Columbia Business Times - January 2015 by The COMO Companies Magazines | COMO Magazine

January 2015

20Un der40 class of

2015 Page 32

downtown development

MIND THE (Achievement)

Gap Page 58

by the dollar Page 50

ERIC JOHNSON

20UNDER40

Outsourcing to macon Page 27

Page 32

shakin' up the

banks Page 44

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 7

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From the Editor

Editorial Erica Pefferman, Publisher Erica@BusinessTimesCompany.com Sarah Redohl, Editor SarahR@BusinessTimesCompany.com Katrina Tauchen, Copy Editor Katrina@BusinessTimesCompany.com

20 Under 40 ›› As I was en route to a conference in New York City, I came across an article in Southwest Airlines’ in-flight magazine, Southwest: The Magazine, titled “Amateur Hour.” “Set in your ways?” it read. “Don’t be. Leadership pro Liz Wiseman says we can learn a lot from the office newbie.” Despite the Columbia Business Times being up for an award from Media Industry News at that conference, I couldn’t help but feel anxious about potentially sharing a table with editors from The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Time and more. I thought, “What might I have to contribute to that conversation?” But the article was right; there is always something to learn from even the most inexperienced person in every office or at every table. They aren’t afraid to improvise and let go of outdated assumptions — chances are, they might not even have assumptions. Where an industry veteran might see a problem, they might see a soPhoto by Anthony Jinson lution. This is absolutely true of this year’s class of 20 Under 40. This group brings creativity and energy to each of their industries, from art to education, from startups to state reps. Each 20 Under 40 recipient has achieved a level of success beyond his or her years, and they all own it. Head to page 32 to learn what makes them 20 Under 40 material. Also in this issue, you’ll find the story of Onshore Outsourcing (page 27), a company in Macon that saw a problem — lack of jobs available for area residents — and created a solution — offering training to meet growing demand in the IT sector. On page 58, the CBT takes a look at how Columbia Public Schools plans to solve a problem of its own: the achievement gap. As always, we love feedback, good and bad, so email me at SarahR@BusinessTimesCompany.com. Lastly, don’t miss our 20 Under 40 gala at the Kimball Ballroom at Stephens College Jan. 22. Best,

JANUARY 2015

Sarah Redohl, Editor

At the 20 Under 40 photo shoot, Hickman High School principal Eric Johnson blew us away with an impromptu spoken word performance. Read more about Johnson and the CBT’s 2015 class of 20 Under 40 on page 32. Photo by Anthony Jinson.

20UN DER40 CLASS OF

2015 PAGE 32

DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT

MIND THE (ACHIEVEMENT)

GAP PAGE 58

BY THE DOLLAR PAGE 50

ERIC JOHNSON

20UNDER40

OUTSOURCING TO MACON PAGE 27

PAGE 32

SHAKIN' UP THE

BANKS PAGE 44

DESIGN Gillian Tracey, Editorial Designer Gillian@BusinessTimesCompany.com Creative Services Keith Borgmeyer, Graphic Designer Keith@BusinessTimesCompany.com MARKETING REPRESENTATIVES Deb Valvo, Director of Sales Deb@BusinessTimesCompany.com CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Anthony Jinson, Ben Meldrum, Sarah Redohl CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Al Germond, Grant Hodder, Carolin Lehmann, Christi Kelly, Alisiana Peters, Monica Pitts, Sarah Redohl, Torie Ross, Molly Wright CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATOR Tifani Carter Interns Carolin Lehmann, Ben Meldrum, Alisiana Peters, Torie Ross MANAGEMENT Erica Pefferman, President Erica@BusinessTimesCompany.com Renea Sapp, Vice President of Finance ReneaS@BusinessTimesCompany.com Amy Ferrari, Operations Manager Amy@BusinessTimesCompany.com Crystal Richardson, Account Manager Crystal@BusinessTimesCompany.com SUBSCRIPTIONS Subscription rate is $19.95 for 12 issues for 1 year or $34.95 for 24 issues for 2 years. To place an order or to inform us of an address change, log on to ColumbiaBusinessTimes.com. The Columbia Business Times is published every month by The Business Times Co., 2001 Corporate Place, Suite 100, Columbia, MO 65202. Copyright The Business Times Co., 2008. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of any editorial or graphic content without the express written permission of the publisher is prohibited. OUR MISSION STATEMENT The Columbia Business Times and ColumbiaBusinessTimes.com strives to be Columbia’s leading source for timely and comprehensive news coverage of the local business community. This publication is dedicated to being the most relevant and useful vehicle for the exchange of information and ideas among Columbia’s business professionals.

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 15

16 \\\ JANUARY 2015

About The Last Times What's happening online

Online extras Head online for a behind-the-scenes look at the 20 Under 40 photo shoot and Reggie Wilhite’s full answers to the CBT’s 11 Questions.

Behind the scenes

Around the office It's pretty awesome Columbia Business Times is already supporting this event and really University of Missouri Small Business & Technology Development Center and entrepreneurship in general.

Congratulations to our 2015 class of 20 Under 40! Don’t miss our gala in their honor Jan. 22 at Stephens College’s Kimball Ballroom, sponsored by Stephens College.

20/40 20 40 T W E N T Y UNDER F O R T Y

Congrats to Mark Palmer, our CEO, for being featured in this month's Movers and Shakers in the Columbia Business Times!

And congratulations to CBT graphic designer Gillian Tracey on her cover design award from Media Industry News, Kristin Branscom for her award-winning feature design and Anthony Jinson for his “Best Use of Photography” award from Folio: magazine.

Write to CBT editor Sarah Redohl at Editor@BusinessTimesCompany.com columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 17

18 \\\ JANUARY 2015

January 2015

Vol. 21, Issue 7 columbiabusinesstimes.com

Built on Small Business

In a growing post-recession economy, an increasing number of entrepreneurs are looking to fund their next small-business ventures, and local banks are ready to answer the call.

32 20 Under 40

These young movers and shakers are making their mark on Columbia’s business landscape. Congratulations to the CBT’s 2015 class of 20 Under 40.

44 Moving Up, Moving Out With the second-highest turnover rate among all industries, banks know not all employees are in it for the long haul. So how are Columbia banks bucking the trend?

Departments

15 From the Editor 17 Letters to the Editor 21 Movers and Shakers 22 Briefly in the News 25 A Closer Look 26 Business Update 31 P.Y.S.K. 65 Opinion 69 Going Up 70 Nonprofit Spotlight 72 Celebrations 75 Technology 76 Economic Index 77 Deeds of Trust 78 Business Licenses 79 By the Numbers 80 7 Questions 82 Flashback

50 Block by Block

Downtown development has exploded in the past year. Take a look at the numbers behind some of the city’s latest downtown real estate investments.

58 Mind the Gap

Columbia Public Schools works to address the city’s achievement gap, exacerbated by the growing size of the district’s own house.

Providence Bank asked us to lead the team of service providers and facility representatives making the upgrades to their Suite. We installed their new HDTVs with painstaking attention to detail to provide a seamless visual look with the rest of the facility. Our experienced team created a unique design solution.

20 \\\ JANUARY 2015

Movers and Shakers ›› Professionals grow, serve and achieve

Myers

Henninger

Henderson

Bruegenhemke

LEUCK

➜ Are you or your employees

making waves in the Columbia business community? Send us your news to Editor@BusinessTimesCompany.com

Hoien

Harkness

williams

›› David Townsend

›› Sage Izadi-Moghadam

›› Socket

Townsend, president and CEO of Agents National Title Insurance Co., was appointed to a three-year term on the American Land Title Association’s Title Insurance Underwriters Section Executive Committee. He also joined Commerce Bank’s local advisory board of directors.

EveryEventGives hired Izadi-Moghadam as director of event services. Izadi-Moghadam will be the national lead for generating new business and servicing clients. EveryEventGives provides a way for event organizers to collect payment for event registration fees and market their events. For every ticket sold through the company’s service, it donates 50 cents to the nonprofit of the event organizer’s choice.

Socket, a Missouri-based telephone and Internet service provider, added Shane Winter and Jacob Zagorac to its business sales team. Winter and Zagorac will work with businesses across Missouri to provide high-speed Internet, local telephone and other telecommunications services. Winter has more than 13 years of experience in the sales and financial arenas. Zagorac brings 14 years of experience in sales and customer service to Socket.

›› Boone County National Bank Boone County National Bank appointed Lorry Myers as bank manager of the Centralia Bank. Seven employee promotions were also made in October. Blake Aversman was promoted to marketing specialist, Rachel Todd of the Village Bank and Susan Roe of the Rock Bridge Bank were promoted to teller II, Austin Wiedener of the Columbia Mall Bank and Josh Cosey of the Lake of the Woods Bank were promoted to customer service representatives, Timothy Hyatt was promoted to customer service representative II and Jeanette Lahmann to a senior customer service representative.

›› MidwayUSA MidwayUSA promoted Shawn Henninger to merchandising team application development manager and Neal Lines to marketing team application development manager. Henninger has worked at MidwayUSA for six years, and Lines began at the company as an intern in 2008.

›› Deborah J. Henderson Henderson was appointed chief financial officer of the Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans’ Hospital. She has served as Truman VA’s assistant financial officer since March 2013 and was the acting CFO from October 2013 until her appointment.

›› Hawthorn Bank Kathleen Bruegenhemke has been appointed to the position of market president for branch operations in the Columbia area at Hawthorn Bank. Todd Hoien, commercial loan officer with Hawthorn Bank in Columbia, has been promoted to senior vice president. Laura Kogut, real estate loan officer with Hawthorn Bank in Columbia, has been promoted to assistant vice president.

›› Heather Wall

›› Richard “Chuck” Leuck The Bank of Missouri hired Leuck as executive vice president. He will work closely with CEO David Crader and President John M. Thompson at the operations center in Perryville. Leuck has 30 years of experience in the banking and financial services industry.

Williams has been named president of Landmark Bank’s Columbia market. He comes to his new position after seven years as the first president of Hawthorn Bank’s Columbia location. In his new role with Landmark Bank, Williams will serve as Columbia president and will also manage the local commercial loan department.

›› Suzan Harkness

›› Katie Essing

Stephens College named Harkness to the position of vice president of academic affairs. Harkness is an experienced higher education leader with an extensive and diverse background in academic leadership, most recently serving as special assistant to the president at the University of the District of Columbia.

Essing was named the new executive director for the Downtown Community Improvement District of Columbia (CID). Essing has more than 18 years of experience in retail and commercial real estate. Previously, she was vice president of marketing and communications for the Missouri REALTORS. CBT

Wall accepted the mid-Missouri regional director position at Lutheran Family and Children’s Services. She has experience in mental health, child welfare and management. In the position, she will help oversee and expand services to children and families in the community.

›› Matt Williams

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 21

Briefly in the News

›› A rundown of this month’s top headlines

Landmark Bank Landmark Bank opened its first stand-alone mortgage loan production office in the midMissouri market on Nov. 14. The new facility is located at 1603 Chapel Hill Road, Suite 105, at the northwest corner of Chapel Hill’s intersection with Forum Boulevard.

American Planning Association The Missouri chapter of the American Planning Association has awarded the city’s newly adopted comprehensive plan, Columbia Imagined, with the 2014 Outstanding Plan Award honorable mention.

90.5 FM

Officials from the University of Missouri and KBIA-FM announced the purchase of 90.5 FM (KWWC-FM) from Stephens College in Columbia, pending approval from the Federal Communications Commission.

The Amber House Bed and Breakfast

MFA Oil co. MFA Oil Co. has begun construction on the 33-acre commercial site that will house its Business Support Campus in Moberly. The site was purchased in early 2014. MFA Oil is a farmer-owned cooperative based in Columbia.

battenfield technologies INC. National firearm manufacturing company Smith & Wesson has entered into a $130.5 million agreement to acquire local manufacturing company Battenfeld Technologies Inc. Battenfeld, which produces shooting, reloading, gunsmithing and gun-cleaning supplies, operates out of its 145,000-square-foot facility in south Columbia. Battenfeld operations will remain in Columbia, with current CEO Jim Gianladis continuing as president.

Bank of Missouri The Amber House Bed and Breakfast in Rocheport is under new ownership. Mid-Missouri natives and the B&B’s new owners Dawson and Sherri Claridge now call Rocheport home. 22 \\\ JANUARY 2015

The Bank of Missouri recently donated $1,000 to PedNet to refurbish 10 bicycles. PedNet Coalition is a nonprofit organization in Columbia that promotes active transportation through advocacy and educational programming. It works to make it easier for people to walk, bike and use wheelchairs and public transit.

What’s happening Nanova Biomaterials Inc. The Missouri Department of Economic Development, Regional Economic Development Inc., the Columbia Chamber of Commerce and local leaders hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Nanova Biomaterials Inc. on Oct. 30. Nanova is an early-stage biotechnology company founded by a group of four researchers, two of whom are from MU. The ribbon cutting marked the first look at the 6,000-square-foot, $1.5 million facility at 3806 Mojave Court. The company is currently expanding its workforce and expects to create up to 50 new jobs within the first five years.

MU Health Care Effective Jan. 1, 2015, MU Health Care will no longer hire nicotine users. Current MU Health Care employees are exempt from the new policy.

Baer & Edington Baer & Edington LLC, Certified Public Accountants and Consultants celebrated its five-year anniversary in Columbia on Oct. 30 with a Chamber ribbon cutting and open house.

columbia public schools A groundbreaking ceremony for the new elementary school that will be located in south Columbia was held on Nov. 10. The 650-student elementary school will be Columbia’s 21st elementary school and will open in 2016. The school will be located at the corner of Scott Boulevard and Route KK and is being paid for with bond funds approved by voters in 2012. The school does not yet have a name. The school district is in the process of assembling a committee of parents, teachers and administrators to help determine the school’s attendance area. The goal is to have the boundaries determined by April 2015.

Callaway Physicians MU Health Care is celebrating 40 years of providing health care at its University PhysiciansCallaway Physicians clinic in Fulton. The clinic opened in 1974. Today, its specialists treat more than 15,000 patients each year. Dr. James Stevermer, a professor in the MU School of Medicine Department of Family and Community Dr. James Stevermer Medicine, serves as the medical director of Callaway Physicians. Four more MU family physicians and 11 family medicine resident physicians work at the clinic, offering vital health care for the rural community.

Cambio Center This fall, MU’s Cambio Center celebrated 10 years of research and outreach on Latinos and changing communities in Missouri. It hosted three events in November and a display of its work in the Ellis Library colonnade in December to celebrate.

Knorr Marketing Communications Knorr Marketing Communications, a locally owned marketing communications and event-planning agency, is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.

1 Million Slices CLIMB, the MU Entrepreneur Club, SBDC and REDI launched “1 Million Slices” Dec. 8 on MU’s campus. The combined effort provides student and community startups with the opportunity to share their business models and receive feedback. CBT columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 23

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A Closer Look

New Businesses in

Columbia

›› A quick look at emerging companies

1. Lo & Behold Lauren Swartz had the Columbia woman in mind when she opened the doors of her new store, Lo & Behold, on Nov. 15. Lo & Behold, located at 1013 E. Walnut St., Suite 100, carries women’s clothing and accessories. “The pieces are beautiful and creative and reflect the individuality in a woman,” Swartz says. The business carries mostly California- and Australia-based designers such as Greylin, Gypsy05 and Black Orchid. Swartz is an experienced businesswoman who ran her family’s coffee shop in Moberly for the past four years and owns a construction company, through which she still flips houses. Contact: Lauren Swartz, 660-998-0154

3. Koala Center for Sleep Disorders Richard Bohon first became interested in treating sleep apnea when he was diagnosed with it himself. On Sept. 5, he opened the Koala Center for Sleep Disorders. Although he doesn’t diagnose patients, he makes dental appliances for those referred to him by hospitals. These appliances often help with sleep apnea. Koala Centers are located in several states and continue to expand. The Columbia location is the first in Missouri. Bohon’s goal for the new center is to provide a service for the mid-Missouri community so that individuals can sleep, breathe and live well. Contact: Dr. Richard Bohon, 573-303-5501

2. Moe’s Southwest Grill

4. Vinyl Renaissance &

Moe’s Southwest Grill opened with a bang on Oct. 23 by treating its first 100 guests to free burritos for a year. The Chipotlestyle grill is located near the University of Missouri campus, at 308 S. Ninth St. Franchise partner Jeff Offutt hopes to familiarize MU students with the brand. He plans to open more locations in Missouri soon, so many students will also have Moe’s locations in their hometowns. Moe’s is known for its “Moe Mondays,” a weekly event where customers can get a burrito, drink and chips and salsa for $5. “I think Moe’s is a great complement to Chipotle,” Offutt says. “Chipotle doesn’t do a great job for value-seekers.” Contact: Moe’s Southwest Grill, 573-442-6191

A popular Kansas City music and audio store now has a location in Columbia. Vinyl Renaissance & Audio of Columbia opened its doors Nov. 1 at 16 N. 10th St., Suite 101. Columbia manager Nick Soha says the Columbia location is similar to its Kansas City counterparts but doesn’t have a service department. It focuses more on vinyl and has the largest new and used vinyl selection in mid-Missouri. The company saw opportunity in Columbia because it’s a college town, and Soha says Vinyl Renaissance & Audio’s knowledgeable staff will add something to the area. Contact: Vinyl Renaissance & Audio, 573-397-6792

Audio

1 2

5. Extra Help Inc. Extra Help Inc., a Marion, Illinois-based employment, payroll and workforce services company, has moved its Columbia office to 1301 Vandiver Drive, Suite B and will now be offering additional services. The new location opened its doors on Oct. 13 and will provide payroll services along with the addition of comprehensive workforce-management solutions that allow for outsourced employee management. Prior to the relocation of its office, the Columbia location provided payroll services and timekeeping solutions for its clients. In addition, the company will now provide payroll services along with full-service staffing and recruiting, direct-hire recruitment services and benefits management. Contact: Extra Help Inc., 573-442-2648

6. Boss Taco Austin, Texas-style food-truck tacos can now be found in Columbia. Lindsey Spratt named her new business, Boss Taco, after her cat Bruce, whom she lovingly calls “the boss.” She lived in Austin for eight years and never stopped craving the Mexicanstyle street cuisine after moving back to Columbia. Spratt prepares her tacos in Broadway Brewery’s kitchen, where she’s the kitchen manager, and then caters them out or sells them in other restaurants. She hosts taco Tuesday at Logboat Brewing Co. and is talking with other local restaurants about opening up in their spaces. Her goal is to sell the tacos five nights a week in the future. Contact: Lindsey Spratt, 512-363-0477 CBT

5 4

➜ Are you an entrepreneur? Are you sprouting a new business? Tell us about it at Editor@BusinessTimesCompany.com columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 25

Shane Mayes. Photos by Anthony Jinson.

26 \\\ JANUARY 2015

Business Update

Growing careers

›› Transformed, trending and up-to-the-minute

From Job to Career

Shane Mayes of Onshore Outsourcing is building a ‘workforce development ecosystem’ in mid-Missouri by lowering job barriers and helping facilitate By Carolin Lehmann career growth. Shane Mayes started Onshore Outsourcing in Macon out of necessity, grew to love it and is now working to rid the city of poverty. Onshore Outsourcing is an information technology services company that strives to keep jobs in the United States. According to Mayes, corporate America doesn’t have to look offshore to find an effective IT workforce; he believes an effective workforce can be found right here in rural America. The business’s clients include Panera Bread, Hudson’s Bay Co., Boeing and Enterprise Rent-ACar. Its services include IT consulting, software development, application support, testing services, data services and outsourcing business processes and activities. Mayes started Onshore Outsourcing after his wife was accepted into medical school at the A.T. Still University in Kirksville, Missouri. The City of Macon gave him a revolving loan to do so. At the time, his IT management skills were irrelevant in rural areas, Mayes says, and he had to figure out how to make a living while his wife was in school. He has an Air Force and IT background. By creating Onshore Outsourcing in Macon, Mayes says he created a “new knowledge economy” where there wasn’t one before. Today, his company employs 250 people. “The company started out of necessity,” Mayes says. “Then I saw the opportunities we were creating. I saw people making a transformation from a job to a career. I saw something that really grabbed at my heart, and I figured out why I was actually here.”

Creating a new middle class Mayes has arguably started a revolution in Macon. He pays for all of his employees to go to college; courses are taught by Hannibal-LaGrange Uni-

Onshore Outsourcing is located at 902 N. Missouri St. in Macon, Missouri.

versity on the Onshore Outsourcing campus. The company also provides child care for its employees while they’re in class. Mayes says he’s created an entire “workforce development ecosystem.” For example, Onshore Outsourcing has partnerships with high schools to recruit new employees. It offers a pre-employment training boot camp. “We’re creating an entire new middle class,” Mayes says. “People are going from fast-food restaurants to careers.” Mayes wants to altogether eliminate poverty in Macon County. He has grand plans to do so. “When I see people living day to day rather than truly living, it makes me sick to my stomach,” Mayes says. One of his goals is to provide free child care for all of his employees. He has plans for an early child-

“The company started out of necessity. Then I saw the opportunities we were creating. I saw people making a transformation from a job to a career. I saw something that really grabbed at my heart, and I figured out why I was actually here.” — Shane Mayes, Onshore Outsourcing columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 27

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Onshore Outsourcing employs 250 people, but it started out as a way for Mayes to make his IT management skills relevant in a rural area.

hood education center that can accommodate 72 children. The center will have an indoor and outdoor playground, he says, the latter of which will have a rocket ship. “In order to combat generational poverty in a community, the kids can be a tool to treat their parents,” Mayes says. “Their education can create pathways to prosperity for the entire family.” Additionally, Mayes says the free child care is important because he’s looking to hire more women. He wants to lower the barriers women face in joining the workforce.

Future growth In the coming years, Mayes plans on creating a couple hundred more jobs in Macon. Allan Muncy, former city administrator of Macon, was one of the people involved in giving Mayes the revolving loan to start his company. He was intrigued by the difference the company was making in the community and in its employees, and he liked that Onshore Outsourcing is exposing the community to Fortune 1,000 companies and bringing jobs back to America. Muncy retired in July but decided he wanted to be involved in the business he believes is making a big difference in the community. Today, he’s the comptroller of finances and human resources for Onshore Outsourcing.

“[Onshore Outsourcing] is a golden opportunity for Macon and Missouri,” Muncy says. “People need to know this company is here. We offer opportunities they don’t even realize are possible in the area.” Although Onshore Outsourcing has and continues to create many opportunities in Macon, the company has outgrown the city of 5,506. Mayes didn’t have enough buildings in Macon to meet the company’s growth rate and wanted access to new customers, so he expanded the company into Georgia. He says finding enough employees in Macon has never been an issue though. In the coming years, Mayes plans on creating 300 more jobs at the Georgia location. He’s going to expand the company into another undisclosed state in 2015. His goals for the future of his company are to grow the information management practice. He sees huge opportunities in the area of big data and would like to have a big-data platform service business. He says monetizing data will one day transform his business. Mayes loves to watch people grow, he says. Seeing the breakthroughs his employees have is why he comes to work every day. “I love this country, and I love that if you dare to take chances, and with a bit of luck and by the grace of God, you have the ability to increase your lot in life,” he says. CBT

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Meet Richard Bohon, DDS, owner of the Koala Center for Sleep Disorders in Columbia. Dr. Bohon recently obtained an SBA loan from The Bank of Missouri to open his new sleep disorder practice that will provide a comfortable treatment option for snoring and sleep apnea using Oral Appliance Therapy. An SBA loan from The Bank of Missouri is one of the best financing options for small and growing businesses. An SBA loan can help you finance an entire business, equipment and fixtures, business real estate and much more.

www.bankofmissouri.com/business-sba-loans

30 \\\ JANUARY 2015

Karin Bell Vice President, SBA Manager

Crystal Morris SBA Sr. Loan Admin. Asst.

Geoff Karr SBA Lender

P.Y.S.K. Person You Should Know

›› Job description: I work with faculty and students from the University of Missouri and local entrepreneurs to start and grow technology-based companies. MIC also operates the MU Life Sciences Incubator with more than 20 clients commercializing new technologies in areas such as medical devices, pharmaceuticals, animal health, ag tech and alternative energy.

Bill Turpin

President and CEO at Missouri Innovation Center Age:

›› Years lived in Columbia/ mid-Missouri: I was born and raised in Missouri until after college graduation. I moved back to Columbia in July 2014. ›› Original hometown: Bowling Green, Missouri

Photo by Sarah Redohl

›› Education: B.S. in electrical engineering, University of Missouri; MBA, University of Texas, Austin

›› Community involvement: Board member, Regional Economic Development Inc.; member, Columbia Chamber of Commerce; member, MU Research and Development Advisory Board; member, Dean’s Engineering Advisory Board; mentor, Startup Weekend Columbia; member, #BOOM Planning Task Force; executive board member, Great Rivers Council, Boy Scouts of America

›› Accomplishment I’m most proud of: I was vice president of engineering at Netscape in 1995 and helped develop technologies that commercialized the Internet, including SSL encryption, Javascript, HTML email, IMAP, LDAP and RSS. ›› Why I’m passionate about my job: I enjoy mentoring people who are thinking about starting a company. I hope I can help them create new products that will make the world a better place. ›› A favorite recent project: Creating a multiplayer RoShamBo iPhone game with a friend just for fun.

›› Favorite place in Columbia: I like the Cajun food and variety at Glenn’s Cafe.

›› What people should know about this profession: It’s a lot harder than it looks to start a high-tech company. It takes a lot of hard work and a certain amount of good fortune to be successful. You have to realize that you’re competing against really smart people all over the world who are trying to do something similar. ›› Family: My wife, Josephine, manages our home life; my youngest son, Nick, is in the College of Engineering at MU; and my two older sons are finishing college in California. ›› A Columbia businessperson I admire and why: Brant Bukowsky. He started a ticket sales company with his brothers while he was a college student, and that company grew into Veterans United. He’s willing to help others and make Columbia a better place for startups. ›› What I do for fun: I enjoy running and biking on the MKT Trail and reconnecting with my old college buddies. I also enjoy wine tasting and cooking at home. ›› Most people don’t know that I: Sailed my sailboat from California to Hawaii five times in the Transpac Race. I was the overall race winner in 2003. CBT

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 31

20und Congratulations to the CBT's 2015 class of 20 Under 40, presented by Stephens College.

32 \\\ JANUARY 2015

der40 By Sarah Redohl | Photos by Anthony Jinson

Head to columbiabusinesstimes.com for a behind-the-scenes look at the 20 Under 40 photo shoot.

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 33 33

20 UN DE R 4 0

AGE:

Rachel Payton

Deputy state director of Americans for Prosperity Rachel Payton has a long history of political involvement. In 2000, she volunteered 10 hours to a political campaign for class, and in her own words, became hooked. She’s since volunteered on Jim Talent’s 2002 campaign, Bush-Cheney in 2004 and worked for former Congressman Kenny Hulshof, among others, before being hired as a field coordinator for Americans for Prosperity Foundation in 2012. On a daily basis, Payton may be planning events or managing social media, conducting grassroots outreach and working with the media. Prior to Payton’s political career, she worked at Moresource in 2005 for five months. “Kat [Cunningham] practically pushed me out the door, in a good way,” she says, to follow her passion.

AGE:

Kip Kendrick

State representative for Missouri’s 45th District It’s no surprise that one of Kip Kendrick’s mentors is Chris Kelly. As Kendrick prepares to start his first term in the State House on Jan. 7, Kelly, who served as a state representative for much of Columbia for 18 years, is an apt mentor. Since moving to Columbia more than a decade ago, Kendrick has been involved in civic and neighborhood leadership roles. He was the president of the Benton-Stephens Neighborhood Association for six years, served as co-chair of the planning committee for Columbia’s Neighborhood Leadership Program, founded the Benton-Stephens Community Garden in 2007 and has been a part of the Community Garden Coalition since then. Until he is sworn into office, Kendrick will continue his work as support coordinator for Boone County Family Resources. 34 \\\ JANUARY 2015

CLASS OF ' 15

AGE:

Joshua Tennison

Director of human resources at Independent Stave Co. As the director of human resources at Independent Stave Co., Joshua Tennison wants to make ISC “the employer of choice in our communities where we live and work.” Although ISC is based in Lebanon, Missouri, the company has had an administrative office in Columbia for 13 years. Overall, ISC has approximately 1,300 employees. Tennison accepted the position of director of human resources for ISC in 2006. Prior to that, Tennison worked for American Stave Co., a subsidiary of ISC, from 1999 to 2006. A favorite recent project includes a recent employee satisfaction survey resulting in a variety of ideas to make ISC a better place to work. Tennison is also involved in the State Workforce Investment Board and the Show-Me State Games.

AGE:

Elizabeth Braaten Palmieri

Co-founder and artistic director of GreenHouse Theater Project GreenHouse Theater Project is as fresh and experimental as its co-founder Elizabeth Braaten Palmieri. “We perform in nontraditional spaces throughout downtown Columbia, coining our tagline, ‘Innovative theater in unexpected places,’” she says. In September, Palmieri finished her first film, Perch, and premiered it at the Citizen Jane Film Festival. This year will also be a big year for Palmieri as GreenHouse is launching a sister company in Stoke, United Kingdom. GreenHouse’s co-founder Emily Adams will head that project, and they will be performing an original piece, C’tait La Nuit, at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August. columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 35

20 UN DE R 4 0

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LYDIA MELTON

Owner of Günter Hans Lydia Melton’s goal is to discover the best European food, beer and wine and bring them to Columbia. A favorite recent project, though, is bringing Columbia its first wineon-tap system. “Imagine every glass of wine being poured as though it’s a freshly opened bottle,” Melton says. “Except it’s better than that because it’s coming straight from the barrel.” With an MBA and a Bachelor of Science in marketing and business management, Melton had the education to tackle starting her own business, but each day brings new challenges. “Because [Günter Hans] is a new model — with no franchise help — sometimes you have to figure things out and solve problems on your own,” she says.

AGE:

Eric Johnson

Principal of Hickman High School For Eric Johnson, the accomplishment he’s most proud of is recent. In 2014, he became the principal of Hickman High School. Previously, Johnson was the assistant principal at Hickman for four years and taught World Studies and the African American Experience at Rock Bridge High School for three years. Although there’s no typical day at a high school, Johnson says the best part of his day is often interacting with students during passing periods, during lunch or in the classroom. Recently, Johnson was involved in restructuring Hickman’s school day and reallocating supervision time to intervene with students socially and academically. Johnson is also involved in Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Columbia Public Schools Equity Team and Urban Empowerment Ministries. 36 \\\ JANUARY 2015

CLASS OF ' 15

AGE:

Joshua Burrell

Chief strategy officer at Lift Division Before Joshua Burrell became a founding member of Lift Division in 2010, he’d worked in a number of sales positions in various industries, from insurance to footwear. Now, he’s responsible for implementing marketing strategies that will help Lift Division’s clients reach their goals. A favorite recent project for Burrell was a Google Penalty removal project for Nooomii.com, one of the world’s largest professional coaching directories. After the directory lost 80 to 90 percent of the traffic to its site, Lift Division was able to diagnose the issue and restore traffic within four to six weeks. In 2015, Burrell wants to see Lift Division become the go-to firm for online marketing in Missouri and expand its national presence.

AGE:

Nicole Galloway Boone County treasurer

In April 2011, Nicole Galloway took office as Boone County treasurer, where she now manages the county’s $55 million investment portfolio. In addition to her daily routine, a favorite recent project was implementing a debt management policy to increase transparency for the process of issuing and managing the county’s debt — a policy that has become a model for other local governments across the state. Galloway is also a member of Columbia Metro Rotary and a board member for Heart of Missouri United Way, County Employees’ Retirement Fund and the Missouri Technology Corp., a public-private partnership that promotes entrepreneurship and fosters the growth of new and emerging high-tech companies. As a member of the investment committee, she hears proposals from entrepreneurs and helps make strategic investment decisions to grow Missouri businesses. columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 37

20 UN DE R 4 0

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LEIGHANNE LAMB

Vice president of real estate lending at Landmark Bank and manager of Landmark Bank Home Mortgage Center The Nov. 13 opening of Landmark Bank’s first stand-alone mortgage loan production office in mid-Missouri brought big changes to Leighanne Lamb. As vice president of real estate lending, Lamb became manager of the Landmark Bank Home Mortgage Center, which houses four real estate lenders and an assistant. Lamb is also the co-chair for Leadership Columbia 2015, a Chamber of Commerce ambassador and an affiliate member of both the Columbia Board of Realtors and Women’s Council of Realtors.

AGE:

Nathan Fleischmann

Director of annual giving at Columbia College and owner of Stadium Shoes By day, Nathan Fleischmann manages a comprehensive annual giving program for Columbia College. During lunch, evenings and weekends, he can be seen all over town driving his mobile shoe store, Stadium Shoes. Fleischmann says his entrepreneur mindset feeds back into his position at Columbia College, helping him build a culture of philanthropy. In his rare free time, Fleischmann is active in Columbia’s community of entrepreneurs. In 2015, Fleischmann is looking to find a business partner for Stadium Shoes, which he hopes to take to the next level in the New Year. 38 \\\ JANUARY 2015

CLASS OF ' 15

AGE:

EMILY CLAPP

Recruitment generalist at Veterans United Home Loans and owner of Belle Bash In 2014, Emily Clapp acted as project manager for an innovative new approach to hiring at Veterans United, called “Ignite.” Instead of hiring someone for a specific job, they would hire a pool of people and put them through a week of training to learn about themselves and the company before settling into a position. With a successful inaugural Ignite group, Clapp hopes to improve the program in 2015. This past year, Clapp started Belle Bash with her friend Melody Bezenek. Growing this side business, which offers wine club starter kits to simplify socializing and wine-themed party supplies, is one of Clapp’s goals for 2015. Clapp is also involved in Emerging Professionals in Columbia, Women’s Network and Coyote Hill Christian Children’s Home and graduated from Columbia Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Columbia program in 2014.

AGE:

Sidney Neate

Relationship manager at Boone County National Bank As a relationship manager at Boone County National Bank, Sidney Neate acts as a personal banker to a portfolio of highnet-worth and commercial clients. Prior to working at Boone County National Bank, Neate worked as an account executive at the local ABC and FOX affiliate for two years. Neate is also involved in the local Delta Delta Delta House Corp. and the Junior Assistance League, among other activities. In 2014, she completed Leadership Columbia. She is also a Chamber of Commerce ambassador and former president of Emerging Professionals in Columbia. columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 39

20 UN DE R 4 0

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ERIC MORRISON

Vice president of business development at Providence Bank Ultimately, it is the art of the deal and creating solutions for businesses that get Eric Morrison out of bed in the morning. Working as vice president of business development, Morrison hopes to continue the expansion and recognition of the Providence Bank brand in Columbia in 2015. Additionally, Morrison is on the board of directors for the Columbia Chamber of Commerce and Central Missouri Development Council. He’s also on the organizing committee for the Dream Factory Poker Tournament and a member of Columbia Rotary South and Columbia Housing Authority Financial Advisory Committee.

AGE:

Candice Rotter

Associate media director at True Media In her role as associate media director at True Media, Candice Rotter doesn’t have a “typical day.” One day, she might be coaching her team, the next, brainstorming, troubleshooting or traveling around the country to present current trends in the media world. Her mentor, True Media President Jack Miller, continually encourages Rotter’s drive for success. “[Miller’s] drive for success is contagious,” Rotter says. “We have a very open, honest relationship that has helped me get to the point I’m at today.” Formerly, Rotter worked in the traffic and sales departments at Cumulus Media before working her way up at True Media over the course of eight years. 40 \\\ JANUARY 2015

CLASS OF ' 15

AGE:

JOHN HALL

CEO of Influence & Co. John Hall started his first business in third grade, when he bought students’ lunches and sold them for a profit. He’ll admit he started his first real business when he was 19, buying and flipping houses. Then he met Kelsey Meyer and started Influence & Co. with an investment from Adventures, led by Brent Beshore. “We focus on creating high-quality content, coming from our clients, that reaches their target audience online,” he says. “Our clients range from startups to fast-growing companies on the Inc. 5000 as well as Fortune 500 brands.” Hall spends most of his time developing relationships, whether they be with publications such as Forbes and The Wall Street Journal or with clients such as Dell and Office Depot.

AGE:

DANIELLE HARRISON

Business banking relationship manager at Commerce Bank Although Danielle Harrison immediately knows who her most important mentors have been (“My parents, hands down,” she says), Harrison wants everyone to have access to professional mentors. Currently, the business banking relationship manager at Commerce Bank is starting a mentorship program between Rotaract members and Rotary clubs in town. Harrison has worked for Commerce Bank since earning her MBA from the University of Missouri. She is currently the president of Rotaract of Columbia and a member of the Leadership Columbia Class of 2015, among her involvement in many other activities. columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 41

20 UN DE R 4 0

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Don Seitz

Owner of Modern Property Groups In less than three years, Don Seitz has grown one of the largest property management companies in Columbia, with 1,200 units and more than 3,000 renters. Since spring of 2014 alone, Seitz managed to nearly double his company’s total number of properties in midMissouri by purchasing a competitor and assuming management of Real Estate Management Inc., or REMI, in September. He also designed and built a 3,000-square-foot maintenance office and warehouse to accommodate the company’s growth. Previously, Seitz worked as an attorney and a real estate broker before founding Modern Property Group. For fun, he remodels neglected houses or hunts on his farm.

AGE:

Aimee Davenport

Environmental attorney at Evans & Dixon LLC Aimee Davenport, an environmental attorney at Evans & Dixon LLC, doesn’t hesitate when asked about her favorite recent project. In September 2013, Davenport opened the Columbia office for Evans & Dixon LLC. “Fourteen months ago, there was no office,” she says. “Now, we are six and have shaped a business law boutique locally with the horsepower of a large St. Louis-based law firm.” Previously, Davenport worked at Lathrop & Gage LP for eight and a half years and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources for four years. Davenport is also the president of the Stephens College Alumnae Association Board and serves on the board of advisers for Cedar Creek Therapeutic Riding Center, among other community activities. 42 \\\ JANUARY 2015

CLASS OF ' 15

AGE:

Caroline Leemis

Owner and interior designer at Caroline Leemis Design LLC At 27, Caroline Leemis has contributed to a number of local interior design projects, including renovations at Schneider Electric, Gumby’s Pizza downtown, Peggy Jean’s Pies, Coegi and True Media. In 2012, she started her company, Caroline Leemis Design LLC, after working for Cromwell Architects Engineers and Simon Oswald Architecture. Leemis is also very involved in the community, with the Columbia Chamber of Commerce, the City of Columbia Commission on Cultural Affairs and Canstruction of Mid-Missouri. She is also the co-chair of the Women’s Network Business Leaders Forum. CBT

AGE:

Caleb Jones

State representative for Missouri’s 50th District If Caleb Jones weren’t representing Missouri’s 50th District in the State House of Representatives, he would either be back at his farm in Moniteau County or guiding a fishing boat near a beach. Instead, most days he’s talking to constituents or working on legislation. Since winning his first election in 2010 (he was reelected in 2012 and 2014), Jones has passed legislation ranging from protecting foster children to updating the corporate tax structure. Most recently, he’s proud of passing a bill allowing CBD Oil for treatment of epilepsy in children, which became a framework for many other legislatures across the nation. His goal for next year? Running a half marathon and welcoming a second child into the world with his wife, Lindsey. columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 43

44 \\\ JANUARY 2015

Moving Up, Moving Out With the second-highest turnover rate among all industries, the banking business knows not all employees are in it for the long haul. Still, employee longevity can be an invaluable tool. So what are Columbia banks doing to buck the trend? By Molly Wright and CBT Staff Illustrations by Tifani Carter When it comes to building the right team, the banking industry can look a bit like a Major League Baseball roster. There are different players with varying skillsets working together for the win, and team loyalty often runs deep. But not all players are lifers, and sometimes switching teams is the best career move. Sure, there are those who stay put for the long haul, but more often than not, trades are just part of the game. And when a bigname player leaves one team, you can rest assured they’ll be picked up by another. When Andrew Beverly was promoted to commercial banking executive for Landmark Bank, his former position as president of the Columbia market was left vacant. Then in October, Landmark hired Matt Williams, the former Columbia president of Hawthorn Bank, to fill the vacancy. Enter Kathleen Bruegenhemke as Hawthorn Bank’s Columbia president.

And the local banking industry continued to put its rosters back together again. “There has been some recent top-tier changes in the Columbia banking market, and transition is oftentimes positive for everyone involved,” Bruegenhemke says. “As upperlevel vacancies are created, opportunities to assume new and different responsibilities create positive excitement internally for employees considering their own career paths.” Although Boone County National Bank pays close attention to changes within the local market, Melody Marcks, director of human resources, says she hasn’t seen many people leave the bank. Every November, the bank celebrates employee anniversaries, and in 2014 it celebrated one 40-year anniversary and two 35-year anniversaries, among other milestones. Like most banks, Boone County National Bank differentiates turnover between entrylevel and advanced positions, Marcks says.

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 45

“For entry-level positions like tellers and at the call center, we see and expect higher turnover than after someone has moved beyond that point,” she says. To cut down on teller turnover, The Bank of Missouri tries to hire tellers in their sophomore year of college to have three years with those students before they graduate. Although they can be placed at any branch throughout Missouri, they often receive degrees in unrelated fields or dream to move to larger cities. “They always have the option to stay,” says Mary Ropp, senior vice president of business development. In addition to placement, training and opportunities for advancement are also important. Boone County National Bank relies on its strong training program to help retain workers. “There are two employees totally dedicated to training, and each department has its own trainers that understand what those new people are going through, and that helps both types of turnover,” Marcks says, a sentiment Bruegenhemke shares. “As employees are upskilled, they generally are more stable team members,” Bruegenhemke says. The Bank of Missouri says its employees are also motivated to stay by its employee stock options. “When you’re the owner, everything you do you have a personal stake in it,” she says. “That just kind of makes you act differently.” Since opening in 2004, almost all of The Bank of Missouri’s “skeleton crew” of six employees who first opened the bank still work there. Since then, its Columbia branch has grown to employ 25 people. Because of the branch’s growth, The Bank of Missouri’s vacancies are often due to promotions and general expansion. “We need more lenders, more bankers, more everything,” Ropp says. “The only other thing we don’t have enough of is desks. It’s really hard to explain our spirit. … People want to be a part of something bigger than themselves. We’re talking to businesses with ideas and concepts and helping them make those a reality. To be a part of that, that’s fun.” For Boone County National Bank, that extra element to keep turnover low is longevity. “We’ve been here so long, over 150 years, we have a great longevity of families within our customer base,” Marcks says. “Our lenders have worked with customers forever, so there’s a lot of synergy there. “We would hope to talk to any of our staff if they were considering leaving or if they’re approached by other banks, but we don’t see that very often,” she continues. “On any given day, you don’t know what will happen. You just try to treat people with respect, and that seems to work.” Number next to individual indicates total years employed by current bank. 46 \\\ JANUARY 2015

LANDMARK BANK Headquartered in Columbia, Landmark Bank has operated as a national bank at the same location on Broadway for almost 150 years. Today, it has 42 bank locations in 28 different communities in Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas and is the second-largest bank in Columbia in terms of deposits. “Our approach is very much a community banking model,” says Andrew Beverley, who was promoted to the position of Landmark’s commercial banking executive last fall after serving as president of the Columbia bank. “We have local bank presidents in the markets we serve. The presidents of those local banks report to me

through regional presidents.” Matt Williams, former president of the Columbia branch of Hawthorn Bank, was hired as Landmark’s Columbia president in October. Beverley says Landmark also offers stability in a changing market with the Landrum family, who has been in Missouri banking for 100 years, serving as the major shareholders. “It doesn’t matter how much the industry changes and how much the regulations increase; our plan is to stick to the basics of responsive customer service and good, sound banking practices that have served us well for 150 years,” Beverley says.

Kevin Gibbens President and CEO

17 yrs.

Andrew Beverley

Matt Williams

Commercial Banking Executive

Columbia Regional President

10 yrs.

<1 yr.

Jeanne McGuire Commercial Lending Officer, SVP

Shon Aguero Retail Banking Executive

29 yrs.

9 yrs.

John Findley Sabrina McDonnell

Commercial Lending Officer, AVP

6 yrs.

Chief Administrative Executive

28 yrs.

Ryan Lidolph Commercial Lending Officer, VP

6 yrs.

Logan Dale Chief Credit Officer

20 yrs.

Chris Steuber Commercial Lending Officer, VP

10 yrs.

Chris Widmer

Steve Guthrie Chief Financial Officer

4 yrs.

Commercial Lending Officer, VP

8 yrs.

Boone County National Bank With 10 locations in Columbia and six branches in the neighboring communities of Ashland, Hallsville, Sturgeon, Centralia and Boonville, Boone County National Bank is smaller than many of its competitors. However, the bank is a market leader, capturing around 40 percent of the local market. But according to Mary Wilkerson, senior vice president of marketing, their size is an advantage. “As a smaller bank, we can customize our services,” she says. “We have to follow certain regulations, but we can often offer solutions that are a little more creative than the bigger banks.” Boone County National Bank recognizes that its job is to provide the customer with everything he or she needs while at the same time understanding that changing with the times does not always mean recreating the wheel. “Our company has always been very interested in investing in cutting-edge technology,” Wilkerson says. “Convenience and technology are two things we really work hard on.” That’s why they provide more branches and ATMs than any other bank in town. But she goes on to say that introducing modern conveniences such as ATMs does not mean that tellers are obsolete, and perfecting online banking does not mean people will stop walking into branches.

Steve Erdel Chairman and CEO

13 yrs.

David Stepanek Joe Henderson

Judy Starr

President

CFO

3 yrs.

Executive Vice President, Central Trust and Investment Co.

30 yrs.

21 yrs.

Melody Marcks

Karen Taylor

Senior Vice President, Human Resources

Executive Vice President, Consumer Banking

18 yrs.

9 yrs.

Ed Scavone Executive Vice President and Chief Lending Officer

20 yrs.

Hawthorn bank For Hawthorn Bank, which opened its branch office in Columbia in 2007, significant changes have taken place within the past few months in regard to the bank’s administrative team and its advisory board. Columbia Regional President Matt Williams accepted a position at Landmark Bank, and after 20 years at Hawthorn’s corporate office in Jefferson City, Kathleen Bruegenhemke was promoted to president of the Columbia market. At the same time, Rob Patrick came onboard as assistant vice president, commercial loan officer, and David Clithero joined the bank as vice president of relationship management. Before coming to Hawthorn, Patrick worked at Boone County National Bank. As a previous owner and operator of five Branson entertainment businesses, he brings a unique understanding of the small-business loan process to the administrative team. Clithero served as associate vice chancellor of development at the University of Missouri. “David is helping us on the customer development side of the bank,” Bruegenhemke says. “We have over $100 million in assets with less than that in deposits. We naturally want to grow both our loan and deposit balances, and David will be a tremendous help in that regard.”

Kathleen Bruegenhemke Columbia President

23 yrs.

Ann Westhues

Todd Hoien SVP Commercial Lending

4 yrs.

AVP Branch Manager and Consumer Lending Officer

David Clithero VP Business Development

7 yrs.

<1 yr.

Laura Kogut

Ryan Clifton

Rob Patrick

AVP Real Estate Loan Officer

AVP Commercial Lending

2 yrs.

<1 yr.

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 47

the Callaway Bank The Callaway Bank is the oldest independent, locally owned community bank in Missouri. Established in 1857, it operates six full service branches and two drive-ins in Columbia, Fulton and Mokane. The Bank also plans to open a location in Ashland during the first quarter of 2015. The Bank, which provides both consumer and business banking services, began a lending program, the Youth Entrepreneur Program, for high school aged entrepreneurs in December 2014. “It sounds like a cliché, but from the board down we recognize the importance of our employees and support them even beyond their time at work,” says Gary Meyerpeter, president of The Callaway Bank in the Boone County market. The Callaway Bank is also a member of Regional Economic Development, Inc., and a founding partner of Connecting Our Regional Economy (CORE) and Fulton Area Development Corporation. It employs 130 people.

Overton T. Harris Chairman of the Board

66 yrs.

Kim Barnes President & CEO

27 yrs.

Rick Gohring

Gary Meyerpeter 10 yrs.

With more than 200 branches in Missouri, Kansas, Illinois, Oklahoma and Colorado, Commerce Bank, which also has commercial offices in Cincinnati, Nashville and Dallas, is the largest bank in Missouri. Commerce has $23 billion in assets on the bank side and more than $37 billion under management in The Commerce Trust Co. As of January of this year, Lyle Johnson, former vice president of commercial lending, was promoted to market executive for The Commerce Trust Co. in the central Missouri region, which includes Columbia, Moberly, Mexico and Moniteau County. Johnson takes over part of Ryan Lovill’s job. Lovill, who served as market executive for central Missouri and also as portfolio manager, is now portfolio manager. “Commercial lending is about building relationships and getting to know the customers, how the company operates, but this also involves getting to know the owners so there is a trust and comfort level,” says Johnson. “I was asked to take over Commerce Trust because I have a natural tendency for developing relationships, and I made a lot of referrals of clients over to this department when I was in commercial lending.”

12 yrs.

34 yrs.

Jim Schatz

David Keller

Chairman and Chief Credit Officer

Community Bank President

Steve Sowers Executive Vice President and Commercial Banking Division Manager

18 yrs.

Valerie Shaw Executive Vice President and Retail Banking Division Manager

48 \\\ JANUARY 2015

<1 yr.

Chartered in 1891, The Bank of Missouri, originally The Bank of Perryville, entered the Columbia market in 2004. “Our typical client is a small-business startup or a business that is expanding, maybe adding locations or franchising,” says Mary Ropp, senior vice president of business development for the bank. A preferred SBA lender, The Bank of Missouri is the largest SBA lender on this side of the St. Louis region. “We make more small-business loans using SBA lending than any other bank in Columbia,” says Ropp, who was promoted from business development officer for the Columbia/central Missouri market to oversee the bank’s entire business development in October 2013. The Bank of Missouri also takes a different approach when expanding into new markets. “Typically when a bank comes into a new market, they purchase another bank, and so they take over that inventory of deposits and loans,” Ropp says. “We come into a new location with zero funds on deposit and zero loans, and we grow organically. We did that in 2004, and we are now the fifth-largest bank in Columbia.” Just recently The Bank of Missouri broke ground in Branson and Popular Bluff. CBT

10 yrs.

29 yrs.

President and CEO

Senior Vice President

The Bank of Missouri

Commerce bank

Teresa Maledy

Bill Lloyd

President, Callaway County Market

President, Boone County Market

34 yrs.

John Keller

Karin Bell

Sr. Vice President of Commercial Lending

Vice President of SBA Lending

5 yrs.

10 yrs.

Mary Ropp

Melissa Smith

Sr. Vice President of Business Development

Sr. Vice President of Wealth Management

6 yrs.

2 yrs.

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block blo 50 \\\ JANUARY 2015

k by ock

The dollars and cents behind some of the city’s latest downtown real estate investments

Development downtown has exploded in the past few years. “When we were looking at the growth percentages throughout the county, growth throughout Columbia as a whole increased by only 2 percent last year, while growth in downtown specifically increased by more than 10 percent” says Boone County Assessor Tom Schauwecker. Furthermore, as development increases, the valuation of specific properties also increases. When the Assessor’s Office is looking at valuation changes by specific development, Schauwecker says his office primarily looks at two numbers: the appraised value of a property and the assessed value. The appraised value of a property represents an opinion of a property’s value; the assessed value is representative of the fair market value of the property. As Columbia’s downtown streets are transformed from parking lots and warehouses to apartments and restaurants, the value of the area has skyrocketed. In most cases, as property values increase, so do property taxes, which means more money going toward Columbia schools, libraries and infrastructure.

By Torie Ross Photos by Ben Meldrum columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 51

Map of downtown Development

4 6 3

1 2

Brookside Downtown

260 S. 10th St. Appraised value before development: $273,600 Appraised value after development: $3,717,400

Assessed value before development: $87,552 Assessed value after development: $861,383

Use before development: Parking lot Use after development: Mixed-use residential and commercial 52 \\\ JANUARY 2015

Lofts at 308

308 S. Ninth St. Appraised value before development: $242,400 Appraised value after development: $7,900,700

Assessed value before development:$77,568 Assessed value after development: $1,822,961

Use before development: City parking lot Use after development: Mixed-use residential and commercial

Tiger Hotel

North Village Lofts

23 S. Eighth St. Appraised value before development: $1,500,000 Appraised value after development: $4,270,000

Corner of Walnut and Orr streets Assessed value before development: $322,700 Assessed value after development: $1,366,399

Use before development: Built in 1928, The Tiger served as a hotel until 1987, when it was converted into a retirement community. Use after development: Hotel and restaurants

Appraised value before development: $316,200 Appraised value after development: $1,686,910

Assessed value before development: $101,184 Assessed value after development: $445,512

Use before development: The historic Berry Building served as a warehouse and grocery store. Use after development: Mixed-use residential and commercial

*Because these properties were not complete at the time of their last assessment, the current valuations of the properties are only partial values.

Logboat Brewing*

The Broadway Columbia*

Appraised value before development: $186,040 Appraised value after development: $426,300

Appraised value before development: $787,200 Appraised value after development: $4,421,150

504 Fay St.

Assessed value before development: $59,532 Assessed value after development: $136,416

Use before development: Diggs meatpacking facility Use after development: Brewery and bar

1111 E. Broadway

Assessed value before development: $251,904 Assessed value after development: $1,414,768

Use before development: The Regency Hotel Use after development: a DoubleTree by Hilton hotel CBT columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 53

columbia's Banks Ride the Startup Wave, Find a New Niche In a growing post-recession economy, an increasing number of entrepreneurs are looking to fund their next small-business ventures, and local banks are ready to answer the call. By Christi Kelly | Photo by Anthony Jinson 54 \\\ JANUARY 2015

To open the doors to the Pure Barre fitness studio, owner Lauren Matteson had to finance a franchise fee, the studio, staff training and equipment. Today her clients sweat it out every day, but she doesn’t have to sweat the financing. From the start, lender John Findley at Landmark Bank has been a steadying force. “The rate is important, too, but comes second to being able to trust who you are working with for something as serious as the financing of your business,” she says. Landmark and other local banks are seeing an increase in small-business customers, thanks to the growing post-recession economy, strong relationships and a local environment that welcomes entrepreneurs. Reports from the Small Business Administration and the National Federation of Independent Business support local bankers’ observations of strong small-business growth. To attract business owners starting out, local lenders are offering products tailored to small businesses and putting a heavy emphasis on service. But they also stand by the most traditional banking approach: one-on-one relationships that build loyalty and lead to referral growth. At Boone County National Bank, about 90 percent of the commercial loan portfolio originates from small businesses. All 11 commercial lenders and four business development specialists have some focus on smallbusiness customers. “Our bank is built on small business,” says bank President Joe Henderson. In 2014, the bank’s commercial loan portfolio grew about 6 percent over the previoius year, up some $38 million. Landmark has also seen this market begin to grow dramatically, says the bank’s Columbia President Matt Williams. Columbia banks might be doing better than last year, but Missouri banks as a whole saw a decrease in small-business lending in 2014. As of third quarter, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. statistics showed nearly 300 banks statewide issued $7.1 billion in small-business loans secured by nonfarm, nonresidential property, compared to $7.2 billion at the same time last year. Why is Columbia bucking this trend? Mid-Missouri provides a good environment for starting and growing businesses, Henderson says, and that has helped encourage more new business owners to set up shop columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 55

here. He cites the presence of the university and the work of Regional Economic Development Inc. and other organizations focused on local business growth as well as a welcoming community. “Columbia has a vibrant economy, stronger than St. Louis and Kansas City, and a lot of people come to Columbia because of that environment,” he says.

Relationship status To attract — and keep — small-business owners such as Matteson, Landmark maintains a suite of products designed specifically for that market, including small-business checking accounts and account officers assigned to each customer. The officers help assess customer needs and work with them to make sure they’re getting the full benefits of the bank’s offerings. Williams says the small-business market is a crucial one, and it’s all about service. “Small businesses are the lifeblood of our community, and as a community bank and an economic engine for Columbia, small businesses are central to our operation,” he says. “It's what we do.” Hawthorn Bank also makes small-business lending a priority and is seeing that market segment grow. Senior Vice President of Commercial Lending Todd Hoien says their strategy is based on longterm relationships, and the bank has seen yearover-year increases in commercial loans as a result. “We focus on a bank that will treat you well regardless of the size of your business,” he says. “We have several larger business customers that started off borrowing small. Everyone starts somewhere, and then we have an opportunity to grow with those customers.” Landmark recently started the Young Business Leaders Advisory Council with members from across the local small-business community, and Hoien says they hope to get good advice and suggestions from the group on how best to serve the market. To meet growing small-business needs, Boone County National Bank also takes a relationship approach built on availability. Just as Landmark lenders have been for Pure Barre owner Matteson, Henderson wants business owners to see his lenders as advisers willing and able to provide guidance and support. Although offering an adviser relationship is clearly a common theme among local banks serving this market segment, Hoien at Hawthorn Bank says there’s no secret formula for success against national or online competitors. “I think our biggest competitive advantage is our ability and willingness to sit down and meet 56 \\\ JANUARY 2015

with our customers and prospective customers and listen to them,” he says. “There is no substitute to sitting across the table from a business owner and talking.” Nationally, small-business banking customers have reported an increase in satisfaction with their banks over last year, according to a recent study by J.D. Power, though generally big and midsize banks get better satisfaction ratings than regional banks do. Smaller banks get better ratings on relationships and fee satisfaction, while their bigger counterparts rate higher in convenience and technology. That customer preference for convenience, including online access and mobile technology, is one reason local banks have to keep up with the latest trends.

“Columbia has a vibrant economy, stronger than St. Louis and Kansas City, and a lot of people come to Columbia because of that environment.” — Joe Henderson, president, Boone County National Bank “We have found technology is playing a greater role in success of small business, and we have to continually upgrade our technology and bring new things to the market,” Henderson says.

Confidence and optimism Small-business growth is about optimism, Henderson says, and the bank’s lenders have seen that grow as the economy has recovered over the past few years. In a move designed to encourage economic growth — widely considered successful in achieving that goal — the Federal Reserve kept interest rates low throughout 2014. The November 2014 NFIB report showed increases in the percent of business owners who plan to increase capital spending, hiring and inventories. The highest quarterly increases were in plans to increase spending and positive expectations around improved sales.

The NFIB’s overall Optimism Index gained 0.8 points to reach 96.1, which is interpreted as positive but slightly below the 40-year average of 98. Analysts say this points to overall optimism for expansion but a lack of strong confidence that the economy will continue to improve. NFIB chief economist Bill Dunkelberg equated it to a jet that taxis to the runway but doesn’t expect to take off any time soon. “From startups to existing business owners, they’re deciding interest rates have been low for a long time, and they feel more comfortable about expanding,” Henderson says. Williams is also seeing this play out at Landmark Bank. “We are seeing many more people across the board who are ready to resume investing in their businesses,” he says. “Certainly tech growth in Columbia is significant. Construction activity is exploding, which bodes well for the area.” Missouri is seeing modest but steady growth in small businesses, from 490,763 in 2009 to 507,497 in 2013, according to the Small Business Administration’s 2013 Missouri Small Business Profile. The SBA defines a small business as one with 500 employees or fewer, though two-thirds of Missouri small businesses have fewer than 100, and half of those have fewer than 20. This growth is especially notable considering Missouri’s economy has grown more slowly than the U.S. average over the past few years. Small businesses represent about 97 percent of all employers in the state, according to the SBA. The 507,497 small businesses in 2013 employed 1,098,076 workers, about half of the state’s workforce. Annual income from sole proprietorships in Missouri — the most common type of small business — reached nearly $20 billion in 2013. MU’s Small Business and Technology Development Center helped 23 local businesses get their start last year, says Director Virginia Wilson, including service, retail, restaurant and tech companies. The center helps entrepreneurs research and locate financing, among other services. To those 23 and others just getting started, Matteson says the best advice is to reach out to other small businesses for recommendations and referrals and ask banks a lot of questions. “In Columbia, there are many great options,” she says. “Upon meeting with a few lenders, you will be able to tell which bank is the right fit for you.” CBT

Every business has a story to tell. Let us tell yours.

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 57

Drawing drawing tT h e di he Di stri cts Maintaining diversity and the associated achievement gap at equal rates among all of Columbia Public Schools creates a complicated puzzle when it comes to drawing the district map. By Grant Hodder | Photos by Anthony Jinson

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More than 800 students gather in Hickman High School's cafeteria every day, on average. Photo by Anthoy Jinson.

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 59

“Test scores have everything to do with the size of your house.” Columbia Public Schools Superintendent Peter Stiepleman still remembers seeing that quip come across his Twitter feed. Anyone concerned about education in the United States knows about the achievement gap. The term refers to a consistent difference in academic success between minority or lowincome students and the rest of their classmates. The disparity can be seen in those who drop out and others who find success in college, but most often it shows up in standardized testing. It’s endemic to public schools across the country. In 2013, the U.S. Department of Education tested 12th-graders in 11 volunteer states through its National Assessment of Educational Progress. In math, 7 percent of black students scored at or above the proficient level, while 33 percent of white students reached the mark. In reading, 49 percent of the students whose parents had graduated from college surpassed the proficient level, while only 24 percent of the students whose parents’ educations ended at high school scored as well. Stiepleman and that Twitter quip are far from making light of the numbers. Like the rest of the country, CPS has been struggling with the problem, one that has been exacerbated in Columbia by the fact that the size of the district’s own house has been growing.

Creating the puzzle, parsing the data Columbia opened its third comprehensive high school in the fall of 2013, and two new elementary schools are also in the works, meaning enrollment boundaries are being debated regularly.

“Communities with the best schools win. … It’s in this community’s best interest to have great public schools and graduate kids that are ready to join the workforce, whether it’s after they graduate college or even beforehand.” — Peter Stiepleman, superintendent, Columbia Public Schools 60 \\\ JANUARY 2015

A major part of the process has been trying to draw lines in ways that will maintain diversity and the associated achievement gap at relatively equal rates at all the district’s schools. The best scenario would see school enrollments that match the city’s demographics. U.S Census figures for 2010 show the area that CPS serves has an overall population that is 80.3 percent white, 10.8 percent black and 3.3 percent Hispanic. However, using that goal as an overriding guide often creates maps filled with islands, peninsulas and other awkward formations that defy logic, and from the outset the Columbia Board of Education has asked the committees working on the puzzle to consider a set of principles that also includes items such as distance traveled to school and obvious boundaries such as major roadways. Throughout, those involved have checked their work as it correlates to the achievement gap by leaning heavily on a regularly used standard: the number of students using the free and reduced-price lunch program at the schools, an indicator of poverty in enrollments. Looking at the high schools, at first glance it’s not clear how well the boundaries have matched affluent houses with poorer ones, given the numbers listed by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education for 2014. • For Battle High School, the new building that welcomed its first senior class this fall, 50 percent of the enrollment uses the lunch program, 30.8 percent of the students are black and 6.4 percent are Hispanic. • At Hickman High School, the lunch program is used by 32.6 percent of the enrollment, of which 18.9 percent are black and 5.8 percent are Hispanic.

• At Rock Bridge High School, 19.4 percent of the students use the lunch program, while 11.4 percent are black and 4.5 percent are Hispanic. The figures suggest that, as it is across the country, diversity in Columbia is increasing. It also helps to parse the data in context with other considerations. If you factor in the three high schools’ total enrollments, Battle (1,080) actually has fewer students on the lunch program at about 540 than Hickman’s 590 (1,814 total enrollment). Mostly, it’s hard to ignore what things look like when the high school boundary map is taken out for inspection, especially if there are maps from the City of Columbia’s Planning and Zoning Department nearby. From Battle High School itself, located at the farther reaches of the northeast part of the city, you don’t have to look far to find undeveloped land. The boundary lines for the new building’s enrollment also extend well south of Interstate 70 to include most of the district’s area east of Highway 63, a part of Columbia of which about half has been zoned as residential in the most recent version of the city’s East Area Plan for Future Land Use. With higher-end developments such as Old Hawthorne and The Vineyards already filling in the landscape in this area, the nature of Battle’s lunch program numbers in relation to what they are at the other two high schools is likely to see ongoing changes. As far as Stiepleman sees it, Battle, with the lowest total enrollment, has room to grow along with the city. “In the short term, we’re seeing major discrepancies with the FRL numbers at the high schools, but in the long term, that will change,” Stieple-

Around 815 students are served during a typical lunch at Hickman High School, including meals and a la carte sales. Lunch offerings include daily entrees such as hamburgers or pizza, cold sandwiches and wraps, a salad bar, chicken sandwiches or Bosco sticks, breakfast or a Chinese bar along with a choice of fruit and a beverage.

man says. “The north and east parts of town will continue to develop, so we have to look at it from a long-term planning point of view.”

The super subgroup, a rallying cry How the lunch program numbers will be spread throughout the schools is only part of the focus on the achievement gap in Columbia. Finding ways to help low-income students from across the district perform at higher levels is one of the most pressing challenges. In districtwide results announced this August that examine the Missouri School Improvement Program performance report and other measurements of performance that the state uses to accredit schools, CPS students did well, bettering statewide and national results. But the report also pointed out a “persistent gap in achievement among the demographic subgroups” at CPS. The subgroup in Missouri is comprised of students from four groups: black or Hispanic, those using the free and reduced-price lunch program, English language learners and students receiving special education services. Although among students overall, more than 74 percent had Advanced Placement exam scores that would earn them college credit, CPS students from the subgroup earned only two out of 14 possible points in the MISP standards. When the subgroup results are mentioned, Stiepleman is quick and firm in his response. “That’s our rallying cry,” he says, and there’s not much doubt it is a high priority in his administration. “Sometimes there’s some questions, concerns that we talk about the super subgroup quite a bit,

but the truth of the matter is that it is going to be Columbia’s greatest area of need, of focus,” he says. Perhaps more than anything the achievement gap is important because its implications extend beyond school buildings. Strong economies have many requirements, but a strong argument can be made that good educations for those who contribute to them is the best way to maintain them. A report published this month by the Center for American Progress points to that relationship, noting what narrowing or eliminating the achievement gap could mean for the national economy. The report simulates the average annual increase in economic growth that would take place by closing the gap and improving the skill level of the American workforce. Using projections from the U.S. Congressional Budget Office and anticipating increases in the black and Hispanic populations shown in U.S Census figures, as well as taking into account factors such as interest rates and inflation, it makes a bold statement. Closing the gap, the report’s models show, could boost gross domestic product by $551 billion from 2014 to 2050. Extrapolating from there, the report goes on to show the correlating increase in government revenues, which could be lifted by $110 billion at the federal level and $88 billion at the state level. The report’s intent is to show closing the achievement gap as an economic investment, something that moves beyond school board meetings. But Stiepleman is already sold. “Communities with the best schools win,” he says. “It is the key to economic development. It’s in this community’s best interest to have great public schools and graduate kids that are ready to

Free and Reduced Lunch Rates by CPS High School District, 2013-2014

32.6% 50% 19.4%

2013-2014 high school boundaries Battle High School Hickman High School Rock Bridge High School Source: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 61

join the workforce, whether it’s after they graduate college or even beforehand.”

A push to succeed At the high school level, CPS has been using programs from national nonprofits such as Equal Opportunity Schools and Advancement Via Individual Determination to nudge students who have potential but show lagging motivation in the right direction by pushing more challenging coursework. The programs, which began at CPS before Stiepleman took over, hook into the fact that completion of Advance Placement courses in high school more often than not means completion of a college degree. “You can’t attack or have any success on an achievement gap unless you’re getting kids into the higher-level courses,” says Stiepleman, who calls it a shift in thinking for the district. “You say to a kid who already has self doubt, ‘This is going to be a hard course,’ and they hear, ‘You don’t think I can do it; I guess I won’t,’” he says. “So it was a change in how we speak to kids as well as removing some of those prerequisites that were creating a system of who can take the course and who can’t. It shouldn’t be that you have a certain GPA because that [taking an AP course] may be the thing that actually energizes a kid to care about school because they see relevance.” In the end, though, Stiepleman comes back to community. CPS already gets support from groups such as the area’s Kiwanis Clubs, Columbia’s Rotaries and many other places. Assistance can come in the form of donations of winter clothes or technology such as iPads. Groups such as Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Missouri also play a part. But sometimes, Stiepleman says, he can feel like there’s no clear plan for getting results. “What I think is going to be really helpful is to say: ‘Here are the goals of the school. What are you going to do for one of their goals?’” he says. “I don’t think we’ve ever done it that way. I think we’re getting better at focusing. We’re just not totally there yet.” CBT 62 \\\ JANUARY 2015

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 63

64 \\\ JANUARY 2015

Roundtable › Al Germond

point-of-view

Funding Missouri’s Highways Is it something in the water? Maybe it’s in the air we breathe. Perhaps it’s a mental defect, a misplaced gene or two. More than mere wisps of being contrarily stubborn, Missourians historically have refused to adequately fund their state’s basic transportation needs. How was it 60 years ago that our loathsome rival Kansas figured out a way to build a turnpike linking its three largest cities while this state struggled to Al Germond is the build a four-lane stretch of Highway 40 host of the Columbia between the exurbs of St. Louis and High Business Times Hill? Maybe it goes back a few paces up Sunday Morning the family tree to when an ancestor was Roundtable at 8:15 gypped at the old tollbooth at Broadway a.m. Sundays on KFRU. and West Boulevard, irked at having to He can be reached at pay to use the muddy rutted old turnpike al@columbia business times.com. to Rocheport. Here we go again: Chapter CXVII in the extended play saga — devising an acceptable way to pay for the construction and maintenance of our sinewy network of roads and bridges. So the governor urgently telegraphs the Department of Transportation to produce a report by the end of the year about converting Interstate 70 into a toll road. And, please, hurry because we really do need to do something about the deteriorating condition of the state’s network of roads. One cries for true leadership on this issue. Where is the modern-day equivalent to the late E. W. Stephens, the Columbia publisher who spearheaded the effort in 1920 to build a highway bridge across the Missouri River at Boonville? Seizing on the fact that the Army Corps of Engineers in 1890 had approved construction of a highway bridge across the river at a site identical to where the current bridge sits, Stephens and others canvassed the region, amassed a fund for construction, and the bridge was opened to traffic on July 4, 1924.

Missouri is hopelessly behind other states using motor fuel taxes to cover ongoing needs, and it would take a hike of 50 cents or more at the pump to make up our losses over time, so mark that one dead on arrival with voters.

This postcard shows a tollgate on Frankford Road in Louisiana, Missouri, in the early 1900s.

Stephens should be honored as one of Columbia’s true visionaries because the bridge cemented Columbia, Boonville and the shortest transstate route westward to Kansas City against rival proposals through Fayette, Arrow Rock, Marshall and Glasgow and has played a significant role in the growth and development of Columbia. That’s nothing new here. The track of present-day Interstate 70 as a highway of significance was first outlined in 1938 and firmly cemented on maps of future divided highways released during World War II. Missouri is hopelessly behind other states using motor fuel taxes to cover ongoing needs, and it would take a hike of 50 cents or more at the pump to make up our losses over time, so mark that one dead on arrival with voters. The electorate was just as hostile last August when a misguided proposal to add three-quarters of a penny to the general sales tax to fund transportation needs was on the ballot. That leaves us with one other funding mechanism: tolls on the state’s high-volume interstate highways. First up is Interstate 70. People seem to complicate what could be done very easily. Create two wide spots on the road, and put up a row of booths that would include the E-ZPass option. Choose two locations: proximate to State Route 13 on the west side of the state and west of Warrenton on the east side. Charge $1 per vehicle; truckers, of course, should pay more. It’s so simple and yet so complicated to ever think of getting done. We need to find a modern-day Donald M. Nelson (1888-1959; hometown: Hannibal, Missouri; B.S. in chemistry from MU, 1911), who went on to head the War Production Board (1942-1944) bogged down in the months after Pearl Harbor. Nelson’s efforts greatly helped us win the war. Somewhere there’s a clone of Nelson who’s ready to take up the cudgel and get Missouri moving again when it comes to its fundamental transportation needs. CBT columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 65

20/40 20 40 TWENTY UNDER FORTY presented by

WEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;LL SEE YOU THERE! WHen: January 22, 2015

Where: Kimball Ballroom, Stephens College

Columbia College

Congratulates Nathan Fleischmann Director of Annual Giving for being honored in the

20 under 40 class of 2015

Sponsored by the Steven and Barbara Fishman Center for Enterpreneurship

66 \\\ JANUARY 2015

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 67

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Going Up

›› City structures by Torie Ross

1. Retail and office space on Green Meadows Road Location: 510 E. Green Meadows Road Developer: Wendling Development LLC Contractor: Wendling Development LLC Details: Wendling Development’s newest space will be a mixed-use retail and office space. There are 7,800 square feet of retail space on the lower lever of the building and additional office space on the upper level. The building will be completely brick covered, feature a solar reflective white roof and utilize FilterPave technology, a pavement system that reduces stormwater runoff. Square footage: 10,800 Estimated date of completion: January 2015

2 2. Office space on Southampton Location: The corner of Southampton and Executive drives Developer: N/A Contractor: Reinhardt Construction Details: 5,000 square feet of the new office space will house Twaddle Orthodontics, which was previously located off of South Scott Boulevard. Square footage: 8,000 Estimated date of completion: January 2015

3. Quail Creek Professional Park Location: 4301/4303 Rainbow Trout Drive facing Scott Boulevard Developer: Brad Miller Contractor: McCormick Home Improvement Details: This mixed-use facility offers professional office space on its main floor and three luxury executive-style two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartments on its upper

Photos by Ben Meldrum

level, as well as a full basement for storage. Square footage: 4,660 main floor, 1,400 apartments Estimated date of completion: Complete For more information, call: Mike Grellner (office space), 573-639-1864; Robin Pittman (apartments), 573356-8716 CBT columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 69

Nonprofit Spotlight ›› Youth Empowerment Zone

Seeing the Change

Youth Empowerment Zone works to help troubled youth. By Alisiana Peters | Photos by sarah redohl In the spring of 2004, a drive-by shooting near the Columbia Mall sparked outrage in the community. At the time, Lorenzo Lawson was working as the executive director of the Neighborhood Resource Center, where he mainly assisted individuals in poverty. The center hosted a series of town hall meetings, attempting to answer one question: How do we prevent this [drive-by shooting] from happening again? They decided to conduct a survey with local youth and asked what could be done to keep youth away from negative behaviors. Overwhelmingly, they found that the young people they’d asked were having a difficult time finding good jobs.

That summer, Lawson and others secured jobs for 42 youth. However, more than 80 percent of the individuals placed lasted for less than a month at those jobs. What was missing were basic life skills: resume writing, interview skills, conflict resolution and anger management, to name a few. “[The youth we placed] deal with conflict resolution in what we call the survival mode: fight or flight,” Lawson says. “When [they] experienced conflict on the job, they found the best way to deal with it was just to quit.” It was ultimately this series of events that encouraged Lawson to form his own nonprofit program, Youth Empowerment Zone. In December 2014, YEZ celebrated 10 years of service.

“It has taken us 10 years to build our reputation, but we are really seeing the benefits,” Lawson says. “Kids that were originally headed to prison are now in college or are stable, working and starting families.”

Madalyn Gramke “I’ve always been passionate about serving our underprivileged youth in the community, and YEZ is by far the organization that I felt has the best pulse on the community and is implementing creative strategies to make a difference.”

Chris Watkins “In addition to helping teens and young adults, YEZ now has an early childhood program called King’s Kids, which serves children ages 5 to 12.”

Kari Laudano “I love the proactive mission of the organization and the passion of the staff.”

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Special programming YEZ works with youth between the ages of 14 and 24, though even youth outside that age range won’t be turned away if they need assistance. The focus of the nonprofit’s efforts are the four Es: education, employment, empowerment and entrepreneurship. To meet these goals, YEZ offers after-school tutoring services, early child care services, Learn 2 Earn, MENtour and an entrepreneurship program.

➜ 1204 Rogers St. Columbia, MO 65201 573-256-1896

After-school tutoring is offered Monday through Friday from 4 to 6 p.m. Learn 2 Earn prepares youth for the workforce through its Job Readiness Training. Program participants learn how to dress for interviews, build a resume and practice for interviews, among other skills. YEZ also offers child care services before and after school, when parents may still be at work. MENtour is a mentorship program for boys and men between the ages of 14 and 24 to encourage participants to engage in activities that will help broaden their personal experiences. And the entrepreneurship program teaches young individuals how to jumpstart their own businesses. YEZ has a staff of four, each specially trained to handle the “greatest at-risk kids,” Lawson says. However, YEZ is not a welfare program. Lawson emphasizes this point to let people in the community know that YEZ is not about giving handouts. “The biggest thing that makes us successful is that we build relationships with our youth that allow them to really trust us and tell us the truth,” Lawson says.

Janice Harder “The staff at YEZ is proactive in going into the schools and other places in the community to get young people who need help. YEZ does not expect the kids to always come to YEZ on their own.”

YEZ has also established relationships throughout the community to find youth in need. The group currently receives referrals from the community, from the juvenile system, the Division of Youth Services, Boys & Girls Club and Burrell Behavioral Health.

Future planning Over the next 10 years, YEZ aims to promote self-sustainability. “Our goal is to help young people turn their lives around and prevent criminality and drug use,” Lawson says. “We put programming in place to help them prosper and teach them on how to be business leaders.” Lawson also hopes to expand YEZ’s child care system and maintain its affordable rate as well as form a better partnership with Columbia Public Schools. “Some teachers don’t understand the culture of our kids,” Lawson says. “They don’t know how to relate to them, and the European style of teaching isn’t conducive to our kids.”

Karen Mickey “[I wish more Columbians knew that] YEZ is both daily and long-term commitment and connections.”

“It breaks my heart to hear people say, ‘We need to get these bad kids off the street.’ They are brilliant, and if we take the time to invest in them, they can produce great things.” — Lorenzo Lawson, YEZ Lawson says YEZ would also like to focus more on its entrepreneurship program and establish a new subprogram, The Handy Man Program, to teach practical business skills to youth with felony convictions. “It breaks my heart to hear people say, ‘We need to get these bad kids off the street,’” Lawson says. “They are brilliant, and if we take the time to invest in them, they can produce great things.” For more information about the Youth Empowerment Zone, visit its website at yezweb.org. CBT

Orode Ewharekuko “My proudest moment is seeing young individuals come into the YEZ organization and start taking control of their lives by going to school, getting a job and becoming more productive in society.”

columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 71

From left: Collin Bunch, Olivia Gill, Virginia Wilson, Sandra Marin and Paul Bateson. Photo by Anthony Jinson.

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Celebrations

›› Small Business Development Center

SBDC On TOP

Columbia’s Small-Business Ally

Columbia’s Small Business Development Center aims to create jobs and help entrepreneurs succeed. By Torie Ross The Small Business Development Center, a nationwide program that has centers in 27 cities and towns across Missouri, was created with two purposes in mind: to create jobs and to help entrepreneurs succeed. Columbia’s SBDC has helped business owners big and small thrive throughout the years. Through educational classes, workshops and one-on-one training and counseling, SBDC helps business owners through every step of the process. Entrepreneurs aren’t the only ones recognizing everything SBDC has to offer. In the past year, the center has received two outstanding reviews, one from the U.S. Small Business Administration and one from the Association of Small Business Development Centers. These reviews have served as just another reminder to the SBDC staff of the impact they have on their community.

Getting started Virginia Wilson, director of the Columbia SBDC, says she believes there is a common misconception in the business community about the types of services they provide. “There’s this myth that SBDC is only for startups, but the truth is we’re equipped to handle all stages of a business’s lifecycle,” Wilson says. She adds that the center’s target market is really businesses that are in the second stage of their growth, businesses with $1 million in revenue and more than 10 employees, because those businesses are often too big for startup services but too small for expensive consultants. When SBDC consultants are determining what types of services are necessary for a business, Co-Director Paul Bateson says they primarily look at how established the business is. “We start from very basic services, such as our Introduction to Entrepreneurship class, to more complicated services such as assistance with

marketing, financial analysis and pricing evaluations,” Bateson says. From proof of concept to helping with loan applications, the co-directors say there are very few things that the SBDC cannot help with. Bateson sees their services as a toolbox, and the more they know about their clients’ needs, the easier it is for them to determine which “tool” is right for the job.

Advisers and educators One of SBDC’s main goals is education. It strives to provide business owners with information they can use on a daily basis. Columbia’s SBDC currently offers courses in more than 10 topics, including supervising and leadership and digital and Internet marketing. Wilson says the center’s educational offerings will only continue to grow. More classes are continually being added, such as succession planning and exit strategy and a course on small-business contracts. The center recently started using technology to its advantage by live-streaming its classes. A recent course on search engine optimization and social media strategies had viewers from across the country, including California and Oregon. Both Wilson and Bateson hope to continue to grow the center’s online offerings and use their own social media strategies to help increase the popularity of the courses.

Proof of concept Last spring the Missouri network of SBDC received its accreditation from the National Association of Business Developers. This accreditation, which occurs every five years, analyses different centers throughout the state. The NABD then checks to make sure the network as a whole meets the standards of accounting procedures, marketing and counseling, among other things. This accreditation is essential to the center’s funding. In July, the center was once again reviewed, this

time by the U.S. Small Business Association. The SBA reviewed several centers across the state to examine three statewide goals: number of longterm clients who had signed up for services, new business starts and capital infusion. Wilson says reviews are given with or without conditions. If a condition is given, the center has one year to fix the issue. However, for the first time since Wilson started working at SBDC, the review was given completely without conditions. Additionally, the network as a whole was recognized for infusing more than $670 million into Missouri’s economy over the past four years. As the center continues to grow and expand its services, Wilson and Bateson hope that the business community in Columbia will take advantage of the programs SBDC offers and help SBDC improve entrepreneurship throughout the state. CBT

Timeline 1977 › The University of Missouri at St. Louis becomes one of seven pilot locations for the Small Business Development Center Program. 1979 › The Association of Small Business Development Centers is formed. 1989 › The Columbia SBDC opens its doors. 2012 › Columbia’s SBDC opens a new office in the business incubator downtown. 2014 › In the spring, the Missouri network of SBDC renews accreditation with the National Association of Small Business Developers. › In July, Forbes names Columbia the sixth Best Small Place in the Nation for Businesses and Careers. › In July, the Missouri network of SBDC receives an outstanding review with no conditions from U.S. Small Business Association. columbiabusinesstimes.com /// 73

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