Crain's Detroit Business, March 30, 2015 issue

20150330-NEWS--0001-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

6:34 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S Readers first for 30 Years

DETROIT BUSINESS March 30-April 5, 2015

Go figure: Data on D’s retail scene

LOOKING BACK What the ‘Hail’?

Yessians call How UM song their own tune went so wrong

PAGE 3

PAGE 4

PAGE 6

Foundations buoy Belle Isle’s future Aquarium, conservatory are high priorities

By Sherri Welch swelch@crain.com

Foundations are lining up support up behind efforts to set priorities for Belle Isle in the years ahead and build the Belle Isle Conservancy’s ability to make them happen.

The foundation support is positioning the conservancy to become to Belle Isle what the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy is to the riverfront.

Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory

This month, a strategic planning process to determine where early investments should be made on the island launched with support from foundations, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the conservancy.

The effort is running parallel with a study making strategic recommendations specifically for the Belle Isle Aquarium and Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory looking at the opportunities for joint operation with other key cultural assets like the Dossin Great Lakes Museum and Belle Isle Nature Zoo. Both efforts are expected to wrap

Because they are the future of your company. Crain’s looks at millennials – the largest age group in the workforce.

up by fall.

“Now that the conservancy is laying the groundwork for investment with more capacity, other foundations are seeing it’s a good time to invest,” said Laura Trudeau, managing director at Kresge Foundation, which provided funding to create the conservancy and provided $300,000 in operating support between 2013 and 2014.

Also spurring foundation investment is the clear resolution over who’s in control of the island, the state’s commitment to work cooperatively with the conservancy and its willingness to provide matching

SPECIAL REPORT STARTS ON PAGE 11 Extras: More photos, complete look at survey data, plus a place for millennials to tell us their story: crainsdetroit.com/millennials

See BELLE ISLE, Page 29

[ISTOCK PHOTO] Advertisement

How did Michigan lawyers secure trademark protection for

faces only their fans could love? (see page 7)

THE FIXER When city’s red tape gives a client the blues, ‘expeditors’ can get things done in Detroit

By Amy Haimerl ahaimerl@crain.com

B © Entire contents copyright 2015

by Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved.

NEWSPAPER

crainsdetroit.com Vol. 30 No 13

$2 a copy. $59 a year.

rian Ellison is in the business of solving people’s problems.

He’s a fixer, a doer, a get-itdone guy. He’s the one you call when nothing and no amount of pleading can get your business, building or development right with the city of Detroit.

In the industry, Ellison is what’s known as an “expeditor,” someone who makes a living knowing whom to call and how to maneuver through seemingly opaque city processes. Expeditors, mostly, help large-scale developers and national retailers push their projects through cities they don’t call home and don’t understand.

A few, like Ellison, help the hometown team by smoothing the path for small-business owners.

And before you ask, yes, they get it done on the up-and-up, not an old-school, greasy-palm kind of done.

“When you first talk to Brian, he’s very impressive and it just doesn’t wear off,” said Joshua Van Berkum, a real estate developer who recently hired Ellison’s firm, Intersection Consulting Group LLC, to untangle a deal with the Detroit Land Bank Authority. “Brian very much carries [JOHN SOBCZAK] “The minute I hear a case, I know himself like an entrepreneur. I feel very comfortable working with him where your stuff is hung up,” said Brian because he knows how government Ellison, whose Intersection Consulting Group LLC helps businesses navigate See FIXER, Page 28 the city of Detroit’s bureaucracy.

20150330-NEWS--0002-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

5:37 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

2

MICHIGAN

BRIEFS Google, Pure Michigan partner to map state by foot ichigan will be the first state

M in the Midwest to join with

Google Inc. to make photos of travel destinations available through Google Maps, The Associated Press reported. The agreement was announced at the Michigan Tourism Conference in Grand Rapids.

The deal will make attractions such as Mackinac Island, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore viewable online through Google Street View with 360-degree imagery. More than 44,000 panoramic photos were taken last fall by members and volunteers of the state’s Pure Michigan team and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

The images were captured using Google Trekker, a backpack system with a camera on top.

Also during the conference, a new report said hotel occupancy statewide was up 2 percent and car traffic 1 percent, although 2014 was 6 percent cooler and 11 percent

wetter than normal. The number of people traveling to and around the state is expected to increase 1.5 percent this year, while tourism spending is expected to climb an estimated 2.5 percent.

Tourism supported 200,000 jobs and generated $18.7 billion in direct spending in 2013, the researchers found.

Midland battery biz in $1B deal with China bus maker Midland-based Xalt Energy LLC stands to fetch more than $1 billion from a contract to supply Hybrid Kinetic Group Ltd. with lithium titanate batteries for electric buses.

Xalt will supply the Hong Kongbased electric-vehicle maker with batteries that can be recharged in less than 10 minutes under the multiyear contract, Bloomberg News reported. Xalt was founded in 2009 as Dow-Kokam LLC. Xalt will begin supplying batteries starting in the third quarter for buses that will be delivered as part of an effort to curb air pollution in the world’s largest carbon emitter.

Xalt plans to hire 80 of the 300 workers needed next month.

Flint council seeks return to Detroit water system Well, at least it wasn’t another story about being a gritty, industrial town featuring occasional uses of the word “hardscrabble.” Flint’s seemingly relentless water problem landed on the pages of The New York Times last week, with residents saying they don’t trust the quality of city water even though officials say it’s safe and tests this year have met all state and federal standards.

Also last week, the Flint City Council voted to stop using the Flint River as the city’s primary source of water, The Flint Journal reported.

The council approved a resolution to reconnect to the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department. But Emergency Manager Jerry Ambrose and Mayor Dayne Walling have said that’s not going to happen.

MICH-CELLANEOUS 䡲 Saugatuck was voted the “Best Coastal Small Town” in a nationwide poll of readers by USA Today.

In 2014, the community was voted USA Today’s “Best Weekend Getaway in the USA.” 䡲 Livonia-based Trinity Health will retain $14 million from the Cadillac Mercy Hospital Foundation rather than transfer the money to a local organization, the Cadillac News and Traverse City Record-

Eagle reported. Moving the money was requested by the family of principal donor Harvey Pell. The funds weren’t part of the sale of the Cadillac hospital by Trinity to Traverse City-based Munson HealthCare. 䡲 Henry Veenstra of Spectrum Health’s Zeeland Community Hospital will retire this fall after 41 years as CEO, The Holland Sentinel reported. 䡲 Grand Rapids-based Kendall College of Art and Design appointed Leslie Bellavance its new president, MiBiz reported. She has been the dean, director of graduate programs and a professor at the School of Art and Design at Alfred University’s New York State College of Ceramics. Bellavance will succeed interim President Oliver Evans, who returned to the job when David Rosen resigned last April. 䡲 Portage Hospital LLC in Hancock in the Upper Peninsula agreed to pay the federal government more

INSIDE THIS ISSUE BANKRUPTCIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 BUSINESS DIARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 CALENDAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 CLASSIFIED ADS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 KEITH CRAIN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 MARY KRAMER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 LETTERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 OPINION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 PEOPLE ON THE MOVE . . . . . . . . . . 23 RUMBLINGS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 WEEK ON THE WEB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

COMPANY INDEX: SEE PAGE 29 than $4.4 million to settle allegations that its home health care agency submitted false claims to Medicare, MiBiz reported. The settlement was the result of a self-disclosure to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Corrections 䡲 A story on Page 20 of the March 15 issue about Pamela Applebaum succeeding her father, Eugene, as president of Bloomfield Hills-based Arbor Investments Group LLC incorrectly reported the genesis of Arbor Drugs Inc. Eugene Applebaum was the sole founder of the drugstore chain in 1974; he had no co-founder. 䡲 A story on Page 1 of the March 23 issue incorrectly said the Midtown Detroit store Frida offers special-occasion clothing for women. It features everyday clothing for women. 䡲 The chairwoman of the Small Business Association of Michigan board is Bonnie Alfonso. An incorrect last name was printed on Page 35 of the March 23 issue.

$507

SAVE up to use promo code:

APRIL 13

CRAINS

AN ALL-DAY BUSINESS MEETING YOU’LL ACTUALLY LIKE. Fuel: Detroit

SM

SM

Presented by

4/13/15, 8 am to 5 pm SOUND BOARD AT MOTOR CITY CASINO

In one power-packed day, companies like yours will be inspired by the leadership ideas of Magic Johnson. Jessica Alba and Brian Lee (The Honest Co.). Seth Godin. Mark Fields (Ford Motor Co.).

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder. And others. Don’t miss one of the biggest business events ever in Detroit. Seating is limited. Register today. FuelLeadership.com.

20150330-NEWS--0003-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

6:01 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

BY THE NUMBERS: THE SOUTHEAST MICHIGAN ECONOMY

Snapshot of the metro Detroit retail market

By Dustin Walsh dwalsh@crain.com

D

etroit’s retail market is one of intrigue. New retail buildings seem to be cropping up across the region, but new retail square footage remains at 30-year

lows.

This is due to a lack of new retail concepts, closures and consolidations of existing stores and the use of existing space, said Jim Bieri, president of Detroit-based StokasBieri Real Estate.

“There’s been a lot of downsizing in recent years and those spaces have to be absorbed into the market,” Bieri

said. “We’re seeing lots of new storefronts, but those have been mostly small projects on outlots.”

Vacancy rates are trending down, to 8.8 percent in the fourth quarter of last year compared to more than 11 percent in 2011, according to CoStar Group. The largest lease last year was 53,677 square feet taken by Dick’s Sporting Goods, moving into the former Wal-Mart space at 13501 Middlebelt Road in Livonia.

See the charts below for a wider picture of Detroit’s retail market.

3

Tigers TV ad rates up despite ratings dip

By Bill Shea bshea@crain.com

Fox Sports Detroit said it has been able to increase Detroit Tigers broadcast advertising rates by nearly 10 percent over last year, thanks to consistently strong audience numbers its telecasts generate.

“We’re seeing rates rising in the high single digits,” said Greg Hammaren, the Southfield-based network’s senior vice president. “Tigers telecasts on Fox Sports Detroit are the most dominant platform on television in Michigan. This is the No. 1 show in prime time across the state of Michigan.”

But after four consecutive years in the playoffs as a division champion, but without a World Series championship for the team, is fan patience waning slightly?

Attendance at Comerica Park fell 5.6 percent to 2.9 million last season, and the number of sellouts dropped from 33 in 2013 to 27 last year.

Local television ratings declined as well, by 24 percent for FSD, and this year’s high single-digit ad rate increases are actually a slight drop-off from 2014.

“Rates had been rising double digits, but that isn’t sustainable,” Hammaren said.

See TIGERS, Page 27

[ANDREW TEMPLETON]

Fox Sports was able to raise ad rates for Detroit Tiger games by 10 percent over last year, while attendance at Comerica Park declined, as did local TV ratings.

[PIERRETTE DAGG AND LISA SAWYER/CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS]

MUST READS of the week ...

Liquid assets

Esperion’s wild ride

They make house calls ...

Food and drink, it turns out, are among the most popular items on the menu of our website. Come take a look before your next business lunch. crainsdetroit.com/food

CEO Tim Mayleben talks about coping with his company’s soaring stock price — and the sore spots that followed.

Page 22

... provided you have your TV or radio on. Meet some of the doctors who practice medicine in the media, and learn what makes them tick.

Page 26

[PHOTO COURTESY OF CORNWALL BAKERY]

20150330-NEWS--0004-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

3:23 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

4

April 1, 1985, issue profiled Dan Yessian’s LOOKING BACK Crain’s burgeoning commercial music jingle company in Farmington Hills. He was working to overcome industry preference for firms in New York and Los Angeles. He’s made headway, and a name for himself. More at crainsdetroit.com/30

Overlooked metro Detroit jingle vendor now can call the tune

By Bill Shea bshea@crain.com

When Crain’s Detroit Business interviewed Dan Yessian 30 years ago for a short profile of his commercial music company, his chief complaint was that the advertising industry looked askance at a jingle vendor based in flyover country. “A local company like ours, especially from Detroit, it was unusual to do high-profile national work.

That was relegated to places like Chicago and New York,� he said recently.

Three decades later, Yessian and his sons that run Farmington Hillsbased Yessian Music Inc. are still battling the industry preference for New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago music suppliers. But they’ve made headway and become

a respected name in the commercial music business.

They’ve also established a Big Apple beachhead: Last year, the company paid about $2.5 million for 3,500 square feet of space — an entire floor bought in a co-op building — on New York’s Fifth Avenue after eight years leasing an office elsewhere in the city, said Brian Yessian, 38, the company’s chief creative officer and Dan Yessian’s oldest son.

Eight staffers work in New York.

The company also has offices in Los Angeles and Hamburg, Germany, and with the Farmington Hills headquarters, Yessian employs 32 people.

The company now has staff composers, using more than 100 freelancers in the U.S. and overseas.

Yessian composes original music

scores for television, movies, advertisements and video games, and does licensing work. It also does music for TV networks, such as ESPN’s college football music show opens and its promos.

While Yessian is known for its commercial music composition and production for ad agencies — the company has done music work on 11 Super Bowl spots the past four years — it also creates music and sound effects for theme parks and museums.

One example of such work: Yessian is currently doing the audiovisual experience sound for the massive observation deck and entertainment center atop One World Trade Center in Manhattan.

That’s a long way from the company’s modest metro Detroit roots.

The sound of music business

Hutch is your single source for comprehensive asphalt and concrete services. a L HL / H L Ă? 0K L Ă? HK Ă™H L / H Ă? 0KI 0 IL K Ăœ Ă? / H LK Ă? (Ăž I HK Ă? Ă› Ă? HK IL 0I 0KHĂœ HK IL Ă? H JI LK / H Ă? (Ăž HĂ?HK IL Ă? ( L / H * IK ĂžK Ă“L KH HK IL 3 IL K K IL Ă? Ă›HĂ? LK Ăš L 0I K IL

Call today for more information at 586.427.7283 or visit us at www.hutchpaving.com to learn more or to request a quote.

It took Dan Yessian, now 70, almost 15 years to break the $1 million revenue barrier.

He had launched the business in 1971 and began to build a rĂŠsumĂŠ with work for children’s shows “Sesame Streetâ€? and “The Electric Companyâ€? in the mid-’70s.

Yessian had given up a teaching job to launch the company, and he also began to write parody songs that were played (for free) on local radio.

He got some notoriety for “Elizabeth Taylor Thighs� — a spoof of Kim Carnes’ 1981 hit “Bette Davis Eyes.� “At that time it was all free. I never got paid for anything,� he said of the parody songs. The financial struggle was also true for his jingle business. “It took a long while for things to settle into things where I was making a decent living, to be frank,� he said.

But things began to get better as the Reagan era got underway.

Yessian created the “Pizza, Pizza� theme for Little Caesars, but the real breaks started to come after Yessian was hired to do music for Whirlpool and for Dodge dealerships nationally through advertising agency D’Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles (now Leo Burnett). The firm also got Chevy work through Campbell Ewald. “It put us on the map,� Dan Yessian said. “When ’85 came, that’s when I began to make money. Between ’85 and ’95, things picked up pretty well. I started doing more national things.�

That’s when his sons came in, in the later 1990s, despite their father encouraging them to do other things. “I was able to deliver a path for them,� he said. “I am a proud father.

They’ve both been able to lasso the thing and develop something more out of it than, frankly, the old man could ever dream.�

Gaining steam Through the mid-1990s, the firm’s

[JACOB LEWKOW]

Dan Yessian encouraged his sons to do something outside the family business. Kids being kids, however, they eventually joined him.“ They’ve both been able to lasso the thing and develop something more out of it than, frankly, the old man could ever dream .� business strategy evolved. Yessian wanted more regional and national work.

Initially, it picked up more national clients via the ad agencies in Detroit, Brian Yessian said. It then began to get large regional account work through other Midwestern cities such as Chicago, Minneapolis and Brian Yessian: Milwaukee.

Chief creative The next major officer. client that added national notoriety for Yessian was De Beers, the global diamond company, through New York mega ad agency J. Walter Thompson in 2001.

Prior to that, the Yessian sons had the company invest in technology upgrades that allowed the company to transmit files electronically rather than the traditional method of sending tapes through the mail. “It became much easier for people to work anywhere, but it was still a hard sell being from Detroit.

We were still perceived as being small town,� Brian Yessian said.

Shedding that reputation required tweaks to the business strategy.

The Yessians began traveling globally to trade shows, events and festivals, such as SXSW in Austin, to connect with agencies, brands, production houses and anyone else that could be a useful contact.

They also opened their first New York office in 2005 and then an L.A. location two years later. “It was all very gradual,� said Brian Yessian. “We were persistent

and kept at it. We started getting a little bit of traction.�

Brian Yessian speaks German, and that aided the effort to gain work in Europe and internationally.

Today, Yessian is working on projects in Russia, India and Singapore.

New business sectors Another revenue stream is licensing through Yessian’s Dragon Licks business. It does research and negotiations for music publishing rights, from independent to major names, Brian Yessian said.

For example, Dragon Licks handled the licensing work for Budweiser’s 2012 Super Bowl commercial that was a mashup of The Cult’s “She Sells Sanctuary� and rapper Flo Rida’s “Good Feelin.�

The money mainly comes from the music Yessian creates, and that requires pitch after pitch — hundreds of them annually. The business model requires doing good work on a large scale because the money for music in commercials hasn’t dramatically risen since 1985. “The budgets haven’t changed much in commercials,� Brian Yessian said.

Jingle work in 1985 started at about $4,000 for Yessian, and that has grown to $15,000 to $20,000 starting per piece.

In 2014, Yessian revenue hit $6 million. The firm has done commercial music work, via ad agencies, for brands such as Cadillac, Chrysler, Jeep, United Airlines, BMW, Audi, Credit Suisse, Wild Turkey bourbon, Walt Disney Co., Budweiser, Gillette, Trojan, Unilever, Neutrogena, Lexus and Ikea. 䥲 Bill Shea: (313) 446-1626 Twitter: @bill_shea19

DBpageAD_DBpageAD.qxd 3/20/2015 5:37 PM Page 1

“IT’S NOT JUST STREETLIGHTS. IT’S ABOUT A SENSE OF COMMUNITY.” ODIS JONES CEO, PUBLIC LIGHTING AUTHORITY OF DETROIT

At one point, 40 percent of streetlights in Detroit didn’t work.

This made life even more difficult for a city that was already struggling.

The Public Lighting Authority of Detroit devised a plan to reilluminate the city. But finding a bank to finance the project during Detroit’s bankruptcy was challenging. Citi stepped up and committed its own capital, which encouraged other investors. So far, thousands of new LED lights have been installed, lighting the way as a model for similar projects around the world.

For over 200 years, Citi’s job has been to believe in people and help make their ideas a reality.

citi.com/progress

© 2015 Citibank, N.A. Citi and Citi with Arc Design are registered service marks of Citigroup Inc. The World’s Citi is a service mark of Citigroup Inc.

20150330-NEWS--0006-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

5:18 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

6

UM song snafu a lesson on social media spirit

By Bill Shea bshea@crain.com

University of Michigan senior Mike Weinberg got an unexpected education about the power and speed of misconception-fueled anger on social media earlier this year.

Weinberg, 22, is the originator of an effort to create a contemporary “pump-up” song for Michigan athletics and other events, called “Hail and Unite: Mike Weinberg: The Michigan AnPump-up song them Movement.” originator.

After one of the co-organizers of the effort asked the student government in February for $2,750 to aid the production of a video and documentary about the to-be-written song’s collaborative development, all hell broke loose.

Confusion about the group’s intent was the culprit. “Hail and Unite” does not intend to supplant Michigan’s iconic “The Victors” fight song, but that’s what some students and alumni believed — and the boondoggle drew national media attention from the likes of the The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post.

Angry alumni, students and fans took to Twitter and other social

media with a torrent outrage, with one going so far as to launch an apparently tongue-in-cheek petition to have the “Hail and Unite” organizers expelled.

The unexpected reaction blindsided Weinberg, as did the speed and intensity of the reaction of what was untrue information.

“It could not have come at a worse time,” he said. “It caught us in a strange space, and we didn’t know exactly what to do.”

Crisis pubic relations veterans aren’t surprised by what happened.

“Social media’s unfortunate side effect is the proliferation of self-appointed armchair vigilantes who fire off unsubstantiated misinformation under the guise of Adrienne truth,” said AdriLenhoff: CEO, enne Lenhoff, prespresident of ident and CEO of Shazaaam! LLC, a Shazaaam! LLC. Novi-based public relations and marketing agency.

“Social media’s viral nature accompanied by the breakdown of traditional social filters, and in many cases, the ease of spreading inaccurate statements or launching personal attacks under a cloak of personal anonymity, can have a

devastating impact on one’s reputation and psyche.”

Weinberg said he spent 48 hours straight in his room, calling and emailing media, campus organizations, UM departments and backers to get the real message out, that “Hail and Unite” had no intention of replacing “The Victors.”

Instead, the intent has been to create something akin to the White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army” and Queen’s “We Will Rock You” that are staples of athletic event power anthems to energize the crowd.

“The Victors” traditionally is played after Michigan scores and is a celebratory piece of music rather than a pump-up song.

Months of work persuading groups and departments to support and participate in “Hail and Unite” were nearly undone, Weinberg said.

Everyone who was spooked is back on board, Weinberg said, and instead of seeking university or student funding, the effort has launched a $64,000 crowdfunding campaign on Funderbuilt, which is based in Southfield.

The campaign launched March 19 and has so far raised $2,805 from 39 donors, or 4 percent of the goal. It closes May 19.

Details are at HailandUnite.com.

Weinberg is not bitter and has

come to appreciate the lesson in communication planning and how quickly things can spin out of control.

“We learned more in the last month than I have in my entire life,” he said.

Namely, the lessons learned are to have a communication plan in place and ensure that everyone involved understands how to deliver a campaign’s message — without confusion — before going public, Weinberg said.

“Make sure everyone knows what to say and not to say,” he said.

Hail and Unite was six days away from launching its website and social media campaigns when the misinformation went viral, he said.

Until the funding is in place, Hail and Unite isn’t negotiating with the athletic department or marching band over the song’s use, he said.

The effort also wants to ensure all the confusion has been cleared up.

“We don’t want to alienate or cause problems for anyone else,” he said.

That includes educating students, alumni and fans that the song isn’t just for games. Hail and Unite wants it to be something played at anything related to UM, and something that can be part of people’s workout music, Weinberg said.

“We want this song to be something people listen to beyond sports,”

he said.

Weinberg, who intends to work in the business side of music when he graduates next month, began the “Hail and Unite” effort in 2013 after working on a Pepsi commercial music shoot in Atlanta.

He wants to replicate that experience for Michigan. The intent is to involve UM alumni, students, faculty, and even fans and family, he said.

The crowdfunding money will pay for contracts with musicians, artists and producers, and donors will be part of a collaboration, he said.

Donors get gifts for their money.

For example, $5 buys a code to download the song, along with an instrumental or marching band version. For $25, they get “Hail and Unite” branded sunglasses, T-shirt and sticker. A vinyl album version of the song, with sleeve, is $30.

A $1,000 donation gets the donor tabbed as an honorary producer listed on the song credits, including on the vinyl and on the video and documentary, plus the gifts from smaller packages.

The largest package is $15,000, which gets the donor a round-trip flight to be in the recording studio, a hotel for two nights, plus all the gifts in the $100, $175 and $1,000 packages.

“We’re trying to bring in Michigan talent to create something that is great and not a bad song,” he said.

“We have had some talks with some producers and writers and artists here and there.”

What the song will sound like is still to be determined.

“We want this song to be exciting, modern-sounding,” he said.

Birmingham attorney Michael Melfi is general counsel for Funderbuilt, and he’s advising the Hail and Unite effort.

He said the song’s creators would own it, but the university would be permitted to use the song for free.

“Their goal was to create a movement around it, not make money,” Melfi said.

Once the group has its funding, it would like to retain Howard Hertz, the entertainment industry attorney and co-founding partner of Bloomfield Hills-based HertzSchram PC. Hertz, who is rapper Eminem’s attorney, declined to comment.

Weinberg is confident the song will come together, but is sanguine if it does not.

“Even if this doesn’t end up raising its goal, I know for my team and myself, this has been such an amazing experience that I could have never dreamt of learning,” he said. “It’s a success no matter what happens.” 䡲 Bill Shea: (313) 446-1626 Twitter: @Bill_Shea19

BANKRUPTCIES The following businesses filed for protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Detroit March 20-27.

Shanta Corp., 721 Elmwood, Troy, voluntary Chapter 11. Assets and liabilities not available.

— Natalie Broda

DBpageAD_DBpageAD.qxd 3/25/2015 3:49 PM Page 1

Rocking the Intellectual Property World Warner Norcross & Judd attorneys blaze new trails in intellectual property law. Raymond Scott and Greg DeGrazia represent KISS Catalog, Ltd., providing trademark solutions and litigation that protect the licensing of the rock stars’ images. When the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office said that faces of entertainers couldn’t be trademarked, they were persuaded to approve precedent-setting trademarks for the iconic face paint of KISS. Trademarks for the face paint and logo are now registered in more cWP] # R^d]caXTb Finding new ways to protect intellectual property is one way our attorneys go the extra mile for clients.

A BETTER PARTNERSHIP ® F=9 R^\ ~ '%% $"" " '

Image © 1983 KISS Catalog, Ltd.

-A

20150330-NEWS--0008-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

5:41 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

8

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS

OPINION Good transit system good for business f there was any doubt that Southeast Michigan needs to invest in an upgraded, truly regional transit system, this week’s issue should be persuasive.

Millennials are speaking. More than 70 percent who responded to a Crain’s survey listed transit as their top wish for the region.

Now, line that up against two other factors: employers screaming for talent, and a new Brookings Institution report that discloses low-income Detroiters travel farther to work than they did before the economic meltdown in 2008-09.

There is no more dramatic example of how broken our system is than the saga of Detroiter James Robertson, who for years walked 21 miles to work because of a fragmented transit system. Robertson now drives, courtesy of a Ford dealership that read his story in the Detroit Free Press.

Getting to work is too hard for too many. Effective transportation is a public service, but it’s also important to business climate and the economy.

I

Keeping millennial workers Millennials are also important to the business climate and the economy.

They’re now the largest group of employees in the workforce, and as Crain’s details in a special report that begins on Page 11, they want feedback, flexibility, mentoring and opportunity.

Part of this comes from the realization that a 30-year career at a single employer may not be on offer. Absent that job security, their priority is building a portfolio of marketable skills.

So the keys to retention are new experiences, development and advancement, and the willingness to bend a little. And feedback — now.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has dropped annual performance reviews in favor of more frequent, timely discussions.

High maintenance?

Maybe.

But according to Lindsey Pollak, a corporate consultant on millennials, the payback for employers is an engaged, productive workforce.

And that’s the goal, right?

MARY KRAMER

New look is latest example of our designs for the future

Publisher mkramer@crain.com

o, how do we look?

Crain’s Detroit Business is celebrating its 30th anniversary in many ways — including redesigning our website and print editions. Late last year, we updated our daily and weekly e-newsletters to “responsive” design, meaning whatever device you use — desktop, smartphone or tablet — you’re able to read stories easily. No more tiny type on the iPhone!

Earlier this month, we unveiled a completely new look for the crainsdetroit.com website.

And today? Our print edition is “ready for its close-up.” We even have a new type font: Utopia. Kind of hope the name is a harbinger.

(The old font was “Nimrod.” Who names these things?)

The redesign was led by Pierrette Dagg, creative services director, and Bob Allen, senior editor/design.

Dagg was project manager and liaison with consultant Ron Reason.

We’ve come a long way since 1985 (see front page on this page). Allen, who has designed Page 1 for Crain’s in all three of its designs over his 22 years, never was a fan of the original 1985 design. He led the redesign in 2000, when our outside consultant looked at reader research, led a couple of reader focus groups and told us: “I don’t want to be known as the guy who introduced ‘new Coke.’

Readers love your publication.”

That 2000 design worked really well for 15 years. Now, after months of surveying readers and hosting focus groups of readers and advertisers, we learned a few things.

You like print for portability. But you want cues to help you scan pages quickly. So you’ll see more “teases” and what we call “smart boxes” on our pages now. “We want to make sure that whatever time you spend with our weekly print issue — 30 seconds or 30 minutes — you’ll come away feeling more informed,” Dagg said.

We also learned you don’t like advertising stickers on Page 1 or ads

S

Bob Allen: ballen@crain.com

Pierrette Dagg: pdagg@crain.com

that cover the entire front page. But you’re open to new forms of advertising, including “native” and narrative ads — as long as they’re labeled. You told us you prefer advertising that offers information versus a pretty image. We made room for both kinds.

“I think to the extent that design enhances storytelling, then our new look does so to a much greater degree than my beloved old design ever could,” Allen told me. “And to the extent you embrace this publication because it presents news you can’t find anywhere else, then this design embraces that ethos.”

Allen noted that the Web rendered some old print elements outdated. “How can you call a Page 1 brief ‘This Just In’ when it comes in the Friday before readers get the paper?” he said. “The design was driving us toward content decisions that made little sense.”

Especially when we post a dozen or more bylined stories every weekday on our website. About 80 stories a week

The first issue of Crain’s in 1985: If looks could , uh, kill ...

Norman Witte III: nwitte@crain.com

Nancy Hanus: nhanus@crain.com

can be found on the site; in our two daily news reports, Crain’s Michigan Morning and Crain’s Afternoon Report; or in one of our specialty digital reports covering health care, manufacturing, talent/workforce and, as of April 6, the business of sports.

Many of those stories never make it to print. We still “break” news in print each week, but we also offer in-depth and more analytical stories. Like this week’s package on millennials.

While Allen and Dagg were working on print, digital strategy director Nancy Hanus worked with Web producer Norman Witte III on our digital overhaul.

Last year, Hanus said, 4 million unique visitors came to crainsdetroit.com, generating an average of 1 million page views a month.

Witte not only implemented a “responsive design,” he made older sections and content more accessible.

Want to check out former classes of 40 under 40 honorees? You can do that easily now by clicking a button at the top of the current awards pages.

In an online survey, you’ve told us the site loads more quickly, is easier to navigate and makes it easy to share stories in social media or by email. You especially like the Top Stories list at the top of the site.

This might be my favorite comment so far: “With the overload of content and lack of time most of us have these days, it is nice to know that the Crain’s Morning News gives me the ability to quickly review and keep on top of what is happening in local business. Well done!!”

And I add: Well said. But that’s my opinion. If you have your own critique, contact us at the emails listed on this page. 䡲

Does it really matter anymore?

KEITH CRAIN though it is still a lifetime E ven away from the next presiden-

tial election a year and a half away, it would appear that the campaigns are in full swing, both for Republicans and Democrats.

Although it would appear that the Democratic nomination is Hillary Clinton’s to lose, she seems to be doing everything possible to

make that happen. If it does, there would appear to be a few likely candidates poised to fill the spot.

The Republicans appear to be down to a couple dozen, with a few more getting ready to come out of the woodwork, like our own governor, Rick Snyder. Add a few more governors, a bunch of senators and others, and it’s going to be another slugfest on the Republican side.

Unless Hillary falters — and that’s probably an even-money bet — the Democrats will have a coronation

rather than a primary, and it won’t matter what Democrats here do.

On the Republican side, Michigan should have more sway than it once did because the primary will be March 8 — better than when it was later in the year and the nomination had been mathematically determined several elections earlier.

But it still feels somewhat futile.

Somehow the political parties have to figure out how to make sure all members of their respective parties get an equal voice in the selec-

tion of their candidate.

Short of the old-time smoke-filled room, the rise of primaries has just about eliminated the need for a convention, other than to have a big party for the faithful.

There should be a national primary for both parties. The candidates don’t want it because it makes locking up the nomination quicker.

But unless you don’t mind going through the empty process of voting in a primary that doesn’t mean a thing, then we need a better process

of picking a nominee. Maybe we shouldn’t have any elections and let them all show up at the convention and fight it out there. That’s the way it used to happen.

I am not sure which would be better, a smoke-filled convention with lots of deal-making or national primary, winner take all.

Today we’ve got a worthless election process that means nothing and costs a lot of money.

Let’s skip the primaries and save the money.

20150330-NEWS--0009-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

11:06 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

9

LETTERS

Congress should keep the A-10 aircraft Editor: I disagree with the characterization of the A-10 as a fighter aircraft (“Defense bill could retire Selfridge jets,” Page 1, March 16). The A-10 is not and never has been a fighter. It was designed from the landing gear up to be a close air support bird. It could defend itself against a fighter, but I wouldn’t put money on it.

Fighters are built to dominate airspace with their guns or air-to-air missiles. While the A-10 has a 30mm gatling gun and a couple of air-to-air missiles for self-defense, that isn’t much. Fighters are fast and armed heavily with weapons to kill other fighters, bombers, attack planes or helicopters. The A-10 isn’t fast, compared to the F-16.

But that lack of speed allows it to be incredibly accurate when dropping bombs, launching missiles, or strafing with the 30mm. The Russians have considered the A-10 a major threat for decades. All of the people we have fought or possibly could have fought since the A-10 came on line fear it, and it has saved countless American lives from Desert Storm to the present.

The Air Force has never been thrilled about the A-10. Since the Key West Agreement of 1949, the Air Force has stopped the Army from having its own armed fixed-wing aircraft. After Vietnam, the A-10 was created to fit that void between the fighter role and dedicated air-toground strike capability. Fighters or fighter-bombers fly too fast to adequately support ground troops.

Yet, there is nothing in the production pipeline to replace the A-10. The F-35 joint strike fighter is a camel cross-bred with a mule. Most ground combat organizations like the U.S. Army and others have been lobbying Congress hard to keep the A-10 because they know how important it is.

As we enter into a period of what is perceived to be “peace in our time,” the Air Force is scrambling to make budget, as are all the military services. The Air Force hierarchy is depending on the F-35 JSF, which has yet to be delivered and proven, to fill the void left by retiring the A-10.

After serving with Navy and Army aviation units, and working closely with the Air Force through my career, I put little trust or faith in a multirole aircraft when it lacks the weapon versatility of a specialist type aircraft.

Bottom line is that to retain the A-10, the Air Force would have to fund it at the expense of other systems it understands better.

For all its myriad failings, Congress does do something right occasionally. In opposing the Air Force, Congress is correct, for the good of those men and women still serving and will serve in harm’s way. Crain’s should support the efforts to keep as many A-10s flying in the active inventory as possible.

Carl Wells Master sergeant, U.S.Army retired former sergeant of Marines

Hertel should’ve given data Editor: John Hertel, SMART general manager, should be ashamed of his childish tactics (“Busing by the numbers: DDOT turns to analytics firm to improve service,” March 16, Page 3). Feeding data to Transit Labs in its role as DDOT adviser would have cost him virtually nothing and provided Transit Labs, which is working for free, with a chance to make better recommendations. In-

Send your letters: Crain’s Detroit Business will consider for publication all signed letters to the editor that do not defame individuals or organizations.

Letters may be edited for length and clarity. Email cgoodaker@crain.com

stead, Mr. Hertel decided not to be part of the project.

I rode SMART buses for several years twice in my career. They are

nothing to brag about and also need all the help they can get, as does our ever-increasing tax subsidy. What is he afraid of, that his 90 percent empty buses might accidentally get a few more connecting riders?

Mark Maisonneuve Berkley

Direct primary care flawed Editor: Jay Greene’s article on the direct primary care model (“Push for direct primary care,” March 23, Page 3) was well researched and well sourced. However, what is missing from the conversation is that the

primary care model, under the patient-centered medical home and other progressive health care and practice redesign initiatives, is moving away from solo doctors and toward team-based care.

The direct primary care model is regressive in that regard, depriving patients access to an onsite team of clinicians with expertise in behavioral health, nutrition and exercise, for example, who in tandem with and under the direction of the primary care physician, provide care for mind, body and spirit.

Ewa Matuszewski CEO, Medical Network One, Rochester

WE BELIEVE PERSONAL ATTENTION IS BEST GIVEN IN PERSON. When you work with the Huntington Private Client Group, we meet with you face-to-face.

Using our Listen, Plan, Advise approach, we work with you to create a clear plan that fits your needs, giving you meaningful advice about the options available for meeting your objectives. As your goals change over time, we help you review your plan to make any necessary revisions. And we keep you involved every step of the way. ®

Eric W. Dietz Senior Vice President and Regional Manager Private Client Group Huntington National Bank 220 Park Street Birmingham, MI 48009 248.637.8206 phone 248.824.4441 cell eric.dietz@huntington.com

HUNTINGTON PRIVATE CLIENT GROUP The Huntington Private Client Group is a team of professionals that includes Private Bankers and Personal Trust Administrators and Portfolio Managers from The Huntington National Bank and licensed investment representatives of The Huntington Investment Company, who work together to deliver a full range of wealth and financial services.

Member FDIC. ®, and Huntington® and Listen, Plan, Advise ® are federally registered service marks of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated. Huntington ® Welcome.™ is a service mark of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated. ©2014 Huntington Bancshares Incorporated.

DBpageAD_DBpageAD.qxd 3/19/2015 10:59 AM Page 1

THANK YOU The Children’s Center would like to thank AutoGlow 2015 Sponsors and ticket purchasers for your generous support. We also thank the Detroit Auto Dealers Association and all NAIAS Charity Preview ticket purchasers who designated their ticket proceeds to benefit our children and families.

P R ES ENTING S P ONS OR

P L ATIN U M S P O N S O R

S I LV E R S P O N S O R S

GO LD SPO N SO R S

BRONZ E S P ONS OR S

MARTIN & SABRINA MAYHEW

MATILDA R. WILSON FOUNDATION

C OP P ER S P ONS OR S

SI LVER - HO N O RARY SPONS OR

IN K IND V ENU E S P ONS OR

IN KIND MEDIA SPONSOR

I N KI N D MAGAZI N E SPO N S OR

IN KI N D F O O D & B EVERAGE S P ONS OR

I N K I N D T R AV E L S P O N S O R

THE CHILDREN’S CENTER | 79 ALEXANDRINE WEST D E T RO I T, M I C H I G A N 4 8 2 0 1 | 3 1 3 . 8 3 1 . 5 5 3 5 | T H E C H I L D R E N S C E N T E R . C O M

20150330-NEWS--0011-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

12:01 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

OUR RESPONDENT

DEMOGRAPHICS

53.5 Male

11

SPECIAL REPORT

MILLENNIALS

IN THE WORKPLACE

46.5 Female

RACE

Meet the millennials

79 White

2 Hispanic

2 Asian

Grace Hsia, Page 15

12

African American

Scott Aaronson, Page 16

1 Native American and 5% other

EMPLOYMENT Do you expect to be working for the same employer five years from now?

said NO

54

Alycia Chuney, Page 17 Jason Davis, Page 18

Are you receiving sufficient mentoring/ training in the SAID workplace?

YES

53

LIFE

Amanda Wendecker, Page 19

Kristin Turner: “Millennials want to be engaged. We don’t want rigid schedules and a rigid workplace.”

64

[GLENN TRIEST]

SINGLE Have no children

79

POLITICALLY 35 Democrat 18 Republican 6 Libertarian 23 Independent 19 Other/none

For employers, words to the wise from the Y’s

By Dustin Walsh dwalsh@crain.com

CAREERS

22

Professional Services

21 25

Communications/ Marketing Unspecified

The rest were distributed over a wide range of professions, including technology, engineering, services, manufacturing, sales, real estate, finance and skilled trades.

36

Work for employers of more than 1,000 employees.

4% are self-employed.

The rest were distributed across a wide range of company sizes.

ristin Turner is a typical member of Generation Y, colloquially known as millennials, in Southeast Michigan. The 28-year-old is employed full time, has an MBA and, like many of her generation, she knows what she wants.

That includes a flexible workplace that allows her social life to integrate seamlessly with her professional life, mentorship, a strong company mission and a challenging career.

“I want a family experience at work; I want to like where I work and believe in the work that I do,” said Turner, a senior manager at Nth Degree Fitness LLC in Royal Oak. “Millennials want to be engaged. We don’t want rigid schedules and a rigid workplace; we want a family experience with the ability to grow.”

And like many of her peers, Turner is passionate about her community, she’s a board member for the Troy-based

K

Children’s Leukemia Foundation of Michigan and is the founder and cochair of the nonprofit’s Youth Advisory Council.

Turner’s priorities are shared by her peers.

Employers ignore that at their peril because millennials are now the largest working generation in the U.S. Employers who aren’t adapting are already losing the talent war, according to experts.

“Millennials want more responsibility, more training and more opportunities,” said Lindsey Pollak, spokesperson for The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc., best-selling author and corporate consultant on the millennial generation. “This can be very high maintenance, which is scary for employers, but with that burden you can get a very, very productive workforce.”

Here’s what employers need to know to get that productive workforce.

See MILLENNIALS, Page 12

Meet the driving force of your workforce The millennial generation — children of the ’80s and ’90s — are now the largest population in the workplace.

This places them squarely in the middle of the current war for talent, and understanding how they’re transforming workplace dynamics is critical for recruitment, retention and success for Southeast Michigan employers.

Crain’s collected survey responses from more than 400 local millennials to find out what they like and don’t like about their jobs and what they value in making career decisions. Respondents came from several sources, including Detroit Young Professionals members, Crain’s databases and social media solicitations. Although there isn’t agreement on which birth years comprise Gen Y, we used 1980 as our starting point.

Our survey was not scientific, but it shows some trends among local employed, careeroriented millennials.

Like their peers nationally, they value flexibility, collaboration and community service.

They also seek challenging work, and lack of a career path, inadequate compensation and disagreements about work/life balance can be points of pain on the job.

They’re mobile, willing to change jobs and locations. Most live in the suburbs, but, for those who plan to remain here, Detroit is on an even par with the suburbs as a future place to live.

Many of them have financial stress. Sixtythree percent are paying off college loans, and nearly three-quarters of those find the payments burdensome.

Find out what they have to say, starting here and continuing through Page 19.

20150330-NEWS--0012,0013-NAT-CCI-CD_--

12

3/27/2015

11:35 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

SPECIAL REPORT: MILLENNIALS

MILLENNIALS,from Page 11: Force in the workforce Millennials like new experiences. To keep them, provide those Lou Glazer, president and cofounder of Ann Arbor-based Michigan Future Inc., a nonpartisan nonprofit funded by Michigan foundations focused on improving the local economy, said millennials, more so than previous generations, care about development more than money. Employers not already providing these opportunities are already losing the most talLou Glazer: On- ented employees, the-job learning he said. matters to them.

“A huge difference with this generation is they are looking for employment where they can expand their skill sets; learning on the job is really important to them,” Glazer said. “They are very interested in developing their craft, even if that means developing that craft with a job move.”

And that’s one reason why more than half of those responding to the Crain’s survey don’t anticipate being with their current employer in five years.

A local African-American corporate attorney, surveyed by Crain’s, said she doesn’t plan on staying with her current employer for the long haul because she’s looking for

new challenges.

“For me, it’s about career goals,” the attorney, 31, said. “After a few years at an employer, I start thinking of where I’m going, where I want to be and whether I need a change.

It’s important to me that I’m always growing.”

But don’t think of the millennials as job hoppers, said Colleen Albright, founder of online recruiting site CulturecliQ LLC, which uses algorithms to match company culture to job candidates.

“Millennials are very discerning on what will engage their interests,” Albright said. “Job hopping occurs when they’ve figured out you filled an open position with a warm body; that doesn’t resonate with millennials.”

Pollak called millennials “experience hoppers,” not job hoppers, due largely in part to social media. “(Millennials) see examples of people doing different things all the time through social media,” Pollak said. “There is more exposure to experiences than ever before, and the fear of missing out is so much stronger with this generation.”

Mentorship also is important A 30-year old African-American woman who works as a counselor at an institution of higher education, and who asked to remain anonymous, said she’s stagnant in her career because it’s lacking proper

mentorship and room for personal and professional growth.

“Mentorship is important because it helps navigate the foundation of your career path,” she said.

“I’m not getting that perspective, and it’s frustrating to the point of me wanting to seek other positions.”

Advancement matters, too.

“Millennials, in general, we’re looking for upward mobility and greater challenges. There can only be so many times you can be rewarded with extra work. I am grateful for my employer’s trust, and I don’t necessarily want more money.

I work hard, so why not reward me with a promotion?”

Millennials are interviewing – your mission matters Albright said millennials approach potential jobs like free agents – they desire an employer that is right for them, not just any open job.

“We’re not a conventional generation; we’re not looking to get a job and work until you’re 62 and retire,” said David Mangum, 27, an urban planner for Birminghambased Gibbs Planning Group Inc. “We look at our profession as a representation of our lifestyle and values.”

For Mangum, that means an employer that respects his desire for See Next Page

20150330-NEWS--0012,0013-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

11:35 AM

Page 2

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

SPECIAL REPORT: MILLENNIALS From Previous Page

sustainability and an active lifestyle.

Gibbs Planning reimburses employees for taking the bus or riding a bike to work, he said.

“I have to believe in the mission of the company to be happy,” Mangum said. “I find the responsibility, financially and otherwise, of owning a car as burdensome, and I’m encouraged and rewarded for not using it. I respect that.”

Pollak said employers face ramifications for not adjusting to the millennial workforce.

“If the future of your business is millennials, as it is for most companies, you have no choice but to change,” Pollak said. “You must capture the employees of the future, and the customers of the future, to compete.”

Accounting and consulting megafirm PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP recognized its need to change.

By 2016, roughly 156,000 of its 195,000 employees will be millennials, the firm said in a recent study. Roughly 75 percent of Pwc’s 750 employees in Michigan are millennials, said Ray Telang, managing partner for the Michigan market.

Telang said over the past five years, Pwc struggled to retain its millennial workforce and aimed to reduce turnover through structural changes to accommodate the needs of millennials.

“We were seeing a significant amount of turnover in that profile of employees we’d never see before,” Telang, 49, said. “What we realized was the world of business continued to be demanding as ever, but our business model needed to change to fit our workers.”

Telang said locally, the firm focused on three specific areas to better attract and retain the millennial workforce — flexibility, feedback and social mission.

The firm created an engagement calendar, which plans out time off and flexible schedules for various teams without sacrificing needs of clients.

“For me, I stayed at work until I was told I could leave, but millennials work and engage in a different way,” Telang said. “If I really want the best talent and I really want my clients to have access to the best talent, I need to embrace all the tools that are available to me, such as flexibility.”

Lauren Major, 25, marketing manager for her family’s auto supplier, Clinton Township-based Harry Major Machine & Tool Co., said a flexible schedule is key to her happiness, even if it’s misunderstood by older coworkers.

“I know a lot of people think we’re lazy, but really we’re quicker, more efficient and great at multitasking,” Major said.

“I want options, especially if there’s something important happening in my social life; I work hard and put in the hours, just maybe in a different way than previous generations.”

Give plenty of feedback and give it now. Tell the truth For Detroit-based advertising and design firm Skidmore Studios, the power of the millennial generation meant a new direction for the 55-year-old company.

Earlier this year, the agency announced it would now specialize in branding to millennials. Skidmore

started the focus when Dallasbased restaurant chain Dave and Buster’s hired Skidmore to help it reach the millennial audience via new TV campaigns and branding, and the agency’s work fueled 10 percent same-store sales growth last year, Skidmore CEO Tim Smith told Crain’s.

See MILLENNIALS, Page 14

13

20150330-NEWS--0014-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

11:36 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

14

THE PARTY IS ON! CELEBRATE CRAIN’S 20 IN THEIR 20s 10TH ANNIVERSARY

-81( • 3 0 $W Register: crainsdetroit.com/events or call (313) 446-0300

SPECIAL REPORT: MILLENNIALS

MILLENNIALS, from Page 13: Words from the Y’s “Millennials are masters of sniffing out bullshit, and that’s as much a marketing message as a warning to employers,” Smith said. “You really have to be honest with what you’re looking for and what you’re trying to accomplish to attract them. One of the best things you can do is just be incredibly transparent.”

Pwc also recognized this generation’s desire for feedback. The firm ended its annual performance reviews, instead instructing managers to provide immediate feedback on a meeting by meeting and project by project basis, Telang said.

“Millennials ... want to work for companies that are not only supporting the communities in Be part of something bigger which they live, and mean it but those building Possibly the greatest change for a community of Pwc was changing its community peers and social support.

“Millennials want to feel they are networks.” part of something bigger; they want to work for companies that are not only supporting the communities in which they live, but those building a community of peers and social networks,” Telang said. “(Millennnials) have really forced me to have a different sense of community.”

Pwc instituted more opportunities for its workers to interact with managers and executives in off-site social settings as well as stepping up

Join us for a Plante Moran Webinar Covering topics from healthcare cybersecurity to doing business in Mexico, Plante Moran’s 2015 spring webinar series offers insights about top-of-mind business challenges. Our CPE-approved* webinars draw thousands of attendees every year. Double-booked?

Don’t worry. Visit the webinar archives and enjoy the presentation at your convenience. Join us and find out why Plante Moran’s webinars offer

a higher return on experience.

Ray Telang, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC

its nonprofit work.

Locally, the firm asked its leaders to take more leadership roles within the community, which has resulted in 50 percent of its leaders taking seats on boards, up from 25 percent a few years ago with a goal of reaching 90 percent, Telang said.

The firm also upped its charita-

ble campaign from $250,000 in 2013 to $750,000 in 2015, largely because of its millennial workforce, Telang said.

“It’s important that we demonstrate our commitment to the community,” Telang said. “As our young people see that, it attracts them our organization, but it also provides model behavior for our future leaders.”

Nth Degree’s Turner volunteers up to 25 hours per month as a board member at the Children’s Leukemia Foundation of Michigan.

Her employer has sponsored several events for the foundation, something Turner said is critical to her happiness at an employer.

“It’s important in general to be involved with nonprofit work, but it’s especially important employers support their employees’ passions outside of work,” Turner said.

“I feel there’s a growing trend with my generation to get involved, and gaining support from our employers is becoming more and more common.”

The growing sense of community and philanthropy is causing many millennials to evaluate where they live as well as work.

According to the Crain’s survey, 65 percent live in a metro Detroit suburb and 26 percent live in the city of Detroit. However, when asked where they’d prefer to live, 37 percent said in the city of Detroit, compared to 39 percent in a suburb and 15 percent elsewhere in the U.S. This bucks the trend among millennials across the nation. According to U.S. Census Bureau data released earlier this month, 529,000 millennials from 25 to 29 years old moved from cities out to the suburbs in 2014; more than 426,000 that moved from the suburbs to the city.

Amanda Campbell, project manager running a grant-funded nursing mother program for Warrenbased St. John Providence Health System with an MBA in health care, lives in Royal Oak, but imagines moving to Detroit.

“I’m from Buffalo (N.Y.) and moved here because of Detroit has so many powerful health systems, but so many disparities; I ended up in Royal Oak because of Detroit’s reputation,” Campbell, 24, said. “I spend so much time in Detroit now that Midtown is really developing, I could really see myself living there.”

Surprised by the power of millennials? You shouldn’t be

Register at webinars.plantemoran.com * Plante Moran is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be submitted to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors through its website: www.learningmarket.org

Don’t be surprised by the power of millennials, after all, they are the product of another influential group, the baby boomers, Pollak said.

“Look at the influence (baby) boomers had on the world; they changed everything,” Pollak said.

“Millennials are too big to ignore.” 䡲 Dustin Walsh: (313) 446-6042 Twitter: @dustinpwalsh

“I Il

20150330-NEWS--0015-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

11:37 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

15

SPECIAL REPORT: MILLENNIALS

Possible is everything.

GRACE

Today, more than ever, global competition, new technologies, and corporate

HSIA

streamlining require innovative thinking and leadership abilities. Continuing your education can be key to your success. From project management and entrepreneurial skills to business

In world of startups, life seems to never end G

race Hsia’s greatest desire is to make a difference.

Her greatest challenge to doing that is time management.

That’s because the 26-year-old is both committed to helping startup entrepreneurs as project manager of the First Customer Program at the University of Michigan and running her own startup, Warmilu LLC, which she co-founded in 2011 while getting her master’s degree in entrepreneurship at the university.

“It’s kind of a dream,” Hsia said.

“I’ve helped just under 200 startups and I’ve learned so much. That is something that has kept me at this job opportunity and made me wake up with passion.”

And with Warmilu (Warm+ILoveYou), she gets the added benefit of doing good in the world. The company developed a technology that brings nonelectric, reusable, instant heat sources to those in need— such as pre-term infants and those who suffer from chronic pain. Warmilu recently received one of its first large orders and recently hired a director of operations to oversee the expansion.

Hsia could potentially think about focusing on Warmilu full time, but like many of her friends, she faces student loan burdens. However, she finds the debt manageable, though it means she frequently cooks at home and is always aware of the trade offs she is making. She and her friends were raised to “do good; that we have the power to positively impact the world around us,” but now that they face the realities of student loans, they are considering volunteering, not just careers, as a way to satisfy that desire.

“Student loans are pretty impactful,” she said. “I have three friends who are going through med school.

They want to do good, but they are going to be strapped with student loans so they are mindful of that.”

Hsia’s background in entrepreneurship drew her to the position

at the university, but she was also impressed by the diverse talent she would work alongside. In fact, before the interview, she researched the people at the Institute for Research on Labor, Employment and the Economy and discovered that the mayor of Hamtramck, Karen Majewski, also is on staff.

“That was one of the cool things that drew me to the job,” she said.

“The types of people that I would be working with and the opportunities to impact other people.”

By comparison, in a previous job search Hsia decided to forgo one company because of a lack of diversity.

“This company didn’t have very favorable policies for women to take time for maternity leave and they didn’t seem supportive of gender and equality with the LGBT community,” she said. “That matters a great deal to me. Everyone has basic human rights and we should be treated equally.”

For those firms looking to hire — and keep — millennials such as herself, Hsia said the ability to grow and evolve in a role is critical. For her, job titles aren’t important, but evidence that she is progressing and developing is essential.

“There needs to be some kind of recognition,” she said. “Here I actually got a raise after my first year. That was amazing. I was like ohmygosh, I matter. It doesn’t have to be a raise. You just need to show a young co-worker that what they are doing matters and that they have to have progressed.”

When things do get stressful or hectic, Hsia finds her center by running and biking. She loves being outside, which is what drew her to the Ann Arbor area for college and now as a young professional. She likes that she can be near her family, build a career in Southeast Michigan and enjoy all of the trials and parks in Ann Arbor. 䡲 — Amy Haimerl

administration and information technology, Lawrence Technological University offers innovative degrees and fast-track certificate programs to prepare you for the careers of the future.

2015

Explore over 100 undergraduate,

UNIVERSITY

master’s, and doctoral programs

TOP 100

Highest Alumni Salaries 2

PayScale

2015 AMERICA’S BEST

UNIVERSITIES

Design, Arts and Sciences, Engineering, and Management.

U.S. News & World Report®

2015

BEST COLLEGES in the Midwest Princeton

Review®

Lawrence Technological University 21000 West Ten Mile Road, Southfield, MI 48075-1058 | 800.225.5588 | admissions@ltu.edu | www.ltu.edu

READERS FIRST FOR 30 YEARS.

Readers first for 30 Years

DETROIT BUSINESS

PHOTOS OF MILLENNIALS BY EDWARD MAURER

in Colleges of Architecture and

20150330-NEWS--0016-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

11:04 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

16

SPECIAL REPORT: MILLENNIALS

SCOTT

AARONSON Attorney’s Web success propels law practice S cott Aaronson is living his dream — practicing law and being his own boss.

“I have always worked for my-

Waterfront Living

Windsor, Ontario Canada www.portofinocondo.ca

• Spectacular views of the Detroit river, Detroit skyline, & Windsor’s finest park lands.

• Convenient to U.S. border, downtown district • Roof top terrace and underground parking included • Favorable exchange rates • Suites from 1,062 to 2,450 square feet.

Call Julia McClelland

Sales Representative (519) 990-1928 summer@sympatico.ca

self,” Aaronson, 29, said. “Ultimately, my career goals are less to move up in the company and more to expand on the businesses that I am currently running.”

In 2007, during law school, just as the economy was going into the tank, Aaronson started an Internet company, SampleADay.com, which is dedicated to providing people with valid free samples obtained from third-party companies.

He had no idea that his company would grow to nearly 500,000 daily subscribers, which has given Aaronson the freedom to do what he really loves to do — practice law without the headaches and stress of loan debt.

“It was interesting. ... I started the website as a way to make a little bit of extra money, because I enjoy traveling and wanted to make some money to travel,” Aaronson said.

“What ended up happening was there was a recession and, being an attorney at that time, it was really difficult to find jobs. I think a lot of people in my age group came across that same issue. When I finished law school, pretty much all my peers that I know, a good majority of them, had no career options.”

Aaronson says he was fortunate in that he was able to take his career successes from business and start his own Southfield-based law firm.

It gave him the option to focus on what’s important for any lawyer — getting clients.

“Once I had the clients, I partnered with a lot of mentors,” Aaronson said. “I could literally focus on learning the law.”

Aaronson runs a full-service law

firm (877-I-CAN-WIN) that focuses mostly on criminal and personal injury law.

“When you’re in a recession, it forces people to innovate almost out of necessity,” Aaronson said. “I think I have always been kind of an entrepreneur. It’s something that has been natural for me. I have more financial stability than I could have ever imagined at my age. I try really, really hard to work smart.”

Aaronson bowed out of day-today management of the website in 2011, but it still provides a major portion of his income. Most of what he brings in from the law practice still goes back out to buy advertising.

Aaronson’s family owns the Southfield company Signs By Tomorrow.

“A lot of who we are and what we do has a lot to do with the environment that we were raised in,” Aaronson said. “My dad started his business in 1990 after working for Ford for 20 years. And while he enjoyed working for Ford, he took a giant risk when people from his generation were not taking those type of risks. I think it has played a big role in my entrepreneurial spirit.

“You know, millennials get a bad rap for being lazy, uncommitted and not loyal, but I think that is so unfair and so not true. I think we’re just as committed. I think we’re just like any other generation. We’re willing to do what we have to do.”䡲 — Zack Burgess

20150330-NEWS--0017-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

3:38 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

17

SPECIAL REPORT: MILLENNIALS

ALYCIA

CHUNEY For global generation full of dreams, status quo is no-go s a new generation coming of age, millennials are considered more global, more tolerant, more diverse, more educated and more connected than any generation before them. They are defined by their willingness to forgo the status quo and pursue their passions — like working for the Student Conservation Association.

Despite $100,000 in college debt to pursue her education, Alycia Chuney, a program manager of the SCA in Detroit, is perfectly happy being a part of something that she feels is bigger than herself.

“I work in a field that is helping me pursue a dream. Someday I would actually like to be running my own nonprofit here in the city of Detroit, teaching youth about the importance of the environment,” she said. “I would also like to teach them about not only the importance of the environment but the importance of social and food justice and the importance of college education.”

SCA is an Arlington, Va.-based nonprofit whose mission is to inspire environmental and community stewardship and build the next generation of conservation leaders.

For Chuney, 25, whether it’s helping Detroit high school students twice a week through the Midnight Golf Program or supervising a group of high school students with the construction of a mountain bike trail in an inner-city park — service is a passion.

Chuney, who has a master’s degree, said her parents kept her and her triplet sisters involved in activi-

A

ties that stressed the importance of giving back. Her father was a Detroit police officer, so she often found herself volunteering at parades. Her mother was a city employee.

Because she grew up as a triplet, teamwork always has been important.

“We always worked together to get things done,” Chuney said. “I think it has helped me do well in life. … I make enough money to support myself and I am active in the community. That’s huge, if you ask me.” 䡲 — Zack Burgess

YOU CAN TELL FROM OUR BUILDING WE MEAN BUSINESS. The GVSU Seidman College of Business full- or part-time M.B.A. program will get you to the top.

West Michigan’s premier business school now has an equally premier building, enhancing downtown Grand Rapids’ growing skyline and economic climate.

20150330-NEWS--0018-NAT-CCI-CD_--

18

3/27/2015

11:09 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

SPECIAL REPORT: MILLENNIALS

“I’m not saying my plan is to get my Ph.D. and move to California, but those are places that kind of pique my interest.�

JASON

DAVIS

Ph.D. candidate confident – yet cautious – of future n just under two years, you should be able to call Jason Davis “Dr. Jason Davis.�

But the 30-year-old Algonac native, who is pursuing a doctorate in education with a focus on leadership at Oakland University, knows there will be some difficulty in the job market ahead, if for no other reason than his age. “One of the things I’m more cognizant of is that I’m going to be having my Ph.D. when I’m 31 or 32 but to expect some sort of attitude because people in higher education typically don’t get their Ph.D.s until

I

later in life,� said Davis, who has been alumni relations coordinator for the University of Michigan electrical engineering and computer science department in Ann Arbor for a year and a half. “In my program now, I am the youngest person. I need to acquire skills and experiences outside of just my education.�

So Davis spends between five and 15 hours per month volunteering with a variety of organizations, such as Franklin-Wright Settlements Inc., a community center on Charlevoix Street in Detroit; Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michi-

!3 0!24.%23 9/5 '%4 4/ &/#53 /.

"5),$).' 9/52 "53).%33 7(),% 7% &/#53 /. &).!.#).' )4

Increase your cash ow and pursue bigger opportunities with our customized, exible lending solutions. s ! 2 &INANCING s ,INES OF #REDIT

(248) 658-1100 www.hitachibusinessďŹ nance.com

gan; Focus: Hope; Camp Michitanki, run by UM for children who have received an organ transplant; St. Baldrick’s Foundation, a childhood cancer charity; and others.

Davis, whose primary research interests of diversity and inclusion were triggered by his experience at the University of Michigan-Dearborn as an undergraduate and graduate student, remains confident that he can find career opportunities locally, whether that’s as a professor or becoming a university staff member focused on improving student success.

Davis, who holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in public administration with a focus on nonprofit leadership, however, is open to positions in other states. “I’m not saying my plan is to get my Ph.D. and move to California, but those are places that kind of pique my interest,� he said.

Even though he believes his college education is worth the cost, looming over his head are payments of more than $100,000 in student loans. “When I look at other positions or other roles I want to have, that’s something I do have to be aware of because I do have these hefty loans I have to make payments on,â€? he said. “Knowing that you have that kind of debt already, it kind of makes you second-guess a lot of things with everyday life, not only career positions, but purchasing a home and different expenses that naturally come up.â€? 䥲 – Kirk Pinho

20150330-NEWS--0019-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

11:38 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

19

SPECIAL REPORT: MILLENNIALS

AMANDA

Learn how to align your people, processes and sales culture

WENDECKER Willing to work, but with balance A manda Wendecker, 29, most identifies with her “millennial” label when it comes to seeking a work-life balance.

“I grew up watching my dad, who owned his own business, work six days a week, every week. To have more of a balance in my own life is huge for me,” Wendecker said. Her husband, Jason, an account coordinator, shares her belief.

Wendecker attended Central Michigan University, changing majors a few times before deciding to focus on her interest in communication. She received a bachelor’s degree in public relations. After graduation, she returned to the Detroit metro area where she had grown up.

“It was a choice,” Wendecker said. “I love this area.”

In 2008, she started as an administrative assistant at Michigan Boating Industries Association. Jobs at the time were scarce, and Wendecker was hoping for the opportunity to prove herself.

“I get my strong work ethic from my Dad,” Wendecker said. Her boss noticed her commitment and started giving her more responsibilities in marketing and communications. “Eventually I moved up, starting a career path in my field.”

Wendecker was promoted to marketing coordinator and is now the marketing, public relations and meetings manager. Her responsibilities include running five websites and organizing and executing an annual conference.

As Wendecker continued to prove herself, the company also offered one of her most important requirements — one that became more important when Wendecker became a mother a year ago — flexibility.

“I always knew I wanted a career and to be a mom, so a flexible workplace was important to me,” she said.

With the arrival of her daughter, her hours reduced from 40 to 36 a week, although during boat shows and conferences ,14-hour workdays can be common.

“I would hate to walk away from my career,” Wendecker said. Her own mother returned to work when Wendecker started kindergarten, but held a series of jobs, Wendecker said, not a career.

The company also accommodates the emergencies that arise with parenthood.

“In return for the flexibility to be with my family, I

“Building a World Class Sales OrganizaƟon”

want to work harder and support the association more.”

Wendecker hopes to continue to build her career at the boating association. “I want to stay here for the long term, continue to move up and make a difference in this organization,” she said, also noting that the opportunity to wear a lot of hats makes her job a “keeper.”

Wendecker says on-the-job training — a combination of conferences, seminars and an executive director with job knowledge to share — makes her believe her career goals are achievable.

“Someday I’d love to manage an association,” Wendecker said, adding, “But I have a long way to go.” 䡲 — Laura Cassar

May 6th 7:30-10:30 AM WesƟn Southfield Join Dave MaƩson, CEO of Sandler Training and Gerry Weinberg & Associates as they lead top area sales execuƟves in this leadership summit that will RevoluƟonize Your Sales OrganizaƟon!

SeaƟng is Limited | Reserve Your Spot Today

www.gerryweinberg.sandler.com or Call 248-353-4030

20150330-NEWS--0020,0021-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

11:39 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

20

State continues VC funding, but debate continues According to Jon Braeutigam, the treasury department’s chief investment officer, as of the end of the last fiscal year, Sept. 30, VMF I still Jon Braeutigam: had $18.7 million Top official at to disburse, and Treasury VMF II had $75.8 million.

Had the two funds stopped making previously agreed-to payments to VC firms, the firms would no longer have been required to make distributions back to the Venture Michigan Fund, the corporate entity the funds operate under, as they sold off successful portfolio companies.

If that had happened, the state would have been on the hook for $450 million in tax vouchers put up for collateral to borrow the money for the funds: $200 million for the $95 million loan from Deutsche Bank that created the VMF I fund in 2006 and $250 million for the $120 million loan from an affiliate of Credit Suisse that created the $120 million VMF II in 2010.

“You don’t walk away from capital calls without draconian results. The state of Michigan should not be defaulting on contracts,” said Tom Kinnear, chairman of the Venture

By Tom Henderson thenderson@crain.com

State legislators have backed off a plan to end funding for venture capital firms from two state funds created during the Granholm administration to help diversify the economy.

Legislators wanted to halt funding after the House Fiscal Agency said it might cost the state $140 million in the next three years to cover shortfalls in loan and interest payments for one of the funds.

But had the legislation gone through as originally written, it could have cost the state $450 million.

State venture capitalists are glad the funds will continue to invest in them, but it leaves unsettled the question: What should the state’s role be in providing more financial support to venture capital firms willing to invest here?

House Bills 4195 and 4196, introduced Feb. 12, originally planned to halt investment from the $95 million Venture Michigan Fund I LP and the $120 million Venture Michigan Fund II LP, despite previously agreed-to commitments.

Though contracts with VC firms committed all the money from both funds, much of it has yet to be disbursed. It is only paid out as VC firms make what are called capital calls to cover the costs of new investments.

Michigan Fund since it was launched in 2006 and the founding executive director of the Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies Tom Kinnear: at the Ross School of Business at the State shouldn’t of default on pacts. University Michigan.

Substitute language for those bills was introduced March 24 at the House Commerce and Trade Committee — based on recommendations from the Michigan Economic Development Corp. and state Treasury officials — that allows funding to continue.

The bills are expected to have bipartisan support in the Legislature.

The major thrust of the proposed laws, as rewritten, will be to end the Venture Michigan Fund program in 2029, instead of the 2054 originally intended.

The laws also prohibit the funds from entering into any new agreements with VC firms, but that is a moot point for now since the funds are fully committed. As money was returned to the Venture Michigan Fund from VC firms, new commitments could have been made under the old rules.

Braeutigam said that with the risky nature of venture capital investing and the often lengthy time from incubation to the sale of portfolio companies, legislators in 2003 probably thought some tax voucher money might be needed when the first payments came due this year.

But what they thought might be a modest shortfall grew much larger as a result of the Great Recession, which hit just after VMF I was launched and greatly slowed local VC activity.

The first payment on the VMI I fund is due this year, of $50 million.

That amount is set, but amounts projected by the House Fiscal Agency, $50 million next year and $40 million in 2016-17, could be lower, depending on if participating VCs have successful exits of portfolio companies.

Braeutigam said the first payment on the VMF II fund is due in 2021.

“The current funds will pay back substantial amounts of money to the treasury,” said Kinnear. “Tax vouchers will be used to some degree, but the problem is temporal, not systemic. Ultimately, the treasury will be paid back.”

What’s next?

296 to invest in the fledgling VC community here and to encourage out-of-state VC firms to open offices in the state.

Venture Michigan Fund was incorporated in 2006, with Credit Suisse hired to manage investments. In January 2007, the first investments were announced from the VMF I fund, in San Francisco-based Nth Power, Madison, Wis.-based Venture Investors LLC and Ann Arborbased Arboretum Ventures LLC. “This was all done with good intentions,” Rep. Al Pscholka, RStevensville, told Crain’s. “I was in economic development in Benton Harbor in the Al Pscholka: “All 1990s, and we done with good were all yelling at intentions.” the state legislature that we didn’t have enough venture capital, but the structure of it made no sense.”

Kinnear said that in retrospect, using tax vouchers as collateral “is a very inefficient way to invest in venture capital.” Even so, he said, the liability is minuscule compared to the $9.4 billion in tax credits the

In 2003, broad bipartisan support in Lansing created Public Act

See Next Page

The Detroit Regional Chamber Mackinac Policy Conference, May 26–29.

REACH CRAIN’S MOST INFLUENTIAL AUDIENCE OF THE YEAR! Reach the area’s most influential business, civic and government leaders, plus thousands of Crain’s Detroit Business readers who can’t attend the Detroit Regional Chamber Mackinac Policy Conference.

-RG1-CCI-CD_--

20140602-NEWS--0051,0052

5/28/2014

12:33

Page M51 CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS

Crain’s Annual Mackinac Edition | ISSUE DATE: June 1 | EARLY CLOSE: May 14 C

June 2, 2014

2014 Mackinac Policy Conference

small Growing large by thinking by big business alone If entrepreneurship is to revive Detroit,

This special edition includes two other powerful features:

it can’t be fueled

TECHTOWN BY THE NUMBERS

BY AMY HAIMERL

Between 2007 and 2013

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS

which 䡲 Served 866 companies, jobs and raised

believe in entrepreneurs. if That is what I would say I were on the old NPR show “This I Believe,” where a contributors talked about to range of topics that spoke the their souls, from ghosts to food power of diversity. My critic friend Jason Sheehan recorded one of the show’s most popular missives: I believe in barbecue.

I’ve always wondered what I would I besay if asked. I know now: lieve in entrepreneurs.

I

created 1,155 more than $103 million in follow-on investment

Building numbers

䡲 Physical tenants: 26

(82% occupancy) and 䡲 Mailbox tenants (mailbox and access to conference rooms support services): 24 (share desk space 䡲 Co-workers 17 off the lobby):

tech The venture capital-fueled startups toiling away in Dan Gilbert’s incubator and acceleralaudtor are doing important and lead able work that will hopefully bringto huge successes. They are showing sexy back to Detroit by Moing the world a very different seen tor City than the one they’ve But in the ruin-porn compilations. of piece critical a while they are fuel our future, they alone cannot City. bethe resurgence of the Motor I believe in their hustle. I al in It will take an entrepreneuri lieve in their drive. I believe deINC. spirit, and a culture of entrepretheir unwillingness to accept COURTESY OF TECHSHOP foto neurship, rather than a myopic feat. I believe in their ability region. the in the opportunities needed over cus on one industry, to grow welding and other skilled trades pick themselves up and start in MichiTechShop in Allen Park provides economy and create jobs in the again. I believe in their willingand checked shirts sitting othsuccess gan. Anything else is an old-school Robin profits. The result of that ness to see opportunity where Madison Building,” said jobs that allow people to support economic development. of big — is that small has model being urban of the — ers only see challenges. of Boyle, chairman bethese small business owners.

“To put all our money in one I believe in the men and women not been celebrated. However, planning and studies department whatdeDetroit Regional Chamber bedisruptive classic The medical the more is to new ng that leads “That’s thing, small ing commercializi so at Wayne State University.

Boyle. startleads to lieves in them, too. So much the enwe’ve-done-in-the-past,” said innovations. Being small vice innovations and the ones hip a presented in the media as busileads to I believe that it made entrepreneurs that’s “We throw big money at big being nimble. Being small ing new auto-body shops.

Politrepreneurial spirit, and That to who are tenet of this year’s Mackinac ness that will come there. creativity. Being small leads in the food entrepreneurs alienating to many people.” soand vegcy Conference. world is gone. We need a more possibilities.” new possibilities. turning jams and sausage al e’re trying to do here is busi“What we’re phisticated and denser approach.”

Being small and entrepreneuri an delicacies into thriving this really have a different culture When the idea of entrepreneuralso has the ability to remake nesses. I believe in the immigrants Sandy But their mindset in Michigan,” said ship as an economic development hip is about so state, and revive our cities. who move to our shores with “We Entrepreneurs chamber. the to of as ” EO CEO drive.

Baruah, and codtool was formally introduced only if we define “entrepreneur entrepreneurial spirit and much more than optimism ke being an entrepreit seemed own need to make the region six years ago, growing and I believe in high-tech companies someone who sets his or her about It’s path skills. ing celebrated more vich thinkers. neur a much like a crazy idea to many destiny, rather than the narrow developing products we never starting a business, supporting the uals. This has been a in that has for individuals. building Even those who did embrace sion of small tech startups even knew we needed. I believe for your family, adding jobs, that feed state that has been successful your captured the zeitgeist. neighborhood businesses See Next Page wealth. It’s about controlling to be culbeing big.

“Entrepreneurship tends our communities and our future. mpanies. Big unions. Big beards fast“Big companies. presented as four kids with tures. And I believe in the nt, and even big noncreate government, growing companies that

Crain’s tenth annual 20 in their 20s — spotlighting the distinct accomplishments of the area’s newest generation of business visionaries still in their twenties.

Starting small

Bonus distribution on Thursday at the Governor’s speech

bout real engagement t lk abou f talk mee for MARY KRAMER: Tim MACKINAC ISLAND — Leave it to Detroit to find the downside in a $100 million gift.

That was my first reaction to hearing negative comments about the $100 million commitment to Detroit revitalization that J.P. Morgan Chase Chairman Jamie Dimon announced in Detroit on May 21.

At the policy conferDemocrat ence here, a prominent mortgage told me that given the on Demeltdown’s traumatic effect speaking troit, many people he was

with believed $100 million was hardly enough.

After all, the bank settled with the feds late last year for a record $13 billion over its role in poor-quality selling mortgage-backed securities at the core of the mortgage mess that helped to decimate Detroit’s neighborhoods.

But what do you do? money Chase the Leave money on the table? Or take the to pe to leverage more of it and hope e Detroit’s turnaround? finance What Clearly,, I think it’s the latter.

Detroit needs most is investment the city’s and jobs. Without both, turnaround chances are dim. of I was out of town the week but the Chase’s announcement, hugely media coverage I saw was Michigan positive. One exception: ThompChronicle editor Bankole gesture Chase the son, who framed good” vs. in the context of “public “public relations.”

The Chronicle is Michigan’s in the leading media voice African-American community. role — Thompson raised Chase’s it acor the role of companies crisis. quired — in the mortgage t The $100 million announcemen

since was somewhat surprising in Chase has been a quiet presence stature Detroit, clearly not in the of its ancestor, NBD Bank. is At the very least, Thompson million hopeful that Chase’s $100 fingercould spur others “whose present prints are absent or barely on Detroit’s economic landscape,a out of to now act in goodwill, and crucial need to make a difference.”

As he concluded in the column: “Corporate social responsibilitya should go beyond just sponsoring more than banquet or a dinner. It is have your writing a $5,000 check to … It name mentioned at an event. and conshould mean taking part

better in tributing to making lives some of the communities in which these institutions operate.” arThompson offers a reasoned gument for genuine engagement, beyond cash. But for companies communiwho listen to some of the figure out ty chatter, it is tough to being just what to do without or called a carpetbagger, interloper worse.

We Detroit needs investment. on the can’t afford to leave money This is table — or vilify investors. that definitely a conversation convene will Who needs to happen.

Crain’s it? Maybe Thompson and can help start it.

Colleges and Universities: Business Education

3OXV LISTS: Michigan Graduate Degree Programs; Private 200 For advertising opportunities, contact Marla Wise at mwise@crain.com or (313) 446.6032.

20150330-NEWS--0020,0021-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

11:39 AM

Page 2

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015 From Previous Page

state owes to large Michigan employers over the next 16 years from other programs.

There is general agreement that state support helped grow a much stronger venture-capital community in the state over the last decade.

But there is strong disagreement about what the state’s support should be moving forward.

Should Lansing continue to support out-of-state VC firms that recently opened offices here by creating another large fund-of-funds?

Maybe, says Steve Arwood, who replaced Mike Finney as CEO of the MEDC in January.

“If you’re looking at another taxvoucher system, there is no appetite at all. But outside of that, we have had discussions here about looking at another Steve Arwood: fund of funds of “Need to look at some type. We’re new strategies.” looking to see what’s most relevant moving forward,” he said. “I appreciate the sector, but we do need to look at new strategies.”

The MEDC put out a request for proposals for an outside vendor to study best practices in other states for programs that support entrepreneurship. Arwood said he is open, based on what the consultant finds, to another fund of funds to invest in venture capital.

Arwood said his biggest priority now, though, is creating programs to train more skilled workers.

“How do we work to resolve the demand for skilled workers? That’s the biggest thing we hear from employers, that they can’t get enough skilled workers,” he said.

“Venture capital is risky, and I don’t think we should be risky with taxpayers’ money,” Pscholka said.

Local VCs say the numbers prove the state should continue to support them.

According to the Venture Michigan Fund, VCs firms receiving funding from one or both of its funds have invested $155 million in 42 startups, which have created more than 1,000 jobs.

VMF I began making investments in 2007. At the time, there were 11 venture-capital firms headquartered in the state. Today, there are 26. More important, there were no out-of-state firms with offices in what was known as a flyover state; today, there are 11.

Ten VC firms got funding from VMF I. Of the six out-of-state VC firms to get money, five opened offices here. Nine firms got investments from VMF II, with six more out-ofstate firms opening offices here.

According to the Michigan Venture Capital Association, from 2003-2007, there was an average of $100 million invested each year in an average of 16 deals. From 20082014, there was an average of $195 million invested each year in an average of 36 deals.

“I’ve been doing venture capital for 17 years, now, and we’re at the point now where Michigan is now

21

Support from the state Funds the state created to help diversify the economy by encouraging investment in early-stage companies: 2005: 21st Century Investment Fund LP, financed with $114 million in tobacco settlement money and $6 million from Credit Suisse. Managed by Grosvenor Capital Management LP. 2006: $95 million Venture Michigan Fund I LP, financed with a loan from Deutsche Bank and backed by $200 million in state tax vouchers. Managed by Grosvenor.

2010: $120 million Venture Michigan Fund II LP, financed by an affiliate of Credit Suisse and backed by $250 million in state tax vouchers. Managed by Grosvenor.

2014: $6.8 million Michigan Pre-Seed Fund 2.0, approved by the Michigan Strategic Fund to support high-tech very-early-stage companies and run by Invest Michigan, a new nonprofit based in Detroit.

Funds that have received funding from the Venture Michigan funds, according to the House Fiscal Agency, as of Dec. 31, 2013: VMF I ■ Arboretum Ventures II, Arboretum Ventures III, Ann Arbor

■ North Coast Technology Investors III, Ann Arbor ■ RPM Venture II, Ann Arbor ■ TGap Venture Capital Fund II, Kalamazoo ■ Venture Investors Early Stage Fund IV, Madison, Wis. Venture Investors, Arsenal, Chrysalis, Early Stage Partners and Fletcher Spaght all subsequently opened Michigan offices.

VMF II ■ Arboretum Ventures II ■ Baird Capital Fund IV, Chicago ■ Cultivan Sandbox Food & Agriculture Fund II, Chicago ■ Draper Triangle Venture III, Pittsburgh ■ Flagship Venture Fund IV, Boston ■ Mercury Fund Ventures III, Houston ■ MK Capital II, Chicago ■ Plymouth Venture Partners II, Plymouth Venture Partners III, Ann Arbor

■ Arsenal Venture Partners II, Winter Park, Fla.

■ Venture Investors Early Stage Fund IV

■ Chrysalis Venture III, Louisville, Ky.

Baird, Draper, Flagship, Mercury, Cultivan and MK Capital subsequently opened offices here.

■ Early Stage Partners II, Cleveland ■ Fletcher Spaght Venture II, Boston

— Tom Henderson

■ Nth Power Fund IV, San Francisco

looked at as one of the best states in the Midwest to start and fund a company,” said Jim Adox, chairman of

the MVCA and managing partner of the Ann Arbor office of Venture Investors.

Venture Investors has several Ann Arbor companies in its portfolio, including Incept BioSystems Inc., His-

toSonics Inc., Tissue Regeneration Systems Inc. and NanoBio Corp.

Adox said they are still several years from an exit, though they continue to make good progress. He said other funds that got VMF I and II money also generally lack for successful exits.

Lacking exits, he said, the most important question for would-be new investors then becomes: Is the state, often the largest investor in a current fund, investing in a new fund?

“What was wrong with the Venture Michigan funds was the way they were set up. We need another fund-of-funds with a much more straightforward funding mechanism. It takes years to build an ecosystem. We still need help building this one,” he said.

But Terry Cross, an active angel investor who also invests as a limited partner in venture capital funds, said it’s time for the local VC community to stand on its own two feet.

“The state got VCs here and got them up and running, but it shouldn’t go beyond what’s been done,” he said.

“Doing it time and time, again, creates a dependence. It’s time for the venture capital community to rise and fall on its own. I’m a freeenterprise guy. The state has so many pressing problems, including roads and health care, that it doesn’t need to be spending any more money on us.” 䡲 Tom Henderson: (313) 446-0337 Twitter: @TomHenderson2

Congratulations,

Eric Nemeth!

Selected as a 2015 Leader in the Law by Michigan Lawyers Weekly.

Tax and financial controversy. Ŷ Former Senior Trial Attorney for the District Counsel of the IRS and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney for the DOJ. Ŷ

Contact Eric Nemeth at emnemeth@varnumlaw.com

■

Metro Detroit

■

Grand Rapids

■

Kalamazoo ■ Grand Haven

■

Lansing

20150330-NEWS--0022-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

10:58 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

22

Q&A: TIM MAYLEBEN

for helping our clients grow.

PNC Bank congratulates HTC Global Services on its acquisition of CareTech Solutions.

And we are proud to provide the financing support for this exciting opportunity.

For a strategic discussion around financing growth and improving cash flow, please contact: Tim Ashley, Senior Vice President Corporate Banking 248-729-8594

PNC is a registered mark of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (“PNC”). Banking products and services offered by PNC Bank, National Association, a wholly-owned subsidiary of PNC and Member FDIC. Products and services may also be offered by or conducted through other subsidiaries of PNC. ©2015 The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

CIB ENT PDF 0115-0149-188546

W AY N E S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y

MBA OPEN HOUSE 4 to 7 p.m.

Wednesday, April 22 McGregor Memorial Conference Center

• MBA • MS in Accounting • MS in Taxation • Grad CertiÀcate in Business

GMAT WAIVER TO QUALIFIED APPLICANTS

Register today at business.wayne.edu.

School of Business

Esperion CEO reflects on company’s wild ride

By Tom Henderson thenderson@crain.com

It’s been a fast couple of weeks for Ann Arbor-based Esperion Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: ESPR), a prerevenue drug company still at least three years away from possible approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

On March 16, its stock began trading at $75.55, following a yearlong rise based on good trial results for its lead drug, ETC-1002, which has shown effec- Tim Mayleben: tiveness at lower- “Feels a bit like ing low density déjà vu.” lipoprotein, the so-called bad cholesterol.

On March 17, Esperion released results of another of its ongoing Phase 2 studies and said it hoped to start enrolling patients in large Phase 3 trials later this year.

By the end of the day, the stock hit $99.60. It closed March 18 at $105.72, hit a high of $118.95 on March 19 and finished the week on profit-taking at $112.33.

Jim Cramer began talking about the company, Bank of America Merrill Lynch touted the stock, and Stephen Weiss, managing partner at Short Hills Capital Partners LLC, told Benzinga the price might even double again.

On March 24, the company announced the sale of two million shares of stock at $100 each in a secondary offering, netting $189.9 million. That followed a secondary offering of $98 million in October. Its $73 million IPO was in June 2013.

Last week, Esperion CEO Tim Mayleben talked to Crain’s about the last two weeks and what’s ahead.

An interesting couple of weeks, eh? It’s been busy. If you’d asked me Friday, I would have said it’s all been great. But the last couple of days, it’s been rough in the market.

Well, you release another 2 million shares of stock, there’s got to be some dilution in price, right?

The share price closed at $85.33 on Wednesday, but closed at $88.50 Thursday. I know. Supply and demand. We were going 100 miles an hour all week. I didn’t have time to stop and digest it.

Have you had to pinch yourself?

I mean, the stock goes from $15 to $118 in a year, you do a $190 million offering you hadn’t planned on; does it seem real? When Roger (Newton, Esperion’s founder) and I worked together previously, we were able to do things that most people wouldn’t have expected. We created things no one thought we

could do. So this feels a bit like déjà vu. The reality is, we worked so hard for a long time, and no one seemed to notice. What we’re seeing now is a catching up to what we thought of ETC-1002 all along.

How much cash do you have on hand? About $325 million.

Phase 3 trials are expensive. Are you going to need to go back to the public markets? Oh, no. We have all the cash we need to get through Phase 3 trials and the approval process and even pay for pre-commercial launch activity. We’re very well funded. As I’ve said before, we’ll initiate Phase 3 activities in the second half of the year. And we’ll want to show that not only does ETC1002 lower markers for metabolic diseases, like LDL, but actually reduces cardiovascular events. It lets people live longer.

Can you narrow down the timing for the start of Phase 3 trials? We’ll start enrolling patients in the fourth quarter.

How many patients? Four thousand. We’ll have one long-term safety study and a half-dozen efficacy studies on different patient populations. People who have diabetes, too. People who are statin intolerant. People who are taking statins, and patients who are taking ezetimibe (a drug marketed as Zetia by Merck).

And you hope to be selling ETC1002 sometime in 2018? We’ll finish enrolling patients by the end of 2016, we’ll start seeing results in 2017, and if all goes well, we think we can be on the market in 2018.

How many trial sites, and have any been selected? Over the next several months we’ll select the sites.

There will be hundreds, in the U.S, in Europe and in Australia.

What are upcoming events that might trigger interest? We’ll have two things midyear. One is Phase 2 results from our 014 study, which is with patients who have both hypercholesterolemia and hypertension.

We want to lower blood pressure and cholesterol. The other is our end-of-Phase-2 meeting with the FDA to outline our Phase 3 trials.

How many other small molecules did Roger Newton buy from Pfizer when he bought ETC-1002? Two. When do you start trials with those? We’ve decided: ETC-1002 is our one and only. We only have 21 people here. ETC-1002 deserves 42 eyeballs.

Tom Henderson: (313) 446-0337 Twitter: @TomHenderson2

20150330-NEWS--0023-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

11:39 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

SPOTLIGHT PAULA NELSON: President and CEO, Sacred Heart Rehabilitation Center Paula Nelson, vice president of client services and COO of the Sacred Heart Rehabilitation Center in Richmond, has been named president and CEO. Nelson, 37, will succeed Grady Wilkinson, who will retire at month’s end after leading the center for 13 years. Warren Levin, program leader of Sacred Heart’s Flint, Saginaw and Bay City Nelson offices, succeeds Nelson.

Sacred Heart, a nonprofit behavioral health care agency, provides substanceuse disorder prevention and treatment, mental illness treatment, HIV/AIDS prevention and care management, and other services.

Nelson has been with Sacred Heart since 1996. Prior to being named COO in 2009, she was vice president of quality improvement. She is a graduate of Walsh College.

23

PEOPLE

ON THE MOVE

BrodeurMcGeorge

Send news items and photos to cdbdepartments@crain.com

ARCHITECTURE/ ENGINEERING Bill Chomic to electrical department manager, IBI Group Inc., Southfield, from business electrical group leader, SHW Group LLC, Berkley.

Chomic

FINANCE

Kurimura

Tom Kurimura to partner, Japanese business services practice, Plante Moran PLLC, Southfield, from partner, Hotta Liesenberg Saito LLP, Schaumburg, Ill.

Patrick McGuirk to senior vice president and deputy general counsel, Flagstar Bank, Troy, from counsel, Federal Deposit Insurance

McGuirk

Urban

Corp., Arlington, Va. Also, David Urban to senior vice president and director of investor relations, from director of investor relations, Johnson Controls Inc., Glendale, Wis. Todd Seehase to senior vice president, Citizens Commercial Banking, Southfield, from vice president, FirstMerit Bank, Southfield.

HEALTH CARE Mark Casmer to vice president of network development, Together Health Network LLC, Southfield, from interim president and CEO, chief operation officer/vice president of operations, Medical Advantage

tice group leader, Kotz Sangster Wysocki PC, Detroit, from of counsel, Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP, Detroit.

Group, Ann Arbor; Alex Veletsos to vice president of information technology, from chief information officer, St. Mary’s of Michigan and St. Joseph Health System, Saginaw; Debi Siljander, M.D., to medical director, from director of clinical integration, Beaumont Health System, Royal Oak; Sue Hashisaka to director of operations, from director of clinical transformation, Southeast Michigan Beacon Community, Detroit; and Ryan O’Roark to vice president of contracting, from vice president and chief financial officer, HealthPlus of Michigan, Flint.

Christopher Moceri and Lee Kellert to co-chairmen, corporate practice group, Jaffe Raitt Heuer & Weiss PC, Southfield. Both are partners at the firm.

MANUFACTURING George Caplea to president, Wolverine Advanced Materials LLC, Dearborn, from executive vice president.

NONPROFITS Oscar Dussan to president, International Samaritan, Ann Arbor, from executive director.

INSURANCE Colleen Schueneman to general agent, MassMutual Southeast Michigan, Southfield, from managing director, Met Life, Downers Grove, Ill.

LAW Laura Brodeur-McGeorge to labor and employment law prac-

People on the Move announcements are limited to management positions. Email cdbdepartments@crain.com.

Include person’s name, new title, company, city in which the person will work, former title, former company (if not promoted from within) and former city in which the person worked. Photos are welcome, but we cannot guarantee they will be used.

ONE NIGHT ONLY— Merge with the top M&A minds of 2014 2014 HONOREES

FEATURED SPEAKER

May 12 | 5-9 p.m.

Troy Marriott

Bob Paul to speak about Compuware’s winding path to sale

ACQUIRE TICKETS AT:

crainsdetroit.com/events or call (313) 446-0300 PRICE: ACG members and groups of 10 or more: $95 ea.

Deal over $100 million Winner: Beaumont Health System/ Oakwood Healthcare/Botsford Hospital Finalist: Sun Communities Inc./ Green Courte Partners LLC

Life got extra interesting for Compuware Corp’s then-CEO Bob Paul in 2012 when Elliott Management Corp. launched a takeover bid. Instead of seeing the move as hostile, Paul weighed the criticisms and took steps to improve Compuware’s performance.

Preregistration closes at 9 a.m. May 11.

Walk-in registration: $120 a person

PREMIER SPONSOR

Finalist: Prime Healthcare Services/ Garden City Hospital Dealmaker adviser Winner: Plante Moran PLLC. Dennis Graham Dealmaker buyer/seller Winner: BlackEagle Partners LLC. Bryan Tolles and Jason Runco

Individual seats: $100

TITLE SPONSOR

Deal under $100 million Winner: O2 Investment Partners LLC/ PC Treasures

MAJOR SPONSORS

IN COOPERATION WITH

20150330-NEWS--0024-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

11:09 AM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

24

CALENDAR THURSDAY APRIL 2

2015 APACC East-West Business Connection. 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Asian Pacific American Chamber of Commerce. Networking and luncheon on “Minority Businesses and Corporate America: Raising the Bar through Sustainable Strategies.”

Troy Marriott, Troy. $70 APACC members and strategic partners, $95 nonmembers (includes membership). Walk-ins allowed, but advance registration is recommended. Contact: Erin Mclin, (248) 430-5855; email: erin@apacc.net; website: apacc.net.

Michigan Energy Forum. 5-7 p.m.

Ann Arbor Spark. Roger Wisely, director of energy management services, Oscar W. Larson Co.; Dan Newirowicz, vice president of business development, Hepta Control Systems; and Chris Bonzheim, general manager, ControlNet, discuss building energy management systems and how to optimize energy performance. Spark Central, Ann Arbor. Free; registration ends 24 hours before event. Contact: alissa@annarborusa.org; website: annarborusa.org.

How to Scale Your Business Outside of the Detroit Region. 6-8:30 p.m. North of 41. Panelists include Eoin Comerford, president and CEO, Moosejaw Mountaineering; Ted Serbinski, managing director, Techstars Mobility; and Stacy Sloan, founder, Three Little Birds All Natural Baked Goods. Tifani Sadek, partner, Sadek Bonahoom PLC, is the moderator. TechTown Detroit. $20 online, $25 at the door. Contact: (800) 622-5254; email: tania@northof41.org; website: northof41.org or visit eventbrite.com and search by event name.

ers seeking engineering and technical talent will attend. Suburban Collection Showplace, Novi. Free for ESD members; nonmembers pay $20, and registration includes a one-year membership. Contact: (248) 353-0735; email esd@esd.org; website: esd.org.

Advancing Women to the Top. 7:30-9:30 a.m. April 14. Dearborn Area Chamber of Commerce. Panelists include Donna Inch, CEO, Ford Land; Stan Jensen, president, Henry Ford College; Kelley LaFontaine, LaFontaine Automotive Group; Inch Jill Ford, special mayoral adviser and head of innovation and entrepreneurship, city of Detroit; and Marie Alexander, government relations, Ford Motor Co. The Adoba Hotel, Dearborn. $30 chamber members, $35 nonmembers. Contact: Ron Hinrichs, (313) 584-6100; email: rhinrichs@dearbornareachamber.org; website:dearbornareachamber. org/events.

Michigan Marketing Minds: Creating Customers. 5-7 p.m. April 14.

Ann Arbor Spark. The panel includes Sassa Akervaal, owner and CEO, Akervaal Technologies Inc., and Gene Parunak, co-founder and managing director, in2being LLC, and is geared toward business owners, executives, marketing communicators and entrepreneurs. Chris Kochmanski, marketing strategist and partner, DesignHub Inc., is the moderator. Spark Central, Ann Arbor. Free. Registration closes 24 hours before event. Contact: alissa@annarborusa.org; website: annarborusa.org.

Healthiest Employers breakfast and how-to Join Crain’s and Health Alliance Plan for breakfast and discover how to make your business one of the healthiest workplaces in Michigan.

The Healthiest Employers breakfast and awards presentation is 7:30-9:30 a.m.

April 22. A panel of 2015 Healthiest Employers who are adding wellness strategies to drive workplace productivity, employee health and community well-being will share their successes so other businesses (no matter the size) can create the same programs and make their employees happier and healthier.

HAP’s wellness experts also will be on hand to share tips.

The event will be held at Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital, 6777 W. Maple Road, West Bloomfield Township.

Tickets are $25 for individuals, or $20 for Detroit Society of Human Resource Management members.

Registration closes April 20 at 9 a.m. If available, walk-in registration will be $25 per person.

To register or learn more, contact Kacey Anderson at cdbevents@crain.com or (313) 446-0300, or visit crains detroit.com/events.

(313) 963-8547; email: info@econclub.org; website: econclub.org.

DEALS

& DETAILS Submit news to cdbdepartments@crain.com.

CONTRACTS Bonal International Inc., Royal Oak, a manufacturer of subharmonic vibratory metal stress-relief and weld-conditioning technology for the automotive, aerospace and other industries, announced that it has selected accounting firm Godfrey Hammel Danneels & Co. PC, St. Clair Shores, to audit its financial statements and prepare its tax returns, beginning with fiscal year 2015. Websites: bonal.com, ghdcpa.com.

Lambert,Edwards & Associates, Detroit, has been named the PR and social media agency of record for the Downtown Detroit Partnership. Websites: lambert-edwards. com, downtowndetroit.org.

Near Perfect Media LLC, Farmington Hills, a public relations and marketing firm, added the following clients: America’s Back Office, Sterling Heights; The Life Chest, Troy; Donna Yost, Bloomfield Hills; Homewatch CareGivers of Plymouth, Plymouth; Hospice Advisors, Plymouth; and Santorini Estiatorio, Detroit.

Website: nearperfectmedia.com.

Quarton Partners LLC, Birmingham, acted as the exclusive financial adviser to Clarus Glassoards LLC, Fort Worth, Texas, a designer and manufacturer of branded visual glass display systems, in an equity recapitalization with Bertram Capital Management LLC, San Mateo, Calif. Website: quartonpartners.com.

UPCOMING EVENTS Growing Transplants. Noon-2 p.m. April 4. Greening of Detroit.

Part of the nonprofit’s Grow and Eat urban agriculture program, geared toward residents of Detroit, Highland Park and Hamtramck; classes are offered throughout the year on a variety of topics including growing methods and sustainable practices. Detroit Market Garden, Detroit. $5 or free for Greening of Detroit members.

Contact: education@greeningof detroit.com; website: greeningofdetroit.com.

The Ohio Comeback Model.

11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. April 13. Detroit Economic Club. Ohio Gov. John Kasich is the guest speaker.

Cobo Center, Detroit. $45 DEC members, $55 guests of DEC members and $75 nonmembers. Ticket sales end at noon April 12. Contact: (313) 963-8547; email: info@econ club.org; website: econclub.org.

Spring Engineering Technology Job Fair. 2-7 p.m. April 13. Engineering Society of Detroit. Employ-

Cutting Through the Red Tape: Resources That Can Help Your Business. 7:15-9 a.m. April 15. Automation Alley. L. Brooks Patterson, county executive, Oakland County; Donald Fracassi, acting mayor, city of Southfield; and Irene Spanos, director of Oakland County Economic Development & Community Affairs, share their organizations’ programs and services that help accelerate technology and manufacturing business growth.

Southfield Public Library, Southfield. Free for foundation members; otherwise, $25. Contact: (800) 427-5100; email: info@automation alley.com; website: automation alley.com.

Rules of the Game: 10 Strategies for Women in the Workplace.

11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. April 15. Detroit Economic Club. Susan Packard, co-founder of Scripps Interactive Networks & TV. The Townsend Hotel, Birmingham. $45 DEC members, $55 guests of DEC members, $75 nonmembers. Ticket sales end at noon April 14. Contact:

Fourth Annual Entrepreneur – YOU. 8 a.m.-2 p.m. April 20.

Asian American Pacific Chamber of Commerce. Walsh College, Michigan Women’s Foundation, Inforum Michigan and Fifth Third Bank collaborate on a day of education and resources for woman entrepreneurs. Walsh College, Troy. $45.

Contact: Erin Mclin, (248) 4305855; email: erin@apacc.net; website: walshcollege.edu/ eyouconference.

Calendar guidelines. Visit crainsdetroit.com and click “Events” near the top of the home page. Then, click “Submit Your Events” from the drop-down menu that will appear. Fill out the submission form, then click “Submit event” at the bottom of the page.

More Calendar items can be found at crainsdetroit.com/events.

Resort & Golf Marketing, Bloomfield Hills, has been retained by University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, to promote and publicize events of Radrick Farms Golf Course and University ofMichigan GolfCourse. Websites: resortand golf.com, radrick.umich.edu, umgolfcourse.umich.edu.

ZipLogix, Fraser, a real estate technology company, announced a new agreement with the New Orleans Metropolitan Association of Realtors in which members may now purchase any of zipLogix’s products. Websites: ziplogix.com, nomar.org.

moved from 17949 Hall Road, Macomb Township, to 15500 19 Mile Road, Suite 330, Clinton Township. Website: therecoverypro ject.net.

NAME CHANGES Center for Senior Independence, Detroit, has changed its name to PACE Southeast Michigan to further connect its work and resources with the national Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly program. PACE Southeast Michigan is a nonprofit organization jointly owned by Henry Ford Health System and the Presbyterian Villages of Michigan, serving seniors at Detroit Northwest College Park and Thome Rivertown Neighborhood, Detroit.

Website: pacesemi.org.

VisionIT Inc., Detroit, a provider of IT managed services and IT specialized practices, announced it is implementing a new enterprise structure that will organize and manage the company’s businesses under parent company Vision Information Technologies Inc., operating three wholly owned, individually-branded subsidiaries, VisionIT and sister brands VisionPRO, an IT staffing and permanent placement company, and Prime Workforce, a global managed services provider.

Website: visionit.com.

NEW PRODUCTS TRW Automotive Holdings Corp., Livonia, announced that it has started production of its dual stage pump technology across two major European vehicle platforms. The dual stage pump is TRW’s latest innovation in pump technology. It is suitable for wet dual clutch transmissions due to its ability to integrate two external gear pumps in a compact single housing. Website: trw.com.

NEW SERVICES Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center of Plymouth at Blackwell Ford, Plymouth, announced the launch of a new customerfriendly website. quicklaneof plymouth.com.

EXPANSIONS Buffalo Wild Wings Inc., Minneapolis, has opened a franchise at 500 S. Main St., Royal Oak. Telephone: (248) 744-4470.

Website: buffalowildwings.com.

MOVES The Recovery Project LLC, a provider of high-intensity physical and occupation therapy, has

Deals & Details guidelines.

Email cdbdepartments@crain.com.

Use any Deals & Details item as a model for your release, and look for the appropriate category. Without complete information, your item will not run. Photos are welcome, but we cannot guarantee they will be used.

20150330-NEWS--0025-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

3:22 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

25

Christman Co. makes itself right at home of old friend: Fisher Building

By Kirk Pinho

The Christman Co.

kpinho@crain.com

The Christman Co. said hello to an old friend earlier this month.

The construction management company has moved into the iconic New Center Area building it helped construct in 1928 and has a full slate of construction projects in the greater downtown area keeping it busy.

Founded in 1894, the company moved into about 6,000 square feet in the Fisher Building after it outgrew its space in the Seven Mile Crossing office complex in Livonia and as it looks Steve to grow its operaRoznowski: “It tions in the downseemed too good town core. to be true. ” “We wanted to be a part of what’s happening in Detroit,” said Steve Roznowski, chairman and CEO of the Lansing-based company, which had $601 million in revenue last year and is now leasing the entire 26th floor at 3011 W. Grand Blvd.

“As we were looking at available options there, the Fisher Building presented itself for us, and it seemed too good to be true. The stars lined up.”

The office, one of eight in the U.S., has about 25 employees ranging from business development professionals to estimators to project managers.

Those employees, just a fraction of the more than 300 the company employs nationwide, are maintain-

Headquarters: Lansing Owned by: Management CEO: Steven Roznowski Number of employees: 274 Number of metro Detroit employees: 20 Founded: 1894 2014 revenue: $601 million

[COURTESY OF CHRISTMAN CO., 1.618 INTERESTS]

The Christman Co. helped build the Fisher Building in 1928 (left) and this month moved into the building. Christman also is redeveloping a block on East Jefferson Avenue into apartments along with 1.618 Interests (rendering above).

ing a full workload.

“They have a great reputation in the marketplace,” said Douglas Manix, president of Troy-based Kirco Manix Construction LLC. “Any company that has been around as long as they have must be doing something right.”

Christman is working on four projects in the city, including three

by Dan Gilbert’s Bedrock Real Estate Services LLC at the former Kresge Building at 1201 Woodward Ave., and the buildings at 1217 Woodward Ave. and 1215 Griswold St. in Capitol Park.

Both the 56,000-square-foot former Kresge Building, at Woodward and State Street, and the 36,000square-foot building at 1217 Woodward are slated for first-floor retail space and office space on the upper

floors.

Christman is the general contractor for the 29,000-square-foot building at 1215 Griswold, which is planned for multifamily units above about 4,700 square feet of retail/restaurant space.

And along with Detroit-based developer 1.618 Interests, founded

by John Cox in 2013, Christman is working on the redevelopment of a block at East Jefferson and Van Dyke avenues into 63 new apartments. It’s expected that all but one of the buildings on the block will be razed to make way for the proposed seven-story building, which would include first-floor retail space.

Cox said construction is expected to begin in the first quarter next year and finish in the first quarter of 2017. He declined to disclose the anticipated project cost for the 10 studio, 46 one-bedroom and seven two-bedroom units nor how it is ex-

Defense contracts could yield $150M benefit

pected to be funded.

Detroit-based Albert Kahn Associates is the architect on the project.

Other construction management projects of note include the $36 million renovation of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan’s 1.3 million square feet of space in the Renaissance Center downtown completed in July 2012, and the $30 million construction of the new 100,000-square-foot Lake Trust Credit Union headquarters

chalcom@crain.com

Southeast Michigan’s defense contractor community could see about a $150 million benefit from several new government purchases awarded since mid-March. The seven contracts are to manufacture or service military equipment for the U.S., Israel and Iraq.

Navistar Defense, a business unit of Lisle, Ill.-based Navistar International Corp. (NYSE: NAV) with an engineering center in Madison Heights, received a fouryear, $83.4 million contract from the U.S. Army Tacom Life Cycle Management Command in Warren for sustainment and technical support on its MaxxPro mine-resistant, ambush protected vehicles.

The MaxxPro is one of the defense vehicle contracts Navistar has said is engineered and managed from Madison Heights.

Mine-resistant ambush protected vehicles are armored transports designed for extra protection against improvised explosive devices and were rapidly produced and deployed for the war on terror

in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Iraq also accounts for two new vehicle contract awards in recent weeks for Sterling Heights-based General Dynamics Land Systems and AM General LLC, via Tacom’s Army Contracting Command, under the federal Foreign Military Sales program.

The country will procure 160 military Humvees from AM General, the Indiana contractor that first developed the Humvee in Livonia and still houses an engineering and product development center there.

The vehicles are expected by June, for $32.1 million.

GDLS will receive just under $7 million to provide logistic support and training on its fleet of M1-A1 Abrams tanks, for Iraq, under the same program.

Nearly $22.8 million goes to GDLS under a three-year contract for updates and revisions to logistics requirements and data for the Buffalo A2, a mine-resistantheavily armored military truck.

Work under that contract, also awarded by Tacom, will be completed in Sterling Heights by 2018 — as will a separate $9 million contract

modification to upgrade some of its Stryker armored vehicles from a legacy flat bottom to a double-V hull configuration that offers more protection against IED blasts.

Wixom-based Trijicon Inc., a firearm sightings maker for military and other customers, received two delivery orders totaling $6.9 million to supply 8,800 of its TA31 Advanced Combat Optical Gun sightings. That’s part of an ongoing contract between Trijicon and the U.S. Marine Corps Systems Command in Quantico, Va., which expects the new deliveries by January 2016.

Finally, Novi-based MTU America Inc. received a $6.9 million contract for three sets of propulsion system hardware and two marine gears for the Super Dvora fast patrol boat fleet of the Israeli Navy.

That award is a repair and maintenance follow-up to a previous Foreign Military Sales contract with Israel, by way of the U.S. Naval Sea Systems Command in Washington, D.C. 䡲 Chad Halcom: (313) 446-6796 Twitter: @chadhalcom

Kirk Pinho: (313) 446-0412 Twitter: @kirkpinhoCDB

MARKET PLACE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

û

BLOOMFIELD HILLS MONEY MANAGER

û

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES û LOOKING TO START, EXPAND OR û SAVE YOUR BUSINESS?

Looking for Established Brokers/Advisors Ready for Independence, Higher Payouts and a Great Work Environment.

Send Message or Resume to:

An experienced Detroit area executive has capital and time to invest in the right opportunities. Must have established business with two year financial history or patented/proprietary product.

paul@M1CapitalManagement.com

Send response to: david4459@outlook.com

WEDDING SERVICES

By Chad Halcom

in Brighton.

Outside of Detroit, the company’s longer-term strategy is to become more of a regional operation with projects throughout the Midwest, mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions of the country, Roznowski said.

“I remember starting off last year in one of our first management meetings saying, ‘I’m tired of using a bad economy as an excuse.

We need to find ways to grow.’ ” That, Roznowski said, is another factor behind the move to Detroit.

“We are going to become more of a player in that region,” he said. 䡲

Waterfront Weddings Straits of Mackinac

DestinationWeddingsUpNorth.com

REAL ESTATE

906-643-8621

COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES

JOB FRONT

Rate low 4’s ~ 10, 15 or 20 yr. balloon, 25 yr. Am. Non-recourse (no pers. guar.), Industl, Multi-Fam., Seniors Housing, Retail, Off. Bldgs., & Self Storage.

POSITIONS AVAILABLE EXPERIENCED BOOKKEEPER / ACCOUNTANT Needed for USA 2 GO Quick Stores. Must be proficient in Excel and Microsoft Word.

Account Analysis and a broad knowledge of General Ledger, AP/AR. Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting is preferred, along with at least 5 years’ experience. Payroll experience is a plus. You need to be able to work closely with Management and effectively communicate the analysis of the reporting compilations. If you are highly motivated and skilled we look forward to receiving your resume: Please submit your resume & references to: Mr. Kevin Bahnam online at: www.usa2goquickstore.com

COMMERCIAL FINANCING

GERALD MARINO 26 Yrs Local Banker ~ 586-506-4399

RECEIVER MUST SELL BY APRIL 30TH Offer Deadline April 23rd ALL OFFERS REVIEWED

70945 VAN DYKE, BRUCE TOWNSHIP 29,750 Square Feet / Retail Condo 100% Vacant - Was Asking $449,000

Call or email today for information on a custom advertising plan!

Anthony Rubino - 586-254-0900 x101

cdbclassified@crain.com 313.446.6068

Boyd Kraft - 586-254-0900 x109

anthony@pilotpg.com boyd@pilotpg.com

20150330-NEWS--0026,0027-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

5:48 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

26

Medicine through the media Doctors spread health message on TV, radio, stage

By Jay Greene jgreene@crain.com

r. Partha Nandi might be a medical doctor, but he also is a journalist, an explainer, a purveyor of stories about medicine, health care, public health and life.

So are Detroit-area physicians like Joel Kahn, Jim Bragman, Frank McGeorge, Deanna Lites and Cynthia Shelby-Lane.

What they all have in common besides being doctors based in Southeast Michigan is a desire to impart their medical knowledge to the public, not for the money or fame, but to reach a larger audience on television, radio or stage.

This audience — which includes every man, woman and child with a pulse — is really just a very large group of patients who hunger for health information, yet is often confused by it.

“Sixteen years out of my fellowship, I had a very successful practice, was very happy,” said Nandi, a 45year-old gastroenterologist based in Troy, who is the star and producer of the “Ask Dr. Nandi” show, broadcast out of Farmington Hills to 79 countries and about 80 million viewers.

“I enjoyed one-on-one with patients, but I wanted to expand that to a larger patient population. I always wanted to have an effect on people’s lives and leave a bigger footprint” as a physician.

Kahn, a 55-year-old cardiologist, author of medical help books and TV medical commentator occasionally on WJBK-TV2, said informing the public about health matters is a fun and creative outlet.

“I do TV and radio because of Joel Kahn: Mis- the reach. When I sion to prevent spread a health heart attacks message like stand more, eat more produce, avoid processed foods, and get a good night’s sleep, I would rather reach 100,000 than 1,000,” said Kahn, whom Reader’s Digest calls “America’s Holistic Heart Doc.” “I have a personal mission to prevent 1 million heart attacks, and TV and radio help me get to that goal,” Kahn said.

Bragman, an osteopathic primary care physician in West Bloomfield Township who has been featured on WXYZ-Channel 7 and other stations over the years, said he enjoys conveying medical information to a larger audience than his office patients.

“I just did a live spot on Channel 7. It was on otitis media, when you should put (ear) tubes and when you use antibiotics,” said Bragman.

D

[GLENN TRIEST]

Dr. Partha Nandi, whose “Ask Dr. Nandi” show reaches about 80 million viewers: “I enjoyed one-on-one with patients, but I wanted to expand that to a larger patient population.”

“We set up a Skype in my office because sometimes I can’t leave. It was very easy and only took a couple minutes.”

Bragman was a former CNN radio expert before the network decided in 2001 to bring the medical team in-house, he said. Now, CNN medical reporting is led by Sanjay Gupta, M.D., who grew up in Novi and graduated from the University of Michigan, and is arguably is the nation’s No. 1 TV medical news reporter.

For Shelby-Lane, 64, a former surgeon and emergency medicine chief at the Detroit Medical Center, now a standup comedian and anti-aging specialist, going on stage to inform or make people laugh is good medicine.

Cynthia Shelby“I do it for enLane: Laughter is joyment and the good medicine experience. It is like sailing, it is a hobby,” said Shelby-Lane, who also is known in her gerontology and alternative medicine practice in Sterling Heights as the “ageless doctor.”

“I don’t use one-liners. My comedy is more storytelling about medicine and life,” said Shelby-Lane, who has performed at Mark Ridley’s Royal Oak, Gilda’s Laughfest in Grand Rapids and the Chicago Comedy Improv in Schaumburg, Ill. McGeorge, an emergency room

physician at Henry Ford Medical Group, has been the medical reporter with WDIV-Channel 4 since 2006. The former president Fra nk of the Michigan McGeorge: On chapter of the WDIV since 2006. American College of Emergency Physicians also received several medical journalism awards in Michigan.

Lites, a podiatric doctor with a degree of nutrition from Michigan State University, is the main reporter at WWJ 950. She has more than 18 years of television broadcasting experience in Chicago, Miami and Deanna Lites: Boston.

Has 18 years in “I’ve always broadcasting been an employee at the stations,” said Lites, who grew up in Birmingham, in an email to Crain’s. “I actually consider myself a journalist with a medical background. I think the stations I’ve worked at appreciated my ability to produce, write my own stuff, do live shots. Not all TV docs can do that. I’ve also anchored newscasts and covered breaking news fires, accidents … throughout

my career as needed.”

On call, not on station staff Besides Nandi, McGeorge and Lites are the only two doctors who earn regular paychecks from stations or networks.

Marla Drutz, general manager with WDIV, said McGeorge works as an independent contractor for the NBC affiliate.

“Having a doctor instead of a health reporter enhances our coverage, whether it is about flu shots or measles,” Drutz said.

Kahn reports with Fox 2 News several times a month with Deena Centofanti on special topics, including talking about his Amazon best-seller, The Whole Heart Solution. He also is working on developing his own TV show.

Bragman, who several years ago was a regular contributor on WWJ, WJBK and WKBD-Channel 50 in Detroit, only recently started TV medical reporting again.

“It’s just a matter of letting them know you are out here and be ready when they call,” he said.

Nandi’s first show aired in January 2012 and has had more than 164 broadcasts on a wide range of topics — asthma, stroke, Obamacare, but also how divorced moms date and how to shop for GMO (genetically modified organism) products.

He got his start after giving a clinical speech on colon cancer in Los

Angeles in 2011. Afterward, TV producer Desmond Gumbs asked him about a medical question. That discussion turned into an idea about a doctor TV show. The catch was it had to be in California.

“The biggest challenge I had was to prove … that a show could be filmed in Detroit,” Nandi said.

Nandi said his dream is use social media to extend his shows through the Internet to regions on earth where they don’t have cable TV. “We have viewers now in Angola ...

Nigeria ... Antigua. You don’t need to (speak) English because health care is the universal language,” he said.

Dr. Oz controversy Several local TV doctors had mixed feelings about how the “Dr. Oz Show” — a syndicated medical show featuring cardiologist Mehmet Oz, who first gained fame on the “Oprah Winfrey Show” — has evolved from more of a straight purveyor of medical information into now more of a “miracle a day” show.

Kahn said it is difficult for Dr. Oz to come up with a miracle every day. Consequently, some of his “cures” are not based on sound medical evidence,” he said.

“I only met him once after he spoke in Detroit (last June),” Kahn said. “He is brilliant, but it is not possible to come up with something amazing every day. He is See NEXT PAGE

20150330-NEWS--0026,0027-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

5:48 PM

Page 2

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

With state film subsidies facing ax, TV doc may move show

By Jay Greene jgreene@crain.com

The financing of most doctor TV shows is a complicated mix of advertising, sponsorship, distribution fees, network licensing fees and angel investors.

Some, like Dr. Oz and Dr. Phil, are owned by production companies, with the stars simply employees under contract.

For the Farmington Hills-based “Ask Dr. Nandi” show, the financing for the show also includes three years of promised funding from the Michigan Film Office that totaled $2.8 million, as an incentive to produce the show in Michigan.

“Ask Dr. Nandi” hasn’t received any of the funding, and the Michigan House voted earlier this month to eliminate $50 million in annual funding for the film office, throwing the future of job hiring subsidies to Dr. Nandi into question.

“If we lose the (future) funding, it will affect us tremendously,” said Partha Nandi, M.D., founder and star of “Ask Dr. Nandi.”

“It is very bad and shortsighted.

Films spend a lot of money in Michigan, and without (incentives) they will leave for Georgia (or other states) where they have a stable film industry.”

Nandi, a full-time gastroenterologist in Troy, said he fought with Los Angeles producers and investors in 2011 to base his show in Michigan — with the potential for the film incentive funding greatly factoring into the three-year-old show’s long-

FROM PREVIOUS PAGE

going after things that are a little too fringe because that is where he gets into trouble. I hope he pulls back.”

Bragman said Dr. Oz was very good for a long time. But recently the show has turned into a “travesty,” he said. “They are promoting questionable issues.”

Nandi said Dr. Oz has been a great ambassador for medicine over the years, but his current limitation is that he is an employee of a production company. “He doesn’t write his own shows,” he said.

For the fun of it Why do they do it?

Money? No. Fame? No. Even Dr. Nandi, who has shows on Comcast, Dish Network and has a seven-figure budget to pay a staff of about 49 full-time equivalents that blooms to about 80 during weekend production, says he doesn’t make a lot of money with his show.

“If I quit my (show) today, I would just have a little less money,” said Nandi, who practices at 10-physician TroyGastroenterologyPC. “Everything extra we get goes back into producing the next shows.” See Sidebar, this page.

Bragman laughed when asked if he made any money on TV or radio medical reporting. “Nothing. I do it

term financial stability.

But, Nandi said, producing a high-quality show is “incredibly expensive. We don’t want to leave, but my arm might be twisted” if a state like Georgia offers a sweetheart deal.

With a weekend staff of about 80 employees, “Ask Dr. Nandi” — described as a physician talk show that deals with medical and lifestyle issues — last year received a $1.6 million state film incentive based on about $6.4 million of projected in-state expenditures for season three.

Nandi said revenue comes from advertising, distribution rights, network licensing fees and funds out of his own pocket and those of at least three angel investors.

Over three years, however, expenditures for production and employee salaries have steadily increased. In 2012, the show’s first year, expenditures totaled $919,349.

It had more than doubled to $3.2 million in 2013 with $6.4 million in expenditures last year.

“The show is not intended to make money,” Nandi said. “We want to be around for 25 years and don’t expect to make money the first five years.”

Nandi said he won’t rule out selling his show to a production company sometime in the future, but he wants to maintain the same editorial quality.

“I don’t want to water it down and just be another product with something to sell,” he said.

for fun,” he said.

Shelby-Lane said local TV medical reporting paid her nothing. However, corporate keynote speeches earn her $2,000 to $5,000, which she usually donates to charity.

“I proposed my own TV show years ago, before Dr. Oz, Dr. Phil or Dr. Nandi, but producers were worried we would get sued,” she said. “I was ahead of my time.”

Shelby-Lane said she is planning a new show with several angel investors — modeled after the “Daily Show” — to be called “The Medicine Show.” She said she is attempting to line up a cable station to air the show.

While Shelby-Lane said nurses and fellow doctors supported her medical reports, DMC hospital administrators frowned on it at the time.

“The administration of the hospital tried to get me to approve everything I said,” she said. “They told me not to do this or that. It got old, so I stopped doing television and moved to comedy. They can’t control being in someone’s house.”

Now a stand-up comedian and motivational speaker, Shelby-Lane says she has the freedom to “save lives with laughter and alternative medicine.” 䡲 Jay Greene: (313) 446-0325 Twitter: @jaybgreene

27

TIGERS,from Page 3: ‘The money is coming in early’ All of the numbers that saw declines were difficult to sustain because they were among the best in Major League Baseball.

Fox Sports Detroit said advertiser enthusiasm for Tigers broadcasts is reflected in a 30 percent increase in ad booking for the 2015 season compared to 2014, he said.

“The money is coming in early and larger than it has in the past, and we still expect more dollars to come in before the season starts,” Hammaren said.

He expects 90 percent of all inventory to be sold by Opening Day (75 percent was the goal, and a typical rate for most RSNs), with the remainder held back for advertisers who want to come in later in the season.

“We have many clients that spend in the seven figures just on Tigers baseball, and many of those have been with us for more than seven years,” Hammaren said.

The network doesn’t disclose specific financial data, but New York City-based data analysts SNL Kagan forecasts that FSD will generate $179.7 million in net operating revenue this year, of which $19 million is predicted to come from advertising.

Those estimates are up from $165.9 million in 2014 revenue ($17.6 million from ads), according to data provided by SNL Kagan.

Most of that revenue is from FSD’s 150 Tigers telecasts, but also from its broadcast rights deals with the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Pistons.

The network’s operating expenses also are predicted to increase, to $133.4 million from last year’s $123.3 million.

The network pays the Tigers about $50 million a season for rights to air games. Fees for the Pistons and Red Wings are about $25 million each annually.

The majority of FSD’s revenue comes not from advertising but from the per-subscriber fee it charges cable providers every month to carry the network.

Kagan estimates FSD’s average monthly per-customer fee this year to be $3.75, an increase from last year’s $3.45 and up from $3.18 in 2013.

Industry source told Crain’s last year that Fox Sports Detroit charges about $6,137 for a 30-sec-

ond commercial during Tigers games. The network declined to discuss specifics about its rates.

Broadcasts typically have about 60 commercials during a Tigers game, but the inventory is dictated by the length of the game, pitching changes and other factors.

The network said it has about 150 separate advertisers for its 150 Tigers games, and all but one of the major accounts returns for 2015.

Not returning across all of Fox’s regional sports networks is AT&T, a national account handled by a Fox Sports Media Group unit called Home Team Sports.

Eau Claire, Wis.-based home improvement retailer Menards is the network’s major new advertiser this season.

The 149 games broadcast last season by Fox Sports Detroit averaged a 7.72 household rating, according to Nielsen data, which was second best in all of baseball after only the St. Louis Cardinals’ 7.89 average rating for 147 games on Fox Sports Midwest.

Detroit topped all of MLB for local ratings in 2013 with a 9.59 average, and in 2012 with a 9.21 average.

Aiding the network is that sports are relatively immune from the trend of TV viewers recording shows on their DVR and skipping the advertisings, a trend that has sapped some non-sports networks of ratings and revenue.

“The one area that’s not taking place is sports. The audiences continue to make appointment television with live sports,” said Lee Berke, president and CEO of Scarsdale, N.Y.-based sports media consulting firm LHB Sports, Entertainment & Media Inc. The Tigers’ enormous local ratings and the network’s reach across the entire state are attractive to advertisers — they get a lot of eyeballs all over Michigan — and help fuel the rate increases.

Fox Sports Detroit has about 3.6 million subscribers in Michigan, and there are fewer than 2,000 households in Michigan that don’t have the network, the network has said.

It has deals with hundreds of cable and satellite providers across the state, from Comcast and DirecTV to small mom-andpop operations.

New tools Fox Sports Detroit has a new way to boost ad revenue this season.

“We’re going to experiment with virtual signage in a couple of away Tigers games,” Hammaren said. The network has done virtual ads, which appear only on television, during Red Wings broadcasts in recent years.

During Tigers games, an ad will appear behind home plate to FSD viewers during a pair of road games this season.

“If it’s a successful test, we may expand that,” Hammaren said, adding that testing of virtual ads last season produced mixed results. Technical tweaks were made to improve the virtual ads.

“This provides an unobtrusive way of adding more inventory,” he said. Tigers advertisers who buy home-plate advertising at Comerica will get the first crack at the roadgame batter’s box ads, he added.

Another addition to telecasts this season will be the use of a couple of new super slow-motion cameras able to synchronize with the lights at the ballpark — something that reduces or eliminates flickering when the action is slowed way down, Hammaren said.

The network also shook up its broadcast team, adding former Tigers outfielder and coach Kirk Gibson and former pitcher Jack Morris as analysts for games this season.

They’ll alternate with each other and with longtime analyst Rod Allen to work alongside play-byplay announcer Mario Impemba.

District Detroit deal There’s a new aspect this year to the network’s relationship with the Tigers and Wings: It has begun producing pre- and in-game content to air on networks in other markets about the $535 million Red Wings arena and entertainment district — known as The District Detroit — now under construction for a 2017 opening.

The segments will air in the home markets of teams visiting Detroit.

“We’re trying to tell the story of this massive rebirth of the city spurred by the rise of this new hockey arena,” Hammaren said. 䡲 Bill Shea: (313) 446-1626 Twitter: @Bill_Shea19

[ISTOCK PHOTO] While filling Comerica Park, the Detroit Tigers also had the second-best local ratings among Major League Baseball teams.The Tigers led the majors in 2013 and 2012.

20150330-NEWS--0028-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

6:34 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

28

FIXER, from Page 1: He learned the inside of the bureaucracy by being on the inside works and how I, as an entrepreneur, think.”

On the inside “The minute I hear a case, I know where your stuff is hung up,” said Ellison, sitting in his light-filled Park Avenue office that sits atop Centaur Bar and Hot Taco. “I also know who to call to resolve the issue.”

That’s because Ellison learned the inside by being on the inside.

Over the past six years, he has worked for the Detroit Economic Growth Corp., acted as the city’s small-business advocate — a position funded by the New York Citybased Living Cities foundation — and served, briefly, in Mayor Mike Duggan’s administration. There he focused on streamlining permitting and licensing processes and building a one-stop shop.

He left city service because he thought he could do more good on the outside, helping small businesses navigate the halls he’d learned so well. He launched Intersection last August and almost immediately had a full roster of 15 clients.

“The city processes are improving, and service is better, but there existed a need for a consultant who could not only navigate the permitting process but provide comprehensive consults on how to do business in the city,” said Ellison, 40.

With each client that comes to him — from Carhartt Inc., which recently hired him to help open its new Midtown location, to HopCat Detroit, where he served in a similar capacity — Ellison draws on that previous experience. He pieced together a mental puzzle of how various projects and developments get done. Who has to sign off? What nuances or anomalies trigger delays?

When are multiple departments involved? When can they review simultaneously?

He knows, for example, that people frequently complain about the building department because it issues tickets and is often the first point of contact. “But a lot of stuff isn’t their fault,” Ellison said. “You have to figure out the entirety of the process, and then you can figure out where their hang-ups actually are.”

The city is aware and is working to make improvements.

“What we have is not in the best state now,” said Eric Jones, director of the city’s Buildings, Safety Engineering & Environment Department. “We have an outdated permitting system.”

That could change very soon.

The department plans to roll out a new online permitting system in the next quarter. Jones said it will take a year to fully integrate, but it will streamline the process and increase accountability.

Closing the deal Van Berkum’s hang-up was trying to do a land deal with the city.

In 2013, he purchased half of a duplex at the Wayne County tax foreclosure auction. He normally wouldn’t buy just half — too risky.

But because the other side was cityowned and derelict, he assumed the

Ellison took unusual path to become fix-it expert Brian Ellison’s path has been anything but straight or narrow.

Even he laughs at how little his early plans resemble his job today.

Ellison, who grew up in Southfield and Farmington Hills, first attended the U.S. Naval Academy and then transferred to Michigan State University, where he studied physiology.

He earned his EMT license while a student and then worked the graveyard shift at Detroit Receiving Hospital, and what he saw makes him a champion for issues surrounding building safety and accessibility.

Ellison also taught eighth-grade science at Detroit’s Post Middle School before it closed in 2005,

sold mortgages, sold cars and did sundry jobs to make a living during a difficult interlude after his mother passed away unexpectedly.

But that time helped him discover what he’s passionate about: science and architecture. And that led him to the University of Detroit Mercy, where he earned a master’s degree in community development.

“Because of their Jesuit background, the core curriculum has a huge social justice component,” Ellison said. “There was a lot of study around systemic oppression, feminist theory, lack of access to capital.

All of that plays into the way I now approach my work with Intersection.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m a capitalist. I believe in development. ...

but I also think about the impact to the community.”

That passion is what has kept him in Detroit even as his sister moved to Chicago and he struggled internally, like so many others, about whether to stay or go.

“If I go and I have a positive impact on Livernois, you’re talking about actually changing people’s quality of life in that community,” Ellison said. “We’re in a time in history that we’re talking about impacting how Detroit unfolds.

“I could build a new banging building in New York City, and in all the magazines you would be the man. ... But it’s just another big, expensive building for rich people.”

transaction would go smoothly.

“The place next door was wide open to the elements,” he said. “I boarded it up, cleaned it up, locked it up, trying to get this property.”

But despite his intention to replace the roof and rehab the entire Virginia Park home, nothing turned out to be simple. Van Berkum spent more than a year bouncing between the city, the Detroit Land Bank Authority and Wayne County trying to find someone, anyone, who could find a way to make the deal.

When a friend recommended hiring Ellison, Van Berkum decided it was either that or let the property go.

“I was ready to give up,” he said.

“Now, within just a few months, we’re finally ready to close.”

The Land Bank is glad the deal is getting done, too, said spokesman Craig Fahle. The sale had been in limbo long before the agency took possession of the duplex late last summer, he explained, and it has been working on processes improvements that continue to ramp up the pace of sales.

The experience hasn’t soured Van Berkum on Detroit. He lives in the city and continues to acquire more properties — some of which he bought at the tax auction, cleaned up and sold back to the original owners on land contract so they didn’t lose their homes.

He also plans to relocate his Southfield-based IT-consulting firm, Motor City Technology, into a building he purchased in the Southwest Detroit neighborhood of Hubbard Farms. But the property requires significant rehab before moving day — and he won’t take on the challenge without an assist from Ellison.

That sentiment is familiar to Larry Kahn, co-owner of Dime Store restaurant in downtown Detroit.

“We won’t do another business in Detroit without consulting with Brian,” he said. “He’s just one of those guys. He’s incredibly charismatic, but he just gets things done.”

Kahn and Ellison grew up together in Southfield, but they had been strangers for decades. When Kahn walked into Dime Store on Devil’s Night last year and saw Ellison sitting at the bar, he immediately recognized his childhood friend.

The two caught up on what they’d been doing — Kahn didn’t know about Ellison’s business; Ellison didn’t know Kahn owned Dime Store — and at the end of the conversation, Kahn confided that he was finding it difficult to navigate the city’s permitting and licensing process.

The restaurant was operating without a business license or approvals from the fire marshal.

“Six hours later, Brian walks back in with my business license in hand,” Kahn said. “We’d been doing this for a year, trying to get this stuff to go through.”

A few hours later, again on Devil’s Night, the fire marshal walked in and hand-delivered his approvals.

“Within a matter of 12 or 24 hours, Brian had everything sorted out with almost no info other than the name of the business,” Kahn said.

“The small-business end of things, that might be beneficial,” Long said. “Based on the amount of calls I’ve gotten from Detroit, there seems to be a need for someone like Brian from a local and a national retail standpoint.”

Still, independent expeditors are not common in the city, despite a historic reputation for city services being a quagmire.

More typically, large firms employ logistics staff, while big development projects have owner’s representatives who oversee everything from site review to construction. And the DEGC offers guidance to firms it is courting as well as small business in its assistance programs, such as the Green Grocer Project and Revolve Detroit — programs Ellison worked with while at the DEGC. Eric Larson, for example, has never employed or done business with an expeditor in 30 years of development work in the region.

“They do tend to be more valuable to those who aren’t as familiar with the market,” said Larson, president and CEO of Larson Realty Group, which is developing the old Tiger Stadium site on Michigan Avenue, and CEO of the Downtown Detroit Partnership. “There are people in the market that deal with relationships and know the politics.”

People such as Douglass Diggs, former director of the Detroit Planning and Development Department whose firm, Heritage Realty Services LLC, acts as an owner’s representative on many Eric Larson: Not of the area’s most everyone needs significant develan expeditor. opments. Currently, he is involved with Olympia Development and the new Red Wings arena as well as Larson’s Tiger Stadium project.

But Diggs doesn’t see Ellison as a competitor because he’s not the one to call when you need help buying half a duplex from the Land Bank.

“I’ve referred work to Brian,” Diggs said. “His focus is more about getting someone a building permit. Our focus is more true development con-

Big-city movers Expeditors are not unique to Detroit. They exist in every major metro area, from Atlanta to Denver.

And it doesn’t seem to matter whether the city’s processes are complex and arcane (New York City) or evolving with a new onestop office (Chicago). Some cities have so many expeditors that they are required to be licensed.

“I haven’t run into a place where expeditors aren’t needed in big cities,” said Matthew Long, owner of Mableton, Ga.-based Nationwide Permitting Service, which helps companies such as Apple, Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts. “We deal with an incredible variety of permitting situations. Companies are used to their standard store model, and my clients aren’t worried about doing the research to figure out the nuances of each market.”

To meet the demand, Long employs about 40 independent contractors across the country, although none in Detroit. Most of them, he said, are “glorified FedEx delivery guys” who stand in lines and facilitate the process. It’s rare to find someone like Ellison who offers expediting services, expertise in city code, and business and developer advocacy. Fewer still focus on helping neighborhood businesses rather than just big national retailers.

– Amy Haimerl

sulting, working on everything from planned acquisition to site selection and putting together and managing the construction process to government affairs. We are soup to nuts.”

Ellison, however, is growing so fast that he’s beginning to take on full-service clients such as Carhartt rather than just crisis situations such as those Kahn and Van Berkum faced. With that growth, Ellison projects revenue of $500,000 in his first full year, and he may bring on an employee this summer.

Even if Detroit becomes a bestin-class leader on how to efficiently manage city processes and grow sustainably under new Planning Director Maurice Cox, Intersection will continue to thrive, Ellison said. Healthy cities — not just broken cities — are viable for firms like his.

Building director Jones, however, disagrees. He wants the city’s process to be transparent enough that Ellison’s services are no longer needed.

“I got to tell you my job is to put them out of business,” he said.

“We’re working on demystifying the process so someone can come to a single-intake system. … We also have a working group pulling all the data to see what permits we need and how we can consolidate or eliminate some.”

Long said that won’t put expeditors and consultants out of business, however. Nationwide Permitting Service has grown over the past few years even as cities have instituted more sophisticated electronic filing programs and new systems.

“I’m still getting hired because even doing it online is such a pain,” Long said. “If you haven’t done something 30 times, you can’t do it very easy.”

And Diggs actually sees expeditors as a service to the city, considering the onslaught of new projects.

“You have a lot of good and very competent people at the city, but what you have are a lot of broken processes and technology,” he said.

“You have a lot work coming down the pipeline with a lot of great people trying to do a lot of hard work through a very small funnel. Having people who understand what the staff is looking for can (speed the process). They don’t have to ask you three times to fill out a form; you know to fill it out.”

No matter how much work comes to Ellison in the coming months, however, he intends to always take small-business clients and be their advocate. They’re his passion projects.

“There are so many streets I can go down and point out businesses that I helped get their licenses,” he said. I can go down Livernois, I can go down Gratiot, all these streets I have driven down my whole life, and see all these businesses I helped.

“Big, sexy projects are cool, but just being able to drive down streets and say, ‘Yep, them, them, them,’ that’s what matters.” 䡲 Amy Haimerl: (313) 446-0402 Twitter: @haimeralad

20150330-NEWS--0029-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

6:07 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

29

BELLE ISLE, from Page 1: Foundations, investments buoy future grants, she said. Increased coordination and more planning help make the priorities clearer, which makes it easier for foundations to come in.

“It’s just a tremendous asset, and it’s always a good idea to invest in your assets,” Trudeau said.

Strategic planning A six-month, $110,000 strategic planning effort for the island launched this month with initial grants of $40,000 from the Detroitbased Hudson-Webber Foundation and $25,000 from Belle Isle’s state operator, the DNR. Conducting the strategic planning is New York-based Biederman Redevelopment Ventures, which took Bryant Park in Manhattan from the city’s most dangerous park in the 1970s and 1980s to an international model of urban revitalization.

The plan is considering all of the assets on Belle Isle and how they can be used for programs, conservancy President Michele Hodges said. It will consider where early investments should be made, whether in revenue generators like the aquarium or boat house or amenities and attractors like the James Scott Memorial Fountain and the athletic fields.

For the $98,000 cultural campus plan, the conservancy has hired Detroit-based Albert Kahn Associates Inc. The plan is funded with $35,000 from the Troy-based Kresge Foundation, $50,000 from the DNR and the rest from the conservancy.

While its main focus is to assess operations and formulate strategic recommendations for the conservatory and aquarium, the Dossin and zoo are also an important part of the discussion, Hodges said.

Coordinating efforts with the conservancy and possibly the zoo “just makes sense,” said Robert Bury, executive director of the Detroit Historical Society, which operates

Bankrolling Belle Isle Foundations are working with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to make grants to set priorities on Belle Isle and strengthen the ability of the Belle Isle Conservancy to raise money and bring best practices to bear in revitalizing the island.

Among the grants: $335,000 from the Kresge Foundation since 2013 for operations and development of a cultural campus plan to make recommendations for the Belle Isle Aquarium and Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory and look at joint operation opportunities with Dossin Great Lakes Museum and Belle Isle Nature Zoo. $260,000 from the Hudson-Webber Foundation in support of strategic planning to determine early investments, a new business operations manager and other operational capacity. $210,142 last year from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority’s State Historic Preservation Office toward restoration of the Belle Isle Aquarium and development of a repair plan for the Nancy Brown Peace Carillon. $75,000 from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources toward the strategic and cultural campus plans. $70,000 from the GM Foundation since 2013 to fund Belle Isle summer Saturdays program and free swim lessons and to formalize the aquarium and conservatory field trip program $50,000 from the Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation toward the volunteer coordinator position. $20,000 from Charter One in 2014 to fund recreation passports and the summer Saturdays program. $10,350 from the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan from a John S. and James L. Knight Foundation pool of funding for benchmarking other national urban park efforts.

Dossin Great Lakes Museum.

There’s great value in looking at common hours, common staffing and maybe even coordinated oversight and management of those buildings, he said, since they’d give visitors a predictable experience and offer cost efficiencies.

Really ramping up The Belle Isle Conservancy, the fiduciary for the grant funding coming to the island, operates the aquarium and oversees historic preservation and improvement projects on the island, volunteer activities and public programming

INDEX TO COMPANIES These companies have significant mention in this week’s Crain’s Detroit Business: Arboretum Ventures LLC ....................... 20 Belle Isle Conservancy ..............................1 Biederman Redevelopment Ventures ..29 Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan ........25 Carhartt Inc. ..........................................28 Children’s Leukemia Foundation Mich. ........12 The Christman Co. ..................................25 Community Foundation for SE Mich. ....29 CulturecliQ LLC ..........................................1 Detroit Economic Growth Corp. ..............1 Detroit Historical Society ......................29 Detroit Land Bank Authority ....................1 Detroit Pistons ......................................27 Detroit Planning and Develop. Dept. ....28 Detroit Red Wings ..................................27 Detroit Tigers ............................................3 Dime Store ..............................................28 Downtown Detroit Partnership ............28 Esperion Therapeutics Inc. ....................22 Fox Sports Detroit ....................................3 Erb Family Foundation ........................29 Funderbuilt ..............................................6 Gibbs Planning Group Inc. ......................12 Google Inc. ................................................2 Harry Major Machine & Tool Co. ............13 Henry Ford Medical Group ....................26 Heritage Realty Services LLC ................28 Hertz Schram PC ......................................6 Hudson-Webber Foundation ................29 Incept BioSystems Inc. .......................... 21 Intersection Consulting Services LLC ......1 J. Walter Thompson ..................................4 Albert Kahn Associates ..................25, 29 John S. and James L. Knight Foundation 29 Kirco Manix Construction LLC ..............25

Kresge Foundation ....................................1 LHB Sports, Entertainment & Media Inc. ..27 Little Caesars ..........................................4 Mich. Boating Industries Association ....19 Michigan Dept. of Natural Resources ..1, 2 Mich. Economic Development Corp. ....20 Michigan Future Inc. ................................12 Michigan Venture Capital Association ..21 MTU America Inc. ..................................25 NanoBio Corp. ........................................21 Nth Degree Fitness LLC ............................11 Olympia Development ..........................28 1.618 Interests ........................................25 PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP ................13 Shazaaam! LLC ........................................6 Short Hills Capital Partners LLC ............22 Skidmore Studios ..................................13 SNL Kagan................................................27 St. John Providence Health System ......14 Student Conservation Association ........17 Troy Gastroenterology PC ......................27 U.S. Army Tacom ....................................25 University of Michigan ..............6, 15, 17, 26 Venture Investors LLC ..........................20 Venture Michigan Fund ..........................20 Venture Michigan Fund I LP ..................20 Venture Michigan Fund II LP ..................20 Warmilu LLC ............................................15 WDIV-Channel 4 ....................................26 WJBK-TV2 ................................................26 WKBD-Channel 50 ..................................26 WWJ 950 ................................................26 WXYZ-Channel 7 ....................................26 Xalt Energy LLC ........................................2 Yessian Music Inc. ....................................4

like Belle Isle Summer Saturdays.

It’s been just three and a half years since it formed through the merger of four volunteer groups working on Belle Isle. Already it has matured as an organization, raising funds to support historic preservation, the reopening of the aquarium in 2012 and other priorities, Trudeau said.

“They’ve done a tremendous job taking the launching pad of the volunteers to another level” and now are thinking about their role in connection with the state’s investments, she said.

The Bloomfield Hills-based Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation last April provided a $50,000 grant to help fund the conservancy’s volunteer coordinator position through the first quarter of 2016.

And Hudson-Webber is funding the addition of a business operations managerat the conservancy with a $260,000 grant that’s also supporting the strategic plan. The new person will join the organization’s three full-time employees and a fourth employee it shares with the DNR, Hodges said.

The conservancy also plans to hire a community engagement specialist as part of the Detroit Revitalization Fellows program, she said.

High-quality parks and recreational amenities are an important component of quality of life, said Hudson-Webber President and CEO David Egner in an emailed statement.

“With the conservancy really ramping up and the new relationship with the DNR, it is an important time to think strategically about how investments on the island are prioritized to continue the park’s long history as a welcoming destination for Detroiters and visitors to enjoy outdoor activities year-round.”

Grant makers are also funding best practice benchmarking. Early this month, Hodges and the conservancy’s director of development and volunteer coordinator traveled to New York to learn from officials at the Central Park Conservancy, Biederman Redevelopment and one of the nation’s foremost parks experts, Adrian Benepe, senior vice president and director of city park development for The Trust for Public Land.

A grant of more than $10,000 from the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan supported the New York trip and will also fund the conservancy’s attendance at the City Parks Alliance national conference in San Francisco in April.

That funding — supported through a $400,000 grant from the Miami-based John S. and James L. Knight Foundation made to the Community Foundation — is part of an effort to build the capacity of leaders who are helping to revitalize Detroit, said Katie Brisson, vice president, program for the Community Foundation.

The two foundations “are delighted to see the conservancy looking at innovative approaches from other parts of the country and looking to apply lessons learned here,” she said.

“We know there are many efforts underway to strengthen what Detroit has to offer, but this type of research is what will help to make Detroit unique and innovative.”

The conservancy, which is shifting to a calendar fiscal year for 2015, attracted $751,200 in grants for the 14-month period between November 2013 through Dec. 31, 2014, according to a preliminary audit.

It reported $2.23 million in revenue and net or excess income of $720,633.

By comparison, the conservancy’s total revenue in fiscal 2013 was $1.07 million, and it ended the year with an excess of $308,711, according to its audited financials.

It’s operating on a conservative budget of just under $1.5 million this year.

The conservancy’s ability to raise more money “positions us strongly to tackle the challenge of $330 million of deferred maintenance to the island that awaits us,” as well as the eventual execution of a $250 million master plan completed for the island between 1995-1997 and updated in 2005, Hodges said.

The state has said from the beginning that its whole business model for Belle Isle is based on partnerships, said Ron Olson, chief of the parks and recreational division for the DNR. While on the one hand the department wants to preserve and protect the natural resources and recreational opportunities, monuments and cultural icons on the island, “we also want to be realistic that in present-day times there may be things that need to be added to the island ... that would make it even more rich with opportunity,” Olson said.

Sherri Welch: (313) 446-1694 Twitter: @SherriWelch

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS www.crainsdetroit.com Editor-in-Chief Keith E. Crain Group Publisher Mary Kramer, (313) 446-0399 or mkramer@crain.com Associate Publisher Marla Wise, (313) 446-6032 or mwise@crain.com Executive Editor Cindy Goodaker, (313) 446-0460 or cgoodaker@crain.com Managing Editor Jennette Smith,(313) 446-1622 or jhsmith@crain.com Director, Digital Strategy Nancy Hanus,(313) 446-1621 or nhanus@crain.com Managing Editor/Custom and Special Projects Daniel Duggan,(313) 446-0414 or dduggan@crain.com Senior Editor/Design Bob Allen,(313) 446-0344 or ballen@crain.com Senior Editor Gary Piatek, (313) 446-0357 or gpiatek@crain.com Web Editor Kristin Bull, (313) 446-1608 or kbull@crain.com Research and Data Editor Sonya Hill,(313) 446-0402 or shill@crain.com Web Producer Norman Witte III, (313) 446-6059, nwitte@crain.com Editorial Support (313) 446-0419; YahNica Crawford, (313) 446-0329 Newsroom (313) 446-0329, FAX (313) 446-1687 TIP LINE (313) 446-6766 REPORTERS Jay Greene, senior reporter Covers health care, insurance, energy utilities and the environment. (313) 446-0325 or jgreene@crain.com Amy Haimerl, entrepreneurship editor Covers entrepreneurship and city of Detroit. (313) 446-0416 or ahaimerl@crain.com Chad Halcom Covers litigation and the defense industry.

(313) 446-6796 or chalcom@crain.com Tom Henderson Covers banking, finance, technology and biotechnology. (313) 446-0337 or thenderson@crain.com Kirk Pinho Covers real estate, higher education, Oakland and Macomb counties. (313) 446-0412 or kpinho@crain.com Bill Shea, enterprise editor Covers media, advertising and marketing, the business of sports, and transportation.

(313) 446-1626 or bshea@crain.com Dustin Walsh Covers the business of law, auto suppliers, manufacturing and steel. (313) 446-6042 or dwalsh@crain.com Sherri Welch, senior reporter Covers nonprofits, services, retail and hospitality. (313) 446-1694 or swelch@crain.com ADVERTISING Sales Inquiries (313) 446-6052; FAX (313) 393-0997 Sales Manager Tammy Rokowski Senior Account Executive Matthew J. Langan Advertising Sales Christine Galasso, Joe Miller, Sarah Stachowicz Classified Sales Manager Angela Schutte, (313) 446-6051 Classified Sales Lynn Calcaterra, (313) 446-6086 Audience Development Director Eric Cedo Events Manager Kacey Anderson Creative Services Director Pierrette Dagg Senior Art Director Sylvia Kolaski Marketing Coordinator Ariel Black Special Projects Coordinator Keenan Covington Sales Support Suzanne Janik,YahNica Crawford Editorial Assistant Nancy Powers Production Manager Wendy Kobylarz Production Supervisor Andrew Spanos CUSTOMER SERVICE Main Number: Call (877) 824-9374 or customerservice@crainsdetroit.com Subscriptions $59 one year, $98 two years. Out of state, $79 one year, $138 for two years. Outside U.S.A., add $48 per year to out-of-state rate for surface mail. Call (313) 446-0450 or (877) 824-9374.

Single Copies (877) 824-9374 Reprints (212) 210-0750; or Alicia Samuel at asamuel@crain.com To find a date a story was published (313) 446-0406 or e-mail infocenter@crain.com Crain’s Detroit Business is published by Crain Communications Inc. Chairman Keith E. Crain President Rance Crain Treasurer Mary Kay Crain Executive Vice President/Operations William A. Morrow Executive Vice President/Director of Strategic Operations Chris Crain Executive Vice President/Director of Corporate Operations KC Crain Vice President/Production & Manufacturing Dave Kamis Chief Financial Officer Thomas Stevens Chief Information Office Anthony DiPonio G.D. Crain Jr. Founder (1885-1973) Mrs. G.D. Crain Jr. Chairman (1911-1996) Editorial & Business Offices 1155 Gratiot Ave., Detroit MI 48207-2732; (313) 446-6000 Cable address: TWX 248-221-5122 AUTNEW DET CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS ISSN # 0882-1992 is published weekly, except for a special issue the third week of October, and no issue the fourth week of December by Crain Communications Inc. at 1155 Gratiot Ave., Detroit MI 48207-2732. Periodicals postage paid at Detroit, MI and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS, Circulation Department, P.O. Box 07925, Detroit, MI 48207-9732. GST # 136760444. Printed in U.S.A. Entire contents copyright 2015 by Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of editorial content in any manner without permission is strictly prohibited.

20150330-NEWS--0030-NAT-CCI-CD_--

3/27/2015

5:40 PM

Page 1

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS // March 30, 2015

30

WEEK ON THE WEB/MARCH 21-27

RUMBLINGS

Judge OKs $48M distribution in nurses wage deal

Law firm has new name after settlement deal

ON THE MOVE Paul Angerwill retire May 15 as editor of the Detroit Free Press.

Plans to replace Anger, 65, who has been at the newspaper since 2005, were not immediately announced.

Ally Financial Inc. named Diane Morais as president and CEO of its retail banking unit.

Morais, 49, replaces Barbara Yastine as CEO of Ally Bank. Morais most recently was the deposits and line of business integration executive for the Detroit-based auto lender’s bank subsidiary.

COMPANY NEWS Van Buren Township-based supplier Visteon Corp. said it has received all antitrust approvals from various governments needed to close on the sale of its ownership stake in Korean supplier Halla Visteon Climate Control Corp.

Visteon agreed in December to sell its 70 percent stake in the joint venture to an affiliate of Korean private equity firm Hahn & Co. and HankookTire Co. for $3.6 billion.

Palace Sports & Entertainment in 2016 will begin a three-year plan to replace all of the seats at the Palace ofAuburn Hills with seating that will be able to communicate with fans’ mobile devices.

Detroit Diesel plans to invest $208 million in plant upgrades and create 245 jobs. The diesel engines manufacturer is to add new machinery and equipment for a new medium-duty diesel engine line at its Redford Township plant.

Kuka Systems North America LLC, a maker of robotics for automotive and aerospace manufacturers, is investing nearly $14.4 million to expand its operations in Clinton Township, creating 166 jobs. The subsidiary of Germany-based Kuka AG has been awarded a $900,000 Michigan Business Development Program performance-based grant.

DurrSystems Inc., a subsidiary of Germany-based DürrAG, is in the midst of a $40 million investment in Southfield. The company, a manufacturer and supplier of automotive and industrial paint and sealing robotics, is com-

tarting March 30, Bloomfield Hills-based Rader, Fishman & Grauer will be Fishman Stewart Yamaguchi PLLC, after a leadership change and a settlement deal with co-founder and former partner R.Terrance Rader.

The intellectual property law firm, founded in 1996, has about 35 attorneys at offices in Oakland County and Washington, D.C., and remains focused on patent and trademark law, litigation, trade secrets and related matters, said partner Michael Stewart.

He and Rader Fishman coR.Terrance founder Michael Rader: Name is Fishman will be off the firm after equity partners at settlement. the reorganized firm, as will Yoichiro Yamaguchi and Christopher Tobin at the Washington office.

Stewart will be partner in charge of administration, he told Crain’s late last week.

Rader, 66, sued the firm along with Fishman and Stewart in October for more than $1.6 million, claiming he still owns about a onethird stake of the business and that its management wouldn’t buy him out after a 2013 stroke impaired his speech and motor skills.

The firm brought its own lawsuit in January against Rader, now a Georgia resident, and one-time confidant Leatrice Klann in Oakland County Circuit Court. The settlement dismisses both court cases, the firm pays no money to Rader and he retains no equity, Stewart said.

Kenneth Silver, shareholder at Hertz Schram PC in Bloomfield Hills and an attorney for Rader in both suits, confirmed that the court cases are being dismissed but had no further comment.

S

C

hecks could be in the mail by the end of April for thousands of past and present metro Detroit nurses, after a judge signed an order to distribute $48 million in wage collusion settlement funds from local hospitals. Chief U.S. District Judge Gerald Rosen approved releasing the funds to acute care hospital nurses who provided direct patient care in any of seven hospitals between December 2002 and late 2006.

[COURTESY OF DURR SYSTEMS]

The plan for Durr Systems' new campus in Southfield is shown in a rendering . bining three Michigan locations into one research, engineering and equipment testing facility at 26801 Northwestern Highway.

Durr also plans to construct a 100,000-square-foot testing and validation facility.

Cerenis Therapeutics Holding SA, a France-based pharmaceutical company that was founded in 2005 in Ann Arbor, went public on the Euronext Paris stock exchange in an initial public offering of 54.3 million Euros, about $59 million.

Cerenis is developing therapies to treat metabolic diseases.

The Detroit Tigers are worth $1.125 billion, 13th among the 30 Major League Baseball clubs and a 65 percent increase over last year’s $680 million estimate, according to the annual MLB club valuations from Forbes.com. Separately, the Tigers said recent Oscar-winning actor J.K. Simmons will throw the ceremonial first pitch before the Opening Day game against the Minnesota Twins April 6. Also, MLB has paid for the first public wireless data network at Comerica Park; the WiFi will allow fans to more easily use mobile devices.

National Football League owners agreed to suspend the league’s longtime local TV blackout policy for 2015 regular-season games, including those of the Detroit Lions, six months after losing federal backing for the policy. Meanwhile, the Lions announced details of the third “Taste of the Lions” food and wine fundraiser May 12 at Ford Field. Information on the benefit for Eastern Market and its community outreach programs is at DetroitLions.com/TasteoftheLions.

Central Kitchen + Bar will open in July on the first floor of the First National Building and a 24-seat outdoor patio facing Cadillac Square and Campus Martius. Dennis ArcherJr. is a co-owner of the “highend bar food” restaurant.

Midland-based DowChemical Co. agreed to sell almost all of its chlorine business, the world’s largest, to Missouri-based Olin Corp. in a $5 billion deal, Bloomberg reported.

OTHER NEWS The Detroit CityCouncil gave site plan approval for construction

of the first new multifamily building downtown in 25 years. Construction on the 235-unit Statler CityApartments by Farmington Hills-based Village Green Cos. The $92 million rehabilitation of the David Whitney Building in downtown Detroit has been recognized with a 2015 Governor’s Award for Historic Preservation.

In a move expected eventually to save financially strapped Wayne County nearly $3 million annually, county Executive Warren Evans announced plans to consolidate employees into the county-owned Guardian Building in Detroit.

People who live in metro Detroit, and other metropolitan areas in general, are facing everlonger commutes to work as the pool of jobs within the typical commuting distance in the country’s biggest metropolitan areas shrank by 7 percent between 2000 and 2012, said a new report by the Brookings Institution.

The annual auto insurance fee that Michigan drivers pay toward caring for people catastrophically injured in crashes is dropping from $186 to $150, the Livonia-based Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association announced.

Michigan’s unemployment rate fell 0.4 percent to 5.9 percent in February — the lowest level in more than 13 years, the state announced. The state’s jobless rate remains 0.4 percent above the national rate of 5.5 percent.

Gov. Rick Snyder pardoned Alan Gocha Jr., a lawyer for the Farmington Hills-based maker of 5-hourEnergy drinks who was convicted of drunken driving — one of only 11 pardons out of roughly 750 applications since Snyder took office. Snyder in December pardoned Gocha, who was appointed to a state economic board in 2011, AP reported.

OBITUARIES Jeff Bouchard, president and co-owner of Farmington Hillsbased event production and corporate entertainment company Gail & Rice Inc., died March 22. He was 62.

Stewart Smith, who was president of the former Michiganbased Cunningham Drug Stores chain, died March 23. He was 89.

Smith and son of retired cofounder Burley Smith, will become a vice chairman of Dykema in Texas, and managing director Deborah Williamson in San Antonio will join the firm’s executive board.

The combined law firm expects to have more than 450 attorneys at 15 offices nationwide, and could exceed $225 million in annual revenue. Dykema reported 2013 revenue of $180 million to American Lawyer.

The acquisition brings Dykema an oil, gas energy and utilities practice and a new focus on regional and community banking PeterKellett: in Texas, along Expandiing with some estate Dykema footprint. planning expertise, said Dykema Chairman-CEO Peter Kellett.

Carhartt makes Giant pitch in new spring TV ad Dearborn-based Carhartt Inc. is pretty sure its work clothes will help its wearers, but just in case, it has tapped a World Series MVP — and a former “Game of Thrones” actor — to tell that story.

The century-old work clothing company has launched its spring marketing campaign, with a message — and corresponding Twitter hashtag, #OutworkThemAll — that encourages Carhartt wearers to approach their work like a workout.

The highlight of the campaign is a national TV commercial featuring San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner chopping down a tree at his ranch in North Carolina. The 60-second spot was produced and directed by actor Jason Momoa and his production company, Pride of Gypsies.

Momoa playedKhal Drogo on HBO’s “Game of Thrones.”

Dykema expands with addition of Texas firm Dykema Gossett PLLC handily will be the largest Detroit-based law firm in May, after adding San Antonio-based Cox Smith Matthews Inc. in a deal that vastly grows its footprint in Texas and would increase both revenue and number of attorneys by nearly a third.

The firm, founded in 1926, will acquire all 118 Cox Smith attorneys in San Antonio, McAllen and El Paso, Texas, as well as in Austin and Dallas, where Dykema already has a combined 27 lawyers. The firm will initially operate as Dykema Cox Smith for a time in those cities after the deal takes effect May 1.

Jamie Smith, chairman of Cox

[COURTESY OF CARHARTT]

Baseball star Madison Bumgarner is seen in a new TV ad for Carhartt .

DBpageAD_DBpageAD.qxd 2/6/2015 3:15 PM Page 1

DBpageAD_DBpageAD.qxd 1/26/2015 3:17 PM Page 1

having options

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network have a wide range of comprehensive health plans to help you make the right choice for your business.

GROUP HEALTH PLANS

|

DENTAL

|

VISION

|

bcbsm.com/employer

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network are nonproďŹ t corporations and independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.