Grow KC June 2014 by Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce

VO LU M E 2 I S SU E 4 Ju n e 2 0 1 4

BUSINESS

KC C H A M B E R N E W S L E T T E R

BISHOP-MCCANN Small Business of the Year

MEET THE TOP 10 Small Businesses

LEADERSHIP EXCHANGE Silicon Valley

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BISHOP-MCCANN 2014 Small Business of the Year

ATHENA What’s New in 2014

NEW MEMBERS Milestone Anniversaries, President’s Circle and Leadership Circle

TOP 10 SMALL BUSINESSES Growing in Kansas City

FACES & PLACES

LEADERSHIP EXCHANGE Heading to Silicon Valley

MEMBER NEWS

Cover photograph of the leadership team at Bishop-McCann: Nancy McCullough, CFO; Dan Nilsen, CEO; Terra Cook, Chief Procurement Officer; and Michelle McSpadden, President/COO. Photo credit: Bruce Mathews

GOT DISCOUNTS? If you’d like to offer a discount to Chamber members and the public by way of the KC Chamber’s web site and mobile app KCChamber2Go, here’s how to get started. The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce is offering special discounts, which we’re calling Member Rewards, online at our web site, www.kcchamber. com, under the Membership tab. If you are a KC Chamber member in good standing, you can go online to submit a discount for posting on the Rewards page and mobile app. The discounts are not behind a member login – they are accessible to anyone who visits our site or downloads our app. We’re going to throw a shout-out to Lauren’s Hope for submitting our very first member reward, a 10% discount off an online order for way cool fashionable and life-saving medical ID jewelry and accessories. You’ll also find a couple bargains from the KC Chamber already there, and more on the way. We’re trying to build up this service and this savings opportunity for you, so if you can dream up a discount on your product or service that you’d like the KC Chamber to help promote for you, then fill out a few simple fields in our online form and join the discount movement. If you have any questions about our Member Rewards discounts, send us an email at info@kcchamber.com.

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PRESIDENT & CEO'S

POINT OF VIEW Union Station celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, with the emphasis on the word “celebrate.” It opened to the public on October 30, 1914. The first train, the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Flyer, pulled into the station shortly after midnight on November first. It’s hard to imagine that, less than 20 years ago, some were calling for the demolition of this beautiful and historic structure. I remember taking a hard hat tour then, exploring all 7 levels of the building (and being very glad I was wearing that hard hat). In those days, Union Station was an abandoned mess. Half of the magnificent ceiling in the Grand Hall was on the floor; you could look up and see daylight. And you had to be careful as you walked, skirting puddles from the rain that fell through the roof. (Though the pigeons and bats didn’t seem to mind.) Instead of a wrecking ball, the citizens of our region came together to pass a 1/8-cent sales tax to save the station, an election led by the KC Chamber. Union Station was Kansas City’s meeting place back when it opened, and it is again. The recent “Celebration at the Station” featuring the Kansas City Symphony is just one example of that. There were hard times, too, after Union Station’s reopening in 1999. The station struggled financially and critics of the bistate tax said, “We told you so.” Today, Union Station is in the black. And thriving. The KC Chamber is part of this latest turnaround, moving our offices to the southwest corner of the massive building in December 2010. Others followed, and today Union Station is 100 percent occupied. I took the job of KC Chamber CEO just in time to make the move to our new offices in the southwest corner of the building, and the view from my desk features the Liberty Memorial and its expanse of green lawn. I love the changes that come with the seasons, both outside and inside Union Station. The holiday season is magical, and I know spring is here when the Bloch Fountain shoots back to life. King Tut is just downstairs and, when the Pirates exhibit was on, I occasionally shared an elevator with one of the cast, decked out in full pirate gear. I love seeing the dozens of yellow buses pulling in to unload kids coming to visit Science City, the train exhibit, or the latest special exhibition. The crowds include moms and toddlers, teachers, teenagers, and senior citizens. And it’s great fun to watch the visitors as they enter Union Station – their heads go up and their jaws drop as they first see the magnificent ceiling of the Grand Hall. And nobody’s wearing a hard hat. If you’d like to know more about Union Station’s Centennial Celebration, visit http://www.unionstation.org/100years.

JAMES A. HEETER

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KC CHAMBER COST-SAVING BENEFITS Take advantage of these special discounts and you could save enough to pay for your membership. Visit www.kcchamber.com for details. Blue KC Exchange – Affordable Health Insurance for Businesses Blue KC Exchange, created by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (Blue KC), increases choice and affordability in health plans for employers and employees and offers the ease and convenience of an online shopping experience, with the enhanced ability to compare rates of up to 10 different health plans available through the Exchange. Blue KC Exchange is available online now at www.BlueKCexchange.com. Cable Dahmer Car Buying Program - Up to 33% off a new vehicle and 1% over cost on used Through this program, your business will be able to take advantage of exclusive, no-hassle fleet pricing, currently not available to the public, including two years of complimentary scheduled maintenance, and complimentary vehicle pick-up and loaner service. The Cable-Dahmer Automotive Group has hired a team of non-commissioned account executives to work exclusively with you, your company, and your employees. For more info, contact Adam Tobias – 816.588.2955 or atobias@cabledahmer.com. LifeLock® As an employer, you can help protect your employees from becoming victimized by one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States: identity theft. Not only are there no hard costs to your company to offer LifeLock® Identity Theft Protection as an employee benefit, your employees can enroll at a special discounted rate. For more information, contact Craig Gordon, (866) 921-5650 x. 4081, or email cgordon@premiersmi.com. ProEnergy Solutions Pro Energy Solutions is a dedicated, focused and well established natural gas supplier to commercial and industrial consumers in the Midwest and Central regions of the country. Estimated savings based on historical gas rates has been approximately 2035%. If your business is spending $1,000/month or more on natural gas, call for more information about how ProEnergy can help you manage costs. Call 713-739-6428 or visit www.pro-e-solutions.com. ScriptSave® - Prescription Drug Savings You and your employees can receive a ScriptSave® card at NO COST to you and receive substantial savings on brand name and generic prescriptions at over 62,000 participating pharmacies nationwide. Your card also offers you savings on vision care, hearing care and daily living products. Download your prescription savings card through www.kcchamber.com. Staples – Save Big on Office Supplies, Furniture, Promotional Products and Printing The discounts from Staples can more than offset your annual KC Chamber membership dues and leave more money in your pocket! We’re proud to offer the overall savings and ease of ordering from Staples Advantage. To sign up, visit www.kcchamber.com or contact Mark Calcote at (816) 504-2186, mark.calcote@staples.com.

KC CHAMBER AND CBIZ PAYROLL CAN MAKE YOUR PAYROLL AND HR SERVICES EASY AND AFFORDABLE! Through our partnership with CBIZ Payroll, we’ve negotiated a discount for payroll and HR services. KC Chamber members who sign up for payroll services will receive these great benefits: •

Complete access to the CBIZ HRSolutions service at no charge for the first year

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Online access to information and forms for all hiring, firing, disciplinary, tax, compliance, EEOC, recruiting, leave of absence, etc.

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Free customizable employee manual

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Plus a live hotline, manned by certified HR professionals.

Although outsourcing payroll services may be one of the least expensive line items in your budget, we also know it’s one of the most important, which is why we have partnered with CBIZ Payroll. For more information on the services provided by CBIZ Payroll, please contact Bob Kelly at (816) 500-0514 or bkelly@cbiz.com.

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CONGRATULATI

BISHOP-MCC THE KC CHAMBER’S 2014 MR. K "I started my career out of college working for Marion Laboratories. It was then I learned Mr. K's most important values: ‘Treat others as you want to be treated – with dignity and respect,’ and ‘Share life's rewards with those who make them possible.’ “I founded Bishop-McCann with those same core values and try hard to live by them every single day. After 17 years in business, I can honestly tell you that it is the reason for our success. I hope he's looking down on us right now with pride." – Dan Nilsen, CEO, Bishop-McCann, on winning the award named after Ewing Kauffman.

an Nilsen started Bishop-McCann 17 years ago with just two associates. There was no Bishop, and no McCann, either. Nilsen says he just made it up. He and his then-business partner didn’t want to use their own names, and they thought that “Bishop-McCann” created a perception that the company was bigger than it really was. Today, perception has become reality. BishopMcCann – a meetings, incentive travel, and brand experiences agency – now has 69 associates and four domestic offices. And, for the last five years, Bishop-McCann has been recognized as one of the “25 Largest and Most Influential Meetings and Incentive Companies in North America” by Corporate Meetings & Incentives Magazine.

Becoming an entrepreneur In 1994, Dan Nilsen was laid off from his job at Marion Labs. “What I thought was going to be the worst day of my life turned into one of the best days of my life. I realized the only choice I had was to start my own business.” When he founded Bishop-McCann, he says, “It was into the open arms of the deep entrepreneurial community of Kansas City.” He dove into the FastTrac II program through the

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Kauffman Foundation and the Helzberg Entrepreneurial Mentoring Program (HEMP). Those two programs for aspiring entrepreneurs, coupled with what he’d learned during his ten years at Marion Labs, he says, “helped guide me in the development of Bishop-McCann to the business it is today.” As the company grew, Nilsen realized the need for additional mentoring, so he assembled an advisory board of seasoned professionals who all had proven success in each of their own industries. The challenges given by the board to him and his team “have truly been beneficial to the recent growth” of the company. He points to one of the KC Chamber’s Big 5 goals - to make Kansas City “America’s Most Entrepreneurial City – and adds, “I knew this to be true 17 years ago when I chose to make Kansas City home to Bishop-McCann. It’s both exciting and an honor to be a part of such a vibrant, entrepreneurial-driven city.”

The Influence of Mr. K After graduation from college, Nilsen’s first job was with Marion Labs. “It wasn’t long before the great dreams that Mr. K had for all of his associates became

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CCANN AWARD WINNER! the culture that I adopted as a way of life,” he says. “It was that culture that started Bishop-McCann and was the inspiration that created our own core values: • Those who produce share in the results. • Serve others unconditionally. • Give back. • Do the right thing. • Family first. • We’re in it together.” Those values permeate the culture and Bishop-McCann’s way of doing business. “Awesome people work for companies who treat them that way,” he says. His company wouldn’t be as successful as it is if it didn’t have the very best people. Bishop-McCann is one of those places people want to work. Among the unique benefits Nilsen’s designed for his employees: all full-time associates earn a month sabbatical after working for the company five years and then again every three years after that; the TravelDream Quest program is a fund, matched by the company up to $2400, for a “dream trip” of the employee’s choice. Anything can happen at the high-stakes meetings and events Bishop-McCann produces. “Being proactive and tending to all of the surprises,” he says, “requires experience, steady nerves, and an element of awesomeness, plain and simple. We make our clients happy at all costs.” Nilsen is committed to diversity, and the makeup of his staff is a reflection of that. One of the founders and current chair of the Mid-America Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, Nilsen is working with the KC Chamber to collaborate on programs to engage with a larger audience.

Steady growth Bishop-McCann started in a niche market, working

Nancy McCullough, CFO; Dan Nilsen, CEO; Terra Cook, Chief Procurement Officer; and Michelle McSpadden, President/COO.

primarily with the pharmaceutical industry, but quickly expanded its client list and its offerings. In 1998, the company acquired Distinctive Travel, creating a full-time, in-house travel department. In 2012, they added production and creative services, “delivering our clients everything they need to produce their corporate shows.” And in 2013, they created a sister company, BX Worldwide, to provide speaker and entertainment services. Ten years ago, Nilsen went looking for a permanent home for his company. He purchased and completely renovated the historic Taylor Building at 17th & Walnut in the Crossroads District. The 100-year-old, four-story building had long been vacant. Now visitors and clients are greeted by a two-story chandelier, local art work, and what’s described as “a contemporary space filled with energy and a relaxed atmosphere.” The new old building also serves as just one part of Bishop-McCann’s way of giving back to the community space on the main level and roof top has been donated and used for a whole host of community and nonprofit events.

What’s next “We have our business model that we are growing, taking risks to expand, while keeping on the edge of innovation and technology,” Nilsen says. “My job now is to take the painstaking work and lessons from the last 19 years and turn our company into the culture that I wanted so much to emulate. We’re on the right track, but now it’s time to reinvest in the vision that made us a great place to work and take us to the next level.” Continuing the core value that “those who produce will share in the results,” Nilsen is putting the finishing touches on a new profit-sharing plan for his employees. If he IS looking down, Mr. K is smiling.

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2014 TOP 10 BASYS Processing; Lenexa, Kan. www.basyspro.com When you swipe your credit card and the word “Approved” pops up on the screen, you may have just been served by BASYS Processing. BASYS is an acronym for BAnk SYStems, a family owned and managed processing company. Basically, they process the transaction between the retailer and the bank. The difference between BASYS and its competitors, CEO Brad Oddo says, is customer service. “We still have a friendly ‘live’ voice answer every call,” he says, “and all of our banks and customers have dedicated merchant specialists.” That service has paid off: BASYS has a 99 percent annual bank retention rate, and a 95 percent annual merchant retention rate (the industry average is 75 percent).

Brad Oddo, CEO; Lisa Watson, Vice President of Sales; Rick Hannon, Vice President, Bank Services; and Brady Hanna, Vice President, Financial Services

BNIM; Kansas City, MO www.bnim.com The Nelson Art Gallery. Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. The Plaza Library. One Main Center. Crown Center. Union Station. UMKC’s Bloch Executive Hall. The architecture and design firm BNIM has changed the landscape of Kansas City with projects like those, and, after 44 years, is still going strong, both locally and nationally. CEO Steve McDowell was one of the four founders (he’s the “M” in BNIM). McDowell says BNIM “was founded with a real clear idea of making Kansas City a better place, through architecture and urban design, through being involved in civic activities, and creating the next generation’s graduate school of architecture.” The firm is also a leader in sustainable design, helping develop the LEED ranking system.

The leadership team at BNIM includes: Maria Maffry, Vincent Gauthier, James Pfeiffer (back), Gretchen Holy (front), Steve McDowell, Aaron Ross, and Kristin Atkinson.

Harmon Construction; Olathe, Kan. www.harmonconst.com Tim Harmon says he’s always been entrepreneurial, even as a kid, and he knew he wanted to start his own business by the time he was five years past college graduation. And he did it. Harmon provides construction management, design build, and general contracting services in Greater Kansas City and the central Midwest. Clients include Saint Luke’s Hospital, Olathe Medical Center, Lee’s Summit School District, QuikTrip, and Cable-Dahmer Chevrolet. Over 90% of the Harmon clients are either repeat business or referral. The company has built seven houses for Habitat for Humanity and partners with a number of charities throughout the region.

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Tim Harmon, President; Gloria Distler, Marketing Director; Teresa Weems, Controller; and Todd Ramsey, Vice President Operations

2014 TOP 10 Muller Bressler Brown Advertising (MBB); Leawood, Kan www.mbbagency.com In 2005, Jim Brown and Phil Bressler were in startup mode. They’d quit their jobs and established a two-man agency. Then they met and joined John Muller, founder of the well-respected agency Muller + Co. Two years later, the two bought the company, renaming it Muller Bressler Brown. Along the way, they also reimagined all that the agency could offer, hiring new employees to bolster the shop’s strategic thinking; creating a new engagement team to strengthen media capabilities; and adding new digital services for social media and mobile platforms. They also launched a health care division called hippo. They describe MBB’s culture as creative, collaborative, and fun.

Shan Neely, Creative Director; Denny Meier, Partner/CFO; Phil Bressler, Partner/Chief Client Services Officer; and Jim Brown, Partner/COO

Netchemia; Prairie Village, Kan. www.netchemia.com Standing on the stage of a Topeka school auditorium in front of 300 applauding teachers and administrators, Carlos Antequera found his company’s niche, though he may not have realized it at the time. Netchemia started as a custom software solution developer, founded in 2001. An early project was with the Topeka School District, automating the reams of forms required for special education teachers. Who were thrilled. Word spread, and other school districts came calling. “We realized that the focus had mostly been on the student-side of learning. We innovated in the talent management side of education with the belief that schools can also dramatically affect student achievement by recruiting, hiring, developing, and retaining the best teachers and school leaders.”

Dan O’Reilly, Director of Marketing & Demand Generation; Zach Spain, Marketing Communications Specialist; Carlos Antequera, CEO and Co-Founder; and Wayne Morgan, Chief Operating Officer

Retina Associates; Shawnee Mission, Kan. www.kcretina.com Your retina is the sensitive tissue at the back of your eye that receives images and sends signals to your brain about what you’re seeing. Retina Associates is the area’s largest, singly-focused retina specialty group. This Top 10 Small Business was founded in 1999 by Dr. David Dyer. Their specialty includes treatment of age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy, two of the leading causes of blindness in the United States and the world. Since its founding, Retina Associates has grown in both number of locations and physicians, expanding to eight physicians, with primary offices in Shawnee Mission, North KC, Topeka, and Sedalia, and another eight satellite offices from Manhattan to Emporia.

Brena Armbrust, Admin Team; Ivan Batlle, MD, Practice Partner; Sean Goodale, CEO; Kathleen Carroll, Admin Team; Blake Cooper, MD, Practice Partner; Jayne Brungardt, Admin Team; Gregory Fox, MD; Practice Partner (not pictured, David Dyer, M.D., Practice Partner)

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2014 TOP 10 Scarbrough International; Kansas City, Mo. www.scarbrough-intl.com When a hurricane or a revolution happen on the other side of the world, the folks at Scarbrough International are paying attention. That’s because their business involves moving shipments of goods around the globe. In 1984, Roger Scarbrough was working for a customs broker. With a background in transportation, he urged his employer to add transportation services to the business. She didn’t want to, so he and his wife Jeannie started their own business, handling both customs services and freight forwarding. Since then, Scarbrough International has grown from two to 100 employees, with six offices worldwide. And, by the way, they still have their very first customer.

Adam Hill, Vice President-Operations; Roger Scarbrough, CEO; Jeannie Scarbrough, President and COO; Kevin Ekstrand, Vice President-Sales & Marketing; Kyle Morris, Vice President-Transportation; and Doug Ferrell, CFO

TK Architects; Kansas City, Mo. www.tkarch.com “Movies operate on the level of dreams, where you dream yourself.” – Meryl Streep Creating the environment in which you enjoy the latest movie is the business of TK Architects, a Kansas City-based architecture, engineering, and interiors firm specializing in cinema and entertainment design. It’s an ever-changing specialty, Jack Muffoletto says, as cinema operators keep looking for ways to do more things, to become more of a destination. The outlook for TK Architects is a rosy one, with projects coming in, new staff on board, and plans to explore additional expansion markets internationally. A lot of countries, Muffoletto says, are still “underscreened.”

Mike Cummings, AIA LEED AP, Principal; Tamra Knapp, Principal; and Jack Muffoletto, AIA, Principal

Trozzolo Communications Group; Kansas City, Mo. www.trozzolo.com Trozzolo Communications Group is a family affair. Founded by Pasquale Trozzolo in 1989 and now led by his son Angelo, the employee roster contains a number of Trozzolo relatives. (Angelo says, “My wife is the only one who doesn’t work here.”) “We were one of the first agencies in the area to embrace a fully-integrated, discipline-neutral approach to marketing. We realized that, to succeed in today’s world, it takes more than one tactic to move the needle, more than one medium to move a message and, frankly, more than one message,” Angelo Trozzolo says. The agency’s focus, he says, is on Kansas City, both in terms of its work and its philanthropy.

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Pasquale Trozzolo, Founder and Executive Chairman; and Angelo Trozzolo, President and CEO

IN ADDITION TO THE MR. K AND TOP 10 AWARD WINNERS, THE KC CHAMBER HONORED THESE THREE SMALL BUSINESSES FOR THEIR ACCOMPLISHMENTS. Aspirational Entrepreneur Award – Snow & Co., Kansas City, Mo. www.snowandcompany.com Snow & Co is an artful frozen cocktail bar and restaurant specializing in made from scratch frozen libations with fresh squeezed juices, handmade syrups and premium spirits. Three friends – Andy Talbert, Lauren Cloud, and Jerry Nevins – were finishing up their MBAs at UMKC’s Bloch School in 2009. They all had the entrepreneurial itch and worked well together. The concept for Snow & Co. came when they met that night and realized KC didn’t have a great place to get a frozen cocktail. That, they say, is when the light bulb went off. They did their research and due diligence, and opened their doors in November 2011 in the Crossroads Arts District. A second Snow & Co. location is opening in Gladstone this summer, and a third is planned in the InterUrban Art House development in Overland Park. The Aspirational Entrepreneur award is geared towards companies less than three years old that have been built on ideology, values, and the goal to make change through enrichment.

Legacy of Kansas City Award – Ace ImageWear, Kansas City, Mo. www.aceimagewear.com Established in 1932 by Ed “Ace” Heilman, Ace ImageWear is a regional, family-owned uniform supply company that specializes in customized uniform, mat, towel and restroom supply programs. Ace prides itself on its responsive service team, striving to - as Ed often put it - “do business on a first-name basis.” Heileman was a salesman for Kansas City White Goods when the Great Depression hit. He took up boxing - under the name “Ace” - at area clubs to earn some extra cash. When KC White Goods began laying off employees, he and his wife Clara decided to start a linen supply business on the side. (In 1932, with $1800 in savings, Clara Heileman bought bolts of fabric and began sewing towels.) Today, Ace ImageWear is led by the Heileman’s grandson, also named Ed. The Legacy of Kansas City Award honors longevity, quality products and/or services, and community service in small businesses more than 15 years old in the Kansas City area.

Diverse Small Business Award – Alpha Energy & Electric, Kansas City, Mo. www.alphaee.com Alpha Energy and Electric opened the doors of its small, two-room office in 2005, with a goal of providing energy and electrical services for industrial, commercial, institutional, and residential structures. The business is co-owned by Ike Nwabuonwu and Gabriel Okafor. Three years later, the company purchased and moved to what is now its 10,000 square foot corporate headquarters located in the heart of Kansas City. In 2011, the company opened its second office in Knob Noster, Missouri, and on-base satellite offices at Whiteman Air Force Base and Fort Riley, Kansas. They’ve also added an international office in Africa. The Diverse Small Business award is given to certified MBE, WBE, Veteran-owned or Service Disabled Veteran-owned small businesses that have demonstrated vision, leadership, and courage by achieving business success while overcoming obstacles and maintaining a strong sense of service for the community.

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CALIFORNIA,

he KC Chamber’s Cathy Bennett is trying to figure out how to get 120 people on bicycles or scooters to tour the Google campus in Silicon Valley. That’s just one of the many challenges she’s facing in planning the Chamber’s next Leadership Exchange – an intense, three day “best practices” visit, this time to Silicon Valley. Imagine making all the arrangements for three days for a group of 120 Kansas Citians. Dealing with planes and buses, speakers and tour sites, luncheons and dinners (and the venues in which to host them), are all part of the job. September’s visit to the West Coast will be the Chamber’s twelfth Leadership Exchange, and there’s already a waiting list. “One of the key features of all of our Leadership Exchanges is obvious: it’s a benchmarking trip, an opportunity to see what other regions are doing,” says Jim Heeter, President & CEO of the KC Chamber. “The second feature is more subtle, he adds. “It’s an opportunity for more than 100 Kansas City leaders to spend time together. Ideas perk up and new relationships are formed as a result.” Relationship-building wasn’t originally on the agenda, but Bennett says the third Leadership Exchange brought the point home vividly. Eleven mayors from both sides of the state line were on that trip. “We realized some of these mayors had never met, never looked each other in the eye, never shaken hands. They found out they had a lot of commonalities between them. It was eye-opening.” “If you look at the many partnerships formed around our Big 5 goals for Kansas City,” says Heeter, “you’ll see they’re laced with relationships fueled on the trips.” Kliff Kuehl, President & CEO of KCPT/Channel 19, has been on several of the Leadership Exchange trips and is set to go to Silicon Valley. He arrived in Kansas City in 2009, and says, “The trips have been a great opportunity to get to know Kansas City leaders and to engage with them around things they care about and are concerned about. It’s also given me an informal opportunity to share

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my vision for KCPT, Hale Center, and The Bridge. “Overall,” he continues, “it’s one of the best investments we’ve made as an organization.” Each of the Chamber’s Leadership Exchanges spotlights the issues, challenges, and opportunities shared between Kansas City and the city we’re visiting,” says Heeter. “In Cincinnati, we looked at their community arts fund, the oldest and largest in the country, and came back and launched the Arts KC Fund. In Seattle, we learned about their efforts to ‘go green,’ and bolstered Chamber energy and sustainability programming as a result. In Indianapolis, we saw the importance of being bold, of having a vision around which the community can rally.”

HERE WE COME…

Last year’s Leadership Exchange focused on entrepreneurship, life sciences, and urban redevelopment, three of the Chamber’s Big 5 goals. “This year in Silicon Valley,” Heeter says, “we’ll devote a large measure of time to our Big 5 goal to spur entrepreneurship in Kansas City. That goal has turned from an initiative into a movement, and we want to build on that.” In addition to the tour of the Google campus, planners are working to put together a panel discussion featuring Kansas City entrepreneurs and tech stars who have relocated to Silicon Valley. The two key questions they’ll be asked: Why did you move and what would it take to lure you back?

The impact of higher education on a region is another focus; Stanford University has been key to the development and success of Silicon Valley. Participants will also see examples of new and innovative education models, including coder and developer boot camps, Singularity University, and uses of new technology. Surprisingly, regional cooperation is an issue Silicon Valley shares with Kansas City. With everyone from somewhere else, local leaders say, there’s a lack of a sense of community. They say that contributes to a lack of cooperation. Leadership Exchange participants will learn about a new organization, called Tri-Valley, which is working to create community across the lines. Keeping to a schedule while moving 120 Kansas City leaders around a community is, as one might expect, a challenge. Lost purses, lost luggage, even forgotten luggage have been par for the course. Wrecks on the highway can cause delays and blow up the carefully-planned (and very tight) agenda. Fortunately, there’s only been one incident in which one of the people on the trip wandered off and missed the bus. A Chamber Board member (who shall remain nameless) was, thankfully, quickly retrieved. The agenda may be serious, but there’s plenty of time for conviviality and laughter. And, for some reason, bathrooms have figured into a couple of the trips. In Seattle, a dinner at the Columbia Tower included restrooms that had apparently been voted “the most beautiful bathroom in America.” A few years later, in Nashville’s Hermitage Hotel, it was “the most beautiful bathroom east of the Mississippi.” By the way, neither bathroom attraction was on the formal agenda, but if you’d like to see what they looked like, there are quite a few photos floating around. Our thanks to the following companies for their support of the 2014 Leadership Exchange: Presenting Sponsor, Sprint; Patron Sponsors, Black & Veatch, Burns & McDonnell, Civic Council of Greater Kansas City, JE Dunn, KCP&L, and Polsinelli; and Supporting Sponsors, including the Kauffman Foundation, HNTB, and the University of Kansas.

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CANNED SPEECHES. BORING SESSIONS. THE UNCONFERENCE DIRECTED BY YOU. Thursday, August 21, 2014 UNION STATION 30 W. Pershing Road Kansas City, MO 64108

iKC: The Unconference returns in 2014 with the unique open-format to facilitate conversations and collaboration. Attend the only conference in Kansas City where the agenda, format and topics are completely directed by you. When you make the agenda, every session pertains to you. iKC is about taking action - geared to serious entrepreneurs and innovators ready to build and grow their business. Get a report on the state of entrepreneurship in Kansas City. Anticipate the unexpected. Speak the unscripted. Attend the Unconference.

SIGN UP FOR MORE INFORMATION AT IKCTHEUNCONFERENCE.COM Student ticket $25 / $20 (discount for two or more tickets) Startup ticket $65 / $50 (2 + discount) Corporate ticket $125 / $105 (2 + discount) Powered by

Sponsored by:

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NOMINATIONS ARE OPEN CHAMPION OF DIVERSITY, ACE AWARDS Title Sponsor:

Presenting Sponsors:

Nominate a company for Champion of Diversity

The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce is looking for the 2014 Champion of Diversity. This is a regional company that is demonstrating a durable commitment to diversity and inclusion in its workforce and in the community, serving as an example for other businesses on how to promote and value diversity and inclusion. One company will receive the Champion of Diversity Award at the POWER of Diversity Breakfast on July 29. Nominations are now open through Wednesday, June 25.

Nominate an individual for an ACE award

The KC Chamber Ace Awards recognize culturally diverse mid-to-senior level managers who are achieving excellence, having an impact that exceeds expectations for their employer and the company’s bottom line. Do you know an Ace or two? Give them the visibility and recognition they deserve by nominating them for the KC Chamber Ace Awards. The Ace Awards showcase Kansas City as a vital market for diverse professionals to launch and build meaningful careers. Three people will receive Ace Awards at the POWER of Diversity Breakfast on July 29. Please remember, C-level executives may submit nominations, but are not eligible to receive the award. Nominations are open through Wednesday, June 25.

Submit your nomination online at www.kcchamber.com SAVE THE DATE – TUESDAY, JULY 29, 2014 The KC Chamber’s POWER of Diversity Breakfast is the region’s premier celebration of the metro area’s culturally diverse business community, recognizing diverse workforce members and corporations that have demonstrated a commitment to diversity and inclusion. The 2014 Breakfast will feature an in-depth panel discussion, moderated by Nick Haines, KCPT Channel 19, on the State of Diversity in Kansas City. Hear challenges, best practices and strategies, next steps, and opportunities from: • Terry Bassham, Chairman and CEO, Great Plains Energy and KCP&L • Gwendolyn Grant, CEO, Urban League of Greater Kansas City • Ramón Murguía, Chairman, Hispanic Development Fund • Maurice Watson, Chairman, Husch Blackwell SILVER SPONSORS:

BRONZE SPONSORS:

AMC Black & Veatch DST Systems H&R Block HCA Midwest Health System JE Dunn Construction

Hallmark Polsinelli

Arvest Bank Avila University Bank Midwest Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City HNTB KC Chiefs Lathrop & Gage Perceptive Software Truman Medical Centers US Bank Walgreens

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NOMINATIONS ARE NOW OPEN FOR

ATHENA AWARDS 速

Adele Hall. Anita Gorman. Mamie Hughes. Julia Irene Kauffman. Chamber Chair Roshann Parris. Those are just a few of the women on the list of past ATHENA Leadership Award winners. Marie Ferrell. Mary Bosco Heinrich. Katie Dunn Fitzgerald. Susan Leonard. Those are the four past recipients of the ATHENA Young Professional Award.

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s you may have guessed, the award is named after the Greek goddess Athena, who supposedly blasted into the world from the forehead of her father Zeus. She was born fully grown and wearing a suit of armor. Athena is known as the goddess of wisdom, intelligent activity, just warfare, arts, crafts, and literature. She stands for truth, justice, and moral values. And if it wasn’t for her help, Odysseus wouldn’t have made it through his many adventures. You’ll find many of Athena’s qualities in the women who have won her award – they’re smart, successful in their work, open doors for others, and, as Athena was to Athens, they are “patrons” to their community.

Nominate a deserving candidate Nominations are open now for both the ATHENA Leadership and Young Professional Awards. The nomination process is easy – just visit kcchamber.com and fill out a very short form. The deadline for nominations is June 27. Here are the criteria: The KC Chamber’s ATHENA Leadership Award is presented to people who: • Have achieved the highest level of professional excellence. • Contribute time and energy to improve the quality of life for others in the community. • Actively assist others, particularly women, in realizing their full leadership potential. Amy McAnarney (Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts) is co-chair of the Chamber’s Executive Women’s Business Council, along with Regina Croucher (KPMG). Asked to describe the women who’ve won this award, McAnarney says, “Three words rise to the top of the list: bold, focused, and passionate. If one looks at the past recipients, I think we all would agree that each of these women have blazed trails, they’ve showed us it truly is about others (and not them), and these women cause us all to sit back and just say ‘Wow.’” The ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award goes to an emerging leader who: • Demonstrates excellence, creativity, and initiative in their business or profession.

•

Provides valuable serve by contributing time and energy to improve the quality of life for others in the community. • Clearly serves as a role model for young women personally and professionally. This award became part of the Chamber’s ATHENA Awards program in 2009 at the suggestion of then-KPMG head David Fowler. “It was important to institute the ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award to recognize those women who are making a difference in their current careers who could serve as role models to their peers,” Fowler explains. “The ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award honorees are in the midst of their careers or community involvement who can lead by example for others in a contemporaneous way.” Selection will take place in August, and the two 2014 ATHENA Award winners will be honored at a gala reception October 15 at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. Co-chairs are Amy McAnarney (Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts) and Regina Croucher (KPMG). KPMG, Burns & McDonnell, and Bank Midwest are the sponsors of the ATHENA Awards. (Sponsorship, by the way, is exclusive to those companies that have women’s leadership programs in place.) Central Exchange (CX) is also involved in the awards, continuing the partnership formed between the KC Chamber and CX. The partnership is a natural one – both CX and the Chamber’s Executive Women’s Leadership Council (EWLC) have similar missions. The EWLC was formed in 2012. Its purpose is to promote the visibility and advancement of women in business leadership positions, advocate on behalf of women in business through collaboration with like-missioned organizations, and instill best practices and initiate new ideas to support women’s success in business. “Anytime a group of women can get together and work to promote and advance women in the workforce, great things can come out of it. The Executive Women’s Leadership Council does just that,” McAnarney says, “and anytime we all work together for the greater good, we truly are leaving a legacy for our daughters, our nieces, our granddaughters … our next generation of leaders.”

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MANUFACTURING symposium PRESENTING SPONSORS:

Save the Date:

Thursday, September 11, 2014 8 - 11:45 a.m.

Sporting KC - Shield Club One Sporting Way, Kansas City, Kan. $65 to attend, includes breakfast

The Manufacturing+ Symposium provides vital, detailed information on trends and technological innovations in the manufacturing sector as it pertains to production, distribution, delivery, and the overall global value chain. Presentations will focus on the conditions in the manufacturing economy, highlight best practices in workforce and technology, discuss innovation in supply chain systems (distribution and delivery), provide networking opportunities, and much more. PARTICIPATING SPONSORS:

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NEW MEMBERS Welcome to these members who recently joined the KC Chamber. Automobile Dealers--New & Used Hendrick Toyota Scion Merriam Christina Rose (913) 831-0800 FAX (913) 831-2433 www.HendrickToyotaMerriam.com

Government Offices City of Grandview, Missouri Cory Smith (816) 316-4800 FAX (816) 763-3902 www.grandview.org

Biotech/Healthcare Communications Orion BioScience Sara Mary Hall (408) 829-2747

Information Technology Central Technology Consulting Group Sarah Hennessy (816) 912-2175 www.centraltechconsulting.com

Crisis Intervention Services Leach Public Solutions LC Marcus Leach (816) 866-5557 www.leachps.com Etiquette Training Etiquette Kansas City Janis Kliethermes (816) 977-6182 www.etiquettekansascity.com Executive Search Consultants Cornerstone Kansas City Dan Heiman (913) 341-7655 www.cornerstone-kc.com Financial Assistance DCG - Self Banc Justin Dastrup (580) 678-3123 www.myselfbanc.com

Marketing Services Premier Sports Management, Inc. Michael Goff (913) 681-6990 FAX (913) 681-8864 www.premiersportsonline.com Non-Profits & Small Businesses Agricultural Business Council of Kansas City Erica Venancio (816) 569-4020 FAX (816) 221-8189 www.agbizkc.com Non-Profits & Small Businesses Camps For Kids Ray Delia (816) 559-4622 www.campsforkids.org

Non-Profits & Small Businesses FarmHouse International Fraternity & Foundation Chad Harris (816) 891-9445 FAX (816) 891-0838 www.farmhouse.org Non-Profits & Small Businesses Reach Out and Read Kansas City Megan Sturges (913) 588-3073 FAX (913) 588-8397 www.reachoutandreadkc.org Nutrition Education Resource KC Healthy Kids Janet McGraw (816) 523-5353 FAX (913) 387-4558 www.kchealthykids.org Remodeling & Repair - Residential & Commercial Mr. Remodeler Keith Blay (816) 453-3049 FAX (816) 453-5159 www.mrremodeler.com Restaurants The Corner Restaurant Dawn Slaughter (816) 931-4401 FAX (816) 931-4518 www.thecornerkc.com

Shipping Services Freightquote Tyler Ellison (800) 323-5441 Ext:e www.freightquote.com Social Service Organizations Hope Faith Ministries, Inc. Connie Chambers (816) 471-4673 FAX (816) 994-4618 Spa Body By Design, LLC Cathie Smith (816) 730-1784 www.bodybydesignkc.com Staffing Solutions Staffmark Stacie Holsch (913) 338-3400 FAX (913) 338-3414 www.staffmark.com Training & Consulting 7 Pillars Don Derry, Jr. (816) 838-8813 www.johnmaxwellgroup.com/donderry Web Design & Development Blake Rudis Photography Blake Rudis (408) 966-8748 www.blakerudis.com

PRESIDENT'S CIRCLE & LEADERSHIP CIRCLE The following companies recently renewed their commitment to the KC Chamber’s President’s Circle. Assurant Employee Benefits BNIM Architects Citi Cards

Commerce Bank Freightquote

Harrah's North Kansas City Casino & Hotel Missouri Gas Energy

Southwest Airlines

The following companies recently renewed their commitment to the KC Chamber’s Leadership Circle. AdamsGabbert, LLC Allied Materials & Equipment Company

Argosy Casino Hotel & Spa Cornerstone Kansas City Global Prairie

Grassmere Partners, LLC Hunt Midwest Enterprises, Inc. Jones Lang LaSalle

The Westin Crown Center Hotel

MILESTONES The following KC Chamber members celebrate membership milestones in June 5 years H2B Architects Mano's Gourmet Food & Wine Gifts Newhouse Shelter Willoughby Design Group, Inc.

10 years Aramark MKL, P.C. United States Tennis Association-Missouri Valley

15 years O'Neill Marketing & Event Management 30 years H. W. Lochner, Inc. Levy Craig Law Firm

50+ years Bernstein-Rein (50) Sanford L. Cohn Company (57) American Royal Association (62) Deloitte LLP (63) KSMO (78) Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (88) John A. Marshall Company (92)

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FACES & PLACES

Highlighting Chamber organizations and people making KC grow. Candidates’ Showcase

Hughes Development Company, including Dianne King,

Team members of Hitch Fit/Hitch Fit Gym,

Linda Hanson and Scott Coup of Enter-

Robert L. Hughes, Lacha Palomino, Beatrice Davies,

James Hanton, Diana Chaloux, Micah

prise Bank & Trust, Candidates’ Showcase

Beverly Easterwood, and Angela Chico-Agustin, enjoyed

LaCerte and David Washington, are all

event presenting sponsors, engage the attend-

the visibility opportunities of the Candidates’ Showcase.

smiles at the Small Business Celebration

ees with prize giveaways.

Candidates’ Showcase. In March over 600 attendees enjoyed first rate networking at this event in Union Station.

Top 10 CEO Panel Breakfast

On May 7, leaders of the KC Chamber’s Top 10 Small Businesses shared their success stories at the Top 10 CEO Panel Breakfast, presented by Missouri Bank. The Top 10 are pictured here with KC Chamber Small Business Council Chair Matt Condon of ARC Physical Therapy +, Terry Bassham, of Great Plains Energy and KCP&L; Grant Burcham of Missouri Bank, Chamber Chair Roshann Parris of Parris Communications, and Chamber President and CEO Jim Heeter.

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D.C. Fly-In

The KC Chamber escorted a group of 27 KC area business leaders to Capitol Hill in April for the Chamber’s biennial D.C. Fly-In and advocacy mission. The delegation met with all four US Senators representing the two-state region, six of the region’s US Congressmen and women, Capitol Hill campaign consultants, the Chief of Staff for Speaker of the House John Boehner, and over 30 staff members for the region’s congressional delegation.

US Senator Pat Roberts shared some constitutional readings with Coni Fries, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City; and the rest of the Chamber delegation.

Chamber Chair Roshann Parris, Parris Communications; Congressman Emanuel Cleaver; Congressman Kevin Yoder; and Chamber President Jim Heeter talked about workforce development, immigration reform, and infrastructure investment tools that could be helpful to water, energy, and transportation needs in the Kansas City region during the Chamber’s DC Fly-In in April. Jim Heeter, KC Chamber; US Senator Claire McCaskill; and Russ Welsh, Polsinelli, mugged for the camera following a DC Fly-In meeting with the Senator on issues of importance to KC businesses.

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GOOD NEWS

THANK YOU TO THE KC CHAMBER’S VISIONARY PARTNERS FOR 2014

Highlighting the good news in KC

People

Stinson Leonard Street LLP announced that four associate attorneys have joined the firm's office in Kansas City, Mo. Samuel Butler, IV joined the firm's Labor, Employment and Employee Benefits Division, Colin W. Turner joined the firm's Intellectual Property and Technology Division, Laura E. Phelps has joined the firm's Labor, Employment and Employee Benefits Division, and Karl R. Phares has joined the firm's Real Estate Division. EAG Advertising and Marketing (EAG) named Cinda Fisher to the position of Account Director. Fisher previously held the title of Account Manager since joining EAG in 2008. Based in Kansas City’s Crossroads District, EAG Advertising & Marketing is the region’s only advertising agency fully dedicated to small business, aggressive-growth companies. Husch Blackwell has welcomed Edward L. Barker to the firm’s Kansas City, Mo., office. Barker joins the Healthcare, Life Sciences & Pharmaceuticals industry team as Senior Counsel, and brings extensive experience having previously served as the senior vice president and chief legal officer of the four-state nonprofit healthcare organization Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Health System Inc. for more than 25 years. Lyn Lakin joined Camp Fire last August to oversee all marketing and development efforts nationwide. After a realignment of the nonprofit, Camp Fire will be merging the program and advancement departments to ensure an even more effective business model, resulting in Lakin’s being named Chief Operating Officer. The City of Kansas City, Missouri Parks and Recreation announced the appointment of Anna Marie Tutera as the new executive director of the Kansas City Museum at Corinthian Hall. She has an extensive background in the museum and nonprofit fields and most recently served as the executive director of the Wornall/ Majors House Museums since 2012. NHS President/CEO Mark Stalsworth has

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retired. During his tenure, NHS growth exceeded 400% to become a multi-million dollar organization. Rob Rawlings and Stacy Purvis are serving as Co-Directors until the NHS Board concludes their executive search for a replacement.

Awards

InStore Innovation Group (IIG), the custom POP division of IDD InStore Design Display, won two awards at this year’s 56th annual Outstanding Merchandising Achievement Awards competition hosted by Point of Purchase Advertising International at GlobalShop in Las Vegas. IIG was awarded the overall Budget Award for a Permanent display for their Bayer Seresto Spinner display. This award recognizes entries that had the greatest impact, while being very conscious of budget. The IIG designed Bayer Seresto Spinner display resulted in a stunning ROI of over 1,515%. IIG was also awarded a Bronze design award for the same display in the Specialty Retailer – Permanent category. Meers Advertising was recognized as one of the finalists for the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4A's) O'Toole Award for Media Excellence. Finalists were announced at the 4A’s annual conference, Transformation: The Idea Effect in Los Angeles, CA. Meers earned the honor by demonstrating media excellence through innovation, transformation and creativity for their work. The agency was one of three finalists nationally in the Small Agency category. Visiting Nurse Association of Kansas City (VNA) has earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval® for accreditation by demonstrating compliance with The Joint Commission’s national standards for health care quality and safety in home care. The accreditation award recognizes VNA’s dedication to continuous compliance with The Joint Commission’s state of the art standards. The Institute of Museum and Library Services announced Mid-Continent Public Library of Greater Kansas City, MO, is one of 10

recipients of this year’s National Medal for Museum and Library Service. The National Medal, the nation’s highest honor given to museums and libraries for service to the community, has celebrated 20 years of institutions that make a difference for individuals, families, and communities. The National Medal was presented by First Lady Michelle Obama at the White House, on May 8. Mid-Continent Public Library serves residents in Jackson, Clay and Platte counties in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The library system, which turns 50 in 2015, was developed when multiple county and city libraries joined together to provide greater access to the communities they served. Today, the system has 30 branch libraries, 4 automated library locations, the virtual library, and the Midwest Genealogy Center. General Motors recently honored CableDahmer Buick GMC Cadillac with the prestigious Cadillac Master Dealer award. The Master Dealer award recognizes dealerships that consistently demonstrate the highest level of customer service and is earned by less than seven percent of all Cadillac dealers nationwide. Kansas City Rescue Mission opened its KCRM Women’s Center, a 20-bed facility for single homeless women with co-occurring disorders on July 15, 2013. After only nine months of operation, the Women’s Center was honored by Avila University as the Outstanding Field Agency of the Year. Bachelor of Social Work seniors are placed at the Women’s Center and provide nine months of supervised social work practice in the form of long-term, intensive case management for residents there. Avila honored the Women’s Center staff for treating the student interns with respect and embracing them as fellow staff members.

Miscellaneous

First Consulting & Administration, Inc. is now offering a full range of consulting services to create or enhance an Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) and Own Risk & Solvency Assessment (ORSA) Compliance Program for any insurance company. The services are designed

THANK YOU TO THE KC CHAMBER’S PINNACLE PARTNERS FOR 2014

to be tailored to a company’s requirements. The carrier can select from any or all services to get just the right amount of assistance with its ORSA compliance strategy. ORSA reporting for many insurance companies begins January 1, 2015. LightEdge Solutions will be partnering with the Northland Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) in Kansas City, MO. This program will allow a student from CAPS to gain experience working with a member of the LightEdge team assisting and learning through meaningful projects. The program is revolutionizing high school education through a profession-based education model that serves junior and senior students in six northland districts. The program currently focuses on Technology Solutions and Engineering/Advanced Manufacturing but will be adding Medicine and Healthcare, and Global Business and Entrepreneurship strands this fall. AT&T has invested nearly $825 million in its wireless and wired networks in the Kansas City area between 2010 through 2013, driving a wide range of upgrades to enhance speed, reliability, coverage and performance for residents and business customers. Notable Kansas City area network enhancements in 2013 included expansion of AT&T’s 4G LTE network, as well as expansion of access to U-verse high-speed Internet, TV and voice service. Eighteen students received scholarships at The Builders’ Association’s 127th Anniversary Banquet. The scholarships were funded by donations to The Builders’ Association Scholarship Foundation, a nonprofit endowment fund established to support, through scholarships, the academic education of individuals who seek careers in the commercial construction industry. Metal Panels Inc., manufacturer of metal panels and accessories, started a radio contest to reward construction crews around the Kansas City area. The contest, jointly created with country music station KFKF, gives listeners the opportunity to call in or enter online for a chance to win coffee, donuts and other prizes each week, delivered directly to their job site.

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GOOD NEWS CONTINUED Congratulations to First Response Inc., celebrating 20 years in business in the Kansas City area. First Response is a woman-owned business providing unarmed contract security services, FRI provides security to various local companies including: shopping and lifestyle centers, distribution centers, retirement communities, high end living spaces, office buildings, construction, patrol services, and more. Valorem Consulting’s new offices are located in the previous candle factory on Broadway and 21st Street in the Crossroads Arts District. The factory has been reconstructed and designed to provide a modern and hip place for Valorem employees and clients. The new space features larger conference rooms, team collaboration areas, and open space overlooking the Downtown area. The Valorem space is on the third floor of the building at 2101 Broadway, and the new space will accommodate future projects and employees – in the past year Valorem has increased its workforce by more than 50%. Travois is helping an American Indian tribe in Wisconsin rehabilitate housing. The Red

Cliff Chippewa Housing Authority of Bayfield, Wisconsin, recently achieved two important milestones for its 40-unit Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) project, Red Cliff Rehab I: it closed the project with an equity investor, RBC Capital Markets, which will provide about 72 percent of the project’s $7.3 million cost, and it was awarded $320,000 in Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grant funds from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago. Travois has brought more than $500 million in private investor capital to nearly 170 housing projects through the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program and more than $65 million in investor equity to 20 economic development projects through the New Markets Tax Credit program. Hunt Midwest Real Estate Development, Inc. celebrated with its business partners at a recent ground-breaking ceremony for the Mission 106 Luxury Apartment project in Mission Farms, a successful mixed-use community that straddles the line between Leawood and Overland Park, Kansas. Hunt Midwest is providing capital and construction management for the $30 million project. Mission 106 will include 132

luxury apartments and seven for-rent luxury townhomes. The community is located at 106th Street and Mission Road in Leawood. Johnny Lightning Strikes Again was selected to design and develop a new website for the Kansas City Streetcar project, which has recently launched at www.kcstreetcar.org. The new website, which was produced in collaboration with Burns & McDonnell, The KC Streetcar Constructors and the City of Kansas City, communicates construction notices and updates along the 2-mile streetcar route. Blue Valley School District has been ranked in the top 10 of the Digital School Districts national survey. The honor has been announced by the Center for Digital Education and the National School Boards Association. Blue Valley placed 10th among large districts in the survey that recognizes districts that expand the use of innovative technologies district-wide, as well as in the classroom. The purpose of the survey is to showcase exemplary school boards’ and school districts’ use of technology to govern the district, communicate with students, parents

THANK YOU TO THE KC CHAMBER’S TOP INVESTORS FOR 2014 BRONZE LEVEL

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and the community and to improve district operations. The district has been recognized six of the last eight years. Trinity Logistics has recently acquired Legacy Transportation, Inc. of Gladstone, Missouri. The Legacy staff, led by former President Harold Elliot, has joined the Trinity team in their location on Ambassador Drive in Kansas City, Missouri. Since the acquisition, Legacy’s former customers have taken advantage of additional services such as less-than-truckload, door-todoor intermodal, international, warehousing, transportation management software (TMS), logistics consulting, and freight management. Comcast, whose Kansas City territory includes Independence, Raytown, Lee’s Summit and Olathe, announced it has surpassed one million Wi-Fi hotspots across the nation. They also have an agreement that anywhere a Time Warner wi-fi hotspot is located, Comcast customers can use their mobile devices in that hotspot. Webster University's George Herbert Walker School of Business & Technology will

launch a new one-year Master's in Business Administration (MBA) program in fall, 2014. Open to students from all majors, program participants will complete their MBA in one year in a cohort-based format that provides opportunities for them to build a global network, gain an international perspective and acquire substantial leadership development skills. This new program will be offered at seven Webster University campus locations around the world, including Kansas City, Mo. The first class of the one-year MBA starts in August. Black & Veatch recorded the top ranking worldwide in telecommunications for U.S.-based engineering companies, according to the recent Engineering News-Record (ENR) Top 500 Design Firms report. This is the fifth consecutive year that Black & Veatch has achieved the number one ranking in telecommunications. In ENR’s Top 500 list, Black & Veatch also ranked 3rd in Power, 6th in water and 8th in sewer and waste. The company is ranked 16th overall on the Top 500 list and 15th in the Top 50 Designers in International Markets list.

The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority is increasing the number of compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles in its fleet. Fifteen new CNG buses arrived in Kansas City, and are now serving Metro bus routes. Additional CNG buses are on order and will be delivered next fall and in 2015. CNG vehicles are being phased in as current buses are retired. Once the entire fleet is using CNG, the agency expects to save up to $4 million a year in fuel costs. Rockhurst University recently celebrated its 94th commencement, where 400 undergraduates and 285 graduate-level students received their degrees. The Kansas City Art Institute (KCAI) has launched a new fifth-year post-baccalaureate program in art education. The Missouri State Board of Education formally approved the program on April 15. The program is aimed at students who are interested in teaching art in Pre-K through Grade 12 public school classrooms. The KCAI post-baccalaureate program requires completion of 28 credit hours, all of which can normally be completed in one academic year, including a summer semester.

THANK YOU TO THE KC CHAMBER’S TOP INVESTORS FOR 2014 S I LV E R L E V E L ®

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Polsinelli has signed on to provide support for the Sprint Mobile Health Accelerator powered by Techstars, a three-month, mentor-driven startup accelerator that will focus on helping the ten selected startups develop products and services expected to forever change mobile health care technology. Committed to inspiring small businesses and startups, Polsinelli will serve as the exclusive legal sponsor and mentor for the accelerator. Each company coming through the Sprint Accelerator that selects Polsinelli as primary counsel will receive a $10,000 credit towards legal fees. The Kansas City Chiefs announced brand new year-round television programming that will air in Kansas City and in affiliate markets. Kansas City’s television home of the Chiefs, KCTV5, will serve as the flagship station for the Kansas City metro area. The programming, comprised of three different shows based on the time of year, will air on Saturdays at 10:35 p.m. in Kansas City, following KCTV5’s 10 p.m. newscast. The award-winning production arm of the

Chiefs organization, 65 Toss Power Trap Productions, will fully craft and design all of the weekly shows in-house with the team’s staff of producers and directors. The 65TPT Productions crew has taken home 21 Emmy Awards in the last three years and became the first NFL team to win a Gold World Medal at the New York Festivals in 2013.

Harvesters-The Community Food Network has been awarded a $100,000 healthy living grant from the Kansas Health Foundation. Harvesters is one of 22 new Kansas grantees to receive healthy living grant funding. The grant will support programs to promote nutritious eating by low-income families in the 16 Kansas counties Harvesters serves.

Reach 20,000 ceOs & Decision Makers in Greater Kansas city.

GROw yOuR Business. GROw yOuR netwORK.

GROw.

For advertising information, please contact Angie Riffel at 913-951-8446 or ariffel@metromediapublishers.com. We publish 6 times a year, the next issue publishes September 1st 2014 with a deadline for space of Friday, August 1st, 2014.

Ad Copy deAdline is August 8th, 2014.

THANK YOU TO THE KC CHAMBER’S TOP INVESTORS FOR 2014 GOLD LEVEL

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THANK YOU TO THE KC CHAMBER’S

TOP INVESTORS FOR 2014 P L AT I N U M L E V E L

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Getting you there is our BUSiness! www.thejo.com OzOne SeaSOn iS cOminG! During the months of June through September $.75 bus rides on red and orange ozone days! Do your part and help clear the air by hopping on a JO bus!

Benefits of Riding The JO:

• Access to regional community • Free METRO transfers • Saves money • Cleaner air for the environment • Free Wi-Fi • Real-Time bus information • Access to jobs

Call or e-mail and mention “Greater KC Chamber Directory Ad” for your FREE JO bus pass! 913-715-8366 cris.lowe@jocogov.org

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JO Bus Routes serving KC: 556/856 – UMKC and The Plaza 575 – Waldo & Troost Routes 660, 661, 664, 667, 670, 672, 673, and 678 all serve Downtown KCMO and Crown Center $2.50 per trip and FREE Metro transfers JO monthly bus passes accepted on Metro buses! Purchase JO bus passes at several outlet locations or on-line more information can be found at www.thejo.com

2015

ECONOMIC FORECAST BREAKFAST

Tuesday, September 23, 2014 Get fresh perspective on the regional, national, and global economies when the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce presents our annual Economic Forecast Breakfast. You’ll hear from Frank Lenk of Mid-America Regional Council, presenting the KC Chamber’s proprietary forecast, and Chris Kuehl of Armada Corporate Intelligence, author of the Chamber’s daily Business Intelligence Brief, sharing his business economy insights on 2015.

Tuesday, September 23, 2014 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. Sheraton Hotel Crown Center 2345 McGee Street Kansas City, Missouri 64108

Please RSVP online at www.kcchamber.com Our returning keynote is Bob Litan, Bloomberg Government’s Director of Research. He is the author and co-author of more than 25 books on economic policy, Robert Litan Director of Research, Bloomberg Government including his most recent books Better Capitalism and The Need for Speed. Prior to joining Bloomberg, Litan worked at the Kauffman Foundation as vice Bob Litan is Bloomberg Government’s Director of Research, overseeing over 25 analysts that cover a range of issues including president for research and policy and at the Brookings Institution as a senior healthcare, tax, trade, defense spending, congressional policy and fellow and vice president of economic studies. During the Clinton administration, finance. Litan is an expert in economic policy matters. He is the author and co‐author of more than 200 articles and more than 25 he served as associate director of the Office of Management and Budget. Litan books on economic policy, including his most recent books Better will give his timely observations on the intersection of Washington, D.C. politics Capitalism published by Yale University Press and The Need for Speed, published by the Brookings Institution. He is currently working on his next book, The Trillion Dollar and the U.S. economy. Economists, a book about the importance of economists to business. Prior to joining Bloomberg, Litan worked at the Kauffman Foundation as vice president for research and policy and at the Brookings Institution as a senior fellow and vice president of economic $50 per Chamber member; $60 per non-member studies. During the Clinton administration, he served as deputy assistant attorney general Tables of 10, $500 and $600 at the Department of Justice and then as associate director of the Office of Management and Budget. Litan received a B.S. in economics from the University of Pennsylvania, a J.D. from Includes breakfast, a printed copy of the 2015 Forecast publication, Yale Law School, and a master’s and Ph.D. in economics from Yale University. and a $50 travel voucher courtesy of sponsor Southwest Airlines Twitter: @BobLitan for each attendee* PRESENTING SPONSORS

GOLD SPONSORS

*Southwest Airlines $50.00 LUV Voucher: Valid on any available fare at the time reservations are made.

SILVER SPONSORS

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Union Station 30 W Pershing Road Suite 301 Kansas City, Missouri 64108 For membership information, call (816) 221-2424 or email info@kcchamber.com GROW KC Business is produced by the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce Marketing Department for Chamber Management Services, LLC (a wholly owned subsidiary of the KC Chamber). Information in this publication is carefully compiled to ensure accuracy. However, neither the KC Chamber nor CMS assume responsibility for accuracy. Contents are copyrighted by the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce. Design solutions for GROW KC Business provided by KC Chamber member Ridpath Creative Partners, LLC, www.ridpathcreative.com.