mal líder.

Tal vez tuvieron malos mentores o adquirieron hábitos contradictorios. Tal vez no hayan tenido la experiencia necesaria para comprender su función vital y cuál es la mejor manera de llevarla a cabo. Cualquiera sea el caso, reconocer que las habilidades de liderazgo pueden mejorar es el primer paso para realizar cambios impactantes.

Convertirse en un mejor líder requiere que analice y acepte dónde se queda corto su estilo de liderazgo. Y desarrollar su

estilo de liderazgo personal no necesita esperar hasta que sea promovido con un título elegante. Dondequiera que esté en su carrera, usted puede cultivar el hábito esencial de la autoconciencia. El liderazgo sólido es una búsqueda de por vida que requiere evaluación y mejora continuas.

El proceso de encontrar un estilo será diferente para todos, pero aquí hay cuatro señales clave que debe buscar para asegurarse de que está desarrollando un enfoque que sea fiel a usted y beneficioso para su equipo.

1. No sabe quiénes son los miembros de su equipo como personas. Sus trabajadores son seres humanos con diversos antecedentes, experiencias y habilidades. Conocer a su equipo y descubrir qué los hace felices o tristes ayudará a cualquier líder a crear conexiones más profundas. Tomarse el

Según una encuesta reciente, el 79% de los empleados renunciarán a partir de su trabajo debido a la falta de apreciación. Si bien el 83% de las organizaciones creen que es importante desarrollar líderes a todos los niveles de la empresa, solo el 5% de las empresas han implementado el desarrollo de liderazgo en todos los niveles.

ENGLISH TRANSLATION tiempo para conocer a cada miembro del equipo ayudará a cualquier líder a comprender mejor sus necesidades, especialmente en el mundo actual, donde el trabajo remoto ha aumentado la productividad y, al mismo tiempo, erosiona otras áreas de conexión humana.

2. No entiende la verdadera razón por la que su equipo está batallando con sus tareas. Evitar problemas y conflictos es una respuesta natural para las personas, especialmente en entornos de trabajo remoto.

Es desafiante tener conversaciones difíciles con su equipo, pero es necesario superar las barreras de comunicación. La escucha activa, también llamada escucha atenta, es un arte perdido. Las personas creen que están escuchando cuando conversan con otras personas. Pero la mayor parte del tiempo, la gente realmente no escucha.

Al menos no con toda su atención. La escucha activa o escucha atenta se define por la capacidad de concentrarse únicamente en el compañero de conversación. Los líderes que practican la escucha activa pueden captar señales directas y sutiles para ayudar a su equipo a lograr más.

3. Quiere que su equipo sea como usted.

No existe una forma sencilla de replicar el éxito dentro de un equipo, pero es posible. Un buen liderazgo es la capacidad de combinar diversas habilidades y alinearlas hacia un objetivo común.

Aceptar que no todos trabajan de la misma manera y tomarse el tiempo para comprender las brechas de habilidades del equipo ayudará a un líder a recorrer un largo camino.

4. No sabe qué significa liderazgo y cómo se aplica a su trabajo. En ocasiones, los líderes que ascienden a títulos importantes llegan a roles de liderazgo sin saber cómo llegaron allí.

Eso es normal, y probablemente significa que hay habilidades de liderazgo naturales que aún no se han descubierto. Ejercer la atención plena a lo largo de un viaje profesional es una excelente manera de hacer un inventario de las lecciones aprendidas en el camino que son únicas para usted y su estilo de liderazgo. También le ayuda a darse cuenta de dónde tiene espacio para crecer.

Los líderes están en condiciones de influir en un ambiente de trabajo positivo y diseñar lo que es aceptable para el equipo. Involucrarse en las actividades cotidianas que agobian a los líderes puede dañar al equipo de maneras que pueden parecer misteriosas, pero que en realidad son oportunidades para mejorar en cualquier área.

Como gran líder, siempre debe prestar atención a las señales en las que puede subir de nivel su estilo de liderazgo.

4 Signs You Need to Step Up Your Leadership Style

by Edgar R. Olivo

Leadership is an interesting skill that requires thoughtful reflection and constant refinement.

At the start of each year, team leaders benefit from taking a moment to reflect on where they can improve their leadership style.

Unfortunately, there are times when a manager or boss is simply a bad leader. Maybe they had bad mentors, or they picked up contradictory habits. Maybe they have not had the necessary experience to understand their vital role and how best to accomplish it. Whatever the case, recognizing that leadership skills can improve is the first step toward making impactful changes.

Becoming a better leader requires you to analyze and accept where your leadership style falls short. And developing your personal leadership style does not need to wait until you are promoted with a fancy title. Wherever you are in your career, you can cultivate the essential habit of self-awareness. Strong leadership is a lifelong pursuit that requires continuous evaluation and improvement.

The process of finding a style will look different for everyone, but here are four key warning signs to look for to make sure you are developing an approach that is true to you and beneficial to your team.

1. You do not know who your team members are as people. Your workers are human beings with diverse backgrounds, experiences and skills. Getting to know your team and uncovering what makes them happy or sad will help any leader create deeper connections. Taking the time to get to know each team member will help any leader understand their needs better, especially in today’s world where remote work has increased productivity while simultaneously eroding other areas of human connection.

2. You do not understand the real reason why your team is struggling with their tasks. Avoiding problems and conflict is a natural response for people, especially in remote work environments. It is challenging to have difficult conversations with your team, but it is necessary to overcome communication barriers. Active listening, also called attentive listening, is a lost art. People think they are listening when they are conversing with

According to a recent survey, 79% of employees will resign from their job due to a lack of appreciation. While 83% of organizations believe it is important to develop leaders at every level of the company, only 5% of businesses have implemented leadership development at all levels.

other people. But most of the time, people do not truly listen. At least not with their full, undivided attention. Active listening or attentive listening is defined by the ability to focus solely on the conversational partner.

Leaders who practice active listening can pick up direct and subtle cues to help their team accomplish more.

3. You want your staff to be just like you. There is no cookie-cutter way to replicate success within a team, but it is possible. Good leadership is the ability to blend diverse skills and align them toward a common objective.

Accepting that not everyone works the same way and taking the time to understand the team’s skills gaps will help a leader go a long way.

4. You do not know what leadership means and how it applies to your work. On occasions, leaders who ascend to important titles arrive at leadership roles without any knowledge of how they got there. That is normal, and it probably means there are natural leadership skills that have yet to be discovered.

Exercising mindfulness throughout a career journey is a great way to take inventory of the lessons learned along the way that are unique to you and your leadership style. It also helps you realize where you have room to grow.

Leaders are in a position to influence a positive work environment and design what is acceptable for the team. Getting involved in the everyday activities that weigh down leaders can hurt the team in ways that may seem mysterious, but really are opportunities to improve in any area. As a great leader, you should always pay attention to the signs where you can level up your leadership style.

MAY 45 2022 INBUSINESSPHX.COM

Economy

DEVELOPING & GROWING BUSINESS DYNAMICS

Successful Healthcare Real Estate Investment Medical real estate is one of the hottest asset classes, but mistakes can be expensive

by Trisha Talbot

Stock market uncertainty resulting from Russia’s war in Ukraine has many investors looking for options yielding better returns. Real estate has historically provided excellent profit, especially in recent years with apartments and industrial facilities, including distribution and data centers, in high demand to keep up with explosive growth in the Phoenix area.

Because Phoenix is attracting so many people (the metropolitan area is projected to add nearly two million people in the next 20 years), there’s another real estate investment opportunity businesses and individuals should consider adding to their portfolios. Healthcare real estate — including medical office buildings (MOBs), surgical centers and urgent cares — offers tremendous returns when approached wisely.

WHY HEALTHCARE REAL ESTATE?

Trisha Talbot is managing principal at healthcare real estate investment services firm DOCPROPERTIES, a Scottsdale company that connects physicians with expansion goals to investors seeking incomeproducing healthcare properties. Consistently ranked among the state’s top commercial real estate brokers, she helps both increase profits and manage occupancy costs. She provides the latest market data at docproperties.com/ az-medical-office-market. docproperties.com

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Considered recession-proof because healthcare is mission critical and demand driven, medical real estate is one of the hottest asset classes. It also proved to be pandemic-proof, with landlords reporting they retained 94 to 96 percent of rents from healthcare tenants. Better still, not only are these tenants financially strong, as physicians are generally high earners with stable businesses, but they also usually sign longer leases of five to ten years because it’s so expensive for them to move.

Moreover, lease rates tend to be higher because tenant improvements are much more complex than a general office.

For example, with a sink in every exam room, plumbing is more expensive. Specialized practices like radiology or orthopedics as well as surgery centers with multiple operating rooms require even more customization.

Increased demand, low tenant attrition and limited speculative construction keep vacancies considerably lower than the traditional office building sector. And in especially popular areas of the Valley like Gilbert and Queen Creek in the East, Peoria to Lake Pleasant in the West and along the I-10 from Goodyear to Buckeye, they’re even lower.

LOOK BEFORE YOU LEAP

Although healthcare real estate can be very lucrative, mistakes can be expensive. It’s imperative to do some homework before investing. Taking the following steps will help ensure the best returns: Talk to someone familiar with the asset class.

An advisor will help determine not only what an investor can pay for a property, but also what the total investment will be — including lease turnovers and capital needed for improvements. Understanding the bigger picture will guarantee an investor has enough in reserves. Because healthcare real estate is so complex, it’s important to select

an expert who has owned, leased, managed, sold, developed, built or financed a medical property, as such individuals understand exactly what healthcare properties require and can accurately underwrite what is needed over the lifetime of the investment.

For example, an advisor can identify issues with the age of the building — not only plumbing and HVAC concerns, but what functionality upgrades may be required to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Choose trustworthy investment partners and define each one’s role. An advisor can introduce investors to others who understand what a medical property needs to succeed, but no matter who is involved, having a clear operating agreement that defines how much everyone wants to contribute and how returns will be distributed is essential. The agreement should also address who takes the lead on managing the asset after the purchase. Because healthcare properties require sterile environments and often handle hazardous waste, many investors opt for a management company equipped to address the higher expectations for cleanliness.

Establish a banking relationship. If financing is needed, a lender can determine the terms of debt service as well as how much an investor can borrow and what the payment will be. Such information will help the advisor home in on properties the investor can afford. Failure to do so can result in recapitalization (having to bring in additional equity partners to reduce debt) down the road.

Analyze income and risks. It’s important to make sure leasing income can support expenses plus provide the desired profit. Interviewing the prospective tenants likewise provides tremendous insight on their satisfaction and whether they plan to stay. Does the building meet all their needs? Is there a hospital nearby that keeps them there? Do the tenants refer business to each other? The ideal property has some kind of “stickiness” that makes it difficult for tenants to leave.

Healthcare real estate can be a tremendously successful investment when using a thoughtful, data-driven approach.

Establishing a portfolio strategy aligned with cash flow and profitability goals is vital; working with a broker who understands the complexities of this niche market will yield the best results.

MOBs Commanding More Than Ever The average sales price per square foot for medical office buildings climbed to $309 in Q4 2021 but properties are commanding more than $600 per square foot in some areas of the Valley. Asking rents were as high as $35 per square foot at the end of 2021.

LAW MATTERS TO BUSINESS

Firm Ownership Now Open to Non-Lawyers

Arizona opens a new era for law firms

by Andy Kvesic

Andy Kvesic is the CEO and managing partner of Radix Law, the first multi-lawyer traditional law firm in the country to be approved as an Alternative Business Structure. Kvesic is a former prosecutor and commercial litigator who now serves as outside general counsel to public agencies and private businesses. radixlaw.com

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The Arizona Supreme Court last year enacted sweeping rules that revolutionize the practice of law in Arizona. While the general rule across the United States was that only lawyers could own and share profits in law firms, Arizona took a bold approach in turning that rule on its head, now allowing nonlawyers to own, profit from and participate in the management of law firms. This new business model is otherwise known as an Alternative Business Structure, or ABS. What does this mean for the legal industry? It doesn’t change who can practice law in Arizona — one still has to be a licensed attorney in Arizona to provide legal services here.

But for non-lawyer business owners, there are now endless opportunities to couple legal services with other professional services, and profit from each. A review of the approved ABS entities in Arizona confirms this concept is a driving factor. Estate planning attorneys have combined with wealth planners under one roof. Tax attorneys are now working side by side with accountants and sharing each other’s fees.

Personal injury firms are teaming up with litigation finance companies to tap a new source of capital. Even traditional law firms with ABS licenses are exploring the addition of new professional services — such as real estate brokerage, private equity, and insurance — to complement their existing practice groups.

Becoming an ABS is not easy and requires a lengthy application with extensive background checks on decision makers and anyone who owns more than 10%. The Arizona Supreme Court has appointed a committee of active and retired attorneys, along with private businesspeople, to review applicants and make their recommendations on whether an ABS should be approved. The Arizona Supreme Court makes the final decision on who gets a license.

Some “old school” lawyers are critical of this revolutionary new model, believing it will jeopardize client interests and put profits ahead of ethical responsibilities. But others, including the Arizona Supreme Court, view this as a needed change to

Arizona is the first and only state to allow non-lawyers to own law firms.

Other states are keeping a close watch.

improve the legal profession, modernize law firms and provide more access to justice. Law firms can now attract a new source of capital from non-lawyers and offer equity ownership in the law practice. Non-lawyer owners who are successful businesspeople can now provide their human capital to law firms and focus on operations, technology and scaling, while the lawyers focus on practicing law and serving their clients.

Law firms have the ability to transform from traditional legal service providers to a one-stop-shop for legal and non-legal services to clients. And to ensure that ethical responsibilities remain intact, all ABS entities must have a Compliance Lawyer who is an active member of the Arizona State Bar and who is responsible for supervising the business and ensuring compliance with professional rules governing attorneys.

While Arizona remains the first and only state to enact such progressive rules, other jurisdictions are watching closely. Utah, for example, has created a temporary regulatory sandbox to test new legal service ownership models. Other jurisdictions, like Washington, D.C, and California, are likewise considering relaxing the rules on the ability for lawyers and non-lawyers to share fees within the same business. But for now, Arizona remains the only jurisdiction where a person doesn’t have to be a licensed attorney to own a law firm.

Should clients be troubled about all these changes?

Probably not, because the ABS rules are not a mechanism for unlicensed people or disbarred lawyers to practice law.

Arizona lawyers are still bound by the rules of professional responsibility whether they work at an ABS or not. What clients can be enthusiastic about, however, is the potential that their lawyer, accountant, real estate broker and financial advisor, for example, will one day all be working at the same firm, all communicating with each other about the client’s needs, and all working with an aligned interest to achieve the client’s desired goals. If it allows law firms and clients to succeed together, the Arizona ABS program should be considered a huge success.

Two double-shot macchiatos before 10, then it’s decaf all the way.

Chai tea, soy latte, or regular joe, we make it our priority to understand what makes you, you.

In doing so, we address your legal needs with a uniquely tailored approach.

Find out more at swlaw.com

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Social Impact

BUSINESS GIVES BACK

A Footprint for a Sustainable Future Creating alternatives to single-use and short-term-use plastics, motivated by awareness that chemicals from plastic packaging are seeping into food

by Tyler Butler

pledge2050.org

Tyler Butler is the chief social impact officer for the Weedmaps’ corporate portfolio, where she leads programs that positively impact humanity. She is also the founder of 11.11CoLab and is often cited as a subject-matter expert by Forbes, SHRM, Entrepreneur, US News & World Report and more. weedmaps.com

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Footprint believes the time is now to quit plastic, encouraging people to take the pledge sponsored by the Footprint Foundation and committing to eliminate a single-use plastic item from their everyday life, whether it’s plastic water bottles, plastic utensils, plastic bags, or plastic straws. The company’s foundation also works with many global NGOs and community organizations as well as academia, with several initiatives underway in Arizona specifically. Pledge 2050 has provided a way to encourage consumers to take small steps to reduce plastic.

Larry Fitzgerald Jr., former NFL Arizona Cardinal, and executive chair of 2023 Superbowl Committee, shared, “As a father of three and a lover of travel, I want to see our world be a safer and more sustainable home for future generations.

Footprint’s vision of reducing and even eliminating toxins from the food we eat is a landmark step in the right direction.

I’m going to be taking Footprint Foundation’s Pledge 2050, committing to what we can do to reduce plastic waste in our lives. Together we can change things — whether it’s at a football game, basketball game, a concert or at home.”

Now coming full circle, the same doctor who pulled that straw from the turtle’s nose in that viral video now serves as the organization’s director of science and education. Dr. Figgener brings with her an expertise in marine conservation, a passion for this work and her YouTube celebrity status, with a focus on eliminating plastic pollution while empowering women in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

Through her role with the foundation, she is uniting her passions to increase awareness and knowledge about how people can help eliminate plastic waste from the environment and food chain by making easy, everyday changes.

Footprint has the rare opportunity to change history and move mankind toward a more sustainable and healthy way of living. Whether through its innovative science-based solutions or through its leadership on awareness and mitigation, Footprint is laying a path for us to follow as we work to save our planet.

Footprint footprintus.com

Footprint founders Troy Swope and Yoke Chung are former Intel employees who noticed that plastic residue in packaging was damaging computer wafers during shipping. After further research they were able to confirm their own suspicions: Chemicals from plastic packaging were seeping into food.

Photo courtesy of Footprint

PLEDGE 2050 Join The Footprint Foundation in taking the pledge to quit plastic. By 2050 there will be more plastic in our ocean than fish. The time is now to quit plastic. Take the pledge, enter to win a free T-shirt, and learn how we can save the planet, together.

Do you remember the infamous video, showing Christine Figgener, Ph.D., pulling a straw out of a sea turtle’s nose? The video went viral on YouTube and is widely considered to be the catalyst that launched the outrage and action about plastic ocean pollution.

Long before that, though, in 2014 it was Troy Swope and Yoke Chung, who met at Intel and noticed that plastic residue in packaging was damaging computer wafers during shipping. After further research they were able to confirm their own suspicions: Chemicals from plastic packaging were seeping into food.

The duo recognized that plastic had been linked to a number of health issues, and that it served as a contributing factor to the global environmental crisis. Recognizing what was unfolding due to single-use plastic pollution, they saw an opportunity to create a solution.

The result was Footprint, a materials science technology company that uses research and development to invent plantbased material alternatives to single-use and short-term-use plastics. Footprint has a clear mission to create a healthier planet and healthier people. In the first phase of its mission, the company is working to eliminate single-use and short-term-use plastics in the packaging found in consumer goods, and in our food chain — for large food suppliers and in grocery stores.

Footprint works closely with many of the world’s largest retailers and food companies, including Conagra, McDonalds, Kraft, General Mills, P&G, Beyond Meat and Sweetgreen. Early on, Conagra was a key partner, entrusting Footprint with the development of plant-based fiber bowls for its Healthy Choice line of frozen foods.

Thanks to its customer-centric, consultative approach in developing disruptive solutions to solve specific, firsttime challenges, Footprint found its niche. This partnership between Footprint and Conagra has proven successful for both companies, leading to increased sales and plastic reduction.

Perhaps more impressive than this is how Footprint is further supporting its own mission. Footprint is prompting positive change through several philanthropic conservation-based efforts it has launched.

Footprint started its foundation in 2021, and initiated Pledge 2050, a call to action encouraging people around the world to quit single-use plastic. The Footprint Foundation educates people on the serious impact that plastic has on our planet and bodies. The Foundation’s goal is to work collaboratively together with businesses and consumers to inspire long-lasting change.

Caring Is Back Equality Health is giving doctors more time to be doctors, so they can provide the personalized care you deserve.

Ask if your doctor is part of the Equality Health network today.

caringisback.com

OUR SUBJECT IN-DEPTH

ARIZONA VS. TEXAS Arizona •S mall businesses: 610,000 ventures •9 9.5% of business market • 1.1 million employees • 43% of state workforce •T op industries: real estate and rental and leasing; and professional, scientific and technical services Texas •S mall businesses: 3 million ventures •9 9.8% of business market • 4.9 million workers • 45% of state workforce •T op industries: construction; and professional, scientific and technical services Source: Small Business Administration

Don Henninger, executive director of Scottsdale Coalition of Today & Tomorrow (SCOTT), spent more than 30 years in the newspaper business in the Valley with The Arizona Republic and Phoenix Gazette, where he served in numerous roles, including managing editor, and at the Phoenix Business Journal, where he was publisher for 14 years. SCOTT is a nonprofit group of business and civic leaders who work to educate and advocate for issues important to the city’s economic health and quality of life. scottnow.com

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Sizing Up the Competition Arizona and Texas have a lot in common, more than just Glenn Hamer

by Don Henninger

When it comes to business expansion and recruitment, Arizona and Texas are two of the most successful and competitive states in the country.

Both have emerged from the pandemic era with more jobs than before it started. With low tax rates and friendly business climates, both continue to be top targets for companies moving from states with higher tax rates, like California.

While they compete for business, they compete for talent, too.

And Texas business leaders snared some talent from Arizona a little over a year ago when they recruited Glenn Hamer.

Hamer had a 14-year run as CEO of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry before accepting a job leading the Texas Association of Business, a similar group there.

Under his leadership, the Arizona chamber became the state’s most powerful business advocacy group, scoring a host of public policy wins that, among other things, cut the state’s corporate income tax rate, lowered commercial property tax assessment ratios and increased capital investment in Arizona.

Those achievements strengthened Arizona’s business climate and positioned it to compete with competitors like Texas, which has an advantage in the sheer size of its economy.

“Texas hosts about 50 Fortune 500 companies and attracts more. The economy is massive and diversified. At about $2 trillion, it’s ranked as the ninth largest in the world among countries,” Hamer says. “Texas is also far and away the largest export state. I really look at the state as a country in terms of the output here.”

Despite the size differences, there are common traits in both states that give them high appeal as well as a competitive edge. “Arizona and Texas feel like cousins. We’re both border states. We’re both growing fast. We’re both well-governed,” Hamer says.

Hamer did significant work to keep the tax structure low in Arizona and that’s a priority for him in Texas, as well. “We are working on tax policies that will keep Texas in the lead for major capital projects and workforce issues around the clock.

Given that Texas is the energy capital of the world, this area is also critical for us. It’s more important than ever that the U.S. takes an all-of-the-above strategy to power our economy and keep the free world brimming with energy. Then, Texas

can lead the way as the country’s leading producer of natural gas, oil, wind and hydrogen and now also as a powerhouse for electric car production with Tesla.”

One of the prime lures common to both states is they both have a welcoming attitude. “Arizona is a welcoming state. It’s very easy for someone new to fit right in. Something like 70% of adults moved in from somewhere else. As a guy who moved to Arizona after growing up in New York, I couldn’t believe how friendly the people were to me.”

Hamer has discovered a similar attitude in the Longhorn state. “Texas is just as welcoming but comes with a twist: roots. Something like 80% of Texans remain in Texas. We have people at TAB who are sixth and seventh generation, and that’s not uncommon. These roots mean that while you’re coming into a warm, great place, there are a few more controls on the speed of joining the big kids’ table, so to speak.”

Part of the welcoming environment is establishing a network of relationships, which is key to any leader.

Hamer had a long list of mentors whom he credits for his success in Arizona, including a handful of well-known leaders from the private sector: Steve Twist, Michael Bidwill, Reg Ballantyne, Pat Barnes and the late Doug Yonko; and the public sector: Sen. Jon Kyl, Gov. Doug Ducey and Arizona Commerce Authority CEO Sandra Watson.

With one year now under his belt now in Texas, he’s assembling his network there and has spent a lot of time traveling throughout the state hearing from leaders.

“When you take on a new job, you need to work extra hard and listen to all the people who will talk to you about the organization. You need to understand what people like and what they want to improve,” he says. “You learn by listening, asking the right questions, and making clear that their words will be respected and incorporated into how you approach your job.”

Hamer quickly adapted to Arizona’s lifestyle and it looks like he’s doing the same thing in Texas. “You also need to embrace the culture,” he says. “For me, that meant getting a pair of Lucchese boots, eating lots of BBQ, and beginning to learn the Texas two-step.”

Hamer was quick on his feet in Arizona, and it looks like that’s working for him in Texas, too.

Under Glenn Hamer’s leadership, the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry became the state’s most powerful business advocacy group, scoring a host of public policy wins that, among other things, cut the state’s corporate income tax rate, lowered commercial property tax assessment ratios and increased capital investment in Arizona.

OUR SUBJECT IN-DEPTH

Hiring for Sales ‘Just Doesn’t Work Like That’ Salespeople operate in a uniquely challenging reality

by Sara Wesche

Finding talent right now is hard, and those difficulties are well documented. But when it comes to hiring sellers, some companies are making it even harder on themselves.

The problem? Hiring sellers is simply a completely different — and unique — challenge from any other position in your organization. There are three obstacles that exist only in the selling role that get in the way. Unfortunately, traditional methods of hiring aren’t going to overcome them, and can actually make things worse.

Understanding the way that sellers think and act can lead to finding better applicants and making fewer hiring mistakes.

Here are the three unique obstacles: 1. No other position is designed for a fight. Other positions in a company have challenges to overcome. But no other position is expected to deal with others actively working against them.

Sellers must compete for business. They see everyone around them as competition, and they expect their employer to see it that way, too.

One recent candidate was approached by a company that offered enormous commissions based on the second and third sales, after a small initial purchase. The problem? Those follow-on sales were the responsibility of an inside team, not the seller being hired.

When one constantly observes the world as trying to take away one’s sale, that’s an unattractive offer. Despite potential on-target earnings in the high six figures, the candidate didn’t even ask for the interview.

“They can dream up those numbers all they want,” she said, “But it just doesn’t work like that. I’m not putting my income in someone else’s hands.”

2. No other position is designed to be ignored. Most positions get lots of feedback. Work is subject to review.

Customers speak up about what they think. One of the main functions of management is to let people know how they’re doing and enabling them to do better.

Sellers? Not so much. When they miss the mark, they’re met with silence. That may sound like an attractive proposition, but imagine a world in which self-improvement is largely left entirely up to the individual, alone. Doesn’t sound so great now, does it?

In fact, the internet has fundamentally changed selling. No longer do prospects need information early on in the sale. The internet has made buyers ignore salespeople until the very end of their journey. They only engage after they’ve done all their research on their own.

This is why big offers alone don’t attract high-quality sellers. To the candidate, every dollar is the same, but not

every earning opportunity is. Without the right tools and structure in place, they’re left on an island. There’s too much to figure out and not enough time to hunt down business.

To employers, offers without this structure can be seen as “lots of freedom.” But to the candidate, it seems like the employer is relying on them to figure everything out. That’s unattractive, especially in a world where they’re already ignored more and more.

3. No other position is all in its head. In the interviews most people have before they are hired, their manager almost certainly was looking for either formal education or years of experience in order to consider them for the job.

Not sellers.

The vast majority started selling at some point in their career without any formal education, and with little experience. And that’s a problem because, unlike other professionals whose work can be evaluated as “that’s incorrect,” with selling it’s different.

The soft-skill nature of selling, combined with very little formal education, creates a space in which self-limiting beliefs can come into play. Hiring companies that don’t understand these hurdles are doomed to making bad hires more often.

The Costs Are Too High to Miss The cost of missing a sales hire is so much higher than in any other position. They command some of the highest salaries in the organization. When they miss deals, those opportunities don’t come back around. The worst hires can even damage reputations.

A bad hire in management could cost a company tens of thousands of dollars. A bad hire in sales could cost that same company hundreds of thousands — or more.

Yet, time and time again, companies are tossing up “We’re Hiring” posts and expecting their revenues to improve in six months or less.

The best sellers are already working somewhere else.

They’re not looking for new roles. And employers who can’t understand their world aren’t going to get their attention.

Instead, those employers are going to attract the wrong kind of talent that won’t move the needle.

Business leaders who want to hire the best sellers have to understand the reality they’re facing. It’s important the company show them how it’ll help them compete; how it’ll prepare and equip them. It’s vital to search for the ones with the right mentality it takes to earn deals.

This is the only way a business can make certain it don’t bear the cost of a bad hire in sales, one where neither employer nor employee are enjoying their brief time together.

The soft-skill nature of selling, combined with very little formal education, creates a space in which self-limiting beliefs can come into play. Hiring companies that don’t understand these hurdles are doomed to making bad hires more often.

Sara Wesche is the director of customer enablement for Revenue Path Group, where she helps B2B sales companies develop their seller and business development talent and equip their teams to sell the way modern prospects buy. revenuepathgroup.com

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ENVIRONMENTS & WORKPLACES

Materials Matter in Combating Climate Change Reuse, locality and smart material selection are critical factors in the building industry

Designed in collaboration with Gensler and GREENGUARD Gold certified, Resonate from Haworth is a reconfigurable modular lounge collection that helps people connect and collaborate. Each of the line’s seating and table units is based on a “perfect square” platform, enabling users to reuse by adapting to changing needs.

by Kaley Blackstock

Kaley Blackstock, LEED AP, WELL AP, Fitwel Amb., CDT, is a sustainability specialist working to advance Gensler’s climate change goals and improve the built environment from an environmental, social and human health perspective. A trained architect, she has experience in certifying more than 40 LEED, WELL and Fitwel projects and has developed sustainability guidelines for key clients and institutions. She manages the firm’s Sustainable Materials Resource Group, a firmwide specifications liaison, and works to advance Gensler’s expertise in sustainable material specifications. gensler.com

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Tackling climate action in the building industry starts with making conscious decisions about the materials with which we build. Today, the production, maintenance and disposal of the materials used in building construction are responsible for 11% of global greenhouse gas emissions. This accounts for roughly a quarter of annual building sector emissions, a percentage which is growing.

By sourcing materials and products from local, regional or domestic sources, we could make serious inroads toward cutting down on the carbon emissions associated with the built environment. The lockdowns and quarantine orders in the first half of 2020 showed improved air quality measurements around the globe due to reduced transportation-related emissions — and sourcing locally could do the same.

This concept is not new. For millennia, cultures all over the world have relied on local materials to construct habitats. Rives Taylor, Gensler Design Resilience co-leader, notes, “Largely, these traditions are due to the materials being readily available, but those materials also enhance performance because they are well suited to local climate. Adobe, which has been used for centuries across the American Southwest, has a high thermal mass that keeps buildings cool in the region’s scorching heat.

Since ancient times, structures in Japan have been composed of cypress because of its resistance to the mold and rot that can easily occur in the island nation’s wet, humid climate.”

But with our competitive global industries and complex supply chains, local sourcing can be a challenge especially when factoring into consideration other requirements

for material selections (costs, availability, durability, etc.).

Designers need to think holistically about the products we specify and the impact of those selections.

Local sourcing, as well as other sustainability attributes of materials, can have a significant impact to the greenhouse gas emissions of buildings. Currently, the building sector accounts for nearly 40% of annual emissions, and it is projected that by 2050 nearly half of this will be due to the embodied carbon of building materials — the carbon emissions due to extracting, manufacturing, shipping, installing, maintaining and disposing of construction materials. As we strive to reduce the carbon footprint of our building operations, it is equally important that we find ways to reduce the carbon footprint of the very materials with which we build. To quote Gensler’s Co-CEO Diane Hoskins, “We can no longer ignore that building materials account for half of a building’s total lifetime carbon footprint.”

LOOK FOR LOW CARBON ALTERNATIVES

Today, an informed designer can research and select materials with a low carbon footprint. For some products, this information is readily available in documents called Environmental Product Declarations, or “EPDs.” In fact, there are plenty of low embodied carbon, and even carbon neutral, carpet options in the market for designers to choose from. One example is the Smart City carpet plank system by Mohawk Group, a product that Gensler helped develop as a product design consultant. It earned Living Product Petal Certification from the International Living Future Institute for its regenerative qualities.

Currently, the building sector accounts for nearly 40% of annual emissions, and it is projected that by 2050 nearly half of this will be due to the embodied carbon of building materials — the carbon emissions due to extracting, manufacturing, shipping, installing, maintaining and disposing of construction materials.

Minimizing embodied carbon in a building, however, should start from the design concept by exploring alternative solutions to conventional designs.

Reusing existing building components in lieu of installing new materials, for instance, reduces the carbon footprint of a project by simply not adding to the embodied carbon accounting of the project. More often than not, a building material is discarded before its usefulness runs out, and the longer that materials are used in buildings, the less carbon we expend to make more, newer materials. Furniture and interior finishes tend to be replaced every few years, while structural elements can last as long as the building itself. Even though structural elements are high embodied carbon materials, the repeated churn of interior projects and the replacement of their materials over the life span of a building can add up to an equal or greater share of the building’s overall carbon footprint.

So, when designing projects we should ask ourselves several key questions: Might we rethink the materiality of our built spaces? Can we engineer building materials in a way that allows them to be durable but also capable of disassembly and repurposing? And can we find unexpected sources of local materials and work with our manufacturing partners to improve the sustainability performance of these products?

Overall, this means a shift in focus toward lifecycle thinking for every design we create and every material, furniture and fixture we specify. And importantly, that means understanding not only the energy and carbon expended in the creation of an object or place, but what’s expended at the end of that lifecycle, too. That means planning for re-use of materials and buildings whenever possible — whether via refurbishment, recycling, or adaptive reuse — and seeing local resources for building products within the existing construction of our built environments.

Together, we have an opportunity to decrease embodied carbon levels throughout the built environment simply by making smart, forward-thinking choices about materials.

This chart shows the impact of commonly used building materials, both at initial procurement (orange) and over a building’s estimated life span of 60 years (yellow). Structural materials have the biggest initial impact; over time, interior design elements and materials increase in total impact as replacements add up.

As Gensler continues to renovate and build new offices around the world, we are focused on creating efficient, intelligent and healthy workplaces for our employees. Whenever possible, furniture and materials are re-used; when that’s not possible, waste is recycled or donated to keep items going to a landfill to a minimum. In Phoenix, an adaptive reuse of a former restaurant space is now Gensler’s new flexible workplace.

Reusing existing building components in lieu of installing new materials reduces the carbon footprint of a project by simply not adding to the embodied carbon accounting of the project. More often than not, a building material is discarded before its usefulness runs out.

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INVESTING IN COMMUNITY

#ChallengesforChange How social media challenges make philanthropy accessible for everyone

by Taylor Fareri

CLASSY’S 2021 REPORT ON AMERICAN GIVING PROVIDES INSIGHTS FOR FUNDRAISING. When raising money for any cause, it is important to understand why people want to donate. Classy’s “Why America Gives” report breaks down how to target key donors, how the pandemic impacted giving in our country and ways to engage donors through tech. learn.classy.org/whyamerica-gives-2021.html

Taylor Fareri is the content manager for Valley of the Sun United Way, which serves more than 4.3 million people in Maricopa County. VSUW is committed to creating an equitable, inclusive community for everyone. vsuw.org

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Social media is an indispensable tool for many businesses and organizations, including nonprofits. Whether a company is using Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter or LinkedIn, the platforms offer a free way to connect with their target audience. Every post is a new chance to reach a potential donor or volunteer.

Social media challenges and viral fundraising techniques can be huge for raising funds. When successful, these campaigns can bring widespread attention, major traffic to an organization’s website, and a spike in donations. All of which can be done without spending money on paid campaigns.

One of the latest examples of this phenomenon is the Betty White Challenge.

The Viral Betty White Challenge was created in honor of the late Betty White. The beloved actress, best known for her role in “Golden Girls,” passed away in 2021 at the age of 99.

In the wake of her death, the #bettywhitechallenge quickly surfaced online. It asked fans to donate $5 to an animal shelter or rescue of their choosing in White’s name. The challenge took place on January 17th, in honor of White’s 100th birthday.

The actress was a longtime advocate for animal welfare.

White served on the board of trustees with the Los Angeles Zoo Association. She also received many awards, including American Humane’s National Humanitarian Medal and the Jane Goodall Institute Award for Lifetime Achievement.

The Betty White Challenge quickly went viral on social media. Millions of dollars were raised for animal welfare organizations across the country. Facebook announced that 390,000 users on its platforms alone raised more than $12 million. The Los Angeles Zoo, which is closely connected to White, reported more than $90,000 in donations. Even small, locally run shelters reported bringing in thousands of dollars from online donors.

The Betty White Challenge was successful for several reasons, including accessibility, flexibility and urgency. The barrier of entry was $5, which is accessible for most social media users. Users also didn’t have to donate their money to an organization they were unfamiliar with. The challenge

offered flexibility, targeting a cause rather than one specific organization. People were able to choose exactly where their money went. It also created a sense of urgency. People were asked to donate on White’s 100th birthday.

The challenge created a sense of unity. Everyone was working together for a common goal: raising money for animals.

GOING VIRAL IS LIKE CAPTURING LIGHTNING IN A BOTTLE

There is no guarantee it will happen, but there are ways to give an organization a greater chance. It all starts with great, shareable content.

When creating content, organizations should focus on storytelling. Users respond to content that has an emotional, human component. Nonprofits have a big advantage here.

Most of the work is centered on helping people and the surrounding community. Organizations should tell their stories through great photos and videos. Social media users are more likely to interact with a post when it includes a person’s face.

Organizations should also make sure their message is clear and sharable. When coming up with an idea, they should consider how they would explain it to a friend. Is it easy to understand? Can someone share it easily with others?

Answering those questions will help when developing a potentially viral campaign.

Messaging should respond to current events. Fundraising website Classy reports that 55% of people donate to new causes based on a timely appeal. People are more likely to give in response to something happening in the news or a special event in their community. Social channels are the fastest way to react to what is happening around us.

Lastly, it helps to think small. This might sound strange, but keeping the ask small will increase the number of people who can take part. The Betty White Challenge did this and saw enormous success. By asking for $5 instead of $100, the challenge was able to cast a wider net of donors. This is a great way to make philanthropy accessible for everyone. More people will be able to participate and feel involved in their community.

Challenges aren’t new. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that hit social media in 2014 was one of the first times a nonprofit went viral. The challenge asked people to film themselves dumping ice water on their heads, post it online and invite others to join in. In just 30 days, more than 15 million videos were made, raising more than $100 million for the ALS Association.

WE VALUE WHAT WE OWN

2022 Lucid Air Grand Touring Lucid Air Grand Touring and Grand Touring Performance are here — pushing the limits of efficiency and exhilaration while surrounding drivers and their passengers in style and comfort.

For those seeking maximum thrills, Lucid engineered a model that takes driving dynamics further than the Lucid Air Grand Touring Performance. Optimized for acceleration, Grand Touring Performance delivers 1,050 horsepower, a top speed of 168 mph, and a staggering 2.6-second 0–60 time. All with the stamina to travel 446 miles on a single charge. Bespoke wheels and subtle badging hint at the power within.

The Lucid Air Grand Touring is also phenomenally fast, with 819 horsepower on tap, a max speed of 168 mph, a 3.0-second 0–60 time, and a record-breaking range of 516 miles. With ultimate comfort and efficiency, Grand Touring is built to cover more ground — in stunning luxury — and this model is able to be ordered immediately.

Whatever the specs chosen, the Grand Touring delivers incredible performance and luxury. Both Grand Touring models are equipped to deliver a world-class experience for drivers and passengers, with included features such as glass canopy spanning windshield to roof; elegant and intuitive Lucid UX with 34-inch floating Glass Cockpit and 5K resolution; extensive over-the-air software update capability; DreamDrive Pro, which is Lucid’s advanced driver assistance system; 21-speaker Surreal Sound immersive audio system with Dolby Atmos compatibility; and an ultra-fast 900V+ charging system.

Both versions of Grand Touring deliver comfortable cabins inspired by California. Rich interior textures and materials add warmth and depth to the experience, while California’s midcentury architecture and natural landscapes influence each of the four interior themes.

Lucid Air Grand Touring and Grand Touring Performance are offered in a palette of carefully curated exterior colors: Stellar White, Infinite Black, Cosmos Silver, Quantum Grey and Zenith Red. Both Grand Touring versions come standard with 21-inch Aero Blade wheels with Pirelli tires specially designed for Lucid.

The Air Grand Touring is also available with 19-inch Aero range wheels with all-season tires, which further optimize range.

Customer deliveries have already started for Grand Touring, and the new Grand Touring Performance model is going into production later this spring.

—Mike Hunter

2022 LUCID AIR GRAND TOURING MSRP: $139,000 HP: 819 0-60 mph: 3.0 sec EPA Range • 19-inch wheel: 516 mi • 21-inch wheel: 469 mi

Lucid Motors lucidmotors.com

Office as Gym? FlexCycle Under-the-Desk Exercise Bike from

easy to store and pack away, and portable

to enable

LifePro allows people to make the most of

handles are included. Its soundless motor

users to clear

their home office and other seating space.

keeps users engaged with their task at hand,

their mind while

This under-the-desk bike is easy on the

while stabilizers keep the mini stepper from

harnessing the body’s

joints and makes squeezing some aerobic

moving. Optional straps tether the stationary

built-in repair and recovery mechanisms.

exercise into one’s day a breeze. Included

pedal exerciser to the desk chair.

Every portable exercise bike peddler

Photos courtesy of Lucid (top)

with the bike are optional resistance bands

Users can even track their progress with

bearing the LifePro name undergoes

that hook up to the desk bike, so users can up

the mobile app, available for free download

rigorous testing to make sure it delivers

their office workout instantly — whenever

through the Apple and Google Play stores.

on power and efficacy, plus it comes with

they like. It’s not only perfect for workouts

Login via smart device or computer to track

live support and a lifetime guarantee. —

while one works, but also while sitting and

workout progress and view relevant stats to

Merilee Kern, a Forbes Business Council,

streaming a favorite TV show and other

help reach fitness goals. This easy, aerobic

Newsweek Expert Forum and Rolling Stone

occasions. Its compact design helps make it

exercise tool supports full-body wellness

Culture Council member

Your Car at Your Fingertips. The Lucid app keeps Air owners connected and up to date no matter where they are. Mobile applications are becoming table stakes for cars, but they often feel like an extra or add-on. From the start, Lucid viewed the Lucid Air as a completely connected vehicle, with the Lucid app as a core part of the ownership experience and, eventually, the broader Lucid ecosystem.

DON’T MISS OUT!

Get a year of In Business Magazine Subscribe now at inbusinessphx.com

MAY 57 2022 INBUSINESSPHX.COM

MEALS THAT MATTER

WILD SALMON CRUDO Salmon, leche de tigre, Fresno chili and cilantro $18

Chicken, bread & butter pickles, chili honey, Bibb lettuce and garlic aioli on a brioche bun $18

MARGHERITA PIZZA Tomato crudo, burrata, olive oil and basil $18

MAY 2022

58

INBUSINESSPHX.COM

by RaeAnne Marsh

Warmth is the overriding theme at Etta, which builds its menu around the wood-fired hearth that is also prominently featured in the exhibition kitchen that spans nearly one full wall of the main dining room. Warmth also reflects and rebounds off the copperware hanging in profuse display above the flames. In fact, hearth is central to the restaurant’s entire concept, as the name “Etta” comes from “Henrietta,” French for “keeper of the hearth.”

Fulfilling the vision of Chef Danny Grant, Heidi Lightner Architects effectively created an atmosphere both vibrant and comfortable. It was a ground-up remodel of prime space at the northwest corner of Scottsdale Quarter shopping center that now encompasses a bar, dining room and two patios as Chicago-based What If Syndicate adds Arizona to Etta’s short list of locations.

Classically trained Chef Grant, who lived in Scottsdale as a child, brings personal favorites to the menu. This includes a piquant condiment he’s known to use liberally at his own table; at Etta, this colorful, pickled mix of chopped vegetables is one of four taste-changers served with the perfectly blistered wood-fired pizzas. The others are a finely grated Parmesan cheese, a powdered herb mix that includes oregano and onion, and a lovely red Veracruz chili oil guaranteed to bring the taste to high heat, whether it’s on a simple margherita pizza made with tomato crudo, the wild mushroom pizza made with goat cheese and black truffles, or any of the other flavors.

Among other dishes on the full menu are Little Gem salad, with red and green Little Gem lettuce, avocado and celery

served with a crème fraiche lemon dressing; ricotta pillows so light they practically float; and a particularly eye-appealing, paper-thin Wagyu carpaccio decorated with cucumber coins, charred scallions, salsa verde and pecorino cheese pieces.

Freshly made focaccia and house-made pasta dishes round out a menu that offers such entrées as wood-fired chicken and fire-roasted whole branzino.

Service is family-style, with each dish brought to the table as it is done, rather than waiting under a heat lamp for all orders to be ready. Any take-home servings, instead of being deposited at the table, can be claimed at the front desk on departure.

Etta 15301 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale (480) 939-4444 ettarestaurant.com

And the Unexpected: Etta’s menu item Porrón & a Polaroid is built on the Spanish tradition of sharing wine with a group of friends, where a polaroid camera is brought to the table along with a porrón (pitcher of wine), to capture memories of the fun.

Photos courtesy of What If Syndicate

CRISPY CHICKEN SANDWICH

Etta – Hearth-Driven from Kitchen to Dining Room

TEMPE CHAMBER

ADVANTAGE tempechamber.org

Introducing Colin Diaz, TCC’s New President & CEO The Tempe Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors has named Colin Diaz, ACE, IOM, as the new President and CEO following the retirement of Anne Gill.

Colin Diaz is no stranger to chamber of commerce work, as he assumes the role of President and CEO with more than four years of experience as the Chief Executive Officer/President of the Culver City Chamber of Commerce in Culver City, California. In addition to his chamber experience, Diaz has more than 20 years of management, marketing, sales and community outreach experience.

“Our board of directors is truly pleased to introduce an accomplished leader like Mr. Colin Diaz to our community,” says Raveen Arora, Board Chair of the Tempe Chamber Board of Directors. “I firmly believe that Colin possesses the ability and expertise to grow the Tempe Chamber into an even more impactful and successful organization in these challenging times.”

In assuming the role of President and CEO, Diaz stated, “I am excited and humbled by the opportunity to lead this great organization.

There are very few opportunities where a strong foundation, potential for growth and an engaged community coexist concurrently. Tempe has a richness of history and culture, charged with the energy of innovation and growth. Tempe is experiencing this and more and is poised for greatness.”

He brings an impressive educational background, with an MBA from Duke University and an MFA from Chapman University. As the leader of the Culver City Chamber, Diaz used a blend of his professional, personal and educational experience to grow reach, elevate the chamber brand to others, and protect the reputation of the Chamber.

His range of educational, professional and practical experience allows him to be in tune with current trends and technology, while still being rooted in the sound practices that have led businesses for decades. He is an industry influencer who currently sits on the W.A.C.E. Board of Directors as a member of the executive committee. In addition to this regional appointment, Diaz will be the only Accredited Chamber Executive in the Valley.

Personally, Diaz values spending time with his family and is making the move to the East Valley with his wife, Alicia, and two daughters.

He cites the regions many activities and resources as being especially attractive to his family. He’s always been active and uses that energy and enthusiasm in both professional and personal endeavors.

Te m p e C h a m b e r. o r g

Colin Diaz, President & CEO, Tempe Chamber of Commerce

“Tempe has a richness of history and culture, charged with the energy of innovation and growth”

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Tempe Chamber of Commerce Welcomes New Team Members David John Key, Marketing & Programs Manager In August 2021, David Key was welcomed as the new marketing and programs manager.

The marketing and programs manager is responsible for the development, coordination, implementation and maintenance of Chamber marketing and event campaigns with the strategy to engage, enhance and promote the Chamber’s membership base, programs, special events and overall brand. The marketing and programs manager oversees the Chamber’s communications with members and stakeholders via the Chamber’s social media accounts and newsletter, providing a clear and consistent voice around local and national policy updates and current happenings. This position provides support in the planning and execution of the Chamber’s signature events and programs.

Kay graduated from Arizona State University in 2014 with a degree in business management, with a focus in entrepreneurship. Upon graduating, he started touring the country as a musician and booking concerts around the Phoenix area. While working in the music business, he developed a strong passion for events and marketing. He has held roles that include tour manager, artist manager, talent buyer, festival manager and marketing director.

Paulette Pacioni, Member Relations In August 2021, Paulette Pacioni was welcomed to the position of member relations.

Member relations is responsible for member retention and engagement, working with the members as a chamber concierge to help them best utilize their memberships. This positions is a liaison for Chamber committees and councils, also working in business development with the VP of business development.

Pacioni holds a bachelor’s degree in media communications and started her career in Buffalo, New York, as the marketing manager for WUTV. After too many winters of shoveling snow, she moved to Phoenix, Arizona, to work at KUTP as the promotion writer/producer. After “producing” two adorable children with her husband, Dan, the call of entrepreneurship took her away from television and into her own window-covering business, which eventually led her to chamber of commerce work. She started at the Ahwatukee Foothills Chamber of Commerce heading up the marketing department, then moved to the marketing manager position at the Chandler Chamber of Commerce and now has settled in at the Tempe Chamber of Commerce, where she enjoys business development and member retention and engagement. She enjoys creative projects and serving the business community. By the way, the two adorable kids are grown and are in full swing of “producing” interesting careers of their own.

Jenna Swink, Marketing Intern In March, Jenna Swink was welcomed as the Tempe Chamber’s marketing intern.

The marketing intern is responsible for assisting with the Chamber’s marketing and communications. The duties include assisting with the creation of social media content, press releases and member communications. This position also provides administrative support and assistance with events and special programs.

Swink is an Arizona native who recently graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in business communications. She has gained a lot of experience in the content creation and public relations field from her past internships and social media/events leadership roles within her sorority at ASU.

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T E M P E C H A M B E R A D V A N TA G E

2021 State of the City Address On November 5, 2021, The Tempe Chamber’s Annual State of the City, presented by Edward Jones, brought together Tempe’s business, civic and community leaders. The State of the City Address, featuring Mayor Corey Woods and the Tempe City Council, explored how the City of Tempe is working with the business community, nonprofit partners, and educational institutions to positively impact the physical, economic and social factors that impact the community’s health and well-being.

The program began with a request from Mayor Corey Woods for everyone to stand up and dance to celebrate returning to in-person events. Following a brief dance, attendees watched a video of Mayor Woods “riding” around Tempe on a stationary Peloton bike. The video celebrated Peloton coming to Tempe, opening its office in January of 2022.

Councilmember Doreen Garlid then spoke about how the City of Tempe is planning for future traffic flow with new, sustainable transportation options. Through a Transportation Demand Management Program, the city aims to create mobility hubs and expanding access to electric vehicle charging. Councilmember Lauren Kuby spoke about Tempe’s Climate Action Plan and sustainability efforts. She spoke about how the CAP was created to reduce carbon emissions and create a city that is more resilient to the challenges of climate change.

Councilmember Arredondo-Savage explored small business efforts and accomplishments while at Oats Overnight, a fast-growing new, healthy food being manufactured in Tempe. She emphasized that businesses still needed support post-pandemic. Vice Mayor Keating spoke about some of the new hotels, including The Westin, Best Western’s Vib Tempe and the Omni Tempe ASU Hotel & Conference Center. He also reviewed developments and welcomed businesses that

are coming soon, including the 100 Mill development and new offices for Deloitte, Carvana, Vitalant and Peloton.

Councilmember Adams provided information about opportunities for people to improve their financial futures, featuring many of the programs available at Rio Salado College. Councilmember Navarro showed how Tempe Fire and Tempe Police are working together to save lives with Narcan, partnering with CARE7 and more.

2022 Leadership Speaker Series In January and February of 2022, the Tempe Chamber hosted the 2022 Leadership Speaker Series, presented by BD – Becton Dickinson. This year’s theme was “Let Your Brilliant Light Shine.” The virtual series consisted of four dynamic sessions, each led by a leader in their industry who shared leadership best practices and personal stories that helped shape their career.

The series began with Lorraine Tallman, founder of Amanda Hope Rainbow Angels. She spoke about how the loss of her daughter Amanda to childhood cancer transformed into a source of hope for others. She advised attendees, “Know your mission in your heart. Know your passion.

Know the difference that you truly want to make and stay with it.”

The series continued with Norris Thomas, owner of Norris Thomas Seminars, who spoke about how to refocus after facing hardship and the importance of creating processes and measurable results. Norris advised attendees that the two most important questions to ask oneself are, “Who am I?” and “What was I born to do?”

The third session of the series featured Stephanie Klocke, VP of Research at BD. Stephanie spoke about how servant leaders can remove barriers to help people develop, perform and thrive while meeting their goals. Attendees learned powerful strategies for serving their company’s purpose by serving others first.

Te m p e C h a m b e r. o r g

Karen Nowicki, owner and president of Phoenix Business RadioX, led the final session of the Leadership Speaker Series. She shared strategies and personal stories to help our attendees steer away from negative thinking, break through the limitations we place on ourselves and truly connect with others. She creatively used props to display the varying outcomes: living in a cloak of safety or being confined to a box.

T E M P E C H A M B E R A D VA N TA G E

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Tempe Chamber MAC Celebrates 40 Years In 2021, the Tempe Chamber Military Affairs Committee celebrated 40 years in support of military personnel in the Greater Phoenix area.

Since 1981, the MAC has supported veterans and servicemembers through sponsorships, fundraising, awards and scholarships. Each year, the committee hosts the Copper 5 Awards and the Red, White & Blue Awards. This year, award recipients each received an additional item: a commemorative challenge coin.

“The Tempe Chamber MAC has been proudly supporting our active-duty, reserve and veteran

servicemembers for the past 40 years,” said MAC Chair Kevin O’Brien. “In commemoration of this anniversary, we minted challenge coins that serve as a reminder to these servicemembers that we are here to support them in the years to come.”

In addition to recognizing outstanding servicemembers and veterans throughout the Valley, the MAC helps businesses connect with veterans and helps with employer workplace resources and programs. For more information about our Military Affairs Committee, visit https://tempechamber.org/committees.

4th Annual Red, White & Blue Awards Awards: • Captain Andrew Burns 63rd Fighter Squadron Trip Grace Memorial Award • BM1 Charles Weiss Navy Operational Support BUC Joel E. Baldwin Memorial Award • MSgt Robert A. Jones 944th Fighter Wing Graydon Williams Award • MSgt Aaron Hall Kyle Brayer Veteran in Public Safety Scholarships: On March 23, 2022, Tempe Chamber Military Affairs Committee hosted the 4th Annual Red, White & Blue Awards, presented by Silicon Valley Bank and BD. Each year, the Red, White & Blue Awards recognizes eight individuals from various branches of the military and public service for their courageous work and dedication to service.

The ceremony took place in-person at Grace Community Church and was livestreamed and recorded for those who could not be in attendance. Veterans and servicemembers were joined by their commanding officers on stage and were surrounded by family, friends and members of the community as they received their awards.

• Raheem Zeno The Merle Fister Veteran Scholarship • Cadet Casey R. Mihojevich ASU Army ROTC Scholarship • MIDN Kevin Saiki ASU Navy ROTC Scholarship - Navy • Cadet Scarlett Evans ASU Air Force ROTC Scholarship

2021 Stars & Strikes Bowling Fundraiser On September 15, 2021, the Military Affairs Committee proudly hosted the “Stars and Strikes Bowling Fundraiser” event at Main Event Tempe. A portion of the proceeds from this event went toward the Military Affairs Committee’s awards and scholarships. The winning team was GLO Group, featuring MAC CoChair Sukki Jahnke, IOM. The runner-up was the City of Tempe team, featuring Mayor Corey Woods. The event was a success due in part to the support of the MAC’s 2021 Patriot Sponsors: Cox, EMD Electronics, Silicon Valley Bank and State Farm.

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T E M P E C H A M B E R A D V A N TA G E

Career Ready Tempe Career Ready Tempe is a collaborative effort between the City of Tempe and the Chamber Foundation in partnership with Tempe Union High School District. The CRT program has just completed its second year as a pilot program funded by the innovation grant. Nine students from TUHSD completed a fall internship of 120 internship hours with the support of eight local business that hosted the students. Two of the participating students were hired for part-time positions by the host business.

The City of Tempe recently hired Delaina LeForce as the Career Ready Tempe Coordinator. To learn more about Career Ready Tempe, or connect with Delaina LeForce, visit https://www.tempe.gov/careerreadytempe.

Upcoming Signature Events

2022 Leadership Conference Friday, May 20, 2022, 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

DoubleTree by Hilton Tempe Inspiring speakers and diverse exhibitors come together for the 2022 Leadership Conference & Expo. This year’s program will start off with two informative sessions featuring expert speakers and business community leaders, and plenty of networking and expo time between sessions. The lunch program will include graduation of the men and women who participated in the 2022 mentoring program, highlight videos of the three finalists for the 2022 Business Woman of the Year and the announcement of this year’s recipient.

The event will feature more than 20 exhibitors and a silent auction. Corporate sponsorship, corporate tables, expo tables and single tickets are available now. Reserve your seat today at www.temepchamber.org.

2022 Sustainability Summit Friday, June 3, 2022, 7:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

Hilton Garden Inn by Hilton Phoenix Tempe Research Park The Tempe Chamber of Commerce Sustainability Committee proudly presents Emerging Issues Forum: 2022 Sustainability Summit. This event will include a keynote address, an expert panel and business success stories in sustainability areas such as energy efficiency, efficient transportation programs and more. The Tempe Chamber is the only chamber in the United States with a Sustainability Pledge program dedicated to engage and educate businesses on sustainability practices.

To submit a Sustainable Story, visit https://form. jotform.com/TempeChamberAZ/SustShortStories22.

To save your seat, visit www.tempechamber.org.

Te m p e C h a m b e r. o r g

2022 State of the District April 14, 2022, The Tempe Chamber hosted the 2022 State of the District with Congressman Greg Stanton, presented by FOX Corporation. Attendees were welcomed by Tempe Chamber President and CEO Colin Diaz, who opened by thanking event sponsors, including host Rio Salado College.

Attendees were then greeted by President Kate Smith of Rio Salado College who spoke about the importance of continuing to work together with the Tempe Chamber and Representative Stanton to make education more affordable, more accessible and equitable for all. Danny O’Brien, executive vice president and head of government relations for Fox Corporation, then spoke about FOX’s new Technology Center at the ASU Research Center in Tempe and introduced Congressman Greg Stanton.

Congressman Greg Stanton began his address by acknowledging the importance of his collaboration with local cities and mayors, including the City of Tempe and Mayor Corey Woods. He highlighted economic growth in Arizona that would require additional investment in water infrastructure and public transportation. Stanton cited Congress’s response to COVID and spoke on the importance of avoiding worsened economic downturn with the passing of the CARES Act and the American Rescue Plan Act. Representative Stanton finished his presentation stating, “Let’s continue to build our local economy higher. Let’s continue to work together to protect our water supply and modernize our infrastructure. Let’s continue to show that the federal government and cities can work closely together to lift up small businesses. Let’s keep at it and continue to show the nation how it’s done.”

The program was rounded out by a Q&A with Diaz and Congressman Stanton on topics ranging from public transportation to the Great Resignation and rising inflation.

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Board of Directors Board Chair: Raveen Arora Incoming Chair: Megan Martin Treasurer: Suzy Greenwood Vice-Chairs: Mark Holthaus, Julie Rodriguez Immediate Past Chair: Chad Akin Directors: Nick Bastian, John Bauer, CPA, MBA, Tom Binge, Mike Bradley, Laura Briscoe, Ashley Bunch, Lisa Cavasos, Sarah Clifford, Brent Cope, Jayashree Ganesa

Tempe Chamber Staff Colin Diaz, ACE, IOM President & CEO president@tempechamber.org

Paulette Pacioni Member Engagement Specialist paulette@tempechamber.org

Erika Acorn Vice President of Business Development erika@tempechamber.org

Julie Flanigan, CPA Director of Finance julieflanigan@tempechamber.org

David John Key Marketing and Programs Manager david@tempechamber.org

Tempe Chamber of Commerce P.O. Box 28500 • Tempe, AZ 85285 (480) 967-7891 www.tempechamber.org

Ex-Officios: Kate Borders, Jessica Brice, Andrew Ching, Tim Gomez Committee Chairs: Jim Hall, Brian Stinson, Felicity Blackwater, Tom Binge, Darrol Robinson, Ashley Bunch, Kevin O’Brien, Eddie Fredericks, Dawn Hocking, Roxy Helman The Tempe Chamber of Commerce strengthens the local economy though networking, advocacy, professional development and influence. It regularly advocates for a favorable business climate through interactive public policy engagement and provides ongoing representation in government at local, state and federal levels.

CONNECT WITH THE TEMPE CHAMBER! JOIN US ON FACEBOOK /tempecc WATCH OUR VIDEOS /tempechamber

FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @tempechamber

FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM @tempechamber

FOLLOW US ON LINKEDIN /company/tempe-chamber-of-commerce Visit our website at www.tempechamber.org!

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T E M P E C H A M B E R A D V A N TA G E

Arredondo-Savage, 61

Dufort, Katie, 18

Kvesic, Andy, 48

Smith, Brad, 16

Austin, Bryce, 42

Fareri, Taylor, 56

Lawson, Mark, 26

Stanton, Greg, 63

Barnett, Noah, 26

Garlid, Doreen, 61

Lewis, Peter C., 40

Swancey, Danny, 38

Bauer, Mark, 20

Grant, Danny, 58

Lin, Bryan, 31

Swink, Jenna, 60

Baugh, Adam, 41

Guttman, Jake, 66

Martinsen, Jon, 43

Talbot, Trisha, 46

Blackstock, Kaley, 54

Hamer, Glenn, 52

Moore, Scott, 33

Tallman, Lorraine, 61

Boden, Rodney C., 38

Henninger, Don, 52

Morris, Jason, 12

Thomas, Norris, 61

Boles, Alex, 36

Johnson, Christina, 19

Murphy, James, 12

Watson, Sandra, 30

Borcherding, Jenna, 35

Kern, Merilee, 57

Nowicki, Karen, 61

Weiss, Todd, 36

Brown, Nic, 18

Key, David John, 60

Orsborn, Eric, 33

Wesche, Sara, 53

Butler, Tyler, 50

Klinck, Bobby, 43

Pacioni, Paulette, 60

Woods, Corey, 61

Camacho, Chris, 30

Klocke, Stephanie, 61

Palleres, Johnny, 24

Wozny, Rob, 43

Carlat, Cathy, 12

Komadina, Paul, 11

Pharris, Jon, 34

Zemon, Josh, 37

Clemente, Steve, 13

Kremer, Curt, 20

Reynolds, Jennifer, 22

Diaz, Colin, 59

Krumwiede, David, 35

Sacco, Mike, 39

Dufort, Gregg, 18

Kuby, Lauren, 61

Sikorski, Ryan, 32

Amanda Hope Rainbow Angels, 61

Etta, 58

Puzzle Riders, 18

Arizona Commerce Authority, 2, 30

Footprint, 14, 50

PXG, 4

Arizona Community Foundation, 68

Gensler, 54

Radix Law, 48

Arizona State University, 14

George Oliver, 20

Revenue Path Group, 53

BD – Becton Dickinson, 61

Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona, 17

Rosevest Financial, 66

BET Investments, 33

UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Arizona, 24 UnitedHealthcare, 7 Valley of the Sun United Way, 24, 56 VanTrust Real Estate, 35 ViaWest Group, 36, 38

Greater Phoenix Economic Council, 30

Scottsdale Coalition of Today & Tomorrow, 52

Hines, 33

Sid’s Garage, 14

Weedmaps, 50

BMO Harris Bank, 9

Ideation Design Group, 22

Snell & Wilmer, 49

Wells Fargo, 14

Boeing Company, 14

Jive, 10

Stearns Bank, 10

Wetta Ventures, 38

Camelot Homes, 19

JLL, 20, 21

Sunlit Chemical, 31

Wharton Industrial, 40

CapRock Partners, 34

Kinessage, 23

TCE Strategy, 42

Willmeng Construction, 5, 12

CBRE Arizona, 11

Kiterocket, 67

Tempe Chamber of Commerce, 59

Withey Morris, PLC, 12, 41

CBRE, 30

Landsea Homes, 19

TSMC Arizona, 31

Wolff Company, The, 19

Clayco, 41

LifePro, 57

Colliers in Arizona, 30

Lincoln Property Company, 35

Colliers, 27

Lovitt & Touché, 3

CommercialSearch, 30

Lucid Motors, 57

Connect-UV, 18

MAK Homes, 19

Creation, 37

MarshMcLennan Agency, 3

Delta Dental of Arizona, 14

meQuilibrium, 16

Dermody Properties, 32

Norris Thomas Seminars, 61

Desert Financial Credit Union, 47

OneAZ Credit Union, 15

DLR Commercial Cleaning, 24

Peoria, City of, 12

DOCPROPERTIES, 46

Phoenix Business RadioX, 61

EastGroup, 39

Pomchies, 14

Enterprise Bank & Trust, 26

Primrose Schools, 13

Equality Health Foundation, 24

Private label International, 19

Equality Health, 51

Prologis, 51

ES American, 39

ProTech Detailing, 23

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, 25

In each issue of In Business Magazine, we list both companies and indivuduals for quick reference. See the stories for links to more.

Virtuous, 26

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A CANDID FORUM

BY

Compensation Strategies for High-Value Employees Considerations in this era of diminishing workforce

by Jake Guttman

Jake Guttman, FSCP®, is the founder and CEO of Rosevest Financial, which provides a variety of services that include financial, legacy, investment and retirement planning, as well as risk and wealth management.

Securities and advisory services offered through Geneos Wealth Management, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC. finra.org rosevestfinancial.com sipc.org

MAY 2022

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INBUSINESSPHX.COM

This year is shaping up to be one of the most challenging in history for employers thanks to the highest inflation rate in four decades and a growing imbalance between the number of job openings and the number of candidates willing to fill them.

Pressure has increased across all industries to raise salaries and hourly wages, but that simply won’t be enough for many companies. Instead, employers must come up with creative ways to compensate high-value employees as well as attract new talent. Luckily, there are several ways employers can do this through strategic compensation strategies.

Non-cash benefits: Candidates want to feel valued and supported by their employers. An increase in wellness benefits, corporate social responsibility initiatives, maternity/ paternity support opportunities and professional/personal growth opportunities are solid compensation strategies.

Using life insurance to reward key executives: For business owners, their key executives are an important factor behind a business’s success. Rewarding key employees with an executive bonus arrangement using life insurance, which primarily provides death benefit protection, may be an effective way to ensure that top performers stay with the company and don’t turn to a competitor.

Performance-based compensation packages: Traditional compensation bands consist of stock and equity.

Equity can include grants of stock, stock options or restricted stock units (RSU). The compensation of top executives is increasingly tied to achieving results across all industries.

Compensation packages that appeal to investors: When attempting to attract talent, employers are also mindful of the need to structure compensation packages that sit well with investors, not just employees. Investors will support a compensation package for executives that is directly related to the performance of that company.

Incentive programs that increase retention: Incentive programs can be based on both short-term and long-term performance goals. Companies can provide cash and stock-

based equity grants that will grant additional RSUs upon certain levels of achievement. They are forward-looking.

Creative comp packages at private companies: Because equity in a private company cannot be realized in terms of translatable cash until there is an event such as an IPO, privately and publicly held companies differ in their compensation strategies. Private companies are increasingly realizing the need to find creative ways to compensate talent that does not put them at a disadvantage to publicly held employers. It’s common to see greater promises of equity in addition to higher cash compensation than in the past so that a private company can compete with a publicly held company for the best talent.

Goals-based vacation packages: An all-expenses-paid or all-inclusive vacation for a high-value employee (and a plus one) is a great incentive for that person to meet or beat a goal.

The offer of a free experience with paid time off has proven to be extremely motivating.

Executive development: Preparing a team for personal and professional growth is a very strong retention technique for not only current staff retention but the recruiting of new team members as time goes on. Preparing a team to be experts in a particular industry can create ripple effects in an industry and a company’s reputation.

Rewarding high-value and high-producing employees will continue to be an evolving issue that affects employers around the globe as they try to balance the monetary with the intangible. Workplace perks, culture, recognition and appreciation often go farther than any check could, but dollars and cents must always be considered. Executive bonus plans and employee compensation packages can vary from company to company, but they are all rooted in the same purpose: retention, rewards and recognition. If a business owner is looking for options to compensate a few key executives, a conversation with a trusted advisor could unlock more options than they thought possible.

When employees are satisfied with their job and compensation milestones, they’ll want to get the job done and get it done well while the company will see lower turnover and increased productivity. A recent survey found only 20% of employees in the U.S. are passionate about their job, so it’s more important than ever for business leaders to implement incentivized compensation packages to keep employees motivated. apollotechnical.com/job-satisfaction-statistics

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When you are ready to take the next step in your personal charitable giving journey, we are here to help you achieve your goals.

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