BizTimes Milwaukee | April 4, 2016

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DRONES

COULD BE THE NEXT DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGY

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:

ENERGY INNOVATION CENTER OFF TO A SLOW START PACE FINANCING ALLOWS COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS TO INCREASE ENERGY EFFICIENCY ROOT RIVER REDEVELOPMENT COULD HELP REINVENT RACINE

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April 4 - 17, 2016 S P E C I A L R E P O R T:

E NE RGY & THE E N V IRONME NT

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Coverage includes a report on the slow start at M-WERC’s Energy Innovation Center and a look at the impact of PACE financing on increasing Milwaukee’s energy efficiency.

HIGHLIGHT S Social Media Strategies

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The Brewers on planning social media for big events.

Nonprofit News

7

LISC announces new executive director.

The Good Life

7

Jan Neis feasts on philanthropy.

Breaking Ground

8

City Lights Brewing Co.

On the Money

8

Todd Sivak advises planning for longevity and growth.

S TR ATE GIE S Human Resources

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Daniel Schroeder

Leadership

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Patricia Lenius and Bob DeVita

Succession 28 Cary Silverstein

BIZ CONNECTIONS Nonprofit Spotlight 29 Biz Notes 29 Personnel File 30 Glance at Yesteryear 32 The Last Word 34

COV E R S T ORY

Drones could be the next disruptive technology.

V I S I T B I Z T I M E S . C O M F O R A D D I T I O N A L S T O R I E S , D A I LY U P D AT E S & E - N E W S L E T T E R S Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . . 414-336-7120 Advertising . . . . . . . . . 414-336-7112 Subscriptions . . . . . . . 414-277-8181 Reprints . . . . . . . . . . . . 414-277-8181

Founded in 1995, BizTimes Milwaukee provides news and operational insights for CEOs, presidents, owners and other top level executives at companies in southeastern Wisconsin (Milwaukee, Waukesha, Ozaukee, Washington, Racine, Kenosha, Walworth and Sheboygan counties).

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BizTimes Milwaukee (ISSN 1095-936X & USPS # 017813) Volume 22, Number 1, April 4 - 17, 2016. BizTimes Milwaukee is published bi-weekly, except two consecutive weeks in December (the third and fourth weeks of December) by BizTimes Media LLC at 126 N. Jefferson St., Suite 403, Milwaukee, WI 53202-6120, USA. Basic annual subscription rate is $42.00. Single copy price is $3.25. Back issues are $5.00 each. Periodicals postage paid at Milwaukee, WI and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send all UAA to CFS. NON-POSTAL AND MILITARY FACILITIES: send address corrections to BizTimes Milwaukee, 126 N. Jefferson St., Suite 403, Milwaukee, WI 53202-6120. Entire contents copyright 2016 by BizTimes Media LLC. All rights reserved.

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BR Motorcycles, the company formerly known as Erik Buell Racing, recently welcomed the public into its East Troy factory one day after the first completed bike came off the assembly line.

Erik Buell Racing filed for receivership in April 2015, shutting down operations and laying off 126 employees.

India-based Hero purchased the design consulting business for $2.8 million.

Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Liquid Asset Partners LLC purchased the manufacturing assets in January for $2.05 million and put a plan in place to restart production.

During a recent press event on the factory floor, Buell said he is excited about the new company’s situation and believes its product can compete with any foreign brand.

“We had these great products and great engineering, but what we have now is we’re tied in with some great American businessmen,” Buell said.

The new business influence comes from Bill Melvin, Jr., Bill Melvin, Sr. and their team from Liquid Asset Partners LLC. Melvin, Jr. is serving as chief financial officer. Steve Smith, who has a

background in the automotive industry and joined Buell in 2013, is chief executive officer. Buell is serving as chief technical officer.

Smith said the company has roughly a dozen employees now and hopes to double that by the end of the year. The goal is to produce 500 units this year.

“We think we can deliver one to two units a day right now; that’s our shortterm goal,” Smith said.

Before shutting down, the company had 30 to 40 people focused on production and another 90 in engineering and consulting. Operations have been consolidated from three buildings down to one.

Melvin, Jr. didn’t rule out a return to contract engineering in the future and said there has been interest since the company relaunched.

EBR Motorcycles will be producing two models to start, the 1190SX and 1190RX. The models will have an MSRP of $12,995 and $13,995, respectively.

“We have reduced the prices a little bit, but it’s mostly market driven,” Smith said.

Buell said while there is a possibility of producing other models and sizes, his

ARTHUR THOMAS

New ownership aims to steer Buell in right direction

Erik Buell and Bill Melvin, Jr. roll the first motorcycle off the assembly line at EBR Motorcycles.

focus right now is on establishing a solid foundation for the business.

Melvin, Jr. said the company has had a lot of interest from potential dealers and is initially focused on the west coast and south, where the selling season starts earlier.

Ed Laben, director of sourcing, said suppliers have been generally receptive as the company comes back to life.

“Some suppliers were left holding

the bag a little bit more than others; we had to have some discussion with those,” Laben said, adding that the company has done a mass mailing to suppliers and is getting some responses back.

“None of us can fix the past,” Buell said. “But they’re all businessmen and they’ve had ups and downs and the answer is we’re ready to buy stuff.”

——Arthur Thomas

SOCI AL M E D I A S T R AT E GI ES

Planning social media for big events Planning your day-to-day social media strategy is a task that probably comes quite naturally for most at this stage of the game.

However, from time to time, you might find your business planning for a special event, such as a new product launch or anniversary celebration. Along with all of the other details involved in planning such events, you’ll want to make sure your specific social media strategy for the day is set as well.

Thus, in honor of one of our biggest special events, Opening Day, here are three important things to consider when it comes to planning your social media strategy. »» #Hashtags One of the things you’ll want to nail down in the early stages of planning is a special hashtag related to your event. Hashtags are relevant on almost all of the social platforms, so picking a good one is important.

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Keep your hashtag short, simple and unique to your event. For example, on Opening Day, we use #BrewersOpener rather than just #OpeningDay in order to set ourselves apart from the 29 other teams in the league. You’ll also want to be sure to include this hashtag on collateral related to the event, such as advertisements, press releases, etc., so people can easily join the conversation. »» New platforms Consider whether or not there are any new social media platforms or applications that could add a new element to your strategy.

For example, Snapchat is a platform we embraced last season that has proven to be a fun and unique way to engage with our fans.

Similarly, Periscope is a live-streaming app that we enjoy using to give fans behind-thescenes access to the club. Facebook Live also offers a similar capability.

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»» Monitoring In all of the excitement leading up to and during the event, it can be easy to forget one key element: social media monitoring. You will want to make sure you have dedicated staff members to keep track of the conversation (using your carefully selected hashtag, of course!) on social media, curate the best user-generated content and respond to your customers.

Of course, you’ll want to be sure to include pre-event promotion, cross-promotion with customers and sponsors, working with your social media influencers, and post-event recaps in your strategy as well.

Good luck and Go Brewers!

——Caitlin Moyer is director, new media, for the Milwaukee Brewers Baseball Club.

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POLITIC AL BEAT

Rural education funding woes

BY MATT POMMER, special to BizTimes

What is the smartest thing your company did this past year?

“CBRE completed the acquisition of Johnson Controls Inc.’s Global Workplace Solutions business, a leading provider of facilities management solutions for global corporations and other large occupiers of commercial real estate. The Global Workplace Solutions business line serves a roster of large occupiers across a wide range of industries, particularly financial services, health care, industrial/manufacturing, life sciences, technology and telecommunications.

CBRE will make available to these clients the full range of its services, including property leasing and sales transactions, project management and construction services, technical engineering, consulting and more. As a result, CBRE now manages approximately 5 billion square feet of commercial real estate and corporate facilities around the world.”

What’s new at your company?

“In addition to the Global Workplace Solutions news, CBRE has been working on upgrading our own office spaces into Workplace360, which is a global strategy initiative designed to support the way employees work today and will work in the future through enhanced flexibility, mobility, technology and productivity.

“One factor driving the increase in creative office strategy is the underutilization and inefficiency of traditional office configurations. The new offices create environments that fuel collaboration, productivity and wellness, including different ways of working throughout the space such as “offices for a day,” focus rooms for when privacy is required, as well as huddle rooms and conference rooms providing employees with ample collaboration space. In addition, “free address” seating with sit-stand desks are available with dual

monitors, “follow me” phones allow employees to receive phone calls to their direct line from any location in the office and “follow me” printing enables employees to wirelessly print to any printer. Enhanced technology that supports this mobile way of working is a core element of the Workplace360 model.

“These are completely new office suites and I believe CBRE’s Workplace360 is pioneering some of the new trends in office space that specifically cater toward the needs and wants of millennials.”

What will be your company’s main challenges in the next year?

“I believe a challenge with any company the size of CBRE is to constantly find better ways to collaborate internally and share information across more than 70,000 global employees. We are continually making strides in this area through the development of various proprietary platforms and relationships to increase the sharing of information.”

What’s the hottest trend in your industry?

Matt Hunter Vice president CBRE Inc. 777 E. Wisconsin Ave, Suite 3150, Milwaukee www.cbre.com/milwaukee Industry: Commercial real estate Employees: 70,000+ globally Family: Wife, Andrea and three kids, Kate (8), George (6) and John (4) w w w.biztimes.com

“Workplace solutions are the hottest trend in the office market today. Companies are more concerned with better understanding how employees work today in the hopes of increasing the overall productivity and happiness of their employees while at the office. Fueled by the increasing mobility of today’s modern workforce, many of the more traditional type firms are now focused on developing a creative workplace strategy to eliminate the traditional cubicle environment and executive offices in favor of highly functional, shared workplaces. The cumulative effect being cultural changes to an office that enhance collaboration, creativity and productivity.” n

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State Rep. Kathy Bernier (R-Lake Hallie) is annoyed when local officials start comparing Wisconsin and Minnesota, but those comparisons often reflect discontent in rural areas.

Earlier this year, Bernier walked out of a meeting between local school officials and legislators from western Wisconsin.

“Fundamentally, Minnesota is beating us. Our school formula is broken,” an Eau Claire educator said.

“It is not helpful to compare Minnesota and Wisconsin,” Bernier replied.

Later, Bernier would tell constituents that Wisconsin spends $11,071 educating each elementary and secondary school student, while Minnesota spends just $17 per student more.

But those are statewide figures, not a reflection of the financial problems facing rural districts that often have declining enrollments, others note.

State Sen. Kathleen Vinehout (D-Alma) said the rural districts are often faced with winning approval for property tax increases or slashing spending.

The Alma district, she said, recently approved a major tax increase to help pay for a new school furnace. The Prescott school district is facing a $1.5 million cut because a referendum failed.

“People all across this state have voted to raise property taxes,” she said.

Vinehout noted that Tony Evers, state superintendent of public instruction, has repeatedly proposed school aid changes to reflect declining enrollments and poverty.

Evers’ proposals have failed in the state Capitol, she noted.

Gov. Scott Walker’s popularity has dramatically sagged in western and northern Wisconsin, according to numbers from the Marquette University Law School poll.

The governor has spent substantial time in that region in the wake of those numbers. He has held invitation-only meetings to ask what the state should be doing. Now, he promises to put more money into public education in the biennial budget he will send to the Legislature next year.

Matt Pommer is the “dean” of Capitol correspondents in Madison. His column is published with permission from the Wisconsin Newspaper Association, but does not reflect the view or opinions of the WNA or its member newspapers.

BY TH E NU MBERS

$991,263

Milwaukee County’s cut of food and beverage sales negotiated through its different contracts with each beer garden vendor totaled $991,263 in 2015.

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Name change marks new chapter in Miro’s journey

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MAY

Sometimes a company will change its name to signal a desire to move in a new direction. In the case of Miro Manufacturing Inc. – formerly Miro Tool & Mfg. – the goal was to let people know about a shift that had already taken place.

“Although we didn’t turn our back on tooling, we wanted to shed the perception that all we did is build tools,” said Dave Sucharski, Miro sales manager.

Waukesha-based Miro was founded in 1988 by owner and president Jeff Brown. Things went well in the early years and Brown found himself moving from location to location in Waukesha. He eventually decided to buy a 4,000-square-foot facility on Sentry Drive in the early 1990s and more than doubled it with an addition.

Today, the company occupies 50,000

2016 BizExpo ABOVE: Miro Manufacturing offers a wide variety of services including welding, tool and die work, metal stamping, laser and water jet cutting.

BELOW: Jeff Brown, Miro Manufacturing owner and president, with his son Aaron Brown, an employee at the company. The company name comes from the names of Jeff Brown’s two daughters, Miranda and Robin.

(414) 336-7123 | Twitter: @arthur8823 arthur.thomas@biztimes.com

square feet, encompassing three buildings on the site and some rented space nearby. Space is one of Miro’s biggest challenges, and Brown said another 30,000 square feet would help. The company serves a number of markets, including lawn and garden, safety and electrical, and strives to offer short lead times.

“Most people are expecting very quick deliveries nowadays, far quicker than it was five, 10, 20 years ago,” Sucharski said. “You better have raw materials and you better have parts, and both of those things take up space.”

Eaton’s Cooper Power Systems division has quickly become one of Miro’s major customers in recent years. Mark Komp, Cooper Power’s global sourcing commodity manager for metals and fabrications, said the company needed someone with press capacity and tonnage, but also a technical understanding of tooling. Miro met both criteria and Komp said Cooper Power quickly felt comfortable with the company.

“As soon as Miro started using our dies and making our parts, our quality of the parts improved tremendously,” Komp said, adding Miro’s proximity and understanding of Cooper Power’s requirements has made it “an extension of our own production departments.”

The journey to get from early tool and die success to contract manufacturer specializing in metal stamping, fabrication and machining wasn’t all smooth sailing. Increased foreign competition, economic uncertainty and changing manufacturing processes have hurt the tool and die industry. The number of tool and die businesses nationally fell 36 percent between 1998 and 2010, according to a 2012 Congressional Research Service report.

“In that period of time, we looked at it and said, ‘We have to do something a little bit different, other than build tools,’” Brown said. “You know we’re tradesmen, we’re craftsmen, but we needed something to keep the lights on.”

The transition didn’t happen all at once. First, Brown purchased a machine for laser cutting, opening up some fabrication opportunities. Then, employees in his die department pushed him toward the purchase of a press. The company later added a water jet to help with building dies and production.

“It’s really the tooling that brought us into the manufacturing,” Brown said.

Despite all the investments moving the company toward production, Miro was reluctant to declare itself a manufacturer instead of just a tool and die maker. Part of the concern was potential customers on the tool and die side could see the

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The 2016 BizExpo will be held on Wednesday, May 18, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Potawatomi Hotel & Casino, 1721 W. Canal St. in Milwaukee. The event will include networking with thousands of business professionals, exhibitor booths, business strategy seminars, the annual BizTimes Women in Business breakfast, the annual BizTimes Bravo!

Entrepreneur & I.Q. Awards luncheon and a new after hours event, “From the Locker Room to the Boardroom.” The BizExpo is free with advanced registration, with additional pricing for main stage events. For more information or to register, visit www.biztimes.com/bizexpo.

For a complete listing of all area events, visit the event section of our website.

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BOOK REVIEW

Miro Manufacturing Inc. 201 Sentry Drive, Waukesha Industry: Metalworking contract manufacturing Employees: 47 www.miromfg.com manufacturing production as competition.

“We rode that fence for years,” Sucharski said.

The company decided around 2010 to fully commit to what it had become – a ­­ metalworking contract manufacturer with expertise in tool and die. Making a commitment to production has paid off with the addition of several major accounts and double-digit growth in sales.

Those successes were followed by the name change in late 2015 and a new website to help tell the company’s story.

Brown said that while a shift toward automation has made some things in the industry easier, the workforce behind the machines is critical.

“It’s still about people, it’s still about talent,” he said.

For that reason, he’s made training a priority, maintaining apprenticeship programs even during recessions, when the company’s future was uncertain.

“The question has to be, do you want to invest in the talent?” Brown said. “There are good people who want to learn out there.”

Get the latest manufacturing news delivered to your inbox every Monday. Sign up for BizTimes’ Manufacturing Weekly at biztimes.com/subscribe.

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‘The Art of Startup Fundraising’ The financial world has changed since the Great Recession, particularly in the way money is raised for startup companies.

In Alejandro Cremades’ new book, “The Art of Startup Fundraising,” entrepreneurs are given easyto-follow explanations and expert perspective on the new digital world of finance.

The book includes tips and tricks on raising money and investing in startups from early-stage to growth stage, and ways to develop a clear strategy based on the new realities surrounding today’s startup landscape.

Learn how the federal JOBS Act impacts the fundraising model, gain insight on startups from early stage to growth stage and find the money needed to get a new venture off the ground. The game has changed, and playing by the old rules won’t work anymore.

“The Art of Startup Fundraising” is available at www.800ceoread.com for $20.

——Corrinne Hess

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THE GOOD LIFE

LISC announces new executive director

Feasting on philanthropy

During the Milwaukee Awards for Neighborhood Development Innovation on March 16, Local Initiatives Support Corporation Milwaukee, LISC, announced that its new executive director will be Donsia Strong Hill.

Strong Hill is a principal consultant and attorney who has previously worked as the Brown County District Attorney, a senior policy analyst for former President Bill Clinton’s adminStrong Hill istration and a senior adviser for the U.S. Department of Energy.

She will replace Laura Bray, who resigned from the position in December 2015 after just four months at the helm.

The MANDI Awards were held at Potawatomi Hotel & Casino in Milwaukee.

The five winners at this year’s MANDI awards included ACTS Housing, St. Ann Center for Intergenerational Care — Bucyrus Campus, COA Youth & Family Centers, Rodney Bourrage, Sr. and Milwaukee County.

Each winner received a trophy and a $1,000 donation.

——Ben Stanley

In 2014, Jan Neis, a partner at Thomson Realty in Pewaukee and CDJLT Investments in Brookfield, was sitting in an airport looking at her phone when a friend sent her a video about a group of volunteers who turned a homeless shelter in California into a five-star restaurant, complete with classical music playing through the speakers and waiters donning bow ties.

The video brought her to tears, and she said to herself: “I am doing this in Milwaukee.”

With the help of her sister, Debbie Mulberry, and her good friend, Reggie Harris, she started an organization called North Star Providers, which helps organize and execute fundraising events for nonprofits.

Together, the group set up a five-star restaurant in the Marquette University High School Jan Neis speaks with reporters at an event she held for the homeless in cafeteria and rented buses to transfer people from 2015 in Marquette University High School’s cafeteria. the Milwaukee Rescue Mission for a quality meal.

“We’re going to keep this going,” she said. “If some“We had so much fun doing it,” she said. “The gift was paid thing strikes you, if something kind of makes you think back tenfold. Reggie and I decided we wanted to continue looking for ‘ah-ha!’ check it out. Pursue it. If you look hard enough, events that could provide uplifting experiences to people.” you can connect the dots and make stuff happen. Be Now, the group is helping Milwaukee’s Journey House send open to possibilities and start connecting those dots. If members of its Felix Mantilla Little League on a cultural exchange and you believe in it enough it will happen.” baseball trip to Puerto Rico, and Neis said she’s always on the lookout for a new event to plan or a new group with which to get involved.

——Ben Stanley

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O N T HE M ON E Y

BR EA K ING GR OUN D

Plan for longevity and growth We work with business owners of all shapes and sizes, from all industries, in all stages of business, from startup to growth to transfer. What we’ve learned first and foremost is that regardless of the company, there are a few things that each business should have in place to help ensure they have the best shot at longevity and growth, profit and security.

Consider the following as you look at your business holistically and plan for its future: 1. Have a thoughtful, well-written business plan and stick to it Rather than getting caught up in daily operations of your business, set clear, realistic goals and objectives. Consider strategies that address the long-term plans of your business and how you plan to retire.

2. Hire better and offer good benefits Find and hire strong talent. Offer voluntary benefits as a way to help retain and attract quality employees. Often, voluntary benefits can be offered to employees at no cost to the business.

3. Develop an exit strategy and succession plan Are you approaching retirement and intending to sell your business for retirement income? An experienced financial professional can help you put a succession plan in place.

4. Find a financial professional with experience in serving small businesses Work with an experienced, local financial professional who is trained to meet business owner needs.

Your business depends on you. In challenging times, or anytime really, an experi-

CITY LIGHTS BREWING CO.

City Lights Brewing Co. plans to open its craft brewery in the former Milwaukee Gas Light Co. red brick water tower building in the Menomonee Valley by June. The brewery is spending about $1 million on equipment and another $1 million to transform the five-story tower into a brew house and tasting room. City Lights will also occupy another 5,500-square-foot building just north of the tower for its production.

——Corrinne Hess enced local financial professional can help you and your business interests.

——Todd Sivak is a certified family business specialist and director of wealth management at Summit Street Wealth Management in Oconomowoc.

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Re: Donald Trump “He is what psychologists would call a narcissistic sociopath. Trump believes he alone can ‘make us great.’ We all know that it’s the contributions of individual Americans who make this country great.”

- John Torinus, Serigraph Inc.

Re: Employee turnover “More than 74 percent of people who quit their job do so because of a bad boss or bad company policies. Yet, no boss I have spoken with ever told me: ‘My best salesperson quit and it’s all my fault.’”

- Jeffrey Gitomer

Do you like the latest designs for the new arena planned in downtown Milwaukee?

Yes: 52.8% No: 47.2%

Re: Valuation strategy “Exporters will have more predictable and sustainable revenues and will receive a higher multiple as a result.”

The Buckler apartments are complete, occupying an 11-story building in downtown Milwaukee that had been vacant for years. The 207-unit apartment building was the headquarters of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Wisconsin until 2006.

- Bill Burnett, Milwaukee 7

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Ready, fire, aim! Entrepreneurial tales of ambition and tenacity Prior to the awards program, join us for a luncheon and robust dialogue among four young entrepreneurs and innovators who share their stories – and lessons learned along the way.

Moderator: Andrew Weiland, Editor, BizTimes Media Dominic Anzalone Founder & CEO – RentCollegePads.com (Founded 2011) Anzalone started working at age 13 in a clothing distribution center for a family friend. By 15, he was night produce manager at a grocery store and at 16 had saved enough money to buy the first iPhone released. He loaded an investing app and started buying stocks with his earnings. The proceeds helped fund his college education and seed his company.

RentCollegePads.com is an off-campus housing website that connects college students and landlords. It provides users to access up-to-date information on apartments close to or on campus, with the ability to easily compare units according to appearance, amenities, rental price, location and walking time to campus.

Joe Kirgues Co-founder – gener8tor (Founded 2011) Kirgues received his law degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School and his bachelors from Marquette University. He worked at Quarles & Brady, where he focused his practice on private equity and securities law.

Gener8tor is an accelerator program located in Milwaukee and Madison that provides first-stage startups with seed capital, applies lean principles to startup development, creates an environment for entrepreneurs to collaborate and establishes access to later-stage capital.

Since 2011, gener8tor’s 38 portfolio startups have raised more than $75 million in follow-on capital and created over 400 jobs.

Joe Scanlin Co-founder, CEO – Scanalytics (Founded 2012) Scanlan has been an entrepreneur since age 14 and has been involved with several technology companies. Previously, he served as a squad leader in the Marine Corps, worked as a Data Analyst where he helped big brands use data to fuel large operational decisions, and studied Organizational Theory, Data Science and Machine Learning.

Scanalytics produces a sensor-based, action-oriented engagement and analytics platform for physical spaces. Its proprietary sensors, known as “SoleSensors,” are intelligent, sensor-laden floor mats that unobtrusively provide a granular, accurate layer of consumer and human behavior.

Richard Yau CEO, co-founder – Bright Cellars (Founded 2014) Yau grew up in San Francisco. After attending MIT, Yau moved to Milwaukee after completing the gener8tor program in 2015. Prior to Bright Cellars, he led business development at NutraClick and helped bootstrap the startup to $65 million in revenue in three years by acquiring 200,000 customers.

Bright Cellars is a venture-backed subscription wine company based in Milwaukee. It matches members to wines using a machine-learning algorithm designed to help members discover new wines they love. Bright Cellars raised $2 million from CSA Partners in 2015 and the service has grown to over 6,000 members.

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innovations Talent Network Group aims to improve the temp experience Temp Mission brings immediacy, flexibility to the process

T

alent Network Group founder Sue Sattler didn’t set out to include temporary workers as part of the services her firm offers, but now she finds herself doing just that, while working on new ways to improve the experience of bringing on temporary help.

work, executive searches, managed recruitment and as of a year-and-a-half ago, temporary staffing.

“I never wanted to do temporary, believe it or not, because I always heard horror stories,” Sattler said.

When a large corporate client needed temporary help, Sattler decided to take the leap. Now, she’s launching Temp Mission (www.tempmission.com) as a way to streamline the process of finding a temp.

“Usually a temporary need is immediate,” Sattler said.

The idea is for Temp Mission to be like an Uber for temporary workers. Sattler recalled she didn’t quite get the potential

ARTHUR THOMAS (414) 336-7123 arthur.thomas@biztimes.com Twitter: @arthur8823

Brookfield-based Talent Network Group is a full-service talent acquisition firm. Sattler and her team do direct hire

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Talent Network Group Brookfield Innovation: Temp Mission www.talentnetworkgroup.com

for Uber when she first heard about it.

“Why not just call a cab?” she thought.

“The difference was the immediacy,” she said. “Why not do that for temp staffing?”

Sattler recalled being in corporate human resources settings in which she would call an agency, tell it what she needed in a candidate, and the agency would try to find it for her.

“Oftentimes what they do is they get the order and then they go out and find people,” she said.

Temp Mission allows the corporate user to log on and browse the temps Talent Network Group has available. The user picks one or two in which he or she is interested. Sattler and her team are notified of the user’s interest and respond with the candidate’s bill rate and other relevant information.

“It’s a quick, easy, efficient way to order up a temp,” she said.

Sattler’s effort to improve the temp experience is right in line with why she started Talent Network Group in 2007.

After years in human resources on both the agency and corporate side, including 10 years as a staffing officer at Park Bank, Sattler felt there was something missing.

“Honestly, I was always very disappointed in the recruiters I dealt with on the corporate side,” she said.

Temp Mission launched earlier this year and not all of the temps Talent Network Group has available are on the site yet. Sattler is currently aiming to offer a sampling of what is available and the focus is on people who would fit corporate or office roles, not manufacturing or labor.

Sattler said she believes one of the user benefits of Temp Mission is it can be done at any time. That means managing temp staffing could be done during off hours or

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ABOVE: Temp Mission allows users to browse resumes, select those they are interested in and then receive information on each from Talent Network Group.

while traveling.

“We’re excited about it for the technology of it,” she said.

Despite her initial hesitation to start providing temp services, Sattler said she is increasingly finding benefits of it. She said it works as another way to get people in the door at companies.

In one case, she had a 60-year-old female minority candidate with a “phenomenal” resume who was having trouble getting interviews. Sattler said people will, unfortunately, not give candidates a chance for a variety of reasons.

Sattler was able to place the woman with a large public company as a temp. The company loved her work, Sattler said, and after a year of temping there was room in the budget to hire the woman full-time.

The use of temporary workers has reached historic levels, especially as the labor market continues to tighten and fulltime candidates aren’t as readily available.

“It’s insane,” Sattler said. “I can’t remember a market this tight.”

Staffing companies hired a total of 15.9 million temporary and contract employees in 2015, the highest number since 2000, according to the American Staffing Association.

Sattler said using temporary workers gives employers quick and easy access to help, along with the flexibility to work around potential budget constraints.

“Using temp staffing has become a workforce management strategy for them,” she said. n

real estate Machinery Row could help reinvent Racine Mixed-use project would be first step in river revitalization plan

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acine Mayor John Dickert keeps a large white dry erase board on an easel next to his desk at City Hall with a colorcoded list of the projects he wants to get done before completing his second term.

The projects are divided into four categories: developments, water, community and housing. The projects overlap, which you can see from the arrows and lines scribbled on the board.

CORRINNE HESS P: (414) 336-7116 E: corri.hess@biztimes.com Twitter: @CorriHess

One of the key developments Dickert and his team have been working on for the past seven years is finally beginning to take shape: Machinery Row, a $62 million mixed-use redevelopment project along the Root River in downtown Racine that could be the catalyst the city is looking for to spark development in the blighted area.

If successful, the project could bring 150 market rate apartments, a grocery store, dining, retail, outdoor event space and a 2.5-mile riverfront promenade to 20.5 acres of land.

The Machinery Row development is the first step in Racine’s RootWorks river redevelopment plan, created by the city in 2012, to convert the neglected area of the city into a neighborhood similar to Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward.

“I’m envisioning something that will be so hip and cool everyone will be there – like the Third Ward,” Dickert said. “But the Third Ward is the Third Ward. We’re going to create our own space. This is going to be the RootWorks area. It will have a life of its own.”

The 325-acre Root River Corridor encompasses the area adjacent to the Root River bordered by Memorial Drive on the west, State Street to the north, Lake Michigan to the east and Eighth Street to the south. The other projects targeted in the corridor include a Transit-Oriented Development District, Case New Holland’s downtown riverfront campus, the Belle Harbor District and the Walker Site Redevelopment. Those projects are in various

stages of development.

Dickert, who worked in commercial real estate for seven years before being elected mayor in 2009, said what he learned in real estate was you have to juggle multiple projects at once to be successful. That is how Dickert runs the city.

Dickert “Some you win, some you lose, but you have to work them all. The reality is, if you get one in 10, you’re doing great,” Dickert said.

Now that Machinery Row is advancing, attention has been turned to the other RootWorks projects.

“We still meet on (Machinery Row) weekly, but we know they are getting started, so we’ve already moved on to 30some other projects,” Dickert said. “It’s insane, but it’s how we work.”

One of those projects includes extending the Metra commuter train line nine miles from Kenosha to Racine. This long-discussed idea has been championed

by Racine and Milwaukee Democrats for years, since the Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee rail project was shot down by the state Legislature a decade ago.

Dickert said the city will hire a consultant within the next few weeks who will do a three-month study to determine exact costs to extend the line to Racine.

“We are the only city in Wisconsin not on the interstate system,” he said.

“We’ve heard from the business community that this is a disadvantage for us. We hope once people see connecting Metra to Racine it will be a natural to move it up to Milwaukee – but first, tying us to Chicago is so important.”

Another is the CNH downtown riverfront campus, which encompasses about 30 acres of privately-owned property.

CNH has made a commitment to donate the land along the Root River to the city once a redevelopment plan is in place, said Thomas Friedel, city administrator.

“Right now there is an asphalt riverwalk, but no amenities over there,” Friedel said. “Our goal is to leverage some funds and come up with a way to make things w w w.biztimes.com

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ABOVE: A rendering of Machinery Row RIGHT: Machinery Row is the first step in Racine’s RootWorks river redevelopment plan to convert the neglected area of the city into a neighborhood similar to Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward.

look nicer.”

The former Belle Harbor Marina is another area the city is working on, along with Racine County. The five-acre former marina site is owned by Racine County and has been filled in to create a larger riverside redevelopment site. Racine County has entertained a few development proposals for the site, but hasn’t found anything that has worked, Friedel said.

The final piece of the puzzle is the Walker Site, also known as Harborside.

The parcel, located at 1129 Michigan Blvd., is a 9.6-acre piece of remediated brownfield located where the Root River meets Lake Michigan. Eventually, the city would like to see a mix of commercial, office and residential similar to Machinery Row, but at this time, nothing is happening.

“The Walker site is clean and ready to go, we just need to market it,” Friedel said. “Development begets development.

I think once people see Machinery Row a little further off the ground this will start to happen. It comes down to an investment and a developer; we just need a good start.”

Racine has been working with Madi-

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son- and Milwaukee-based economic development specialists and landscape architects Vandewalle & Associates Inc. since 2012 on the RootWorks project.

Jolena Presti, principal of Vandewalle, believes this is an opportunity for Racine to reinvent itself.

“We’re talking about 325 acres downtown, on the river and on the lake,”Presti said. “As with other communities, including Milwaukee, that have taken old industrial areas and reinvented them, Racine is in line to do that as well.”

One of the key components of each of the projects will be housing, Presti said.

Phase one of Machinery Row includes 150 apartments. But with approximately 5,000 people working within a two-mile radius of the developments, Presti believes it makes sense to create housing options for these employees.

“I’m very optimistic about Racine,” she said. “This is a really good project that will advance or reinvent the downtown.” n Get the latest real estate news delivered to your inbox every Wednesday. Sign up for BizTimes’ Real Estate Weekly at biztimes.com/subscribe.

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RENDERING FROM PARK

Irgens plans five-story Third Ward office building

COPYRIGHT © 2016 KAHLER SLATER, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

ONE CATALANO SQUARE MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN

02-17-2016 | PAGE-20

Milwaukee-based real estate development firm Irgens plans to build a five-story office building in the city’s Historic Third Ward. The project, called One Catalano Square (named for the park it would face), is being led by Tom Irgens.

Construction is expected to begin by the end of this year.

The 168,000-square-foot building is planned for a site at 100 N. Young St. It would be the first new office building in the Third Ward in many years. The building could be ready by late 2017.

It will offer potential tenants large, 35,000-squarefoot floor plates, which are unique in the historic neighborhood, said Aaron Ebent of Kahler Slater Architects, the design firm for the project.

The building will include ground floor retail, four levels of office space and one level of underground parking with 70 spaces.

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City Center at 735 to lose its largest office tenant

Kielich and Foster launch M&A consulting firm

The City Center at 735 building in downtown Milwaukee will lose its largest office tenant in April when National Business Furniture moves to West Allis.

John Kielich, CPA, and LeAnne Foster, CPA, have launched a new mergers and acquisitions consulting firm to help owners of privately held businesses sell their company or find another business to acquire.

The company, which leases more than 30,000 square feet of office space on four floors of the City Center building for its 105 employees, will move to 770 S. 70th St. in West Allis, the former home of C&H Distributors, which is owned by National Business Furniture’s parent company, Stuttgart, Germany-based Takkt AG.

Tom McRae also serves as an advisor at the Milwaukee-based firm, which is focused on companies in the lower middle market space of between $1 million and $30 million in revenue.

Takkt AG sold C&H Distributors last year, but kept the West Allis building. The German company decided to relocate National Business Furniture there, allowing the furniture distributor to consolidate its Milwaukee offices.

National Business Furniture currently leases the entire fourth floor of the City Center building at 735 N. Water St., and portions of the fifth, seventh and ninth floors of the building.

The company also leases 14,000 square feet at the Shops of Grand Avenue, 275 W. Wisconsin Ave., for its virtual show room.

The West Allis building is about 68,000 square feet.

Kielich and Foster previously worked as a team at Kolb + Co. M&A Advisers (now part of Sikich LLP) and together have more than 30 years of experience in M&A services. Foster most recently was a consultant and portfolio manager at Park Place Capital Management Inc. and Kielich most recently was a financial advisor at PNC Investments.

There are a lot of companies in the lower middle market space to work with, and the demographics of ownership in that market point toward baby boomers selling in droves over the next 15 years, Kielich said.

Water Street Advisors focuses on serving the technology, veterinary, dental, service, manufacturing, distribution, IT and software, and food and beverage industries.

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3/21/16 5:41 PM

cover story

DRONES COULD BE THE NEXT DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGY

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BY ARTHUR THOMAS, staff writer

n just a few short years, drones have gone from a part of the War on Terror to a consumer technology with the potential to disrupt a host of industries.

Perhaps the most high profile potential disruption is Amazon’s desire to offer 30-minute delivery for online orders, but there are plenty of other examples. Real estate agents can use them to provide clients with perspective on properties. Insurance agencies can use them to survey the damage after a claim, particularly after catastrophic events when an area may not be safe for people. Land surveyors and construction firms can use drones to map jobsites or inspect structures. Farmers can spot troubled areas in their crops and deliver targeted treatment.

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COURTESY TAILORED LABEL

cover story

Larry Harvey, Tailored Label Products marketing and communications manager, flies his drone inside one of the company’s factories.

CURRENT FAA LIMITATIONS ON COMMERCIAL DRONE USE INCLUDE: »» The drone must be operated by someone with at least a sport pilot license. »» Cannot go more than 87 knots or 100 miles per hour. »» Cannot go more than 400 feet above ground level. »» Must be operated within visual line of sight of the pilot, unaided by anything but corrective lenses. »» Must use a visual observer. »» Cannot fly at night. »» Cannot operate within five miles of an airport. »» Cannot be operated from a moving device or vehicle. »» Must remain at least 500 feet from all nonparticipating people, vehicles or structures, unless there is protection in place or the person had granted permission.

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Plenty of entrepreneurs have seen the potential to create businesses out of drones, but the current Federal Aviation Administration regulations governing commercial uses limit what is possible, according to those with experience in the industry.

“Right now, the restriction that’s keeping most of the business uses under wraps is line of sight,” said Russ Klingaman, referring to an FAA restriction that requires commercial users to keep an eye on their drone while it’s in the air.

Klingaman, a partner at Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP in Milwaukee, teaches an aviation law class every other year as an adjunct at Marquette University Law School. When he started teaching in 2007, there wasn’t any mention of drones. In 2009, the class considered some of the implications of drone warfare. It wasn’t until 2015, though, that drones became a mainstay in classroom discussion.

“We probably talked about drones for 15 or 20 minutes every time we’d meet,” Klingaman said.

As interest in drones among hobbyists has exploded, so too has the level of interest in potential commercial activities.

A 2013 forecast by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International estimated the drone industry would create more than 100,000 jobs and have $82 billion worth of economic impact in the United States between 2015 and 2025.

That included $527 million and 665 jobs in Wisconsin.

The caveat was that the FAA needed to develop new regulations to integrate drones into the national airspace, with the authors calling it “perhaps the single most important aspect.”

The FAA was supposed to have implemented a plan to integrate drones, also known as unmanned aerial systems (UAS) or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) into the national airspace system by Sept. 30, 2015. There are regulations in the works and a framework has emerged through an exemption process, but the actual deadline has passed without full integration.

“The UAS technology still has a long way to go until it’s commercially viable,” said Peter Menet, founder of Milwaukeebased drone services firm Menet Aero Inc. He said the industry could be five to 10 years from fully integrating into the national airspace.

Menet said the use of drones in business settings has been presented as if an employer could pick up a drone at Best

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Buy on the way home from work, hand it over to employees the next day and see cost savings and productivity improvement by the end of the week.

“The one thing you have to understand about the UAS industry is it’s really kind of overhyped,” Menet said.

It isn’t that drones aren’t already capable of performing a lot of tasks—Menet can collect high resolution data on 25 acres in just more than 15 minutes—but the regulatory environment limits what is possible and legal to do.

“You have to go into using a UAV with a very specific application or basically a knowledge of what you’re going to get back,” said Zach Fiene, a co-founder of Prairie du Sac-based DMZ Aerial.

Larry Harvey, marketing and communications manager at Menomonee Falls-based Tailored Label Products Inc., uses his drone for internal marketing purposes and shoots video inside. That use changes which regulations apply. He considers himself part hobbyist and part business user.

“I think a business user has to go out and educate themselves about what is legal to do,” Harvey said.

The drone gives him a unique view of the factory floor—one he wouldn’t be able to otherwise achieve without hiring a film crew. The drone also serves as a great display item for how labels are used when school tours visit, Harvey said.

He noted that a lot has changed in the drone industry since he first took an interest in it five or six years ago. The first drone he purchased could barely go 10 feet off the ground and was more a toy than anything else.

Today, drones have features such as built-in takeoff and landing technology, GPS navigation and collision detection capabilities. Amazon sells thousands of drone-related products and has a special section dedicated to drone photography.

Prices for the DJI Phantom drone series —one of the most popular—range from about $300 to $1,400. Others reach $3,000 or more. Accessories and other products, like extra batteries, only add to the cost.

An evolving regulatory environment The explosion in drones available to consumers—the FAA expects 2.5 million to be sold in 2016—has left regulators scrambling to manage their integration into the national airspace. While hobbyists

COURTESY R.A. SMITH

Drones offer a unique perspective and can be used in land surveying.

and private users generally get a pass, commercial users aren’t able to operate without a specific exemption from the FAA. “That word ‘commercial’ is very broadly interpreted by the FAA,” Klingaman said. “If it’s related to an enterprise that ends up doing any buying or selling of services, it’s covered.”

FAA administrator Michael Huerta recently said the goal is to have new regulations out this spring to allow for routine commercial operations with certain limitations. The FAA would then be able to stop issuing Section 333 exemptions—a reference to part of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012—on a caseby-case basis.

“In reality, the day you decide to do commercial services, you could be four to six months out from doing it legally,” Fiene said.

More than 4,000 exemptions have been granted already. An AUVSI analysis of the first 1,000 exemptions granted by

the FAA found just nine were granted to Wisconsin companies. California led the way with 114 exemptions, followed by Florida at 97 and Texas at 82. Illinois was fourth, with 35.

Klingaman said he’s worried about how many people are operating commercially either without knowledge of the FAA regulations or by intentionally ignoring them.

“I think it’s a big number; I have no idea,” he said.

The Section 333 exemption gives users a path around rules treating drones as aircraft, but it also comes with a number of conditions and limitations. Many of the limitations have become standardized as the number of exemptions granted increases. One of them—requiring that the drone be operated by someone with at least a sport pilot license—limits who can operate a company’s drone.

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give users some skills they won’t use with a drone, it is the best available proxy to ensure safety, Klingaman said.

“There’s some overlap. That’s critical; that’s safety; that’s the airspace,” he said.

“Where the accidents are going to happen is when somebody doesn’t understand they’re sharing the airspace.”

Pilots have reported hundreds of relatively close calls with drones, including at least nine in Wisconsin from November 2014 to Jan. 31,2016.

Klingaman said he expects the pilot requirement will change to a license more applicable to drone operation in the future.

Other conditions limit speed to 100 mph and altitude to 400 feet above ground level, and prohibit flying at night.

Flights also need to use a visual observer and cannot be done from a moving vehicle. In addition, drones have to stay at least five miles from an airport and 500 feet from all nonparticipating people, vehicles and structures.

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“We thought once we had our exemption we would be given a lot more freedom than we have,” said Jon Chapman, a project manager at Brookfield-based R.A. Smith National who heads up the company’s UAV operations. “We probably walk away from more than half of the opportunities that are brought our way because of the limitations in the COA,” which is a certificate of waiver or authorization that comes with an exemption.

The one big limitation is the requirement to keep the drone 500 feet from anyone not participating in its operation, he said.

Staying in R&D mode R.A. Smith has done some commercial work, but Chapman said “we don’t do nearly as much as we hope to.” The integration has mainly been in the company’s survey business, something Chapman knows companies in Europe and Asia have been doing for years.

“We see it as a mapping tool,” he said, 19

cover story

Drones can be used for surveying damage on insurance claims.

DRONE FACTS AND FIGURES: 1,346 pilot reports of drones in close proximity to their flight path between November 2014 and Jan. 31, 2016 (including 9 in Wisconsin) Source: FAA

$300 to $1,400 Cost of DJI Phantom series drone Source: DJI.com

$82 billion projected economic impact of drones in U.S.

$527 million projected economic impact of drones in Wisconsin Source: Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International

35.1% respondents very or somewhat interested in owning a drone »» Among the 35.1 percent, the reasons for wanting a drone were: »» 32.7 percent – to see own property from heights »» 73.2 percent – a fun hobby, a more advanced model plane »» 11.7 percent – to observe my neighbors »» 28.3 percent – safety/security interests »» 4.1 percent – other Source: Saint Leo University Polling Institute, December 2015

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noting nearly all the flights the company undertakes are done with GPS guidance on a predetermined path.

“It actually has seemed to be a little easier than we thought it would be,” Chapman said of operating the drone. He said it is easy to launch and use the device in the field and then to process the data.

Drones bring a technological and cost advantage to doing volumetric surveys, Chapman said, adding that a drone can quickly and cost effectively collect data to create a survey grade estimate of how much material is at a particular site. That means anywhere there are piles of material or product, including quarries, metal scrap yards or a construction site, the drone can give an accurate picture of how much needs to be moved.

R.A. Smith also uses drones for developing topographical maps of job sites.

He said it works well in areas with limited vegetation, but the camera technology has trouble in areas with a lot of trees.

Chapman said there are some uses for drones when it comes to inspections for the company’s structural engineering division. While the drone doesn’t replace an inspector physically inspecting a bridge or other structure, it can be used to provide an overview and allow the inspector to find out which areas to focus on.

“It has been a great supplement,” Chapman said, adding that there was some fear in the industry that drones

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would cost people their jobs. He said there are certainly situations where drones can make a process faster or safer, but the big employment disruption hasn’t happened.

Drones have changed the landscape in a different way, though. Chapman said larger companies are increasingly finding themselves in competition with smaller firms for jobs that previously would have taken the staff of a large company.

“That is a reality in our business right now,” he said. “We literally compete with them on projects.”

Both Chapman and Eric Orthey, an innovation consultant at American Family Insurance in Madison, said their companies are largely still in a research and development mode when it comes to drones.

“The use of UAS provides us with a better picture of what our customers are facing in times of need,” said Orthey, adding that the regulations prevent the company from taking full advantage of drones.

But Orthey also said if the regulations were suddenly lifted, there would still be challenges to widespread use throughout the company. One of the issues would be who controls the drone. If there weren’t a requirement to use a licensed pilot, the company would likely train adjustors to operate them.

Orthey also said there is some work to be done on the batteries used for drones.

Right now, flights are often limited to 20 or 25 minutes, which doesn’t always leave

COURTESY DMZ AERIAL

Using a drone allows DMZ Aerial to do crop scouting activities without having to walk an entire field.

time to accomplish everything needed for a claim.

The idea for insurance companies is to use drones to get access to damaged areas faster after a catastrophe in a safer way. Orthey said there is a negative connotation around drones in the industry.

While the idea of an insurance company with the ability to easily get a view of a customer’s home may be concerning for some, Orthey said American Family is focused on providing benefits.

“We’re not utilizing this to create more concerns for our customers; we want to help them,” he said.

American Family has used drones to inspect homes in rural areas after a claim. Orthey said the company asks the homeowner for permission to bring the drone if the home is in a safe location, adding that it gives American Family a chance to talk about its efforts to use the technology.

“As long as there’s the transparency, people were less concerned about it,” he said.

A December poll by Saint Leo University in Florida found nearly 75 percent of respondents nationally had concerns about the increasing number of drones in the airspace. Among those with concerns, almost two-thirds said personal privacy was an issue for them. A similar percentage said they wouldn’t want their neighbor to have a drone, according to a January 2015 Reuters/Ipsos poll.

State regulation and privacy While handling air safety falls within the FAA’s purview, the privacy portion of regulation is left to state and local municipalities. A Wisconsin law enacted in 2014 prohibits using a drone to photograph a person where he or she “has a reasonable expectation privacy.”

“If somebody isn’t breaking the law, then drones aren’t any more invasive than satellite technology,” said state Rep. Adam Neylon (R-Pewaukee).

Neylon has been pushing his fellow lawmakers to take a wait-and-see approach to regulating drones, hoping it will help commercial uses develop.

“The general attitude (among lawmakers) is very fearful and cautious of the technology,” Neylon said, adding that many regulators view drones more as a hobby than as something with the potential to change the way business is done.

Neylon said there is something to be said for having smart regulations, but added the United States is being passed by other countries when it comes to commercial drone uses. He recalled being in Turkey for a legislative cultural exchange last summer. While on a hot air balloon trip, someone flew a drone alongside to take a picture of the experience. The photo was available for purchase when he landed.

“That would have been illegal to do that in the United States,” Neylon said.

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Drones give the user the ability to capture unique vantage points they wouldn’t otherwise be able to achieve.

something used for spying on people or as a weapon, not as a tool for inspecting a roof without going on a ladder, or for checking crops, or for helping utility companies do their work.

“It doesn’t really matter if people are ready, because they’re already here,” Neylon said.

Drone entrepreneurs Cousins Mitchell and Zach Fiene are

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among those making a go of it as drone entrepreneurs. The duo spent summers in college scouting crops for farmers. Days spent walking through fields, almost at random, looking for signs of plant diseases or checking nutrients led them to an idea.

“We were thinking, ‘there has to be a better way of doing this,’” Zach Fiene said.

Now, as co-founders of DMZ Aerial, they offer drone services to agriculture 21

cover story

Peter Menet, founder of Menet Aero, prepares to launch his drone.

clients throughout the country.

The services include straightforward aerial photography of crops, allowing farmers to look for discoloration in their fields. DMZ also can program the drone to take a picture at set intervals and then stitch the pictures together, creating something like a super high-resolution Google Earth image. The technique can be used in insurance situations, allowing for accurate measurement of how much of a field was damaged.

The Fienes also use the combination of two photos—one with traditional light and the other with near infrared light—to measure how much stress plants are under.

They’ve also expanded their business into helping others navigate the regulatory landscape established by the FAA. “The biggest challenge has been the regulatory environment,” Fiene said.

It was the potential regulations that initially delayed Peter Menet’s entry into the drone industry.

Menet, who spent 19 years in the Wisconsin National Guard, including 12 years as a pilot, was working at his brother-inlaw’s web development company in 2012 after returning from a deployment. A client saw the toy drones they had in the office and asked them to produce a video for a website.

Menet started looking into the regu22

lations, but ultimately told the client he couldn’t do it. As a commercial pilot, Menet didn’t feel he could really claim ignorance of the regulations. While he said the FAA has acknowledged it can’t chase every reported drone sighting and issue fines, the concern was really what would happen if something went wrong.

Now, Menet has built a business with two full-time employees and six contract workers, all to offer drone services.

Some of the uses include working with the geographic information system many municipalities have in place. The drones allow for reduced costs, regular flights and better resolution.

Menet said drones can also offer a birds-eye view of a construction project instead of spending hours walking a building. A 3D model of the project’s progress, produced from the flight, can be compared to the plans to check if footings, plumbing or walls are in the right place.

“It really is a very revolutionary technology if you know how to leverage it and understand its limitations,” he said.

The path forward Klingaman said the line of sight requirement—which he called the biggest limitation to business uses—is “a very difficult challenge” for regulators, manuB i zT i m e s M i l w a u k e e

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Russ Klingaman is an attorney specializing in aviation law and is a pilot himself.

facturers, law enforcement, users and the general community to move beyond. He said he expects the FAA to implement tiers of regulations. One set would address close proximity uses and the other would allow drones to fly longer distances.

“The fix is technological and it’s not cheap,” he said, adding it will likely involve something that allows the devices to communicate with each other and with other aircraft nearby. Airplanes are moving toward similar technology and the cost can be as high as $10,000, he said.

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Going beyond line of sight will require optics like autonomous cars, increased processing power and better batteries.

“I still don’t know how you’re going to keep them out of trees,” he said, adding those are just some of the challenges preventing Amazon from having drones flying in and out of its Kenosha distribution facility “like a beehive.” n Get the day’s top headlines delivered to your inbox, Monday through Friday. Sign up for the BizTimes Daily at biztimes.com/subscribe.

special report

energy&theenvironment

The seventh floor of the Energy Innovation Center has been built out to provide space for startups in the middle and tenants in the offices around the outside.

Much of the Energy Innovation Center is abandoned office space awaiting conversion.

Energy Innovation Center development off to a slow start M-WERC seeking anchor tenants for cluster space

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he Mid-West Energy Research Consortium has been busy over the past three-and-a-half years. The organization has expanded its membership from eight to 86, completed its first seed accelerator class and launched the Energy Innovation Center in the former Eaton Corp. building in the 30th Street Industrial Corridor on Milwaukee’s northwest side.

The organization is dedicated to advancing energy research and innovation through guided open innovation, market research and academic research. Its vision is to make the Midwest the leader of Energy, Power & Control. M-WERC is seeking solutions in energy generation, transmission, distribution, storage, automation, power conversion and energy efficiency/conservation.

One of the avenues M-WERC is using to advance that mission is its Energy Innovation Center, which was launched in 2014. Modeled on successful cluster workspaces like the Global Water Center in Milwaukee’s Walker’s Point neighborhood, the EIC would be a central Energy, Power & Control gathering space aimed at conducting joint research, advancing innovative technologies, commercializing products and nurturing startups. In fact, M-WERC has partnered with the Global Water Center on an “energy-water nexus” project to roadmap the future of the industry clusters as they intersect in manufacturing and regional growth.

But the EIC has not taken off as

quickly as expected. As it stands, just six permanent tenants and one startup are based at the 70,000-square-foot center, which encompasses portions of five floors of the massive 200,000-square-foot Century City Tower at 4201 N. 27th St. The ultimate goal is to fill the space with 60 tenants, including startups, industry associations, academic researchers, private researchers and government energy initiatives, among others.

The total investment in the Energy Innovation Center was initially estimated at $9 million, though M-WERC executive director Alan Perlstein said that figure could now be closer to $5 million.

Originally planned for a June 2016 completion, just one floor of the EIC has been built out. But Perlstein points to the potential of its completely remodeled seventh floor offices, which include group work areas and startup pods meant to foster innovation and collaboration.

“What we want to do is have a space that has a function, that meets a need and that is supported by both industry and academia, and we’re working hard to go put together that collaborative approach and we want that in place before we spend a lot of funds,” Perlstein said.

Among the current tenants is the Manufacturing Diversity Institute, which aims to ensure underserved Milwaukee communities succeed in manufacturing careers and businesses. The nonprofit moved in to the EIC in July 2013 to be w w w.biztimes.com

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BY MOLLY DILL, staff writer

close to inner city entrepreneurs and the nearby Century City 1 development, said executive director Keenan Grenell.

“No region or city can be prosperous if it’s underserved or left out of the innovation equation,” Grenell said. “We’ve got to be able to serve our underserved innovators and entrepreneurs who work with people in that region.”

The EIC has shown a commitment to including underserved neighborhoods in Milwaukee’s mission to become an entrepreneurial hotspot, he said. While it has been slow to fill, Grenell says he is not concerned.

“I think the big challenge is to keep a consistent flow of activities going on up there,” he said. “I think it’s a work in progress. I host an annual event there, but I’m probably going to have to do more.”

Business law firm Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek S.C. also has an office in the EIC, where it rotates several attorneys in to walk the floor and aid startups while the center’s WERCBench Labs incubator is in session, said shareholder Ted Barthel.

Questions often cover patents and trademarks, employee benefits, setting up a corporation and getting financing, he said.

“There’s a lot of synergies between MWERC and what we do,” Barthel said. “We help some startups, but we also give a lot of free mentoring, free advice to the startups to help get their feet on the ground.”

He said it’s not unexpected that a cluster center like the EIC would take a little longer to develop.

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“Of course we would like to get clients, but we would also like to see the region as a whole develop as well,” Barthel said.

M-WERC has been selective in which companies it has brought on board at the Energy Innovation Center to assure it meets its prescribed goals and remains a sustainable model for innovation, Perlstein said.

“At our peak, we had 45 employees in the building from different companies and we had 10 startups, plus we had four business service providers that are in the building, but we are slower in developing the building because, frankly, we want to have major anchor tenants, which we are still in the process of locating,” he said.

An anchor tenant could be a company such as Rockwell Automation, ABB Group or Johnson Controls Inc., Perlstein said.

The Energy Innovation Center was awarded $850,000 in grant funding from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. as seed capital in 2014. Phase one funding of $50,000 required M-WERC to secure matching funds of at least $100,000, complete a business plan for the center, and secure a lease option for the center that included laboratory space.

WEDC also in 2014 offered a phase two grant of $800,500, of which just $222,780 has been disbursed. M-WERC must secure $4.4 million in matching funds—of which it has raised about $220,000—to draw down the total of that grant. According to the WEDC, the award 23

energy & the environment also contains several development milestones and benchmarks M-WERC must meet throughout the process, including the development of roadmaps and business plans for energy innovation, as well as buildout and construction milestones.

And by June 30, 2017, M-WERC is to have secured the location of at least 22 organizations in the Energy Innovation Center and incubator.

One challenge for the EIC has been its location. Located in a low income neighborhood on Milwaukee’s northwest side, the cluster space is far from the startupcentric downtown, Third Ward and Walker’s Point neighborhoods that attract creative types for both work and play.

But some of the redevelopment efforts in the 30th Street Industrial Corridor have been promising. For example, EIC tenant General Capital Group and the City of Milwaukee recently partnered to construct the Century City 1 spec industrial buildings around the corner, at 31st Street and Capitol Drive.

“I think the work that (M-WERC is)

doing in trying to look at city revitalization at the same time is very important work,” said Julia Taylor, president of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, which has been working to connect the organization with industry and academic partners. “It does take time; we need to have patience.

And it takes continued investment.”

The Menomonee Valley redevelopment took many years to come to fruition, and even the Global Water Center was about 10 years in the making, Taylor said.

“I always call the Menomonee Valley the 30-year overnight success story,” she said.

And Perlstein doesn’t see the neighborhood as an impediment.

“It’s kind of like the Menomonee Valley. It didn’t happen overnight. People were committed for the long haul…and after 20 years, they’re still building in the valley,” he said. “(Walker’s Point) is an upand-coming place, so it’s easy to recruit, but 15 or 20 years ago, people would have said that was a challenge.”

There are a few success stories coming out of the EIC. Two of the startups that

participated in the first seed accelerator class—Kentriko LLC and Tosa Labs LLC—have already been purchased by larger firms, Perlstein said. Kentriko created personalized curriculums for free online learning. Tosa Labs developed a platform to help reduce machine downtime in manufacturing plants.

Five of the other seven startups that graduated from the first class are currently in the second stage of the program, which focuses on positioning themselves for a capital raise. They are: Cadens LLC, which develops hydropower turbine technology; Loreto Innovation, which has created a water contaminant measuring drone; Seiva Technologies, which has developed a neuromuscular response wearable; Thermodata Corp., which has created temperature monitoring technology for perishables; and Digital Iris LLC, which develops virtual and augmented reality problem-solving tools. Seiva currently works out of the seventh floor space at the EIC. “Our goal is to amplify the ability of

the startups to be successful as a going concern,” Perlstein said. “How do they position themselves to demonstrate value to partners and investors?”

Each startup received a $10,000 grant at the beginning of the class and a $10,000 grant after the completion of the program. The second WERCbench Labs class will begin in the fall, and will include between five and 15 startups, he said.

While the EIC has been slow to start, M-WERC has been advancing its other initiatives by completing industry roadmapping to look ahead at the potential of different energy industries in five years.

It has also developed a laboratory network for its academic research efforts, partnering with Argonne National Laboratory, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, UW-Milwaukee, Milwaukee School of Engineering and others. M-WERC has invested $3 million in research with its members over the past three-and-a-half years, Perlstein said.

“This space can be part of that (network of labs) if it’s valued,” he said. n

Inspirational Leadership 2016 “The Connection Between Happiness and Success” Presented by Shawn Achor, author of The Happiness Advantage

Friday, April 29 7:30 am - 12:00 noon

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energy & the environment

PACE financing allows commercial buildings to increase energy efficiency City program has approved $10.8 million in projects since 2014

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rian Belli packed up his 40,000-square-foot antique mall at 1039 S. Second St. last fall and moved to a larger, older building in Milwaukee’s Walker’s Point neighborhood, changing his store’s name to Antiques on Pierce.

The change has been good, Belli said. At 71,118 square feet, the new store at 1512 W. Pierce St., is much larger and the move still allowed him to stay in the neighborhood.

But with a 104-year-old boiler being held together by wire and bubblegum, Belli had to make some repairs.

“Between the loan for renovations and the purchase price on the building, we were pretty close to the max on what we could borrow,” Belli said.

He called the City of Milwaukee, which turned him on to PACE, a financing option to encourage building owners to reduce their energy use and greenhouse gas emissions.

Belli qualified for a $220,000 loan from PACE, which he used to pay for a new HVAC system for his building.

“We are conservative with borrowing and don’t want to extend ourselves too far,” Belli said. “PACE was good at keeping us within our comfort level. Without them, we would have been running on that old boiler.”

In 2009 and 2011, the state Legislature passed two bills allowing municipalities to offer the PACE program, which stands for Property Assessed Clean Energy, to commercial property owners.

In July 2013, the City of Milwaukee passed a resolution authorizing PACE. A handful of other Wisconsin municipalities have passed similar resolutions.

Since 2014, the Milwaukee PACE program has approved more than $10.8 million in energy efficiency projects in Milwaukee. These include the Mackie Building renovation, the new Westin Hotel, SpringHill Suites Hotel in the Commerce Building, Antiques on Pierce and The University Club of Milwaukee. PACE is collectively saving these buildings $885,000 annually on operating costs.

“Energy efficiency projects in buildings are important to grow our economy and reduce our environmental footprint,” said Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett.

“PACE financing unlocks private capital to help commercial building owners upgrade their buildings while creating local jobs and a more vibrant community.”

Beau Engman started PACE Equity at the end of 2013, after heading up the commercial energy solutions business for Johnson Controls for three years.

PACE Equity works with private equity to bring money to the table to help pay for energy and water effiEngman ciency improvements.

The city then acts as the collection agent, via a special charge on the building owner’s tax bill, and remits the money back to PACE, typically over a 20-year period. Tax dollars are not used to pay for any of the improvements.

“This isn’t about putting money to work, it’s about satisfying our customers and helping them accomplish their business plan for their building,” Engman said.

In 2015, PACE Equity started with three people working in three states; by the end of the year, there were 15 people working in eight states. The plan is to grow as municipalities continue to approve PACE legislation, said Engman, who oversees PACE Equity nationally, based out of Milwaukee.

“The city likes this because it creates jobs, helps with business development in terms of attracting investment in the community and helps the city hit sustainability goals,” Engman said. “It is a way to modernize the building stock, which can be a challenge.”

Developers like it, too, because it gives them an incentive to make energy improvements to a building and a 20-year, fixed rate loan to do so.

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BY CORRINNE HESS, staff writer

ABOVE: The Mackie Building received a $1.7 million PACE loan for a new HVAC system.

RIGHT: The owners of Antiques on Pierce would not have been able to replace the HVAC system without the help of PACE financing.

veloper Joshua Jeffers is currently working on to redevelop the historic Mackie Building in downtown Milwaukee.

Jeffers is using the PACE money to purchase a new HVAC system for the building.

“I joke with people that it is so energy

efficient it’s from the year 2060,” Jeffers said. “PACE has worked out so well, because the Mackie building was tough to get financed. This fit in nicely with our capital stack. It not only closed the gap, but it’s a solution for the next 20 years.” n

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strategies Career development for women Some effective principles and approaches To the reader: In my Jan. 11 column for BizTimes Milwaukee, I wrote about some of the challenges confronted by women with regard to developing effective mentoring relationships. In this column, I extend that discussion to talk about why mentoring matters within the broad context of organizational effectiveness. I also offer some suggestions for both organizations and individuals who want to improve their practices in this area.

As I shared in my January column, mentoring is a proven method for talent development with women (and other employees). Historically, women have been under-mentored. When women have been involved in mentoring, it has often been less effective because women tend not to receive mentoring from senior executives (men have historically occupied these roles).

That the capabilities of women tend not to be formally or systematically developed in many organizations is a strategic issue with far-reaching consequences regarding organizational effectiveness, especially given that women are forecasted to represent the largest segment of new entrants to the workforce over the next few years. Women, especially young women, will likely be drawn to and stay with organizations that have explicit processes for helping them: (1) assimilate to the organization and (2) develop their skillsets, over time.

Assimilation to an organization is the

key factor in determining engagement and retention. It is analogous to “getting off to a good start.” When female employees do not assimilate easily and well to their new employment settings, they are more likely to become dissatisfied and leave. Assimilation can be viewed as a process of socializing and becoming acclimated. As researchers Ashford and Black have documented, newcomers to organizations often employ the following social behaviors in order to try to “fit in” to their new roles: »» Information seeking to understand “how things work.” »» Feedback seeking to find out how well others, especially superiors, feel they are doing. »» Relationship building to try to build reciprocal, two-way relationships. »» Job change negotiating to adjust to a new role and demonstrate competence and/or security. »» Positive framing to try to put a positive spin on their new organization and role.

As documented by researcher John Berry, newcomers use one of four methods for dealing with their social experiences as they try to become part of a new organization: »» Assimilating: Replacing their past perspectives with the perspective of their new organization. »» Integrating: Synthesizing past per-

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spectives with new perspectives. »» Separating: Rejecting new perspectives and adhering to past perspectives. »» Marginalizing: Failing to accept either old or new perspectives.

When female newcomers engage in separating or marginalizing, they become “flight risks” and are more likely to leave the organization in hopes of finding a more accepting and accommodating work setting elsewhere. A formal program of career development for newcomers, especially women, is the prescription for addressing these concerns.

Effective career development programs help women understand career mobility issues (i.e., what are the chances for promotion and career movement?).

Such programs facilitate the formation of developmental relationships (i.e., connecting with mentors and workplace information networks). Ultimately, such programs help women develop a career “tool kit” of skills related to: »» Understanding their interests, preferences and capabilities. »» Identifying, obtaining and developing the needed skills and education. »» Ongoing assessment of skills relative to opportunities.

In order for a career development program for women to be successful, organizations (and the senior executives, typically men, who lead them) need to make sure the program is properly positioned by examining the structure of the organization (i.e., checking to see whether women are disproportionately employed in the lowest paying jobs). They need to make sure that segregation does not pervade (i.e., checking to see that women are employed throughout the organizational hierarchy, including the power-based roles). Social integration must be the norm (i.e., women must have access to and be part of relationships that are important to career development).

Organizations that offer effective career development programs for women are advised to: »» Form affinity groups to facilitate the

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DANIEL SCHROEDER HUMAN RESOURCES career development of women. »» Form core groups to allow women to form effective relationships across the organization, especially with powerful incumbents. »» Form mentoring circles that bring together senior leaders with women for purposes of career development. »» Establish an organizational climate conducive to networking and mentoring for women. »» Have their executives emphasize creation of organizational conditions that foster the career development and upward mobility of women.

Women who want to be effective in developing their careers are advised to: »» Be proactive in evaluating their career development opportunities. »» Take full advantage of the resources professional organizations offer. »» Engage in peer mentoring/networking. »» Seek out additional networking opportunities through web groups, email, etc.

In my next column, I will extend this discussion further by exploring strategies that future-oriented leaders who understand the significance of this issue will want to investigate and pursue. n Daniel Schroeder, Ph.D., is president of Brookfieldbased Organization Development Consultants Inc. (www.

OD-Consultants.com). He can be reached at (262) 8271901 or Dan.Schroeder@OD-Consultants.com.

strategies

Execute and DELIVER A leadership ‘to-do list’

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hat are the most important “to-dos” for us to practice as leaders in 2016? This year will require us to both execute and deliver.

The first act, execution, recognizes that crafting sound and thoughtful business strategies is essential…but insufficient. William Blake, the 18th Century British philosopher-poet, has one of the finest quotes for leaders: “Execution is the chariot of genius.” This means that all our strategic planning is for naught if we do not execute properly and deliver results mapped out within the strategy.

As we continue to watch, learn and lead, markets continue to change at a rapid-fire rate and the challenges we face in a tough economy, such as staff cutbacks and direction to do more with less, are going to continue to accelerate. Simultaneously, new business leadership models are also emerging and creating incentives to engage us as leaders to care for ourselves, our families, our organizations and our communities. These new leadership models are aimed at enabling us to execute and deliver better results simultaneously.

One such model we have adopted is called “DELIVER,” which represents these leadership actions and attributes:

D = Dedicated Being totally dedicated to clear, measurable goals—both short- and longterm—will improve the probability and the profitability of delivering results throughout well-executed plans. Being dedicated to each team member validates your authenticity, which then demonstrates both external and internal delivery.

E = Engage Engaging those who have talents surrounding you in order to let those talents shine as they are deployed and engaged to execute and deliver. Execution of any strategy is both a team sport and a contact sport. Leaders must literally be ready for anything and everything to happen, and then adapt and adjust their plans.

L = Love Loving what you do, which may be

surprising for those unused to seeing this word in a leadership model. The “L” word represents the love and passion required to successfully execute plans that deliver results. Love and passion are the emotional engagement leaders need to sustain them through troughs and challenges.

I = Insightful Being tuned in to and insightful on business trends and the talents of his or her team will increase the probability a leader can successfully execute and deliver. The rationale supporting leaders being insightful stems from literature that shows effective leaders anticipate and consider multiple, often parallel, paths for the execution of their strategy. Leadership insight into trends and talents also improves the probability of buy-in from other members of the leader’s team.

V = Vulnerable Being vulnerable requires being open to the feedback, ideas and even constructive criticism of others on your team. Even though the feedback may not be valid, the ideas may not be good and the criticism may be untrue, simply being open to listening creates a tone and sense of a leader being willing to listen and to improve personal performance. And when there’s a willingness to listen, that act increases the likelihood for a leader’s humility to be revealed, which opens a great opportunity for valid feedback and necessary critiques to be received.

Leaders need to recall the phrase: “There is no I in team.” A leader’s display of his or her own vulnerability demonstrates that we all must lead together, shoulder-to-shoulder.

E = Excellence Striving for excellence with yourself and all that you do requires an inside-out mentality. Inside-out, in turn, requires us to be reflective and have an interior life.

The famous sports psychologist Dr. Jim Loehr asks leaders “to start acknowledging that what you think about has a significant impact on how you feel.” This w w w.biztimes.com

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head-heart connection makes our thinking-feeling a valuable path to excellence… in execution and in delivering results.

R = Recognize Recognize those around you who compliment who you are, who they are and what they do. Slow down and notice who and what is around you. Show your gratitude for the contributions and talents of others. Take time for appreciating how others make a difference instead of simply how fast you can get to the next thing on your list. The appreciation and gratitude we show others evokes powerful sentiments and reactions within them and within us. These sentiments and reactions can power us to better execute and deliver for the results we need. n

PATR IC IA LEN IUS & B O B DEVITA LEADERSHIP Patricia Lenius is the president of Pewaukee-based PJL & Associates. She can be reached at (414) 852-9887.

Bob DeVita recently retired after a 42-year career in health care leadership spanning three states. He teaches an MBA seminar at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

He can be reached at devita@uwm.edu.

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strategies

The backup plan

Take steps to retain the second-in-command

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n an earlier article, I proposed some solutions should your second-in-command leave or pass on. Here we will deal with a different challenge—the total loss of your top commanders.

When Peyton Manning announced his retirement, the Denver Broncos entered “The Twilight Zone” of succession planning. During the 2015 season, Manning was injured and the team’s backup quarterback demonstrated his leadership and quarterback abilities by compiling a winning record.

But now the backup, who was groomed and could have run the team, has elected for free agency and signed with the Houston Texans for $72 million. The Broncos are now without an experienced quarterback and they will need to compete in the free agent market for a replacement.

What would happen if your CEO retired and the second-in-command left to work for another firm? What could you have done to prevent this disruption in leadership?

In an article published by Stephens Associates Ltd. of Dublin, Ohio, a number of questions that could increase your ability to retain your key executives are posed.

a compensation survey of your industry? A professional recruiting firm could provide this information, so you can assess if your salaries and other compensation are competitive.

Responding to another firm’s offer could cost you more than just ensuring your compensation package is competitive.

2. Is the career progression clear

and are there continued opportunities to grow?

It is imperative that your key executives know their career paths and see continued growth in responsibilities and influence. Ambiguity in career path could provide an opportunity for another firm to recruit your future leader.

3. Is the job fulfilling and does he or

she have a measureable impact on the organization’s direction?

Have you designed the position in such a manner that the executive feels and sees his/her impact on the organization’s direction and success? This can be achieved through formal and informal feedback channels and through financial and production reports.

1. Is your compensation program in

line with the industry or marketplace?

When is the last time you performed

4. Does the position provide the

necessary compensation and par-

ticipation in building the necessary equity to meet the long-term needs of his or her family?

The long-term compensation program should be designed in such a manner that leaving the company prematurely would introduce measureable financial penalties.

5. Is this executive relevant to the

company and viewed as a valuable entity?

Does this executive have the necessary voice in the company’s direction?

Is he or she involved in the development of the long-term strategy and its implementation? These elements of influence and control are important to the “ego” of the key executive.

Had the Denver Broncos taken the necessary steps to retain Brock Osweiler at quarterback, they would not find themselves competing in the free agent market.

There are a number of options open to the Broncos and general manager John Elway. Sign a free agent like Sam Bradford of the Eagles or Ryan Fitzpatrick of the Jets, or take a quarterback in the NFL draft. These options have inherent risk.

Will these experienced quarterbacks “buy in” to the Broncos’ culture and game plan?

How will the fan base react to drafting a young quarterback and rebuilding a team

C A RY S ILVER S TEIN SUCCESSION that just won a Super Bowl? These questions should have been considered before the team offered Osweiler only a three year deal worth $45 million. This decision could turn out to be a big mistake.

As an owner, you cannot afford to lose a key executive and not have someone ready to step in and take the helm in today’s turbulent waters of business. The Broncos are now sailing into the choppy NFL seas without a captain at the helm. n Cary Silverstein, MBA, is the president of SMA LLC and The Negotiating Edge. He leads a group that provides services in the areas of strategic planning, negotiation training and conflict resolution, with offices in Fox Point and Scottsdale, Ariz. He can be reached at (414) 403-2942 or at Csilve1013@aol.com.

Startups & tnnovation

Buildings & Construction Advertise in these upcoming special reports and get your message in front of area business executives.

May 2, 2016 Space Reservation: April 13, 2016

Contact Linda Crawford today! p: 414.336.7112 e: advertise@biztimes.com

May 16, 2016 Space Reservation: April 27, 2016

biz connections CA L E NDAR

NONPROFIT DIRECTORY

The South Suburban Chamber of Commerce will host a Chamber Networking Breakfast on Wednesday, April 13, from 7 to 9 a.m. at Pineapple Café & Mexican Grill, 7864 S. Howell Ave. in Oak Creek. The breakfast offers an opportunity for each attendee to give a 30-second introduction, and allows chamber members to network with each other. Cost is $15. For more information or to register, visit business.southsuburbanchamber.com/events.

SPOTLIGHT

The 2016 M&A Forum presented by BizTimes Media will be held on Thursday, April 21, from 7:30 to 11 a.m. at the Milwaukee Marriott Downtown, 625 N. Milwaukee St. in Milwaukee. The theme of this year’s event is “Hold ’em or Fold ’em,” and several experts will examine when to grow your company and when to sell it. Frank Unick, CFO of Uline, will keynote the event. Panelists will address the psychology of growing your business or deciding to sell, as well as targeting the ideal buyer for your company. Cost is $45 and includes breakfast, the keynote, two panel discussions and a breakout session. For more information or to register, visit www.biztimes.com/maforum.

Marquette University’s Insight Summit Series will host the fifth annual Corporate Communication Summit at Marquette’s Alumni Memorial Union, 1442 W. Wisconsin Ave. in Milwaukee, on Thursday, April 22, from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. This year’s theme is “Developing Next-Generation Corporate Communicators.” Leaders from the corporate, agency and academic spaces will discuss the future of corporate communication. Cost is $165 for professionals, $25 for Marquette students and $65 for non-Marquette students. For more information or to register, visit insightsummitseries.com/corpcom.

The Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce’s World Trade Association will host its Wisconsin International Trade Conference on Tuesday, May 10, from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Wisconsin Center, 400 W. Wisconsin Ave. in Milwaukee. The annual event brings together more than 500 people involved in global trade to learn from experts, gain perspectives, share best practices and improve business strategies. Keynote speakers include Jonas Prising and Todd Teske. Cost is $175 for members, $200 for non-members, $80 for students and $65 for breakfast or lunch only. For more information or to register, visit www.wisconsintradeconference.org. BizTimes Media is a sponsor of the event.

See the complete calendar of upcoming events & meetings.

www.biztimes.com

BIZ NO T ES Allume Architects

Robert J. Feest & Associates Inc.

Elm Grove-based Allume Architects received the 2016 Civic Appreciation Award from the Wauwatosa Chamber of Commerce for the firm’s devotion to the Wauwatosa area and its surrounding communities through volunteerism and charitable donations.

Andrea Nemecek and Lisa Chang have supported Tosa for Tots and have been actively involved in fundraising and/or volunteering for the Montessori School of Waukesha, Froedtert Hospital, Safe Babies Healthy Families, Impact 100 and others.

Jon Dannecker, Certified Financial Planner, has partnered with Robert J. Feest & Associates Inc., effective March 1. Dannecker specializes in retirement planning, investments, life and disability insurance, as well as the Medicare and senior market. He has earned the certifications of FICF and LUTCF, both advanced degrees in insurance services, and has spent the past five years working for Modern Woodmen of America, an insurance company started in 1883. The Robert J. Feest Agency now offers a wide variety of life insurance, annuity and investment products. The strategic partnership will allow Dannecker and Feest & Associates to work with each other’s clients.

Medical College of Wisconsin A total of 464 faculty physicians from the Medical College of Wisconsin have been named to the Best Doctors in America list for 2015-’16 by Best Doctors Inc. There were 40,000 U.S. physicians listed, 1,021 of whom are located in Wisconsin. MCW doctors made up 45 percent of the Wisconsin list, with more listed physicians practicing at Froedtert Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin than at any other practice group or institution in the state. The Best Doctors list represents the top 5 percent of practicing board-certified physicans in the U.S., selected through a national peer review and several other criteria. The list is available at www.mcw.edu/best-doctors.

Fiserv Inc. Brookfield-based Fiserv Inc.’s Immediate Funds and CardValet products have earned Innovator Awards from PYMNTS.com. The Innovator Awards recognize the most disruptive companies in the payments sector. Immediate Funds provides instant access to funds from checks deposited with a teller, at an ATM or via mobile. It won gold in the Best Check Innovation category. CardValet, a card management and fraud mitigation tool, won gold in the Best Debit Innovation category.

ACTS Housing 2414 W. Vliet St., Milwaukee 414-933-2215 | www.actshousing.org Facebook: www.facebook.com/ACTSHousing Twitter: @ACTSHousing Year founded: 1992 Mission statement: Empowerment through homeownership Vision: To create vibrant Milwaukee neighborhoods through homeownership.

Primary focus of your nonprofit organization: Renters to owners, houses to homes, blocks to communities. Our work empowering low income homeownership for the past 20 years proves that homeownership is possible and transformative even for families in Milwaukee’s most challenged neighborhoods. Each year, ACTS Housing supports more than 100 families in the purchase and rehab of homes.

Number of employees at this location: 15 Key donors: Anon Charitable Trust, Associated Bank, BMO Harris Bank, David and Julia Uihlein Charitable Foundation, Einhorn Family Charitable Trust, Forest County Potawatomi Foundation, Greater Milwaukee Foundation, JPMorgan Chase, LISC Milwaukee, Northwestern Mutual, PNC Bank, PyraMax Bank, State Farm, The Lynde and Harry Bradley foundation, The Opus Foundation, U.S. Bank, WE Energies, Wells Fargo Foundation, Zilber Family Foundation.

Executive leadership: Michael Gosman, executive director

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Ways the business community can help your nonprofit: ACTS Housing would not exist without the support of our talented board and committee members. More than 40 individuals participate on ACTS Housing’s board of directors, various committees and task forces. Contact Rebecca at rstoner@ actshousing.org to attend a neighborhood bus tour and learn more about ACTS Housing and how you can get involved.

Key fundraising events: ACTS’ Longest Neighborhood Table event will take place on Sept. 22. Enjoy appetizers from ACTS Housing’s neighborhoods and a meal with Milwaukee neighbors. Includes an open bar, silent auction and other fundraising activities. Stay tuned to our home page, www.actshousing.org, or e-mail Rebecca at rstoner@actshousing.org for more information.

Get the latest nonprofit news delivered to your inbox every Friday.

Sign up for Nonprofit Weekly at biztimes.com/subscribe.

To have your business briefs published in a future issue of BizTimes Milwaukee send announcements to briefs@biztimes.com. w w w.biztimes.com

Board of directors: »» John Linnen, president and executive committee chair »» Michael Zimmerman, vice president »» Stephen J. Rothe, treasurer and finance committee chair »» Margaret Keehn, program committee chair »» Kurt Kellogg »» Autumn Latimore, development committee chair »» Kevin Malaney, ACTS Lending advisory board chair »» Zongcheng Moua »» John Weitzer

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biz connections PER SO NNE L F I L E

■ Banking & Finance First Bank Financial Centre, Oconomowoc, has promoted Craig Kouba to senior vice president. Kouba has more than 20 years of experience, and has led residential lending for FBFC for nearly seven years.

Bank Mutual announced Dawn Riedel has joined its senior management team as vice president and director of marketing. Riedel is responsible for leading the marketing strategy and execution for Bank Mutual Corp. and its lines of business, managing a team of marketing professionals and external partners.

The Equitable Bank has added Kevin O’Connor as a mortgage loan officer. In his role, O’Connor will originate residential and investment mortgage loans, primarily out of the bank’s Wauwatosa office. O’Connor has more than 30 years of real estate industry experience as a real estate broker, and most recently as a loan officer at Chase Bank.

Lori Liebenstein has been named assistant vice president of administration at Milwaukeebased Jacobus Wealth Management.

■ Education Trent Nevill, vice president, president Asia Pacific for Johnson Controls, has joined the board of regents at Milwaukee School of Engineering. In his 20 years of service to the company, he has served in a variety of commercial, sales and operations leadership positions within the company’s Building Efficiency division.

■ Health Care Bridget Clementi has been promoted to vice president of community health for Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, Wauwatosa. She has 15

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Submit new hire and promotion announcements to www.biztimes.com/submit/the-bubbler

years of experience in children’s health and previously held the position of executive director for community health and education. Clementi will lead Children’s initiatives to promote health and wellness, prevent injury and abuse, and work in collaboration with neighborhood and community organizations to improve the health of children and communities.

Richard Riley, Jr. is the newest member of Sheboygan-based Acuity’s board of directors.

Riley is a tax partner in the Washington, D.C., office of the law firm of Foley & Lardner LLP, which is headquartered in Milwaukee. His areas of expertise in his law practice include tax and corporate matters for property and casualty insurance companies such as Acuity.

the manufacturing, tourism and hospitality, health care and education markets.

■ Nonprofit Stephen Raclaw and Brett Bostrack have been added to the Vision Forward Association board of directors. Raclaw is the owner of Mutual Aid Consulting LLC in Union Grove and has 20 years of experience as a firefighter. Bostrack is senior vice president, client and provider engagement at DentaQuest. He is a leader in the dental industry, with more than 15 years of experience at DentaQuest and nearly 20 years leading top business accounts.

Outskirts Theatre Co., Waukesha, has hired Danny Polaski as its new executive director.

■ Manufacturing

■ Professional Services Siler

Craig Nemitz, a long-

Villwock

Menomonee Falls-based Bradley Corp. has hired Nick Siler as director of engineering and Jon Villwock as director of product management, Specialties Group. Siler has been with Bradley since 2014 as the senior manager of engineering. Villwock began his career with Bradley more than 15 years ago, working in various product groups.

Milwaukee-based Badger Alloys has named Ted Butch environmental, safety and health manager. Badger has also promoted Mike Podevels to foundry manager and Brad Moore to director of sales engineering. Podevels has more than 30 years of experience in the foundry industry, working at Badger Alloys for the past eight years, while Moore has been project manager for the company over the past five-plus years.

Thomas Leunig has joined Milwaukee-based Helwig Carbon Products Inc. as business development manager.

time employee with extensive experience in automobile service and operations management, has been named general manager of Movin’ & Lubin.’ He will oversee all operations at Movin’ & Lubin’s two locations, at 2350 S. Commerce Drive, New Berlin and 1595 S. 38th St., Milwaukee.

■ Real Estate recently launched MBH Investment Real Estate LLC, a Milwaukee-based boutique brokerage firm specializing in investment property sales transactions across all real estate sectors. Holbrook has 16 years of real estate experience and has participated in approximately $200 million in completed sales transactions since 2011.

■ Retail Southeast Sales Powersports, Milwaukee, has hired Barbara Soto as a business manager. Soto will focus on developing client relationships and on business development for the dealership.

Ascedia, Milwaukee, has added Charlie Powell to its development team as an associate application developer. Powell writes source code for award-winning websites and uses various CMS platforms to develop effective, intuitive applications for Ascedia’s clients in B i zT i m e s M i l w a u k e e

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Greg Walters has joined Milwaukee-based asset management software firm ATLAS as vice president of global sales. Walters has a 30-year career that includes senior-level positions with firms on both coasts and most recently with Brookfield-based Paragon Development Systems.

Ron Moore has been named vice president of Automation Arts in Brown Deer. Moore will be charged with growing and managing the new location for Madisonbased Automation Arts.

His duties will include organic sales outreach, staffing and managing the Milwaukee market.

Milwaukee-based Xorbix Technologies has hired Katie Ross as a business development executive. Ross will direct new business opportunities for custom software development and mobile application development in the Milwaukee and Chicago market sectors.

Fox

Matson Holbrook

■ Marketing

■ Technology

w w w.biztimes.com

Zepecki

Mike Fox has joined SafeNet Consulting, Milwaukee, as the director of project services.

Brad Zepecki has also joined the firm as managing partner. Fox will lead the strategic direction, resource management and execution/delivery of the company’s project services offering. Zepecki joined the firm in 2010 and previously served as vice president.

■ Wireless U.S. Cellular has named

Christine Paulsen

director of sales for the company’s agent channel in Wisconsin and Northern Illinois.

Paulsen is responsible for overseeing the company’s agent owners and associates to help ensure customers are equipped with wireless solutions. Paulsen has 16 years of wireless leadership experience, with more than 20 years of experience in the field.

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biz connections

n GLANCE AT YESTERYEAR VOLUME 22, NUMBER 1 APRIL 4 - 17, 2016 126 N. Jefferson St., Suite 403, Milwaukee, WI 53202-6120 PHONE: 414-277-8181 FAX: 414-277-8191 WEBSITE: www.biztimes.com CIRCULATION E-MAIL: circulation@biztimes.com ADVERTISING E-MAIL: ads@biztimes.com EDITORIAL E-MAIL: andrew.weiland@biztimes.com REPRINTS: reprints@biztimes.com PUBLISHER / OWNER

Dan Meyer dan.meyer@biztimes.com DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Mary Ernst mary.ernst@biztimes.com DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC INITIATIVES

Jon Anne Willow jonanne.willow@biztimes.com ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

Sarah Sinsky sarah.sinsky@biztimes.com

EDITORIAL EDITOR

Andrew Weiland andrew.weiland@biztimes.com MANAGING EDITOR

Molly Dill molly.dill@biztimes.com REPORTER

Corrinne Hess corri.hess@biztimes.com REPORTER

Arthur Thomas arthur.thomas@biztimes.com REPORTER

Ben Stanley ben.stanley@biztimes.com

Beer garden

SALES & MARKETING DIRECTOR OF SALES

Linda Crawford linda.crawford@biztimes.com BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT EXECUTIVE

Maribeth Lynch mb.lynch@biztimes.com SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Amber Stancer amber.stancer@biztimes.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Kevin Gaschk kevin.gaschk@biztimes.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Maggie Pinnt maggie.pinnt@biztimes.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Christie Ubl christie.ubl@biztimes.com

PRODUCTION & DESIGN GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Alex Schneider alex.schneider@biztimes.com ART DIRECTOR

Shelly Tabor shelly.tabor@biztimes.com

INTERN REPORTER

This photo, taken circa 1930, shows Heidt’s Beer Garden and the Milwaukee Public Library’s Tippecanoe Branch, which was located in rented space at 3835 S. Howell Ave. at that time. In a recent effort, Milwaukee County has rejuvenated the idea of the beer garden, opening four outdoor seasonal beer gardens in county parks, and undertaking traveling beer gardens touring other county parks.

— This photo is from the Milwaukee Public Museum’s Photo Archives collection.

Additional images can be viewed online at www.mpm.edu.

Maredithe Meyer maredithe.meyer@biztimes.com

Independent & Locally Owned — Founded 1995 —

COMME NTA R Y

Arena design will grow on Milwaukee

T

he Milwaukee Bucks recently unveiled much-anticipated renderings showing what the new arena that will be built in downtown Milwaukee will look like.

It is a bold, unique design created by Kansas City-based Populous and Milwaukee-based Eppstein Uhen Architects. The most striking feature is a swooping-roof structure with a handcrafted zinc exterior.

Perhaps not surANDREW WEILAND Editor BizTimes Milwaukee

prisingly, reviews have been mixed. While some say they like the design, others have been critical, comparing the arena to: a beer barrel, a bratwurst, an upside-down toboggan, BelAir Cantina and Donald Trump’s hair. The brown roof color makes some think the building will only 32

reinforce Milwaukee’s rust belt reputation. “Ugly” and “embarrassment” are terms I’ve heard.

Of course, some who are upset with taxpayers funding half of the $500 million cost of the building are using the design as one more thing to criticize about the arena.

An unscientific poll of BizTimes.com readers found that 52.8 percent like the arena design, while 47.2 percent don’t like it.

Put me in the camp that likes the arena design. Actually, I like it a lot. It will truly be a one-of-a-kind building and will be a major local landmark that will be seen nationally, and even internationally, on Bucks and Marquette game broadcasts.

I really think the design is going to grow on people. With a unique design, some people just have to get used to it. In time, most Milwaukeeans will embrace it. The zinc roof will look different in various levels of sunlight, which should be interesting.

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The east side of the building has a huge number of windows that will look great lit up at night and will offer cool downtown views from inside. There are numerous windows on other sides of the building, as well.

Of course, the design is not perfect.

The arena has massive exterior walls that will create dead zones on the adjacent sidewalks, especially when the arena is not in use.

But the interior design is the most important aspect, and that is where this arena will be at its best, especially compared to the BMO Harris Bradley Center. The Bradley Center was designed primarily for hockey in hopes of bringing an NHL team to Milwaukee. That never happened.

The Bradley Center seating configuration has too many seats in the upper deck and the seats behind the basket are way too far away from the court.

The new arena will be designed pri-

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marily for basketball, which makes sense because the main tenants are an NBA team and a big time college basketball team. The lower bowl will have a lot more seats, there will be fewer seats (about 17,500) overall and they will be closer to the court.

Some Admirals fans are disappointed that the hockey team is not included in the new arena and will have to move to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panther Arena. But I think that could work out great for the Admirals. On some nights they will be able to pack that small, old arena, which could create a great atmosphere. n

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biz connections

LeaderSHIFT 2016 Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast recently held its LeaderSHIFT 2016 luncheon at the Hyatt Regency Milwaukee hotel downtown. Pattie Sellers, assistant managing editor at Fortune magazine, gave the keynote address about women owning their power and influence.

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Pattie Sellers, assistant managing editor at Fortune magazine, speaks with Girl Scouts ahead of the luncheon.

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Donna Crangle and Beth Bahr, both of Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c.

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Marie McFarland and Joanna Marker, both of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co.

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Wanda Montgomery of Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin and Toni Holland of Time Warner Cable.

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Lori Kasun of GSWSE, Sonya Wren of Associated Bank and Laura Lindsay of GSWSE.

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Kristin Ferge of Brookdale Senior Living and Lindsay Hammerer of KPMG.

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Angela Mancuso of The Women’s Center, Kathy Hust of U.S. Cellular and Lynn Sprangers of Mount Mary University.

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Stacy Mitz of Marquette University and Christine Baranoucky of Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.

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GSWSE CEO Christy Brown addresses the crowd.

Photos by Molly Dill

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ERICH SCHROEDER PHOTOGRAPHY

the last word

Nic Wahl President and managing partner Godfrey & Kahn S.C. Industry: Legal Employees: 370 www.gklaw.com

Investing in Milwaukee, investing in our future Nic Wahl is president and managing partner of Godfrey & Kahn in Milwaukee. In order for Milwaukee to thrive, we need to make it a destination of choice for our future workforce, he says.

“The sight of thousands of construction workers and multiple cranes downtown is very encouraging. Even more encouraging is the recognition by many community leaders of the importance in being able to attract the next generation of workers to our great city. In order for Milwaukee to thrive, in order for us to attract and retain businesses here, we need to make downtown Milwaukee a destina34

tion of choice for the owners of those businesses and their employees. That requires making investments across the board: in our lakefront, parks, schools, public transportation, arts and entertainment venues, and workplaces.

“At Godfrey & Kahn, these thoughts were very much on our minds as we contemplated investing in new office space. Remaining downtown was very important to us and on March 14, we moved into our new home at 833 E. Michigan St. Our new space near the lakefront puts our employees close to downtown housing, biking and running paths, museums, the festival grounds and thousands of other downtown employees. The interior

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of our space is flooded by natural daylight, encourages interaction and teamwork (a hallmark of our culture), and we have reserved the corner offices, the best views on the top floor and a rooftop deck as community space for all of our employees and guests.

“As a law firm, we understand that our ability to continue to deliver excellent results for our clients is dependent upon our ability to continue to attract and retain top talent. Our new investment and the investments others are making in downtown will help us do that.” n

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Presents:

HOLD ‘EM

or

FOLD ‘EM

Understand when to grow your company - and when to sell it

register today! www.biztimes.com/maforum

M&A Forum | April 21, 2016 | Milwaukee Marriott Downtown | 7:30-11:00AM It’s a seller’s market. Whether you’re positioning for growth or thinking of a sale, this event is a must-attend for presidents, CEOs, owners and potential buyers and sellers.

Join us for breakfast and a keynote presentation, then sit down with the experts for discussions of key growth strategies, sale considerations, the psychology of change and more. Seating is limited, register today.

2

Keynote: “The joys and challenges of rapid growth” Frank Unick, CFO, Uline (1) 3

Uline is a 36-year old, privately-held company headquartered in Pleasant Prairie. Still led by its owners and founders, Liz and Dick Uihlein, the company has enjoyed rapid organic sales growth. Join Frank as he shares the Uline story and key lessons learned about guarding the company culture, talent development, cash pressures and succession planning.

1

Panel: The psychology of growing your business or deciding to sell

4

For privately-held companies, knowing whether to keep or sell goes beyond the numbers. In this session, owners who have made both decisions discuss their outcomes and the psychological aspects of growing or selling their businesses.

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Panelists: Steve Ziegler, CEO, Inpro (2) Paul Stewart, Partner, PS Capital (3) Thomas A. Myers, Shareholder, Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c. (4) Jim Feeney, Former CEO/owner, Wisconsin Film and Bag (5) Moderator: Ann Hanna, Managing director, Schenck M&A Solutions (6)

Panel: Who is your ideal buyer?

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Panelists: Lisa Reardon, CEO & Chairman, Owner’s Edge, Inc. (7) Dave Strand, President & CEO, Wisconsin Oven Co. (8) Mark Grosskopf, CEO & owner, New Resources Companies (9)

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Moderator: Greg Larson, Senior VP, director of commercial banking - Bank Mutual (10)

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This session will focus on the advantages and disadvantages of selling to family, employees, private equity and financial and strategic partners.

Breakout sessions highlights: • • • • •

How competitors and customers impact your company’s value How private equity views your company (beyond EBITDA) Growing via new business lines including international markets Developing an internet strategy Post-sale asset allocation and alternate investment strategies

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