CEO Magazine Fall 2014

BOOMING BUSINESS

MU'S TRULASKE CELEBRATES 100 YEARS PAGE 46

COUNTDOWN TO COMPLIANCE

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT PAGE 52

FALL 2014

www.ColumbiaCEO.com

A NewNote Matt Gerding & Scott Leslie Take Over Columbia’s Iconic Music House

CONTENTS

Inside Columbia’s CEO • www.ColumbiaCEO.com • Volume 6, Issue 1

77

10

Opening Bell: The Buzz On CoMo Biz

40

Business Basics: How To Insure Your New Business

16

Regional Roundup

42

18

The Ladder Report: Who’s On The Move In CoMo?

Milestones: 20 Years Of Working Together In The Assistance League

46

20

Data Bank: Who We Are

Booming Business: A Centennial Celebration For Trulaske College Of Business

23

Transitions: The Business Plan For The Blue Note’s New Owners

52

26

Entrepreneurial Spirit: Wheelchair Personalities

Countdown To Compliance: What You Need To Know About The Affordable Care Act

75

CEO At Play: Back To School

77

Shopping: Fitness On The Go

79

Networking

81

Publisher’s Note

82

Closing Quotes

30

Coach’s Clipboard: Gary Pinkel’s Lessons In Leadership

32

Inspiration: The Ascending Aspirations Of Restaurateur Matt Jenne

36

The Conference Room: An Exit Interview With REDI’s Mike Brooks

ON THE COVER: A passion for music led entrepreneurs Matt Gerding and Scott Leslie to their newest acquisition, The Blue Note.

Read about the pair’s plans for the venerable Columbia entertainment venue on Page 23. Photo by L.G. Patterson 6

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

32

26

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION Faces Behind the Places PAGE 59

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO STAFF Publisher Fred Parry fred@insidecolumbia.net

MEET OUR EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD

Associate Publisher Melody Parry melody@insidecolumbia.net Associate Publisher & Executive Editor Sandy Selby sandy@insidecolumbia.net Managing Editor Kathy Casteel kathy@insidecolumbia.net

RANDY COIL President, Coil Construction

TOM ATKINS President, Tom Atkins Investments

GARY DREWING President, Joe Machens Dealerships

JOAN GABEL Dean, Trulaske College of Business, University of Missouri

Editorial & Photographic Assistant Morgan McCarty morgan@insidecolumbia.net Contributing Writers Anita Neal Harrison, Gary Pinkel, Jessica Walsh

Graphic Designers Alyssa Blevins alyssa@insidecolumbia.net Trever Griswold trever@insidecolumbia.net

PAUL LAND Principal/Owner, Plaza Commercial Realty

BOB GERDING President, Gerding, Korte & Chitwood CPAs

DIANNE LYNCH President, Stephens College

GEORGE PFENENGER CEO, Socket

Rudi Petry rudi@insidecolumbia.net Photo Editor L.G. Patterson lg@insidecolumbia.net

Operations Manager Kalie Clennin kalie@insidecolumbia.net Marketing Representatives Jessica Card jessica@insidecolumbia.net

BOB PUGH CEO, MBS Textbook Exchange

GREG STEINHOFF President of Strategic Operations, Veterans United Home Loans

JERRY TAYLOR Former President & CEO, MFA Oil Co.

TIM WOLFE President, University of Missouri System

Rosemarie Peck rosemarie@insidecolumbia.net Joe Schmitter joe@insidecolumbia.net

Director of Customer Retention Gerri Shelton gerri@insidecolumbia.net Please Recycle This Magazine.

Inside Columbia’s CEO magazine 47 E. Broadway • Columbia, MO 65203 • Office: 573-442-1430 • Web: www.ColumbiaCEO.com Inside Columbia’s CEO is published quarterly by OutFront Communications LLC, 47 E. Broadway, Columbia, Mo. 65203, 573-442-1430. Copyright OutFront Communications, 2014. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of any editorial or graphic content without the express written permission of the publisher is prohibited.

Postage paid at Columbia, Mo. The annual subscription rate is $19.95 for four issues.

8

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

Finance Manager Brenda Brooks brenda@insidecolumbia.net Distribution Manager John Lapsley

OPENING BELL

the buzz on como biz

Financial Picture

photo by L.G. PATTERSON

T

he view is unreal.

Customers and employees at First Midwest Bank enjoy a captivating look at iconic Columbia scenes through the windows while transacting business at the newly opened facility on Fellows Place. The full-service banking branch, which opened in June, is the second First Midwest facility in Columbia.

The window concept was the brainchild of DEI Inc., which also provided architectural services and construction management, says Community Bank President Travis Brown. The 4,000-squarefoot space boasts 18-foot ceilings to accommodate the expansive windows and large-scale graphics.

Subcontractors on the project included:

10

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

> Surveying/Building Layout: A Civil Group > Testing: Terrigon > Excavation: Remsel Excavating > Concrete/ Rough Carpentry/ Trusses: Grove Construction > Asphalt Paving: Christensen Asphalt > Landscaping/ Irrigation: Outdoor Solutions > Masonry: JL Heath

> Roofing: Enrich Construction > Interior Doors/Storefront Systems: Central Missouri Glass > Flooring/Window Treatments: Marathon Building Environments > Plumbing: Summit Mechanical > HVAC: Star Heating > Electric: Coastal Electric > Signage: Columbia Signs > Insulation/EIFS: TJ Weis > Interior Painting: Turner Painting

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

11

OPENING BELL

the buzz on como biz

Kudos For Sparky’s

AdKarma Makes List Of Fastest-Growing Companies

I

nc. magazine has dubbed Columbia-based AdKarma one of the fastest-growing companies in the country this year. The privately held company ranks 31st on the recently published Inc. 500, the highest ranking for a Missouri company. Sister company Division-D made the 2014 Inc. 5000 list at No. 4,242.

AdKarma has grown 7,635 percent since Bobby Campbell launched the company in Columbia in 2010, capitalizing on the booming digital video advertising industry. Together, AdKarma and Division-D reached a combined $30 million in sales in 2013. Campbell expects to more than double that figure in 2014, projecting $70 million in revenue from the two companies.

AdKarma creates original video content for websites. The company’s video supply-side platform connects more than 300 online publishers to advertisers to optimize revenue yield. The company opened a video production studio at its Columbia headquarters earlier this year. Campbell spun off AdKarma in 2010 from Division-D, his privately held online media buying and digital advertising company. Originally founded in 2003 under the name 3 Interactive, Division-D has made the Inc. 5000 list twice in the last three years.

HR CHAMPS: THE COMO 12 Columbians working at a dozen corporations are in good company when it comes to human resources benefits. Workforce magazine compiled its inaugural rankings of the top 100 companies for HR management. The Workforce 100 includes 12 companies operating in Columbia: 12

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

Sparky’s Homemade Ice Cream earned a nod from the PeterGreenberg.com travel site this summer. The website’s Daily Scoop praised the quirky little ice cream shop on Ninth Street, describing its frozen treats as “sure to electrify your taste buds, leaving you thinking about your Sparky’s experience long after you lick your bowl clean.”

City’s First CNG Station Opens

Columbia’s first fueling station for compressed natural gas opened in late August. The city of Columbia and supplier Clean Energy hosted a grand opening and ribbon-cutting Aug. 26 at the station, 1900 Lake Ridgeway Drive.

The three-pump CNG fueling station will provide compressed natural gas to government and private fleets as well as CNG vehicles owned and operated by the general public. Initially, two CNG dispensers will be available exclusively to city of Columbia vehicles, and a third dispenser will be available to the public. Another public dispenser may be added, depending on demand.

The city of Columbia has recently taken delivery of several CNG-fueled vehicles with plans to place them in service when the CNG fueling station opened. The CNG vehicles supplement the fleet of city vehicles fueled by gasoline or diesel, and some electric-hybrid vehicles.

Landrum Raises $30 Million In Stock Offering

T

he Landrum Co. Inc. raised more than $30 million with its recent placement of common stock.

“The company’s strategic growth plans include strong internal growth and supporting acquisitions,” says Charlie Ingram, bank capital group managing director of Commerce Street Capital, which assisted in the transaction. “This new capital will allow the holding company to continue to grow its branch network and variety of services offered to its banking customers."

Headquartered in Columbia, Landrum is the holding company for Landmark Bank, which has more than $2 billion in assets.

The company currently operates 40 full-service banking offices throughout central and southern Missouri, north Texas and southern Oklahoma.

4. McDonald’s Corp.

6. IBM Corp.

11. AT&T Inc. 15. Walgreen Co. 19. Target Corp.

20. Marriott International Inc.

26. American Airlines Inc. 32. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. 40. Cerner Corp.

42. Edward Jones 44. State Farm Insurance 93. Jiffy Lube International Inc.

OPENING BELL

the buzz on como biz

A.M. Best Upgrades & Affirms Ratings For Shelter A.M. Best has upgraded the issuer credit rating of Shelter Life Insurance Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of Shelter Mutual Insurance Co. Shelter’s Best rating went from “A” to “A+” with an affirmed financial strength rating of A (Excellent).

Concurrently, A.M. Best has affirmed the A (Excellent) financial strength rating and “A+” issuer credit ratings of Shelter Mutual and Shelter General Insurance Co., together known as Shelter Insurance Cos . Additionally, A.M. Best has affirmed the A (Excellent) financial strength rating and the “A” issuer credit rating of Haulers Insurance Co. Inc. and Shelter Reinsurance Co. Best reports the outlook for all ratings is stable.

Researcher Touts Nondiet Approach To Worksite Wellness Programs A University of Missouri researcher has found that a new worksite wellness approach that focuses on mindfulness and intuitive eating as a lifestyle is more effective than traditional weight-loss challenge programs in improving employees’ health habits.

“Eat for Life offers a nondiet approach to weight management,” says Lynn Rossy, a health psychologist for the University of Missouri system. “Traditional wellness programs focus on weight challenges in which participants are repeatedly weighing themselves. These actions can help participants initially lose weight, but often, people gain the weight back when the challenge is gone and the program is over. ”In the study, Rossy and her colleagues evaluated the effectiveness of the Eat for Life program as a workplace health promotion. Eat for Life, which combines intuitive eating and body mindfulness, helps participants develop positive relationships with food and their bodies. Intuitive eating is when individuals learn to eat, exercise and experience their bodies from internal cues such as hunger and fullness, rather than external cues such as calorie counting and weight scales.

Eat for Life participants in Rossy’s study ranged in weight from normal to morbidly obese and some displayed eating-disorder behavior. At the end of the program, participants in the Eat for Life program were significantly more likely not to exhibit disordered eating.

Rossy’s research, “Eat for Life: A Worksite Feasibility Study of a Novel Mindfulnessbased Intuitive Eating Intervention,” was published in the July/August 2014 issue of American Journal of Health Promotion.

NSF Awards $20 Million Grant To Missouri Transect Project The National Science Foundation has awarded a $20 million grant to fund a five-year, multi-institutional project to study climate variability and its potential agricultural, ecological and social impacts in Missouri. “The Missouri Transect: Climate, Plants and Community” project received funding from the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, a program initiated by Congress to support fundamental research; education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics; and workforce development in areas relevant to the economy.

Participating institutions include all four University of Missouri campuses — in Columbia, Rolla, Kansas City and St. Louis — plus Lincoln University in Jefferson City and St. Louis facilities at the Donald Danforth Plant Sciences Center, Washington University, the St. Louis Science Center and St. Louis University. The project consists of four interdisciplinary teams in the areas of climate, plant biology, community resilience and education/outreach. Principal investigator of the project is John Walker, Curators Professor of Biological Sciences at MU and director of the Division of Biological Sciences on the Columbia campus.

14

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

15

OPENING BELL

regional roundup

Show Me The Food

M

issouri Farmers Care spearheaded a State Fair food drive in August that netted more than 9 tons of food donated to food banks around the state. The Columbia-based agriculture advocacy group collected food and cash donations at the fairgrounds alongside the 4-H Canstruction project, a 13-foot-tall 4-H logo comprised of more than 5,000 cans. Columbia firms Trabue, Hansen & Hinshaw engineering and Peckham & Wright Architects designed and oversaw the construction of the cannedfood sculpture.

Additional food drive partners included Bing’s Grocery Stores of Sedalia, Midwest Ford Dealers, St. Louis Ford Dealers, Canstruction® Mid-Missouri of Columbia-Jefferson City and the Missouri State Fair.

Fulton Launches Business Incubator

Economic development boosters in Callaway County have launched an initiative to create a business incubator and accelerator in Fulton. Supporters hope to spur economic growth and job creation with the Show Me Innovation Center, offering startup capital, business services, mentorship and training resources to entrepreneurs in new or existing businesses.

The group’s fundraising campaign — called Give 10 Get 10 — asks donors to give $10 and recruit 10 more to do the same. The old Fulton Police Department building at 510 Market St. has been renovated to house the center, which opened on Sept. 9.

“We are building our resource network with trained professionals from the Small Business & Technology Development Center, Central Missouri Community Action, local professionals, a microloan pool, a student-enterprise loan pool and an education advisory council that will work with public schools and institutions of higher learning,” says Kim Barnes, president of The Callaway Bank and a member of the Show Me Innovation Center board.

MID-MISSOURI WINERIES STRIKE GOLD Several area wineries took Best of Class honors at the 2014 Missouri Wine Competition.

Winners included Hermann’s Stone Hill Winery, which repeated its sweep of the top awards for best red wine, best Norton and the best wine in the state.

Governor’s Cup Stone Hill 2012 Cross J Vineyard Norton C.V. Riley Award Stone Hill 2012 Cross J Vineyard Norton

16

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

Best of Class Sparkling Les Bourgeois LBV Brut Best of Class Rosé Augusta Estate-Bottled La Fleur Sauvage Best of Class Dry White Montelle 2013 Seyval Blanc Best of Class Semi-Dry White Les Bourgeois 2013 Vignoles Best of Class Sweet White Hermannhof 2012 Vignoles Best of Class Dry Red Stone Hill 2012 Cross J Vineyard Norton Best of Class Semi-Dry Red Adam Puchta Hunter’s Red

Best of Class Sweet Red Montelle Stone House Red Best of Class Fruit Wine Windy Wine Co. Good News Red Best of Class Dessert/ Fortified Wine Adam Puchta Signature Port Best of Class Late Harvest/Icewine Stone Hill 2013 Late Harvest Vignoles Best Distilled Product Montelle Cherry Brandy

MOBERLY MANUFACTURER PLANS EXPANSION Mid-Am Building Supply plans to expand its manufacturing operations in Moberly.

The project will include the construction of an additional 30,000 square feet of distribution space to make room for a new state-of-the-art interior door finishing facility. The expansion will create 20 new jobs at the facility with a total investment in building and equipment of nearly $3 million.

Mid-Am Building Supply is a wholesale distributor of building materials to lumber dealers in a seven-state area, offering interior and exterior doors, windows, siding, roofing, insulation, fasteners, cabinets, moldings, locks and other items. The Moberly-based company employs nearly 400 people in service centers in Missouri, Kansas, Iowa and Illinois.

OPENING BELL

up & coming

THE LADDER REPORT Look Who’s Moving Up In Columbia ➔ The UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI Board of Curators has extended the contract of system President TIM WOLFE through June 30, 2018.

Wolfe, a 1980 graduate of MU, has been president since 2012. ➔ WILLIAM J. WHEELER is the new CEO of CORNERSTONE MANAGEMENT PARTNERS INC. and its affiliates. Wheeler, who comes to Cornerstone from Consumers Insurance Co., succeeds company founder JAMES C. FRENCH.

French will remain as CEO emeritus. Columbiabased Cornerstone Management Partners includes affiliates Cornerstone National Insurance Co., Cornerstone Finance Co. and Cornerstone General Agency.

➔ MARK FENNER has taken the

helm at MFA OIL CO. as president and CEO. Fenner replaces JERRY TAYLOR , who retired Aug. 31 after nine years of leading the farmer-owned cooperative.

Fenner joined MFA Oil in 2012 as chief operating officer after 12 years with Minnesota-based CHS Inc., the nation’s largest agribusiness cooperative, and 14 years with Farmland Industries. He earned a degree in agricultural economics from the University of Missouri in 1985. Taylor will remain with the company to lead MFA Oil’s investments in MFA Oil Biomass, AgFuel Energy Systems and WasteWater Logic.

➔ The MISSOURI ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS has named JOHN SEBREE as CEO. Sebree brings extensive experience in real estate, finance and public policy to the association. He comes to Columbia from Florida Realtors, where he served as senior vice president of public policy. He has also worked for the National Association of Realtors and the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs.As CEO, Sebree will provide strategic direction in fulfilling the vision for the organization to provide essential resources to advance the role of Realtors in real estate transactions and safeguard Missouri real property rights. He is responsible for directing the trade organization’s staff and representing the more than 18,000 members it serves.

➔ COLUMBIA INSURANCE GROUP has hired KELLY KLUG as its new chief financial officer, senior vice president and treasurer.

Klug comes to Columbia from Lenexa, Kan., where he was vice president for finance and chief financial officer of Federated Rural Electric Insurance. In his new role at CIG, Klug directs all accounting information systems, as well as all financial reporting, planning and compliance. He replaces ROGER BALLARD, who retired after more than 30 years with CIG. ➔ JAY MacLELLAN

is the new media relations director for SHELTER INSURANCE COS., replacing JOE MOSELEY, who retired in August. MacLellan’s career with Shelter began in 1997. He most recently served as Shelter’s director of public relations and corporate training.

➔ COLUMBIA COLLEGE ➔ BROCK BUKOWSKY, co-owner of

Veterans United Home Loans.

➔ The INGRAM’S list of 50 MISSOURIANS YOU SHOULD KNOW includes four Columbians this year. The Kansas City business journal’s annual list pays tribute “to the people whose careers, companies and core values are changing not just their communities, but the state — and, in some cases, the world.” Columbia’s contributions to the list include:

18

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

➔ DEANGELA BURNS-WALLACE, director of access initiatives, University of Missouri. ➔ FRED PARRY, publisher of Inside Columbia magazine. ➔ TIM WOLFE, president of the University of Missouri system.

Other mid-Missourians on the list are PETER HOFHERR , assistant director of the University of Missouri McQuinn Center for Entrepreneurship and CEO of St. James Winery; BARBARA

GARRETT, professor of American Sign Language interpreting at THOMSON, owner

William Woods University; and CECILIA of Mallard Point Resort in Lake Ozark.

has streamlined enrollment management, marketing and admissions operations, consolidating them into one department. KEVIN PALMER, in the newly created position of vice president of enrollment and marketing, will oversee the department. Palmer previously served as Columbia College’s chief information officer and vice president of information technology. A national search is underway for a new director of information technology at the college.

➔ DON STAMPER

is the new executive director of the MISSOURI COMMUNITY SERVICES COMMISSION, a part of the Missouri Department of Economic Development. Stamper left his position as executive director of the Central Missouri Development Council in August, after serving in the position for 12 years. At MCSC, Stamper will be assisting communities with the AmeriCorps program, working out of Jefferson City. He replaces LINDA THOMPSON, who left to join the Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism.

➔ GREG TUCKER

has joined the state SMALL BUSINESS & TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT CENTER in Columbia as associate director. He is the former director of the Jefferson County SBTDC and international trade center in Hillsboro. Tucker, a 14-year veteran of the Business Development Program, will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of 11 SBTDC contract centers located on most of Missouri’s public university campuses and 12 business development specialists in MU Extension county offices.

➔ KATHLEEN

DOLAN has joined the UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI TRULASKE COLLEGE OF BUSINESS as the new director of the Executive MBA program. Dolan comes to MU from the Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina, where she served as director of MBA programs. Dolan previously served as director of the MBA program at Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla. She holds an MBA from IESE Business School in Barcelona, Spain, and a bachelor’s degree from St. Louis University.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

19

OPENING BELL

DATA BANK

WHO WE ARE A Snapshot Of Columbia

GETTING THERE

Mean Travel Time To Work 16.6 minutes

POPULATION 115,276 Female: 52.3% Male: 47.7%

WORK

Labor Force: 98,700 Employment: 94.9% Unemployment: 5.1%

Commuting Methods Alone In Vehicle: 76% Carpool: 11% Public Transportation: 0.7% Walk: 6.6% Other (bicycle, motorcycle, taxi): 2.3% Work At Home: 3.4%

AGE

Median Age 26.9 years old 18 & Younger: 25.7% 20 to 34: 36.5% 35 to 59: 25.7% 60 & Older: 12.1%

RACIAL DISTRIBUTION White: 79% Black: 11.3% Asian: 5.2% Hispanic: 3.4%

EDUCATION

High School Graduates: 93.4% College Graduates: 54.1% Graduate/Professional Degrees: 24.4%

STUDENT POPULATION Local College Enrollment University of Missouri: 34,935 Columbia College: 1,875 Stephens College: 871

HOUSING

Owner Occupied: 48% Renter Occupied: 52%

INCOME & EXPENSES

Median Household Income: $43,084 Cost Of Living: 94.8% of U.S. Average

20

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Missouri Economic Research & Information Center, University of Missouri, Columbia College, Stephens College

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

21

22

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

TRANSITIONS

NOTE WORTHY A Passion For Music Lies At The Heart Of The Business Plan For The Blue Note’s New Owners

T

by SANDY SELBY photos by L.G. PATTERSON and courtesy of MAJESTIC THEATRE

he news broke at 3 p.m. on July 9.

Minutes later, right on schedule, the social media naysayers were tweeting out their doubts. Richard King was selling The Blue Note, and our fair city’s beloved music venue was surely doomed.

The Blue Note’s new owners, Matt Gerding and Scott Leslie, will take possession of the theater and its sister venue Mojo’s in November, and they have reassuring words for the live music devotees of Columbia.

“Don be scared,” Gerding says. “Have faith. This is our industry and we’re certainly going to carry the torch of The Blue Note with a lot of pride.”

THE BUSINESS OF MUSIC

Gerding and Leslie back up their confidence with impressive credentials in the industry.

Gerding, a Columbia native, is a selfadmitted music junkie. In his youth, he often could be found on the front row at concerts, mesmerized by the punk rock band du jour. He began imagining a life for himself in the music industry, but not as a musician. “Obviously I wanted to do something I was passionate about,” Gerding says. “I noticed there was a lot of business behind everything I was listening to.”

He followed his dream, first to a marketing degree at the University of Missouri, then to Los Angeles where he joined the Creative Artists Agency, a prestigious booking agency that handles major touring artists.

It was during his four years in LA that Gerding became acquainted with Leslie, a touring musician who shared Gerding’s dream for a different kind of creative outlet.

“We became roommates and best friends,” Gerding says, and eventually the duo decided to search the country for a music venue to call their own. That search initially brought them to Columbia

Matt Gerding (left) and Scott Leslie (right) are getting comfortable in The Blue Note, the venue they recently bought from Richard King. for a discussion with Richard King about the possibility of buying The Blue Note.

King wasn’t ready to let go of the business at that time, so Gerding and Leslie turned their attention to a historic theater in Madison, Wis.: the Majestic.

“That situation was a little bit different in that we were only buying real estate and not an existing business that was tied

to it as well, like we have in Columbia,” Leslie says. “While everyone in that city [Madison] saw a transformation, all Matt and I saw was what happens when you open a music venue. Within that, Matt and I had to transform our business model, and that was something that happened through a bit of trial and error and finally just a ‘let’s see what happens FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

23

if we do this’ approach. Those changes to our model ultimately worked beyond our wildest dreams ONE MORE and are what caused us to THING ... achieve a level The best concert of success that Matt Gerding has allowed us to seen (so far) at undertake our The Blue Note: “My expansion in Columbia.”

Morning Jacket. I As the men don’t know what built their year it was. It was business and reputation in the first time I’d Madison, a ever seen them and central tenet of I had been a longtheir philosophy time fan. I went with took shape: my brother Tim who the artist is at the forefront of lives here and is a everything. local attorney. I was Leslie says blown away.” his own experiences as a touring musician helped him understand the challenges of the profession. “Don’t

24

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

get me wrong — touring the country was amazing, and an experience that I would never trade,” he says. “But I was single the entire time and had basically no responsibilities aside from that. The other guys in the band all had girlfriends and wives and the lifestyle was much harder on them.

I think it’s important that everyone recognizes that it’s work. They have real expenses to get from show to show and to be able to stay on the road.

We want to recognize that this isn’t a vacation for them and that a smiling face, clean dressing room and good meal go a long, long way. Simple things like spending the extra $5 to get the band their favorite beer or an extra five minutes prewiring the stage to make the crew have just a little bit of an easier day are difference makers.”

Gerding adds, “If you treat your artists well and create a great experience, they’ll go back and tell their agents.” And those agents, Gerding hopes, represent other bands who will start clamoring for a gig in Columbia.

A NEW NOTE

Gerding says the audiences at The Blue Note and Mojo’s can continue to expect great concerts from hot up-and-comers and local favorites, but they’ll also see some aesthetic improvements that will allow the venues to expand their offerings.

“We are going to put in all-new flooring, some new light fixtures,” Gerding says, “and we’re going to completely redo the artists’ dressing rooms.”

Gerding and Leslie plan to offer more of what they call “alternative programming” such as themed dance nights, and hope to rent the facilities out as wedding venues.

“Having a venue that has incrediblelooking floors, new light fixtures and looks fresh and clean helps boost that side of the business that we’re going to put some energy into.”

It isn’t an accident that Leslie and Gerding found themselves owning historic buildings. Both men appreciate the architecture and the “if walls could talk” vibe of a grand old theater. “We definitely wanted to find something that

was a classic-type theater,” Gerding says. “When we found the Majestic, it sort of just spoke to us.” The Blue Note offers similar ambience, but the more humble Mojo’s is a bit of a departure for the pair.

“We weren’t originally discussing that with Richard, but we came to town and realized how much potential it has as a venue,” Gerding says. “It’s a great venue to build up the local music scene and that’s been a cornerstone of Mojo’s for a long time. We love Forrest Rose Park out there. We’ll continue what Mojo’s has been doing but we’ll do some remodeling — mostly aesthetic upgrades.

We hope to utilize the park. It’s a great location for weddings and a summer cult-classic movie series.

We’ve got a lot of creative ideas for how ONE MORE to use that space.”

THING ...

HOME AGAIN

Gerding has moved back to his hometown in preparation for his new role as Blue Note owner.

“I’ve always considered Columbia to be my home,” he says. “I love this town and to come back here now as a 36-year-old is certainly a different experience, but it’s still the same — same heart — and I’m still a huge Missouri Tiger fan. I love The Blue Note and the bars and restaurants and shops and the culture that is this town. It motivates me more to see what we can do to take The Blue Note and the outdoor events like Summerfest and everything that Richard does and inject new life into them.”

Gerding does recognize that the music industry is ever-evolving.

Technology hasn’t just changed the way people access recorded music, it is also transforming live music venues like The Blue Note.

“Certainly little things have changed,” Gerding says, citing innovations such as print-at-home tickets and smartphone scanning. “It’s definitely changed from a production standpoint.

A lot of artists put a lot of money and energy into the production of the show.” That production can include elaborate light displays and other special effects — “things that weren’t a big focus 10 or 15 years ago. With the fall of record sales, artists have found they can continue to make money with touring so there’s a renewed focus on how shows are produced.”

Does Scott Leslie still take the stage as a performer?

“Every blue moon I’ll get up there.

MORE TO COME

Leslie and Gerding are confident their successful business formula will work here in Columbia and can work in other venues in other cities, too. They are already thinking about expanding their holdings … eventually.

“There is a balance that you have to hit in maintaining yourself as an indie club promoter and in doing a good job everywhere and it’s not just in some places,” Leslie says. “You have to maintain the gritty, do-whatever-it-takes mentality, and so much of that is dependent on having the right people, the right team, knowing when to push and knowing when to pull.”

These two music lovers are passionate about the music business and determined to prove to Columbia that they are the right people to carry on Richard King’s legacy at The Blue Note. At the same time, they hope to educate others about the entertainment value of live music.

“We encourage people to come out and experience live music,” Gerding says. “If it’s a band you haven’t heard of, take a chance.

Get out and get away from your couch and your television. You might discover your new favorite band.”

I threaten it a lot more than it actually happens. But the sad truth is that my biggest audiences are the staff in our Madison office (who are unwilling participants), and then my wife and my dogs.

Matt Gerding and Scott Leslie also own the Majestic in Madison, Wis. FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

25

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT

S

lip into a wheelchair and assume the mantle of invisibility. No longer at eye level to most, wheelchair users often complain they become unnoticed and ignored when in their chairs.

From her vantage point as logistics director of Central Missouri Honor Flight, Sharon Paulsell witnessed the reluctance of veterans to use a wheelchair during Honor Flight visits to the memorials in Washington, D.C., back in 2009.

“The first thing we do when we arrive in D.C. is unload the wheelchairs,” she says. “But we noticed that once we got everyone in the chairs and moved them through airports and memorial sites, we saw that many people were reluctant to approach the veterans and talk to them.”

Honor Flight is a celebratory journey for veterans, organized by a group dedicated to honoring the sacrifices of their charges. No detail is too small to fulfill the volunteers’ goals of making each experience the trip of a lifetime. After that first year working in Honor Flight, Sharon and her husband, Flight Director Steve Paulsell, put their heads together to come up with a way to make the wheelchair detail a more joyful part of the veterans’ experience.

Their solution was to create colorful covers, applied to the backs of the borrowed wheelchairs, that display the Honor Flight logo and the veteran status of the occupant.

“It’s made a world of difference in their lives,” Sharon says of the product they christened Wheelchair Personalities. “We’ve seen a marked improvement in the veterans’ willingness to use the chairs, and a more positive reception from the public.”

Steve Paulsell has a more direct method of enticing the veterans into using the colorfully clad chairs, Sharon says. “He tells them it’s a ‘chick magnet.’ ”

Taking The Plunge

Personality Plus

Customized Wheelchair Covers Roll Out The Smiles

by KATHY CASTEEL photos by L.G. PATTERSON

26

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

The Paulsells produced and donated more than 80 wheelchair covers to Central Missouri Honor Flight, a local hub of the national organization. The volunteer project planted a seed that led to the couple’s current enterprise.

“We began to hear from other people who suggested other applications for our product,” Sharon says. An untapped market had opened and the Paulsells plunged headfirst into the entrepreneurial experience. They applied for a provisional patent in 2010 and launched Wheelchair Personalities.

The wheelchair covers dress up the visible back of a standard, nonpower wheelchair or sports wheelchair and attach with Velcro straps. They can be transferred easily from one chair to another with the same chair back dimensions. Made of 600x300 denier polyester with PVC backing, they are machine washable and dryer-safe, and can be treated with traditional spray disinfectants. Sharon designs the covers, with input from the client, and then puts it into production, noting the process is entirely “Made in the USA.” “Our graphics are created at Stahls in Wisconsin from PDFs we send them,” she says. “They’re applied to material produced in Indiana.” American Discovery Textile Manufacturing

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

27

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT in nearby Glasgow produces large orders of the wheelchair covers. For orders of fewer than 50, the Paulsells employ a local seamstress — and disabled veteran — in Columbia to make the covers. Available in a variety of colors and infinitely customizable, the covers come in two price points: $47 for children’s and standard sizes; $57 for extra large. The company promises a 5- to 10-day turnaround on orders.

“We could do this cheaper with imported materials and labor,” Sharon says, “but we’re committed to domestic production. We have our priorities to do the right thing.”

“Doing the right thing” has brought its own reward, the Paulsells say. Boasting quality workmanship and domestic production, the company has sold thousands of covers to individuals and a wide range of facilities and groups such as University of Missouri Children’s Hospital, the MU Student Union, Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans Hospital and Honor Flight hubs across the country. They are negotiating with nursing homes, hospitals, sports teams, the Wounded Warrior Project, hotels and other commercial businesses.

“Our biggest challenge,” Steve says, “has been promoting a product no one has ever seen.”

Entrepreneurship 101 The last four years have been a whirlwind education in business startup for the Paulsells.

Both arrived at this enterprise as a second chapter in their professional lives. Steve, 63, spent 38 years as a firefighter — 31 as chief of the Boone County Fire Protection District.

Born in St. Louis, he has lived in Columbia since he was 5 years old. Sharon, 53, a self-described “Army brat” from Grand Island, Neb., moved to Columbia in 1980 to begin a career in nonprofit administration. The couple married in 2009 and turned their energies to their volunteer causes and their newfound entrepreneurial purpose.

With their Honor Flight prototype in hand, the Paulsells sounded out ideas with focus groups and entered pitch competitions. They tested every incarnation of their design, looking for durability. “We have brutalized these things on Honor Flights,” says Steve.

They sought advice through the Small Business & Technology Development Center and the mid-Missouri SCORE association, where counselors schooled them on business plan development, marketing and social media, network connections and sales issues, as well as the time and paperwork requirements of running a small business.

The couple filed two provisional patents and in April 2013 applied for a nonprovisional patent. That same month, they entered the 2013 #BOOM competition, sponsored by Regional Economic Development Inc., and took their first

FIND OUT MORE Visit Wheelchair Personalities online at www.wheelchairpersonalities.com.

28

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

crack at presenting their product.

“We didn’t place,” Sharon says, “but we learned so much and it was a great experience.”

A few months later, Sharon entered the Grow Mid-Missouri PitchON competition at Boonville’s Isle of Capri, where she took first place. The event — sponsored by the Moberly Area Economic Development Corp., Moberly Area Community College and the Moberly Chamber of Commerce — models itself on the “Shark Tank” television show that matches entrepreneurs with investors.

“The pitch competitions draw a lot of marketing companies to you,” Steve says. “There are some great opportunities but you have to sift through the offers and ideas. The most important thing, though, is getting with the other entrepreneurs. So much happens outside in the lobby when you’re not competing — it’s very supportive.”

That same summer, a Columbia branch of 1 Million Cups formed. Wheelchair Personalities was on the openingday docket of presenters at the first gathering of mentors, advisers and other entrepreneurs.

It was an impressive debut, says REDI President Mike Brooks. “Great example of seeing an opportunity!” he says.

“It’s all about getting our product out there,” Steve says.

“We’ve been beneficiaries — and benefactors — of the Columbia entrepreneur network. It’s fun and energizing.

Everyone is so kind and helpful.”

Smiles & Stares The Paulsells have poured their savings into their company.

“We had a little nest egg from a family inheritance we could tap,” Steve notes.

They learned as much from their mistakes as they did from their advisers, although some errors were more costly than others.

“We thought we needed an office to conduct business,” Sharon says.

For a while, they leased space on John Garry Drive, an unnecessary expenditure before they’d sold even one wheelchair cover. Now they work out of their home and maintain a website for orders.

“The Internet is an amazing tool,” Sharon says. “I take full advantage of all social media. It’s free — except for my time."

Without other employment to distract them, the couple focuses on building their business — when they’re not volunteering for one cause or another.

“If we didn’t do so much volunteer work, our business would have grown three times what it has,” says Sharon.

“But you do what you can. Volunteering is a part of who we are.”

The couple’s passion for their causes — particularly those that champion the rights of veterans or the disabled — has ushered them into a circle of memorable clients, customers and friends.

Their covers have adorned the chair of Russelville’s Phaedra Olsen, Ms. Wheelchair USA 2010, who now works for Mothers Against Drunk Driving in Tennessee. “She’s a beauty queen in Nashville,” Sharon says. “She likes the glitzy, glamorous designs.”

Some clients request designs that can be tricky for Wheelchair Personalities to accommodate outside of licensing contracts. “We had an order for a man who loved John Deere tractors, but we weren’t authorized to use that logo,” Sharon recalls.

“We came up with something in those iconic colors and put a tractor on it. He won’t part with that cover — not even to let the nursing home staff wash it!”

Another impromptu design brought a smile to a baseball fan. “We couldn’t just slap a St. Louis Cardinals logo on a wheelchair for this one customer, so we re-created a cover styled like a jersey — in red, of course, with his favorite player’s number,” Sharon says. “He loved it.”

From the smiles of happy clients to the well-deserved recognition of a veteran’s service, Wheelchair Personalities offers a way for the disabled to stand out in the crowd.

“It gives you permission to stare,” Sharon says.

For the curious, stares can lead to conversation. And conversation is the cure for invisibility.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

29

COACH’S CLIPBOARD

7 Keys To Developing An Outstanding Work Atmosphere

by GARY PINKEL

W

hen it comes to a college football program, work atmosphere is everything. The players spend a huge portion of their time together, sharing in victories and working through challenges as a team.

Mizzou football has made major progress in the last 13 years. Now part of the most competitive conference in college football, the University of Missouri athletic department leads the Southeastern Conference in Academic Progress Rate, and our football seniors have a 97 percent graduation rate over the past five years.

This kind of progress doesn’t happen overnight, and it cannot be attributed to any one person. The transformation of Mizzou football is the result of a positive workplace environment, cultivated by teammates and coaches who are committed to each other’s success. There are seven keys to developing this positive environment.

uild trust.

1B Trust is a product of leading by example and sticking to core values. To gain the trust of those around you, you must exemplify a clear value system in the workplace. A leader must be confident, organized, detailed and responsible in order to gain the trust of others.

Without trust, there is no ownership. Without ownership, there is no team. Everything is about trust.

As Stephen M.R. Covey says, “Trust is one of the most powerful forms of motivation and inspiration. People want to be trusted.

They respond to trust.”

now your team and 2K show you care.

As a head coach, I have learned that my players will not passionately care about Mizzou if I do not passionately care about them as individuals. If a leader does not care for his staff, his staff, in turn, will not respect his leadership and vision. The mission of Mizzou football is not only to develop players athletically, but also to develop them personally and academically.

3 Create a team atmosphere.

At the beginning of every Mizzou football season, we all sign and commit to a family covenant. Within the Mizzou Covenant, there is a University of Missouri Football Rule of Declaration, which states: “There are only two options 30

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

Mizzou Tigers Coach Gary Pinkel

regarding the commitment to our TEAM covenant.

You’re either IN or you’re OUT. There is no such thing as life in-between.”

A successful organization requires mutual agreement and commitment — both to the organization and to each other.

hoose a positive 4C attitude.

A positive attitude makes for a positive environment. When a leader demonstrates a positive attitude, the work culture will follow his example. In the wise words of Charles Swindoll, “I am convinced that life is 10 percent what happens to me and 90 percent how I react to it. And so it is with you … We are in charge of our attitudes.”

Each day, we are faced with the choice to lift up others with positivity or to tear them down with negativity. One negative attitude can permeate a work environment and destroy positive outlooks.

Attitudes can make or break your work culture. The most rewarding route is to find the strength to be positive for the success of your organization.

Make no excuses.

5 Success and excuses are incompatible. A leader must foster an environment of accountability and strive to prevent excuse habits at all cost.

Any excuse for nonperformance, however valid, softens character. It

is a sedative against one’s own conscience.

When you use an excuse, you attempt to convince both yourself and others that unsatisfactory performance is somehow acceptable.

No matter how true or valid, an excuse never changes performance. A performance-driven mindset not only improves an organization’s work ethic, but also builds individual self-respect.

When a player drops the excuse habit, the rise in self-esteem is remarkable.

ommunicate 6C openly.

The Mizzou football program is a transparent and openly communicative place. When an issue arises, we deal with it in the present. We do not wait for time to pass before we fix the issue at hand. Only when it is resolved can we move forward.

e 7B consistent.

Nothing will derail a program or teamwork faster than inconsistency in leadership. A leader builds trust within his organization when he is consistent with his decisions. A leader’s “yes” should always be yes, and his “no” should always be no. Adversity does not warrant throwing out the plan.

These seven principles transformed Mizzou football—and they are just as transformative in the business sphere. In order to create a thriving organization, leaders must remember that values are everything and it is all about the people.

It’s about the fans who fill up Faurot Field on game days. It’s about the people who run governments. It is all about getting people to work together, united for one common goal.

Gary Pinkel is in his 14th year as head coach of the University of Missouri football team. Pinkel collected his 102nd win in the 2014 AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic, which made him the winningest coach in Mizzou football history. Since 2007, Mizzou is the only BCS program in the nation to rank in the top 10 in wins, top five in Academic Progress Rate and top five in NFL firstround draft picks. A 1973 graduate of Kent State University, Pinkel is a member of the University of Toledo Athletic Hall of Fame.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

31

INSPIRATION

Ascending Aspirations

Restaurateur Matt Jenne Won’t Settle For The View From The Plateau

by JESSICA WALSH portrait by L.G. PATTERSON

Matt Jenne at his downtown restaurant, Addison's

I

t’s the kind of success many entrepreneurs can only hope to attain.

Sister restaurants Addison’s and Sophia’s have been going strong in Columbia throughout this century.

As many of their counterparts closed their doors — Forge & Vine, Bambino’s, Q’s Chinese, Boone Tavern — Addison’s and Sophia’s remain popular with diners, even in the recession. Both boast ratings of 4½ of 5 stars on review sites Urbanspoon and TripAdvisor, where diners post comments such as, “The nachos are to die for,” and “Seems every time I go, they get better.”

Yet despite 15 years of success, restaurateur Matt Jenne and his fellow co-owners began to think their businesses had plateaued. And even though that plateau was a high point on the CoMo dining scale, the partners couldn’t just sit back and enjoy the ride.

“Although we’re proud of our success, we feel like growth is a key component to continuing that success,” Jenne says. “My partners and I are working at our best when we’re growing or working on new projects.”

The partners’ business ventures have seen plenty of growth since their early days. Their story started at another iconic Columbia restaurant — Flat Branch Pub & Brewing, where the four original partners worked when Jenne was in college. Back

32

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

then, Adam Dushoff, Jeremy Brown, Brad Pippen and Jenne made a pact to open a restaurant of their own someday.

But time went on, and Jenne graduated from the University of Missouri with a bachelor’s degree in engineering. He accepted a job in Toronto, Canada, where he grew up. That lasted about a year.

“I realized pretty quickly engineering wasn’t for me,” he says.

So when his friends called and said they wanted to make good on their pact, Jenne quit his engineering job. Twenty-seven years old and unmarried at the time, he moved back to Columbia to help launch the new business.

“We were pretty naïve upstarts,” says Jenne, now 42. “We felt like we knew how to run a restaurant, but none of us had a business background.”

Initially they thought they’d call the restaurant Saints and Sinners, and planned to offer dueling menus, one with healthier options and the other with an emphasis on fried foods. But they weren’t sold on the name — and neither was their landlord, who wasn’t thrilled with the idea of having it emblazoned on his building. Instead, they named the restaurant after Dushoff ’s eldest son, Addison.

“It was what we would describe as a long backwoods road that had a lot of twists and turns,” Jenne says. “We didn’t know what direction we were going at any given time. But in the end, it turned

out to be something we were proud of.”

The laid-back urban restaurant opened its doors in 1999, but the partners wanted to keep going — and between the four of them, they knew they had the ability to do so. Two years later, the group launched a second restaurant, Sophia’s, offering diners a more sophisticated, European ambience. In the years since then, the partners — minus Pippen, who remains close to the group but is pursuing other interests — have also diversified their assets by acquiring multiple rental properties.

But this is a group of people who aren’t satisfied with maintaining the status quo.

“The restaurant business is an entirely different animal from when we started,” Dushoff says, “so the idea that we would somehow remain static and still successful is not a recipe for success, we believe.”

And as Jenne puts it, “We’ve reached the point in our business where we’ve plateaued to some degree.” So Jenne put into action something he’d been considering for about a decade: With his partners cheering him on, he enrolled in an MBA program. “I think doing this will hopefully give us some tools to continue to grow in maybe new and different directions,” he says.

“We fully support Matt,” Brown says.

“We’re excited to see what kind of benefits we can get from his newfound knowledge.”

BUSINESS BUFFET Jenne is a little more than halfway through MU’s Executive MBA program, which is designed for people who already have leadership experience in the business world.

The executive program, tailored to the needs of working professionals, was born out of a recognized need, says Joan Gabel, dean of MU’s Trulaske College of Business.

“We developed our execMBA program because we received strong feedback that working professionals needed a flexible, high-quality way to improve their skills without having to leave their employment,” she says.

Students complete about 75 percent of their studies online and 25 percent on campus. So far, the coursework has covered such topics as finance, accounting, FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

33

Matt Jenne (far left) and his execMBA classmates visit Banco de Chile while sampling the industries of Santiago in an “international residency.”

economics, management, marketing and supply chain.

“Because I have my fingers in a lot of those pots in my small business, each semester I’m able to apply things almost directly to how I can run my businesses better,” Jenne says.

In a data-management course, for example, Jenne and his classmates created a regression to predict sales at Addison’s. The regression takes into consideration factors such as the weather forecast, previous years’ sales and local events such as home football games. Jenne tested it one day when Mizzou hosted Texas A&M at Faurot Field. To his surprise, his prediction was within $50 of the restaurant’s actual sales that day. Since then, Jenne has been refining the regression, which can be used to help him and his partners determine how many employees to schedule and how much food to order.

He also has honed his management style, courtesy of the textbook, The Three Signs of a Miserable Job by Patrick Lencioni.

In the book, Lencioni argues that employees should be equipped with ways of measuring their own success on the job. Jenne says he has been trying to put Lencioni’s principles into practice at his restaurants. For instance, he might ask the bus staff to keep track of how many tables they’ve cleared, an exercise that’s more about awareness than hitting a specific goal.

“I’ve never cared if they bused 12 tables or 15 tables; that’s never been what it’s about,” he says. “It’s giving them a sense that their part of the business is very helpful and is accomplishing things.”

CONNECTIONS Jenne’s studies have even taken him abroad. The Executive MBA cohort travels to Santiago, Chile, for a weeklong “international residency” that includes meetings with executives from various industries.

Why Santiago? Gabel calls it a special place: “It is a fastgrowing economy steeped in a complex history that is quite different from our own. The combination gives our students a 34

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

robust opportunity to see how doing business internationally creates challenges and opportunities.”

One of the students’ business visits came in the form of a wine dinner at the Kingston Family Vineyards in the Casablanca Valley, tucked in the foothills of the Andes Mountains. The vineyard’s managing partner discussed the winemaking process as the students dined among wine barrels, an experience Jenne found inspiring.

“It was such a neat backdrop to have dinner,” he says. “The takeaway I got from that was the idea of experiential dining, which could potentially be something we could do here. You find the backdrop and make that backdrop part of the reason you’re having the meal.” He envisions a meal using the resources and maybe even a menu from Addison’s or Sophia’s but served in an unusual location.

And of course, every time the MBA students ate at restaurants, that happened to double as market research for Jenne. In addition to observing trends such as the cosmopolitan feel of many Santiago restaurants, he also toured three eateries and discussed the restaurant industry with one of the owners.

But perhaps one of the most important things Jenne has gained from the MBA program is the opportunity to expand his professional network. Although many of his classmates come from different fields — medical, legal, manufacturing, IT — they often exchange ideas that are applicable across industries. “You never know where inspiration will come from,” Jenne says. And he points out customer service is a component of all the students’ businesses.

FRIENDS & FAMILY Jenne’s personal network is what made it possible for him to go back to school, he says. His wife, Melinda, recently quit her job to stay home with their four children, who range in age from 4 to 12 years old. Although her decision was unrelated to her husband’s enrollment in the MBA program, he says he’s not sure he would have gone back to school if she hadn’t been at home.

His partners, too, have been very supportive.

“The sacrifice is not just mine,” he says. “It’s theirs as well.”

According to his partner Dushoff, that’s the way the trio works. “I took off four-plus weeks for paternity leave without a thought in the world,” Dushoff says. “We work to make each other’s lives better.”

The partners do three-month rotations to alternate who acts as general manager of Addison’s, who heads up Sophia’s and who floats between the two. This arrangement prevents burnout, Jenne says, and allows the partners to see their businesses with fresh eyes.

READY TO CLIMB So what’s next for the group? Jenne prefers not to discuss anything specific until it’s a sure thing, but he says they’re “definitely looking to do more, whether that’s expanding these concepts or new concepts.”

One major move he is willing to reveal: The partners plan to renovate Addison’s. They’ll begin that undertaking in January.

No worries, art lovers — those celebrated paintings by local artist and former Addison’s bartender David Spear will stay.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

35

THE CONFERENCE ROOM

Exit Interview

REDI’s Mike Brooks Prepares To Leave Columbia

by KATHY CASTEEL

M

ike Brooks, Columbia’s economic development leader for the past five years, is bidding adieu to central Missouri soon as he and his wife make plans to return to Indiana this fall. Citing the pull of family obligations, 65-year-old Brooks announced this summer that he was stepping down as president of Regional Economic Development Inc. to return to his home state.

He arrived in Columbia in the summer of 2009 from Indianapolis, where he had served as president and CEO of the Indiana Health Industry Forum, an organization working to make Indiana a premier state for growth in the health industry.

Brooks began his economic development career in Indiana — after earning a degree in economics and sociology from Purdue University — as president of the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce and then president of the West Lafayette Economic Development Corp. He left Indiana for a year to serve as Utah State University’s associate vice president for research before returning to his home state and Indianapolis. When he and his wife, Kitty, leave Columbia this fall, the move will take them to Lafayette, near in-laws, children and grandchildren.

Brooks’ tenure at REDI included several successful efforts at attracting new businesses to Columbia — such as IBM, Beyond Meat, Northwest Medical Isotopes and Nanova Biomaterials — as well as expansion projects for existing companies 3M and Veterans United. The city launched a search this summer for his replacement with plans to interview applicants in early fall. The search committee hopes to hire a new REDI president in October, according to Margrace Buckler, director of human resources for the city of Columbia.

36

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

We checked in with Brooks for some reflections on his time in CoMo and his plans for the future.

>> What were the highlights of your time spent nurturing economic development in Columbia? The biggest catch?

The one that got away?

First, the people that I have had the opportunity to work with is the highlight. Columbia is a very special place with a lot of really good people.

From a recruiting/attraction perspective, IBM has to be at the top. 3M has to be in there as well; the importance of working with existing industry is key to a community’s success.

Project Unicorn is the one that got away that we were extremely excited about. This was a data center project of mega portions, a more than $1 billion investment opportunity. We lost out to Charlotte, N.C.

“FOR PROJECTS THAT FIT WITH THE COLUMBIA COMMUNITY, WE SHOULD RECOGNIZE THEIR IMPORTANCE WITH A WELCOME MAT!”

>> In terms of attracting business activity to the area, what are the best things Columbia has going for it?

The University of Missouri has to head the column of key assets. There are too many assets within the university to detail all, but some key areas include the number of colleges and schools within MU, including the medical and veterinary schools. The Bond Life Sciences Center provides an opportunity for doing interdisciplinary research. The MU Research Reactor is not just an asset — it is a unique asset and is the reason we were able to bring Northwest Medical Isotopes to Columbia.

The quality of community is a great asset. Parks, trails, bike paths, art, downtown, quality neighborhoods, cultural events, entertainment … and on and on, are critically important to attracting employers who need to recruit talent to the community as well as make it difficult for people to leave the community.

The collaborative working environment between the university and the community in supporting economic development is very special!

What impediments to economic development exist in Columbia? How can the city’s business community address these concerns?

This is a very difficult question because the answers will be different for different types of businesses.

For example, labor force — when working to attract an “advanced” manufacturing facility (i.e., a plant that requires a skilled workforce), we do not have a large regional pool of potential employees. So if it is a small workforce project, then it would not be a negative; however, if it was a large employment project, we would be at a disadvantage.

Labor force can easily be a positive. When recruiting IBM, the availability of a skilled IT workforce was one of many positives.

Transportation here is pretty good and that begins with our location on Interstate 70. The growth of air service at the Columbia Regional Airport is extremely important and the community needs to stay focused on growing that asset.

Infrastructure is another topic where there is a different answer based on the needs of the project. We have industrial land on the north side of the community that can support industry that does not require significant water or sewer.

But if a food-processing company were interested in a site here, we would have a challenge with meeting the water and sewer demand.

Business climate is a catchall phrase that we use to discuss the conditions that businesses operate under and the attitude of the community toward development. Again, it is difficult to answer this question without considering a specific project. For example, we do not have very much we can do in the way of financial incentives to attract new business, but we do have the Chapter 100 Bond program that FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

37

THE CONFERENCE ROOM In Good Company REDI President Mike Brooks leaves Columbia with the community riding high on a wave of positive business images.

Among the lists where CoMo finds itself ranked highly this year ➔ Boone County has an approved policy on its use. For projects that fit the policy, we have the ability to provide tax abatement.

To me, the key question for our community and elected officials is: Do we want to attract business to the community that brings wealth through the creation of prime jobs from outside our economic region and provides the money that nonprime businesses, such as service and retail, need to provide the nonprime jobs? Other communities across the country are providing significant incentives to bring these prime jobs to their communities.

Before jumping on the incentive discussion, there is another very important part of this discussion: How difficult do we want to make it for these prime employers with fees and rules that are mostly intended to deal with the nonprime projects? For projects that fit with the Columbia community, we should recognize their importance to our community with a welcome mat!

Entrepreneurship occupies a special place in your heart.

You’ve been seeding that economic garden here for quite some time. Are you leaving behind any initiatives in Columbia that will encourage entrepreneurship in the community?

I am extremely proud of the progress we’ve made with our celebratory entrepreneurial event, #BOOM. It has grown to become one of the largest celebrations in Missouri. This past year, we had 1,300-plus people who participated in person or by Internet. Our first event was approximately 200. Our #BOOM Pitch has equally grown over these past four years and has had some amazing pitches. Sean Siebert, our chairman for the past two events has done a wonderful job of building bridges to our high schools and colleges to attract youth to these events. These two programs have the potential to continue to grow and add more programs around them.

I am also very happy with the REDI offices and our efforts to create a welcoming environment to entrepreneurs or those who want to be an entrepreneur. Within our offices, we have the downtown incubator, the resources of the Small Business and Technology Development Center (three counselors who provide cost-free services), and offices with state-of-the-art technology for video conferencing, streaming video for events and video recording for playback.

1 Million Cups is a great networking program that will continue to grow and add value to our entrepreneurial community.

We have established a beginning effort to identify potential entrepreneurial students and identify ways to work with them with 38

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

COLUMBIA IS

No. 1

BEST PERFORMING SMALL CITIES BY T H E M I L K E N I N S T I T U T E

No. 3

ON FORBES’ LIST OF BEST SMALL CITIES FOR JOBS

No. 6

ON FORBES’ LIST OF BEST SMALL PLACES FOR BUSINESS AND CAREERS

No. 7

MID-SIZE CITY ON AREA D E V E LO P M E N T ’ S L I S T O F L E A D I N G L O C AT I O N S F O R 2 0 1 4

No. 19

O N B E S T B O O M E RTOW N S .CO M L I S T O F TO P 2 1 B E S T P L AC E S TO T H R I V E

No. 29

O F 5 0 B E S T CO L L E G E TOW N S I N A M E R I CA BY B E ST CO L L EG E R E V I E WS

No. 46

O N L I VA B I L I T Y ’ S T O P 1 0 0 B E S T P L AC E S TO L I V E

the goal of retaining their business in Columbia upon graduation. This and other efforts provide great opportunity for building stronger collaborative efforts within the community.

What advice would you offer to your successor at REDI? Keep “economic gardening” as a key effort to build and strengthen the Columbia economy, but don’t lose sight of the opportunities that Columbia has to attract new business and, without question, work with the existing employers to provide assistance whenever possible. Appreciate what Columbia has to offer and the people who are there to provide support.

“DON’T LOSE SIGHT OF THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT COLUMBIA HAS TO ATTRACT NEW BUSINESS.” What’s next for Mike Brooks in Indiana?

I really don’t know at this point.

Thoughts of doing something entrepreneurial have crossed my mind, maybe doing some consulting with economic development organizations in university towns. While I have a long tenure in economic development, the one thing that stands out with my experiences is almost all have come within a university town!

I do have to find something to do.

My wife has informed me that I am not welcome to follow her around all day!

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

39

BUSINESS BASICS

Insure Success

How To Choose Your Business Insurance

by KATHY CASTEEL

S

mall businesses — especially startups — can consume a business owner’s time and assets. Don’t leave yourself unprotected when the unforeseen strikes. There are many ways to insure your business property, assets and employees against liability, property loss and other calamities. Some insurance, such as workers’ compensation or policies for business vehicles, are required by law. Health care benefits may be a federal requirement if your business’s employee payroll is large enough (read more about the Affordable Care Act on Page 52).

Smart business owners protect their risks, says Fred Travis, assistant teaching professor of finance at the University of Missouri and director of the Risk Management and Insurance program in MU’s Trulaske College of Business.

Travis notes five considerations for new business owners and startups.

1.

When filling out initial insurance applications, take care in how you describe your proposed operations and financial projections, Travis says.

“While you want to paint a rosy picture for lenders, the opposite is true when buying insurance for the first time,” he advises. “Initial premiums will be based on your projections, and there won’t be any rebates if your actual results are less than expected.

Provide insurers with a conservative outlook; just be sure there won’t be any repercussions — other than increased premiums — if you exceed expectations.”

2.

Do be sure to report all of the property you want insured, Travis says. Most small-business policies contain “coinsurance clauses” that require you to warrant you are covering at least a stated percentage of property — usually at least 80 percent.

“If you have a loss and the insurer determines you underreported your values, you will only receive a percentage of the loss, based upon the ratio of reported to actual values,” he says.

3.

Regardless of how much you trust your agent to get you the best deal, Travis suggests business owners shop around for policies and coverage.

40

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

“Insist on seeing at least two complete quotes — and preferably three — for your initial coverage,” he says. “Make sure you understand and are satisfied with the details of coverage, particularly coverage enhancements and exclusions that impact your business. Compare the details and the pricing, and don’t just buy the lowest premium.”

4.

Whether you obtain one quote or many, don’t be so quick to accept an insurer’s initial offer. Travis suggests negotiating for fewer exclusions, more coverage enhancements and a lower price.

And don’t be afraid to walk away. “If your agent balks, find someone else,” Travis says.

5.

Be sure you get good advice and understand thoroughly what insurance is mandatory for your particular business, Travis says. For example: >> If you have employees, workers’ compensation is required in nearly all states, although as the owner you can choose to not cover yourself. >> If you provide certain professional services, professional liability insurance may be required for licensing. >> If you lease your premises, the lessor may require several different types of insurance.

>> If members of the public will be visiting your premises, general liability coverage, while not strictly mandatory, is a must for protecting your business against a lawsuit.

Find out what Missouri requires for your business’s insurance by visiting the Missouri Department of Insurance website at www.insurance.mo.gov/ consumers/smallbusiness.

The U.S. Small Business Administration website also offers tips and advice for buying insurance. Check out the discussions at www.sba.gov/content/buying-insurance and www.sba.gov/content/types-businessinsurance.

MILESTONES

The ‘Can-Do’ Group Assistance League Celebrates 20 Years Of ‘Working Together … Making A Difference’

by ANITA NEAL HARRISON photos by L.G. PATTERSON Assistance League President Barbara Trabue (foreground) stands in the Upscale Resale shop with past-presidents (left to right) Lynnanne Baumgardner, Jan Beckett and Donna Beckett.

run entirely by volunteers — there are no paid positions — to maximize the funds going directly to those in need in mid-Missouri. From operating a retail store exclusively with volunteers to raising $1 million for Columbia Public Schools, Assistance League of MidMissouri is a strong contributor to the community. Chapter President Barbara Trabue and several past presidents agree on a quartet of factors that have strengthened this nonprofit over the past two decades: a strategic plan, shared leadership, committed members and a culture of loyalty.

A STRATEGY FOR SUCCESS

G

et a group of strong, determined women together, and there’s nothing they can’t do. Just ask the ladies of the Assistance League of MidMissouri. They’ve been going strong for 20 years now. The group is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year as an official chapter of the national Assistance League.

With a reputation for being a “handson, can-do group,” the organization attracts volunteers who have “a heart for 42

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

service,” says Jan Beckett, a past chapter president.

“Assistance League of Mid-Missouri has been successful in growing, attaining its goals and helping people by remaining focused on our mission: ‘working together … making a difference,’ ” Beckett says.

The philanthropic organization comprised entirely of women focuses its service programs on women and children facing various needs. The organization is

The Assistance League of Mid-Missouri has a strategic plan to keep members focused on its mission — building the chapter through education, inspiration and support — and on its future. Trabue says the group keeps that plan front-ofmind for members.

“We have posters of the plan in our building,” she says. “Each of our committees is asked to determine how they will support the plan.”

The Assistance League accomplishes its vision — to meet the challenging needs of individuals in the community — through five core values: commitment, leadership, ethics, accountability and respect. “At each regular meeting,” Trabue says, “we highlight a core value or goal of the strategic plan.”

The group evaluates its philanthropic programs each year and “tweaks” as necessary to better meet the needs of program partners, Trabue says.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

43

A Program For Philanthropy Assistance League of Mid-Missouri currently operates nine philanthropic programs.

Operation School Bell®

Operation School Bell provides new winter clothing and coats to Columbia Public School children in preschool through fifth grade. Since 1997, the program has served more than 18,500 children.

Kaboodle Kits

All children participating in Operation School Bell receive a personal hygiene kit; the group also provides kits to adults and seniors in cooperation with True North, Voluntary Action Center and Boone County Council on Aging.

Links To Learning

The program provides funding for learning enrichment projects designed and

implemented by Columbia Public School teachers. The 2014 awards will reach the $1 million mark.

Assisting Women’s Achievement Scholarships

The Assistance League offers scholarships to adult women returning to finish college degrees at Columbia College, Stephens College and the University of Missouri. The group has donated more than $150,000 since 2005.

True North

The group provides linens, cleaning supplies and other everyday essentials to True North to help women create new lives.

OPPORTUNITIES TO LEAD Members have several opportunities to be leaders, from serving on the elected board to serving as committee chairs.

“Leadership is shared,” says past president Lynnanne Baumgardner.

“Decision-making is always a group activity following research and discussion.”

Each board member is responsible for a specific area — such as overseeing the building or resource development — and works with the president to make policy and action decisions.

Committee chairs lead members in the group’s community work and activities, from fundraising to coordinating with program partners to planning social activities. “[Committee chairs] encourage our members to volunteer, identify members’ strengths and talents, and strive to develop new leaders from the membership,” Trabue says.

PASSIONATE ABOUT COMMITMENT The membership is more than 300 strong. Most have joined because of another member, Trabue says.

“Our membership is involved and is not afraid to talk about what they are doing!” she says. ”Their contacts in the community often hear about how they have been 44

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

Special purchases have included security cameras, bulletproof windows, van repairs and a remoteactivated driveway gate.

Bundles For Babies

This program provides a tote bag of newborn necessities to families identified by maternal social workers. Since 2002, approximately 2,500 bundles have gone to parents at local hospitals.

Parent Packs

Parent Packs, a joint project with Daniel Boone Regional Library, provides informational materials in English and Spanish for expectant parents.

volunteering their time and talents.

“We also get new members from our program partners,” she adds. “Teachers who have seen how Operation School Bell, Links to Learning and Kaboodle Kits have enriched the lives of their students want to be a part of Assistance League.”

To make membership convenient for as many women as possible, Assistance League of Mid-Missouri offers other options for volunteering. The Professional Leaders Auxiliary meets in the evenings and staffs the Upscale Resale shop on Saturdays; the Junior Committee asks members to volunteer when they can in Upscale Resale and philanthropic programs, and provide child care at meetings.

CULTIVATING LOYALTY Membership development goes further than attracting new women to the group.

“We strive to have members feel ‘married to the mission’ of Assistance League of Mid-Missouri,” Trabue says.

New members go through an orientation process showing them how they can help Assistance League fulfill its mission and meet its goals. Assistance League also has a mentoring program, which just started in 2013. Seasoned members introduce the novices at their

Assault Survivor Kits®

Assistance League supplies local hospitals with clothing and personal hygiene items for victims of abuse (female, male or child) who may have to leave their personal items as evidence for the authorities. Since 1994, this program has provided more than 800 kits.

Operation Share

Qualifying clients of nonprofit agencies receive vouchers to use at the Upscale Resale shop for clothing needs. The program also shares donations inappropriate for the shop with other charitable organizations.

first membership meetings, join them for their first Upscale Resale shift and invite them to volunteer events.

“It’s gone very well,” Trabue says. “We’ve been able to get our new members to volunteer more. They feel much more comfortable making that leap.”

The group’s emphasis on its strategic plan also helps cultivate loyalty, adds past president and chapter founder Donna Beckett.

“New and veteran members see the results of our efforts and realize that our mission is not just a slogan but a description of the way we operate,” she says.

MEETING THE MISSION Assistance League of Mid-Missouri meets community needs through nine philanthropic programs.

“New philanthropic programs are developed when we see a need in our community that is not being met by another organization,” Trabue says. “A new program is researched by committee and presented to membership for approval.”

All programs have begun “cautiously,” adds past president Libby Reid.

“Links to Learning began with $2,000 awarded to 11 teachers,” she says. “Operation School Bell first clothed children in two

classrooms. Programs are evaluated each year and are constantly evolving.”

The organization’s primary source of funding is its retail shop, Upscale Resale.

This second-hand shop sells only upto-date, gently used items, presented in attractive displays. An all-volunteer staff and donated merchandise make the shop a successful fundraiser.

“We often hear that our shop ‘looks like a real store,’ ” Trabue says. “It certainly doesn’t look like a typical thrift shop.”

Other important fundraisers are Cookie Connection, through which the general public orders cookies baked and delivered

by Assistance League members; Comedy Night, which includes a national headliner and local performers for an evening of laughs; and Donor Letter, an annual solicitation for donations for Operation School Bell that lets donors give an amount equal to the cost of one child’s clothes (or more children, if donors so choose).

The secret to these fundraisers’ success is that they offer benefits to supporters, from shopping bargains to entertainment, Jan Beckett says. Plus, Trabue notes, people like knowing their money is staying in the community.

“All of our proceeds fund programs right here in town,” she says.

TIME TO CELEBRATE One area where Trabue says Assistance League has struggled is publicity.

“We would love to be more visible but struggle with the cost of advertising how we impact the community,” she says.

When savvy members realized the group’s 20th anniversary presented an opportunity, they planned a public celebration — and then sent out an impressive press release about the anniversary, the chapter’s history, its programs and its planned anniversary celebration.

That celebration takes place at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 1, at the Upscale Resale shop, 1729 W. Broadway. A Chamber of Commerce ribbon-cutting will kick off the party, followed by refreshments and a tour of the building, which also serves as the organization’s meeting space.

Drawings for door prizes will pop up in Upscale Resale throughout the day.

“We hope to see you there!” Trabue says.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

45

Booming Business MU’s Trulaske College Of Business Celebrates 100 Years

by KATHY CASTEEL photos by L.G. PATTERSON

46

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

I

t was a bold move for bold times.

But even before business school pioneers Herbert Davenport and Thorstein Veblen could pat themselves on the back, their colleagues at the University of Missouri were denouncing President A. Ross Hill’s decision to pull MU’s world-renowned economics department out of the College of Arts and Science and into the newly launched School of Commerce. The controversy pitted ivory tower champions of theory and culture against commercial pragmatists looking to populate the economic landscape with college graduates schooled in economics, business theory and practical management.

The pragmatists won.

In January 1914, MU joined the ranks of a handful of other universities and opened its business school.

Touting a mixture of business theory and practical application, the nine faculty members of the School of Commerce set about educating their first 15 students during that winter 100 years ago. It was an illustrious group, led by Dean Herbert Davenport and his former professor at the University of Chicago, Thorstein Veblen. Davenport was a champion of the theory that the entrepreneur was central to market activity. Veblen, whose departure from Stanford five years earlier had been tinged with scandal, was the prominent economist who blended sociology theories with economic analysis. He coined the phrase “conspicuous consumption” in his 1899 opus, The Theory of the Leisure Class, and while in Columbia penned another well-known work, The Instinct of Workmanship and the State of the Industrial Arts. Neither Davenport nor Veblen stayed long in Columbia — they were both gone by 1917 — but their legacy set the stage for a tradition of business education and resources for the Show-Me State that has endured beyond the century mark.

“We’re really proud of our legacy,” says Joan Gabel, dean of what is now known as the Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business. “When the business school launched in 1914, it was a question of if Missouri needed a business school. Now here we are, 100 years later, at the core of the university’s mission.

We’re delighted that something that started as trendy has become nationally recognized and core.”

Mizzou’s was the ninth university-related business school to open in America, the third one located at a land-grant university and one of the first to receive accreditation (in 1926). In its long history, the school has grown and contracted as a reflection of economic times. Now looking at the past as it envisions the future, Trulaske is offering a slate of programs and classes to meet the needs of 21stcentury business and beyond.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

47

Captains Of Industry The University of Missouri issued its first business degree, to Donald S. Libbey, in 1915. A year later, Katherine O’Neill King made history as the School of Commerce’s first woman graduate and the first person of either gender to earn a Bachelor of Science in public administration. Since those early days, more than 32,000 graduates have earned business degrees from the University of Missouri, joining a veritable stream of famous (and infamous) leaders of business and industry. Here’s a look at some of the more notable names with degrees from MU’s business school.

THE NEXT 100 YEARS The century mark is a milestone that only eight other American business schools have celebrated. For such a momentous occasion, a party was in order — and the college has been celebrating all year with a packed slate of events that stretched from Homecoming 2013 to Homecoming 2014. The crown jewel in that celebration has been the Centennial Speaker Series, a collection of 10 conversations between Dean Joan Gabel and leaders in the business world. The recorded one-on-one interviews are posted on Trulaske’s MU website and on its YouTube channel.

“We wanted to make our celebration accessible to all — not just something people could only enjoy if they were in Columbia,” says Gabel. “The format was flexible enough that we could record the interviews here, or we went to them.”

The conversations with these business leaders — and not all are alumni — run anywhere from 25 to 40 minutes, broken into “chapters” in the college’s YouTube channel presentation. “We talked about their lives and their leadership journey,” Gabel says. “And how we should prepare our students to meet their businesses’ needs.

We discussed companies, brands and strategies, although few were specific — more like the view from 30,000 feet up.”

Gabel admits to an ulterior motive with the interviews — a reality check for the college to assess its success in preparing students for today’s business needs. “We were getting good intel on what we need to be doing,” she says. “I wanted it to be a high-engagement moment for faculty, staff, students, alumni and future students.”

Gabel relished the juxtaposition of commemorating a 100-year anniversary with cutting-edge technology. “This year’s speaker series was special,” she says. “We wanted it to be different and modern, leveraging all of the information and all of the technology we could.”

48

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

Ralph W. Babb, chairman and CEO, Comerica Inc. financial services Mark E. Burkhart, retired president and CEO, Cassidy Turley real estate services Jack E. Bush, former president and director of Michaels Stores Inc.; president of Raintree Partners real estate investment and development Ralph W. Clark, former corporate vice president of IBM; current director at Leggett & Platt Inc. Harry M. Cornell Jr., chairman emeritus, Leggett & Platt Inc. Gordon E. Crosby Jr., former chairman and CEO of USLIFE Corp.

Chase Daniel, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback and founder/CEO, 10Star Apparel Harvey P. Eisen, chairman, Bedford Oak Advisors Alan C. Greenberg, former chairman, The Bear Stearns Companies Inc. Matthew Flanigan, executive vice president and CFO, Leggett & Platt Inc. Harold S. Hook, former president, CEO and chairman, American General Insurance E. Stanley Kroenke, chairman, THF Realty; owner, NBA’s Denver Nuggets, NHL’s

Colorado Avalanche; coowner NFL’s St. Louis Rams; co-owner Premier League’s Arsenal F.C. Kenneth Lay, former CEO of Enron Steven K. Lumpkin, former CFO, director and executive vice president, Applebee’s International Jean McKenzie, president, American Girl Edward Rapp, group president and CFO, Caterpillar Inc. Rodger O. Riney, founder and CEO, Scottrade Matthew K. Rose, executive chairman, BNSF Railway Co. N. Scott Rosenblum, president and principal founding member, Rosenblum, Schwartz, Rogers & Glass PC Attorneys At Law Jay Sarno, founder, Caesar’s Palace and Circus Circus in Las Vegas Jeffrey E. Smith, president and CEO, JES Holdings LLC Robert J. Trulaske Sr., founder and former CEO of True Manufacturing Co. Roger M. Vasey, former executive vice president of Merrill Lynch & Co. Samuel M. Walton, founder of Walmart Tim Wolfe, president, University of Missouri

Wonder whatever happened to those first graduates?

Libbey became superintendent of Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas after eight years as a geology professor and department chairman at Drury College in Springfield.

King went on to have a career with the American Red Cross in Alton, Ill.

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS

Trulaske College of Business offers a core of traditional business education at the University of Missouri. Undergraduates earn a Bachelor of Science in business administration or a Bachelor of Science in Accountancy/Master of Accountancy. Students may choose to specialize in management, marketing, accountancy, economics, finance, real estate or international business. The school offers MBA and Ph.D. degrees as well.

And because no business has cookie-cutter needs, the school has recently established several innovative programs that offer more unique paths to success in the business world.

Centennial Speaker Series Available online at business.missouri.edu/speaker-series and www.youtube.com/user/mizzoubusiness

José Gutiérrez wholesale solutions president, AT&T

Dave Haffner CEO, Leggett & Platt Inc.

Gerry Lopez CEO & president, AMC Entertainment Inc.

Jean McKenzie president, American Girl

Ed Rapp group president and executive office member, Caterpillar Inc.

Rodger Riney founder & CEO, Scottrade

Matt Rose

RISK MANAGEMENT & INSURANCE PROGRAM Trulaske’s centennial year celebration began with the announcement in 2013 of a new program in risk management and insurance, funded by $1 million in gifts from corporate and private donors.

Finance students interested in the specialized area will graduate with specific skills in managing risk for corporations, businesses and individuals.

executive chairman, BNSF Railway Co.

Steve Trulaske owner, True Manufacturing

Don Walsworth CEO, Walsworth Publishing Co.

James White chairman & CEO, Jamba Juice

Robert J. Trulaske Sr.

HOW TRULASKE STACKS UP Both Forbes and U.S. News & World Report rank MU’s Trulaske College of Business at No. 58 on the magazines’ most recent lists of Best Graduate Business Schools. The U.S. News ranking puts Trulaske in the top 13 percent of the magazine’s database. Bloomberg Businessweek ranks the full-time MBA program at No. 56, noting an 88 percent post-graduate job-offer rate. U.S. News ranks Trulaske at No. 51, in the top 12 percent, of undergraduate business programs. The School of Accountancy is highly regarded nationally, ranking 11th in the 2013 Public Accounting Report.

A 2012 Forbes study on the return on investment of an MBA degree noted Trulaske MBA graduates averaged a five-year salary gain of $28,700, post-degree. Years to payback for MBA school costs were 3.9. According to the Forbes study, the 2012 average salary of Trulaske MBA graduates was $78,000.

EXECUTIVE MBA

The execMBA blends a combination of online coursework, on-campus study and an international residency for working professionals. The program is geared toward working professionals who require flexibility to get their degree. The 21-month program just graduated its inaugural class of 19 executives with 100 percent program retention.

Entrepreneurship Alliance

The Entrepreneurship Alliance is a talent incubator for students who demonstrate a high potential for new business development.

Alliance members explore personal opportunities in various areas of business startups, franchises, and family-run businesses to develop entrepreneurial characteristics such as a passion for business, tenacity despite failure, self-determination, management of risk, self-confidence, opportunity creation, creativity, initiative and detail orientation.

ALLEN ANGEL CAPITAL EDUCATION PROGRAM

The Allen Angel Capital Education Program is a student group of mid-Missouri investors. Funded by grants from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Shelter Insurance Cos. and other donors, students engage in cross-disciplinary collaboration to invest in highgrowth startup companies. Investors learn to cultivate deal flow, perform prescreening duties, complete due diligence and structure investment contracts. After student investors take an equity position, the program monitors portfolio holdings and harvest investments.

Missouri Training Institute The Missouri Training Institute provides training and consulting services to improve business performance and organizational effectiveness for public, private and not-for-profit organizations. MTI offers training in professional development, supervision, management, human resources and consulting services.

“We are creating a mindset of ‘intrapreneurship,’ ” says Gabel. “Risk is no longer the same as cost.

The lines are blurring between entrepreneur and improving an established business. Students willing to embrace new ideas and take risks get to that ‘fork in the road’ moment, and they’re going for it. We just have to make sure we are sending out well-prepared talent that can remain competitive and grow.”

Hire A Mizzou Tiger

Trulaske’s Professional Development Program and Business Career Services match opportunities to students and graduates, whether that is job shadowing, required internships or job placement.

MBA CONSULTING

Crosby MBA students consult with multinational companies on diverse topics and bring a fresh perspective to business topics.

Deliverables include market analyses, competitive analyses, marketing segmentation strategies, economic impact analyses, human resource development plans, cost-accounting methods and feasibility studies.

Missouri Innovation Center

The Missouri Innovation Center works with innovators and entrepreneurs on the creation and growth of new ventures that translate research innovations into commercialized technologies, products and processes. The center supports the creation of new, highgrowth ventures, particularly those with a technology component.

50

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

Joan Gabel

miz Biz THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI’S COLLEGE OF BUSINESS PROUDLY HONORS THESE MEN WHOSE NAMES DEFINE THE BUILDINGS AND PROGRAMS OF THE COLLEGE. HERE IS THE ANSWER TO THE QUESTION, “WHO ARE THOSE GUYS?”

➔

Robert J. Trulaske Sr., whose name graces the University of Missouri College of Business, was a 1940 graduate of the business school.

He worked at Procter & Gamble until the start of World War II, when he served as a C-47 pilot. After the war, Trulaske founded True Manufacturing Co. in O’Fallon with his father, Francis Robert Jr., and his brother, Arthur William. The firm is a leading manufacturer in the commercial refrigeration, food-service and soft-drink industries. In 1997, he and his wife, Geraldine, created a multimillion-dollar endowment to fund scholarships for students in the undergraduate business program and the MBA program. The university awarded Trulaske an honorary doctor of humane letters in 2002 for outstanding achievements in his business career. Trulaske died in 2004 at the age of 86. In October 2007, the MU business school was renamed the Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business after Trulaske’s widow donated a gift in an undisclosed amount.

➔

Commerce Building 1919

Gordon Crosby Jr., namesake of the Crosby MBA, was chairman and CEO of USLIFE Corp. During his 52-year career in the insurance industry, Crosby guided USLIFE to become one of the first life insurance-based financial services companies in the nation. He attended Kemper Military College in Boonville and then transferred to the University of Missouri, where he was captain of the Mizzou track team. He left MU in 1941 to join the Navy and served as a submarine officer during World War II. In 2002, Crosby and his wife, Chessie, donated $10 million in support of the MBA program, which now bears his name. He died in 2004 at the age of 84.

➔

➔

Harry M. Cornell Jr., namesake of Cornell Hall, is chairman emeritus of Leggett & Platt Inc., a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Carthage.

Cornell’s grandfather, inventor J.P. Leggett, cofounded the company as a pioneer of the coiled bedspring. Cornell earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Missouri in 1950 and became president and CEO of Leggett & Platt in 1960. The company enjoyed substantial growth in the ’60s and went public in 1967. Cornell received an honorary doctor of laws in 2003 from MU. He and his wife, Ann, in conjunction with Leggett & Platt, donated $3 million to the college during its Excellence through Change capital campaign.

In 2006, the Cornells gave an additional $4 million to the college, part of which funded enhancements to Cornell Hall. The gift also established the Cornell Leadership Program.

Cornell Hall, which opened in 2002, is the fourth home of the College of Business.

The School of Commerce began in Swallow Hall (named for George Clinton Swallow, MU’s first dean of agriculture), then moved to the old Law School building in the 1920s. In 1960, Middlebush Hall (named for Frederick A. Middlebush, business dean and MU president) opened and served as the home of the business school for 42 years.

➔

Who's Who

Jeffrey E. Smith funds the Jeffrey E. Smith Institute of Real Estate, founded in 2005. A graduate of the University of Missouri, Smith is president and CEO of JES Holdings LLC, which he founded in the early 1980s. The Columbia-based family of real estate development, management and investment companies includes Bear Land Development Co., Fairway Construction Co., Fairway Management Co., Capital Health Management Inc. and Affordable Equity Partners Inc. PHOTOS COURTESY OF TRULASKE COLLEGE OF BUSINESS; HISTORICAL 1919 PHOTO COURTESY OF THE SAVITAR FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

51

52

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

BY KATHY CASTEEL • ILLUSTRATIONS BY ALYSSA BLEVINS At 906 pages, Public Law 111-148 isn’t exactly bedside table reading material. Since it was published in 2010, the tome no doubt has given many a politician, administrator and business owner nightmares. But like it or not, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is now the law of the land, modified by another 55 pages of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 plus the obligatory reams of regulations and bureaucratic changes spawned by the legislation now known by both fans and foes as “Obamacare.”

Barring any further delays, the business implications of the law are set to kick in over the next two years. Here’s what you need to know to put your business in compliance.

The most sweeping measure of the Affordable Care Act is the individual mandate requiring all U.S. citizens and legal residents to acquire health insurance coverage or pay a penalty. The “individual shared responsibility provision” is the crux of the ACA’s financial base — the government expects an infusion of money into the insurance market from previously uninsured, healthy people and their additional premiums are expected to support the pricing structure, keeping costs down for everyone.

The shared-responsibility requirement, effective for the 2014 tax year, levies penalties against those who do not comply — a fine of either 1 percent of the portion of household income that exceeds the filing threshold or $95 per adult/$47.50 per child/$285 family maximum, whichever is greater. The penalty is prorated for the number of months you remain uninsured. Over the next few years, penalties will increase to the higher of 2.5 percent of income or $695 per person.

The deadline for acquiring coverage this year was March 31. If you missed that deadline, you will be assessed a penalty on your 2014 tax return. You can avoid penalties next year by signing up with the ACA marketplace when open enrollment resumes on Nov. 15 or by purchasing private insurance at any time. If you experience certain life events that involve a change in family status or loss of other health coverage, you may get new coverage in the ACA marketplace during a special enrollment period for 60 days following the change.

Some individuals may qualify for an exemption to the individual mandate. Internal Revenue Service Publication 5172 covers exemption criteria and other details. Subsidies, based on income, are available through the ACA marketplace to help lower premiums and out-of-pocket expenses.

54

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

2014 Penalty For Remaining Uninsured Under ACA

UNINSURED SINGLE INDIVIDUAL ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME: $50,000 LESS TAX-FILING THRESHOLD: –$10,150 1% PENALTY FIGURED ON: $39,850 NONCOMPLIANCE PENALTY: $398.50

UNINSURED FAMILY OF 4 ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME: $75,000 LESS TAX-FILING THRESHOLD: –$20,300

1% PENALTY FIGURED ON: $54,700 NONCOMPLIANCE PENALTY: $547

The Affordable Care Act affects businesses according to size — specifically the number of full-time-equivalent employees on the payroll. From self-employed one-person enterprises to large corporations, FTE employee rolls determine where your business fits into the ACA landscape.

Self-employed business owners are subject to the individual shared responsibility mandate. If you run an income-generating business with no employees, the IRS considers you self-employed (not an employer).

Hiring independent contractors to do some work does not alter your nonemployer status with the IRS. Those who are selfemployed may purchase insurance through the ACA marketplace or through a private company. If you failed to acquire insurance before March 31, you will be assessed penalties on your 2014 tax return, prorated for the months you remain uninsured.

Self-employed business owners who purchase health insurance coverage for themselves and their family are still eligible for the self-employment health insurance tax deduction, whether they purchase insurance through the individual marketplace or through the small-group market.

Small businesses with at least one but fewer than 25 full-time-equivalent employees are not required to provide insurance for their employees. Those who do, however, may be eligible for tax credits.

Beginning in tax year 2014, the credit can be as high as 50 percent of the employer’s contribution toward employee premium costs (35 percent of contributions toward premiums of tax-exempt employees). To be eligible, employers must cover at least 50 percent of the cost of employee-only (not family or dependent) health care coverage for each employee. Those employees must have average annual wages of less than $50,000 (as adjusted for inflation beginning in 2014). The insurance must be purchased through the Small Business Health Options Program, or SHOP, marketplace to be eligible for the credit for tax years 2014 and beyond.

The credit applies on a sliding scale — the smaller the business or charity, the bigger the credit. Businesses with more than 10 FTEs, or average wages of more than $25,000 (as adjusted for inflation beginning in 2014), receive a smaller credit. Use IRS Form 8941 to calculate the credit.

The ACA does not require businesses that employ 50 or fewer to provide health insurance for their workers. Those businesses however, may use the SHOP marketplace to offer health insurance coverage to their employees who must acquire coverage.

The SHOP marketplace provides four plan categories based on how employers and employees expect to share the costs for health care. The category of plan employers choose affects how much employees can expect to spend out of pocket for the year.

• The Bronze plan covers 60 percent of the total average costs of care.

• The Silver plan covers 70 percent of the total average costs of care.

• The Gold plan covers 80 percent of the total average costs of care.

•The Platinum plan covers 90 percent of the total average costs of care.

In 2014, businesses may choose only one SHOP plan to offer employees. In 2015, multiple plans may be offered. In Missouri, the SHOP marketplace is available to businesses that enroll at least 70 percent of eligible employees in the plan offered. Calculate participation rate by dividing the number of employees enrolled by the number of employees eligible for coverage. Do not count employee dependents or those with coverage from another source (another job, family member’s job, Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, Veterans Affairs, etc.) when calculating eligible employees; however, employees who bought insurance in the individual insurance marketplace count as eligible.

From Nov. 15 to Dec. 15 each year, employers who don’t meet the required participation level may still get coverage through the SHOP marketplace without having to meet this minimum participation requirement. This open-enrollment period allows employers who don’t meet the required participation level to offer a SHOP plan.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

55

In 2016, the ACA will require all businesses with at least 50 full-time-equivalent employees to provide health insurance coverage. The delay until 2016 applies only to businesses that can provide appropriate certification of fewer than 100 employees. The “employer shared responsibility provision” calls for employers to offer affordable health insurance plans that provide a minimum level of coverage to 95 percent of their full-time employees (and their dependents) in 2016. Employers who do not offer such plans will be subject to an “employer shared responsibility” payment if at least one of its full-time employees receives a premium tax credit for purchasing individual coverage on one of the ACA marketplaces.

Currently, the anticipated penalty for noncompliance will be $2,000 per year per full-time employee for each calendar month of the year, minus the first 30 full-time employees.

Employee numbers are based on the previous year’s employment rolls, averaged across the months of the year. Seasonal workers are taken into account in determining the number of full-time employees unless those seasonal workers make the employer’s workforce exceed 50 full-time employees for less than six months a year. Educational workers are considered full time, even if they work only nine months a year. Unpaid interns are not counted in employee rolls.

The “employer shared responsibility provision” goes into effect for businesses with 100 or more employees in 2015. These large businesses must offer affordable health insurance plans that provide a minimum level of coverage to 70 percent of their full-time employees (and their dependents) in 2015. The level of required coverage increases to 95 percent of full-time employees in 2016.

Many of the same requirements for 50-plus employee businesses go into effect for 100-plus businesses in 2015.

Employers who do not offer the required plans will be subject to the “employer shared responsibility” payment of $2,000 per year per full-time employee for each calendar month of the year, minus the first 30 full-time employees.

Employee numbers are based on the previous year’s employment rolls and seasonal workers are taken into account if they are employed more than six months a year. Unpaid interns are not counted in employee rolls.

Because 2015 is the first year of the requirement, a transitional rule is in effect for 2014 employee numbers — employers may use a six-month period to determine FTE employee numbers.

56

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

When dealing with provisions of the Affordable Care Act, business owners are likely to run into these terms. Learn more ACA vocabulary at www.

HealthCare.gov.

• AFFORDABLE COVERAGE: Employer

coverage is considered affordable if the employee’s share of the annual premium for self-only coverage is no greater than 9.5 percent of annual household income.

• CHILDREN’S HEALTH INSURANCE PROGRAM: CHIP is an

insurance program jointly funded by the state and federal government that provides health coverage to low-income children and, in some states, pregnant women in families who earn too much income to qualify for Medicaid but can’t afford to purchase private health insurance coverage.

• ESSENTIAL HEALTH BENEFITS:

Health plans offered in the individual and small group markets, both inside and outside of the ACA insurance marketplace, must offer a comprehensive package of items and services, known as essential health benefits.

Essential health benefits must include items and services in 10 categories: ambulatory patient services; emergency

services; hospitalization; maternity and newborn care; mental health and substance use disorder services, including behavioral health treatment; prescription drugs; rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices; laboratory services; preventive and wellness services and chronic disease management; and pediatric services, including oral and vision care.

• EXCHANGE: Another term for health insurance marketplace.

•FULL-TIME EMPLOYEE: An

employee who works an average of at least 30 hours per week (parttime would be less than 30 hours per week).

• FULL-TIME EQUIVALENTS:

FTEs are calculated by totaling the number of hours worked each week by part-time employees and dividing by 30.

Add the quotient to the number of full-time employees (working 30 hours or more per week) to get your business’s total FTEs.

• GRANDFATHERED HEALTH PLAN:

A group health plan that was created — or an individual health insurance policy that was purchased — on or before March 23, 2010.

Grandfathered plans are exempted from many changes required under the Affordable Care Act.

GROUP HEALTH PLAN:

In general, a health plan offered by an employer or employee organization that provides health coverage to employees and their families.

HEALTH INSURANCE MARKETPLACE: A resource

where individuals, families and small businesses can learn about their health coverage options; compare health insurance plans based on costs, benefits and other important features; choose a plan; and enroll in coverage.

The marketplace — sometimes called an exchange — also provides information on programs for those with low to moderate income to pay for coverage. In Missouri, the marketplace is run by the federal government.

MEDICAID: A stateadministered health insurance program for low-income families and children, pregnant women, the elderly, people with disabili-

ties, and in some states, other adults. The federal government provides a portion of the funding for Medicaid and sets guidelines for the program. Medicaid varies state by state.

MEDICARE: A federal health insurance program for people 65 or older, certain younger people with disabilities and people with end-stage renal disease.

MINIMUM ESSENTIAL COVERAGE: The type of

coverage an individual needs to meet the individual responsibility requirement under the Affordable Care Act. This includes individual market policies, job-based coverage, Medicare, Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program, TRICARE and certain other coverage.

OPEN ENROLLMENT PERIOD: The period during

which eligible individuals can enroll in a qualified health plan in the marketplace. For coverage

The Affordable Care Act also promotes workplace wellness programs intended to lower overall health care costs. Provisions of the ACA increase the maximum permissible reward in a healthcontingent wellness program from 20 percent to 30 percent of premiums, reducing the amount employers contribute as well; the reward can be as much as 50 percent for smoking cessation programs.

With these incentives, the ACA expands the ability of employers to reward employees who participate in wellness programs; in effect, employers may require those who don’t participate or meet goals to pay more for their employer-sponsored health coverage.

Well-designed workplace wellness programs can promote healthy behavior, improve employees’ health knowledge and skills, and help employees get necessary health screenings and follow-up care. Some programs have been credited with increasing productivity and reducing overall health care costs. Although the ACA does not specify the types of wellness programs employers can offer, proposed rules support programs that include “participatory wellness programs,” generally available without regard to an individual’s health status.

The programs can be “nondiscriminatory health-contingent programs,” meaning individuals must meet a specific standard related to their health to obtain a reward. Typical features of wellness programs are health-risk assessments and screenings, behavior modification programs such as tobacco cessation, weight management and exercise, health education and advice, and changes in the work environment or adding special benefits to encourage exercise and healthy food choices — including subsidized fitness memberships or changes to break room and cafeteria offerings.

starting in 2015, the proposed open enrollment period is Nov. 15, 2014, to Feb. 15, 2015.

PRE-EXISTING CONDITION:

A health problem you had before the date that new health coverage starts.

QUALIFIED HEALTH PLAN:

An insurance plan that is certified by the health insurance marketplace, provides essential health benefits, follows established limits on cost-sharing (deductibles, copayments, out-of-pocket maximum amounts, etc.), and meets other requirements. A qualified health plan must be certified by each marketplace in which it is sold.

STATE HEALTH INSURANCE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM: SHIP is a state program that gets funding from the federal government to provide free local health coverage counseling to people with Medicare.

TRICARE: A health care pro-

gram for active-duty and retired uniformed services members and their families.

USUAL, CUSTOMARY AND REASONABLE: UCR is the

amount paid for a medical service in a geographic area based on what providers in the area usually charge for the same or similar medical service. The UCR amount sometimes is used to determine the allowed amount.

WELLNESS PROGRAMS: A program intended to improve and promote health and fitness and usually offered through the workplace, although insurance plans can offer them directly to their enrollees. The program allows an employer or plan to offer premium discounts, cash rewards, gym memberships and other incentives to participate.

Some examples of wellness programs include programs to help stop smoking, manage diabetes, weight loss and preventative health screenings.

Details of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, specific to your business needs, are available from a variety of business resources.

• Health Insurance Marketplace: www.healthcare.gov/small-businesses • Small Business Health Options Program: www.healthcare.gov/marketplace/shop • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: www.hhs.gov/healthcare • Internal Revenue Service: www.irs.gov/uac/Affordable-Care-Act-Tax-Provisions • U.S. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov/healthcare The SBA also hosts free webinars on the basics of ACA every Thursday at 1 p.m. Central Time through Oct. 30.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

57

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places Get to know the people behind local businesses.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

Chews Your Health Amanda Garrison-Lucas Chews Your Health provides one-on-one lifestyle coaching for both small and large businesses. Owner Amanda Garrison-Lucas founded the company in 2009 in order to educate people toward personal, affordable health. Chews Your Health professionally and personally designs individual wellness packages both for the “employer” and “employee”.

In turn this cuts down on claims, decreases absenteeism, and develops a happier work environment! She gladly will work with brokers to develop programs. Her long-term goal: everyone wins, IF they choose. “My mission is to empower people to take back control of their health and wellness and to make it an

enjoyable process of change,” Garrison-Lucas says.

Garrison-Lucas’ passion for her business is rooted in personal experience. “At age 18 I was a physical therapist technician at what is now Women’s and Children’s Hospital. As I worked with patients I found what motivated them most was not only knowledge, but personal interaction. Having a person there who listened and understood their individual differences both physically and emotionally had great impact,” she says.

Garrison-Lucas enjoys helping people learn how to improve their health. “A prescription for health is not on a series of handwritten

papers, but in having access to a variety of support groups,” she says. “I believe not only family and friends are important sources of support, but also local farmers, groceries, restaurants, and the array of fitness and allied health companies that are available locally. I enjoy helping people connect with the amazing variety of talented health care providers we have here in the Midwest.”

“I have a strong passion for overall personal health,” she says. “It motivates me to look for opportunities to improve the health and happiness of those I meet.”

www.chews-your-health.com • 573-514-1223 • Amanda@chews-your-health.com FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

60

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

The commerce trust company Mendy Diel Mendy Diel is driven by the desire to find solutions for her clients. Her tenacious passion was built with help from a few strong women who have influenced her over the years: Mary Lang, grandmother; Linda Emerson, mother; Valerie Shaw, director of retail, Commerce Bank, Central Missouri Region; and Teresa Maledy, president, Commerce Bank, Central Missouri Region.

“My mentors have provided guidance in balancing both my personal life and professional career,” Diel says. “They taught me to look beyond standard solutions for my clients and strive to be a role model for

younger generations.”

From a young age, Diel learned about the principles of belief, integrity and discipline from her parents. That gave her a foundation upon which to build her skills and knowledge to support her growth as a professional and parent.

Diel started her career in the banking industry at the young age of 16. “I acquired knowledge while studying the ‘wealth life cycle,’” she says. “As people would move through various stages of their financial lives, I would attentively develop solutions to optimize their quality of life.”

Over the course of the past few years, Diel has learned that the most important aspect to the banking industry is staying focused on customer service. “Clients then have peace of mind and confidence for you to help them throughout all stages of life,” Diel says.

“Whether receiving the keys to their first home or financing college to retirement, it brings me great satisfaction to be a part of the solution.”

When out of the office, Diel enjoys going on vacations to the beach with her family or working out with her personal trainer, her miniature schnauzer Lucy.

901 E. Broadway • 573-886-5368 • commercetrustcompany.com The Commerce Trust Company is a division of Commerce Bank.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

61

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

McNerney Management Group, Inc. Dan McNerney, Bobby Richardson, JoAnn Wray & David McNerney McNerney Management Group (MMG) was founded in 1975 in Trenton, Mo. MMG moved its headquarters to Columbia in 1990, and for the past 30 years they have been led by President and CEO, Dan McNerney. Dan recently announced his retirement and now he and his wife Julie are enjoying their children and grandchildren, and pursuing all of the activities the mountains of Colorado have to offer. Dan provided a smooth transition to the current leadership team of Bobby Richardson, David McNerney and JoAnn Wray as the four of them have worked side by side for more than 25 years.

MMG is one of the largest distributors of insurance products for the senior market (Medicare supplement, Medicare advantage, cancer insurance, prescription drug plans, etc.) They have two different divisions, Senior Benefit Services, which is a captive organization; and Senior Marketing Specialists, which hires independent brokers across the country.

Both divisions continue to add employees at a record-setting pace each year. “We know it’s our people that make us as successful as we are and we’re always looking to add exceptional people to our team of specialists,” said JoAnn Wray.

MMG’s passion is born from a strong work ethic inspired by Dan McNerney and the original founder, Larry D. Barnes. They love to have fun in an energetic, family-focused environment and always look for ways to improve MMG’s services. David McNerney summed up what makes MMG so special. “Our business empowers others to make a difference in our health care system and our clients are assured they are receiving all of the benefits they are entitled to.”

801 Gray Oak Drive • 573-443-5007 • www.smsteam.net FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

62

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

providence urgent care Dr. Jason Zerrer & Dr. Scott Schultz On July 29, 2009, Dr. Jason Zerrer and Dr. Scott Schultz opened Providence Urgent Care.

Both Dr. Zerrer and Dr. Schultz are specialty trained emergency room physicians. “Both Scott and I are trained in emergency medicine,” Dr. Zerrer says. “I personally chose this specialty for the fast pace, extreme variety of the medicine, and shift work. As time with my family became more important, moving to urgent care made it easier with no nights involved.”

Providence Urgent Care prides itself in offering convenient hours, minimal waiting times and a highly trained, friendly staff. “We specialize in expertly treating acute illnesses and injuries fast and conveniently in a family

friendly environment,” Dr. Schultz says. “We are eternally grateful for each and every one of our patients. We understand the trust that goes with our profession and we try our hardest not to violate that trust in anyway.”

Additionally, “We focus on taking care of the patient as if they were a family member,” Dr. Zerrer says. “Being accessible is one of the most important keys to providing good customer service within the medical field.”

202 E. Nifong • 573-874-6824 • www.providenceurgentcare.com 403 N. Stadium Blvd. • 573-818-6500

63

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

The Broadway — A Doubletree by Hilton Leanne Naeger Geiss Leanne Geiss, Director of Sales for The Broadway — A DoubleTree by Hilton, received her first experience in hospitality and sales while working as a banquet server and administrative assistant in college. “I loved the fast-paced environment and I never worked or planned the same event, so I never had the same day twice,” she says.

Geiss recently joined The Broadway, but says, “I am beyond excited to work with the amazing team of professionals at this beautiful, award-winning property. The Broadway is all about creating an unforgettable experience for our guests. From our modern and comfortable guest rooms to our cutting-edge restaurant and beautiful views from The Roof, The Broadway has set the standard for Columbia.”

Geiss is a perfectionist who works diligently to get her job done. She loves meeting and talking to new people and treats each relationship personally. “I take my work and business relationships very personally. At the end of the day when you work with me, you’re not just a client, you’re a friend,” she says.

“One thing that makes this hotel so special is its movement toward the future of Columbia while still incorporating the best of its past and present,” she says. “You can see touches of the wonderful community where I grew up in the local art sprinkled throughout the hotel.

The Broadway and its team are ready to lead Columbia into its very bright future.”

The two team members behind the Director of Sales Leanne Geiss, who help lead

the team of 170 plus staff of the Broadway Doubletree are V.P./General Manager Bob McDonald and F&B Director/Executive Chef Jeff Guinn. This dynamic trio brings years of teaching hospitality management at Mizzou, country club/event planning, and five-star resort management in order to establish something completely unique to Columbia.

The Broadway DoubleTree won Hilton Worldwide’s Development and Deal of the Year! Hotel/restaurant investors from around the world visited our community to see what The Broadway had accomplished and while here, discovered why Columbia is an amazing city.

1111 E. Broadway • 573-875-7000 • www.thebroadwaycolumbia.com FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

64

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

shelter insurance agent Mike Hatchett ®

Mike Hatchett has been an agent with Shelter Insurance® for six years. He first became interested in working in the insurance industry because he had friends who worked for Shelter Insurance® and he was impressed by their company pride. “I knew that was the kind of company I wanted to work for and being an agent was a really good fit for me,” Hatchett says.

According to Hatchett, his parents have positively influenced his career. “The lessons my parents taught me about hard work and integrity have had a tremendous positive impact on my life,” he says. “The Marine Corps built upon and reinforced that foundation. My first duty station was Keflavik, Iceland. It was a long, cold 12 months that gave me time to

reflect on many life lessons.”

Since joining Shelter Insurance® six years ago, Hatchett says he has found success by being diligent, working hard and doing what is right for clients. “I really enjoy getting to know my customers and helping them navigate the insurance world,” he says. “It is very important to take the time to explain what a policy does and does not cover before issuing the policy.”

Mike is an engaged member of the community. He is a member of the BNI COMO leadership team and an active member of the Downtown Optimist Club, which sells Christmas Trees, Koeze Nuts and specialty candies. Hatchett said, “These are our biggest fundraisers and have helped the Downtown Optimist Club give $100,000’s back to youth

organizations in the Boone County area.” He’s also a member of the Mizzou Marine Detachment of the Marine Corps League. “We have various fundraisers throughout the year that support programs to help veterans adapt to life outside of the military.”

Outside of the office, Hatchett enjoys having a meal at a local restaurant and attending Columbia’s many festivals. He enjoys spending time with his wife Nicole and their two young children. He says, “Watching them play and have fun always helps me relax and keep things in perspective.”

908 Rain Forest Parkway • 573-442-6505 • www.shelterinsurance.com/mikehatchett FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

65

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

AnnaBelle Events Anne Hanks Anne Hanks founded AnnaBelle Events in October 2010. “We create events for any occasion in life worth celebrating – specializing in weddings, corporate events and social occasions,” she says.

Hanks began her career at Soldier Field in Chicago. While attending DePaul University, Hanks interned as a tour coordinator and game-day assistant, and received her first taste of professional event planning. “I think what I do professionally is what I’ve always naturally done in my personal life and has been a part of my past positions. Now the title matches perfectly!”

“The reason I’m at this point now is because of so many people who have influenced

me and pushed me along the way. Starting with the bosses at my very first jobs, my professors at Columbia College and mentors in the community.”

Founding and running her own business hasn’t come without its challenges though, Hanks says. “Three words come to mind: time, risk and support,” she says. “Starting a business from the ground up takes more than just working 8 to 5 and doing the norm. Every extra hour and effort has been dedicated to the business, making sure we are always doing more. Coming up with new ideas, making services better for clients and then getting it out there to the public.”

Hanks also finds that her open personal-

ity and openness to new experiences is what helps AnnaBelle Events grow. “Allowing yourself to change and grow with the business is crucial,” she says. “More times than not, ideas for change and growth come from others, so you always need to be listening and open-minded.”

“My favorite thing about what I do is making someone else’s vision come true., whether it’s a dinner, party, fundraiser or wedding. My favorite part of each event is standing back and watching as our clients are having the time of their lives at their event. That’s what fuels AnnaBelle Events, helping people and finding new ways to help them more.”

107 Orr St. • 573-489-3706 • www.AnnaBelleEvents.com FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

66

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

House of Brokers Realty Betsy Woodruff, ® REALTOR

Before entering the real estate industry, Betsy Woodruff spent more than 25 years specializing in strategic marketing, brand management, corporate communications and PR, first in the health care industry and then as a founder and co-owner of Woodruff Sweitzer. “In 2012, I decided to put my experience to work on a much more personal level and joined House of Brokers,” Woodruff says. “It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”

Woodruff understands where her clients are coming from, as she has been both a buyer and a seller herself. “Even though real estate involves dirt, bricks and mortar, it’s truly a service business and it’s the level of service that sets one brokerage and one agent apart

from the next,” she says. “I’ve also been able to put two and a half decades worth of unique marketing experience to work for my clients to try and do things creatively ... to try and do things a little differently.”

When she’s not connecting clients with their future dream home or helping them sell their home, Woodruff spends time enjoying her four horses or watching Mizzou football — either live or on television. She’s such a fan of the Tigers, that she made it official.

Woodruff says, “I’m excited to announce that I am the Official Sponsor of the Mizzou ‘ To The House!’ Touchdown Drive Summary, essentially sponsoring every touchdown the Tigers score at Faurot Field this year! I’ve been

a lifelong Tiger football fan and I’m so thrilled to be able to show my support this way. I got the idea while listening to Mike Kelly on the radio. His characteristic, ‘ To the 20, to the 10, to the HOUSE!’ touchdown play calls made me realize this would be a great tie-in for my business and a great opportunity to support Tiger football.”

1515 Chapel Hill Road • 573-446-6767 • www.betsywoodruff.com FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

67

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

CoMo Premium Roofing Elias Abadi

Owner Elias Abadi started CoMo Premium Roofing more than five years ago. “We try and help with all the exterior needs for homeowners in the Mid-Missouri area,” Abadi says.

Although his business is a young one, it has found success early on. “I have a passion to succeed and know that working hard is the only way I can achieve what I want,” Abadi says. “My family has also been an integral part of my success as a business owner.”

Abadi’s family has been so integral to his professional development, that it was actually his father’s background in general contracting that sparked Abadi’s initial interest in

the profession he now calls his own. Abadi’s brothers have also been influential in his career. “We have been in business together over the years and have had our ebbs and flows,” he says. But during that time, we have always supported each other and picked ourselves up when down.”

When he’s not filling the exterior needs of homeowners, you can find Abadi outside. “I enjoy traveling, hunting, hiking and camping with my wife and sons,” he says. “We also raise chickens and eat from our vegetable garden.”

Over the years, Abadi has learned that the most important part of what he does is being

honest and friendly with his customers. Add in the support of family, and he has a recipe for success. “I have worked hard but I am also thankful for those around me that believe in me and give me the support to succeed,” he says. “This includes my family, friends, colleagues and community. I couldn’t ask for a better group of people to be a part of.”

3502 I-70 Drive SE • 573-424-9008 • www.comopremiumroofing.com FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

68

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

Hockman Interior Design Sherry Hockman Sherry Hockman opened Hockman Interior Design nine years ago after her husband, David, pushed her to commit to making her passion into a business. When Hockman first moved to Columbia, Casa Bella Interiors owner Sue Toler asked Hockman to join her firm. “I’ve always enjoyed decorating and creating beautiful spaces,” Hockman says. “That is where it all began.”

In addition to providing interior decorating and home staging services, Hockman also maintains a home décor store in her Parkade Plaza location. She also started a non-profit organization called “Room of Hope” to help

provide a newly remodeled room to those struggling with difficult times.

Today, Hockman is the head of a fullfledged design business — which means she juggles the different responsibilities of an owner. “Design is only a fraction of what keeps me working long days,” Hockman says.

“The most important tasks that keep the doors open include monthly invoices, paying bills, marketing, ordering product, profit/loss statements, public relations, etc.”

To relax, Hockman enjoys getting manicures and pedicures, exercising, having family movie nights or “just sitting and

visiting with family.”

Hockman Home Design is located inside Parkade Plaza and is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

601 Business Loop 70W • 573-999-1994 • www.hockmaninteriordesign.com FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

69

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

Clear Vision Development Group Tony Richards Tony Richards founded Clear Vision Development Group 10 years ago. Clear Vision is a corporate consulting company specializing in organizational development and change. It focuses its efforts on and with the key executives in the client company to produce desired results. Richards brings his lifelong experience as a corporate executive to the consulting business.

“During my life as a corporate executive, I was involved with the development of key individuals and with strategic development and execution,” he says. “Since I enjoyed both immensely, I wanted to continue to do both for others in a consulting role.”

Over the years, Richards has found help and inspiration in his friends and colleagues.

In the 1980s, Richards met a man named Charlie Mifflin, who Richards then hired to be his personal, executive adviser. “Charlie taught me some of the most profound business principles of my career.”

Other people in this life that keep Richards grounded are his wife and clients and the hobbies he maintains. “I read. I enjoy water, travel and spending time with my wife,” he says.”

She was made especially for me, we match up so well. Some of my clients are also my best friends. I enjoy having lunch, dinner and working with them. I love what I do.”

While some know him to be relentless, at the end of the day, Richards recognizes that he is in what he calls “the people business.” “Just like everyone I enjoy the strategic aspect of how I help my clients, but it still comes down to people engagement on the execution,” he says. “Ideas don’t work, people have to work ideas.”

1902 Corona Road, Suite 101 • 573-489-1836 • www.clearvisiondevelopment.com FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

70

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

faces behind the

places

Strength & Conditioning Factory Joey Grippo & JD Franklin Strength and Conditioning Factory of Columbia is a multi-disciplinary training facility. It offers strength and conditioning training for all ages, as well as zumba, yoga, sports performance training and one-on-one or small group personal training. SCF employs a staff of experienced trainers from a wide variety of backgrounds to help clients attain their fitness goals. Founders JD Franklin and Joey Grippo are the forces behind SCF — which opened in April 2014.

Franklin began his career in hopes of helping the next generation find success through fitness and athletics. Franklin describes himself as a teacher/mentor. He attributes his

success to hard work and continuing education. Franklin believes in the importance of putting his clients’ best interests first. In fact, he was first inspired to enter his chosen field because of Mike Boyle and “his practical approach to apply strength and conditioning to a person’s everyday life.”

When he’s not in the gym, Franklin enjoys traveling and spending quiet evenings at home.

Grippo has seven years of fitness industry experience including personal training, operations management, gym management, sports performance and small group or one-on-one personal training. He enjoys “assisting anyone

willing to put forth the effort in attaining their goals.”

Grippo enjoys working on cars and describes himself as observant. His father’s work ethic and Chris Bartl’s (of Bayside Barbell) drive to open his own facility are what inspired him to take the leap and successfully open his own training facility. He enjoys working with all clients and finds the biggest piece of advice he gives is “you can’t out-train a bad diet.” Outside of the gym, he enjoys spending time with his wife and their families.

Franklin and Grippo, and their staff, are excited about the opportunity to give back to the community through their work.

1004 W Worley St. • 573-442-2869 • www.scfcolumbia.com FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

71

74

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

DIVIDENDS

ceo at play

THREE QUESTIONS It’s back-to-school time in Collegetown, USA. We asked some Columbia education leaders a few questions that might not be on this semester’s syllabus.

LOOK WHO’S TALKING:

SCOTT DALRYMPLE President, Columbia College

How did you spend your summer vacation?

DALRYMPLE: I started at Columbia College on May 1, so I’ve spent lots of time just getting to know the college and the community. The college also has 34 locations across the country — from New York to California, Florida to Washington state — and my wife, Tina, and I began a one-year tour to visit all 34 of them. We also purchased a home near Rocheport, where we’re now proud owners of a pond full of catfish.

LOFTIN: Welcoming new students to campus is always a treat. I did spend part of a recent Sunday helping freshmen move into a residence hall. Next time I will ask about which floor they are going to before I offer to help! I had several on the ninth floor.

LYNCH: I was in second grade, and my twin sister and I talked our mom into letting us walk the eight blocks to school all by ourselves. We took a right instead of a left at one very critical juncture, and we ended up at the city zoo instead. Eventually, the police came and found us, and we got to ride to school in a police car. My sister cried, but I thought it was awesome.

WOLFE: Meeting new teachers and seeing who was

R. BOWEN LOFTIN Chancellor, University of Missouri

LOFTIN: What little vacation I had was spent in Alaska (where my daughter and her family live).

We were joined by my son. It is rare that we are all together!

LYNCH: I didn’t really take a vacation this summer,

but I did spend 10 days in China, representing Stephens at the launch of the Women in Public Service Project at China Women’s University.

As a result, a delegation of CWU faculty and administrators will be on our campus this fall to finalize a new set of partnerships and collaborations.

WOLFE: With family in Montana fly-fishing and

DIANNE LYNCH President, Stephens College

TIM WOLFE President, University of Missouri System

California for a wedding and sightseeing.

What is your favorite back-to-school memory?

in my classes. I always thought the first day of class was the best day of the year.

The best part of fall is …

DALRYMPLE: Cider doughnuts. I crave them every fall. The smell of a fresh cider doughnut gives me a Proustian rush unlike just about anything else.

Sadly, I don’t particularly like cider.

LOFTIN: Students! Football! Students! Soccer!

Students! Volleyball! Students!

LYNCH: When our students arrive back on campus.

I think I must be the only academic on the planet who hates summer; our campus is beautiful yearround, but it’s so much more fun and interesting when our students are in town.

WOLFE: MU football and seeing the leaves

change colors.

DALRYMPLE: Most years, my parents would take my brother, sister and me school-clothes shopping in August. I was allowed to pick out two pairs of pants, new sneakers and maybe three shirts. (I always got a pair of jeans and a pair of corduroys; I felt just a bit smarter in corduroys.) Coming home with that big bag of clothes, along with some notebooks and pencils, was magical. It was like a bag full of hope.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

75

DIVIDENDS

FITNESS ON THE GO

SOLEUS GO! ACTIVITY TRACKER

Price: $129 What’s so special about it?

In addition to functioning as a pedometer and sleep monitor, the GO! also pairs with your smartphone and shows caller ID and text message notifications via Bluetooth 4.0. Pros: You can set goals for yourself and GO! will update you on your progress and provide feedback. Battery power lasts about a week.

Cons: Distance measurements aren’t always accurate.

Website: www.soleusgo.com NIKE+ FUELBAND SE

Price: $149 What’s so special about it?

The FuelBand is very simple and easy to use.

Pros: Tracks your activity throughout the day and reminds you to move around if you’ve been inactive for too long. Cons: It doesn’t track stairs, activity or sleep and the mobile app is iOs only (but it does sync with a computer). Website: www.nike.com/us/en_us/c/nikeplus-fuelband

I’m With The Band We Review 5 Of The Top Fitness Trackers

These days, there’s an app for everything. But one of the most important things to plug into is your health.

These fitness-tracking bands monitor everything from general activity to fitness, diet — even sleep. You don’t know how you’re doing unless you’re paying attention. Grab a band and get moving!

by MORGAN McCARTY

JAWBONE UP

GARMIN VIVOFIT

Price: $129.99 What’s so special about it?

The Vivofit is basically a fancy pedometer. It sets steps goals for you and has a visual alert if you’ve been sitting for too long. It also tracks calories burned. Pros: The Vivofit runs on two batteries that you replace once a year — no charger necessary!

The Vivofit is waterproof and has an optional heart rate monitor. Cons: There is no alarm function. It doesn’t register motion if your arms aren’t moving.

Website: sites.garmin.com/vivo

JAWBONE PHOTO BY L.G. PATTERSON

Price: $129.99 What’s so special about it? The UP band tracks your activity, diet and sleep, and offers helpful features to help you manage your weight. Pros: Widely reviewed as one of the best fitness bands around, the UP band knows the difference between light and deep sleep, has a vibrating alarm to alert you of inactivity or awaken you from light sleep. Cons: There’s no display, so you’ll have to look at your smartphone whenever you want access to your data. Website: www.jawbone.com/up

FITBIT FLEX

Price: $99.95 What’s so special about it?

Consider the Flex as the more affordable version of the Jawbone. While the design isn’t as slick, accessibility to its applications garners raves from users.

Pros: The Flex has a removable tracker, which means you can swap bracelet colors. Fashion designer Tory Burch just designed a bracelet that fits it. It wirelessly syncs with your computer and phone. Cons: The tracker component of the band has been known to fall out of the band, so be mindful.

Website: www.fitbit.com/flex

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

77

78

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

DIVIDENDS

networking

Chamber of Commerce Quarterly Membership Breakfast The Columbia Chamber of Commerce kicked off its new program year on Sept. 4 with its Quarterly Membership Breakfast, hosted by gold sponsor, the University of Missouri, which is celebrating its 175th anniversary. What a turnout! (Photos By Wally Pfeffer, mizzouwally@compuserve.com)

1. Charlene Doherty Jayamanne and Nancy Fay 2. Truman TheTiger, Michael Middleton and Julie Middleton 3. Jay Lindner and Molly Borgmeyer 4. R. Bowen Loftin and Gale Blomenkamp 5. Mary Kroening, Jolyn Sattizahn, Matt McCormick, Sedel Marino, Victoria May Brees, Kristi Ray and Meagan Schaffner

1

2

3

5 4

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

79

ADVERTISING INDEX A Catered Affair.................................................80 Accounting Plus................................................. 27 Annabelle Events...............................................66 Anytime Fitness...................................................11 Ashland Industrial Park.....................................17 Becky Woodruff, Realtor®............................... 67 Boone Hospital Center............................... 72,73 Bleu Restaurant....................................................11 CenturyLink............................................................5 Central Trust & Investment Company.........43 Cevet Tree Services........................................... 33 Chews Your Health...........................................60 City of Columbia Water & Light....................58 Clear Vision Development Group.................70 Columbia Landcare LLC..................................... 4 Commerce Bank.................................................61 CoMo Premium Roofing..................................68 Creative Surroundings.......................................41 D&M Sound...........................................................3 Downtown Appliance......................................... 9 Flooring America................................................17 Hawthorn Bank..................................................84 Hockman Interior Design................................69 Hub & Spoke....................................................... 78 Image Technologies.......................................... 22 ICM Custom Publishing Solutions.................15 Inside Columbia E-Newsletters.......................43 Inside Columbia subscriptions......................... 37 Inside Columbia's Prime Card........................... 39 Landmark Bank.....................................................2 Les Bourgeois Vineyards................................. 83 Linkside at Old Hawthorne..............................19 Macadoodles...................................................... 37 McNerney Management Group, Inc............62 Moresource......................................................... 35 Piano Distributors............................................. 22 Postal & Sign Express.......................................45 Precision Construction...................................... 13 Providence Urgent Care................................... 63 Riback/DKB........................................................ 27 Shelter Insurance: Mike Hatchett.................65 Stadium Grill....................................................... 76 Starr Properties..................................................45 Stifel Nicolaus..................................................... 31 Straight Line Striping......................................... 31 Strength & Conditioning Factory....................71 Tech Electronics.................................................29 The Broadway...............................................64,76 The Callaway Bank...............................................7 The District.........................................................29 Tiger Court Reporting....................................... 33 Timberlake Engineering...................................58 UMB Bank............................................................21 Water Tower Place............................................ 74 Williams-Keepers Inc.......................................80 Winter-Dent........................................................41 80

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

PUBLISHER’S NOTE

Development Fees Could Stymie Columbia’s Economic Growth

I

f you follow local politics, you’re The hospital has also funded 100 percent no doubt aware of the latest antiof the off-site road improvements at that growth scheme concocted by intersection, adding lanes to both Nifong Columbia City Council members and Forum boulevards, significantly Karl Skala, Barbara Hoppe and Ian improving traffic congestion at no cost to Thomas. After years of threatening the city or taxpayers. For this act of good corporate citizenship, Boone Hospital to wage war on Columbia’s development would be penalized with a 300 percent community, they have officially fired increase in its building permit fees. their first bullet by approving a ballot Some say that the ultimate objective of issue that, if passed, will add significant Skala, Hoppe and Thomas is to punish the development fees to every home and development community for allegedly not commercial building built in Columbia. paying its “fair share” over the years. Ian On Nov. 4, local voters will finally have Thomas claims that developers are only the opportunity to hammer the nail into paying 15 percent of the Columbia’s economic true cost of building a new coffin, killing any hope for subdivision. Nothing could new jobs and a last shot be further from the truth. at affordable housing for When a developer buys Columbia’s working poor. land to build a subdivision, Skala, Hoppe and the buyer also takes 100 Thomas are proposing percent of the financial development fees that will responsibility for building essentially add $3,750 the streets, putting in sewer to the cost of an average and water lines, and running home in Columbia and electricity to every lot in another $12,000 to that neighborhood. These the cost of building the development costs are not average “Mom and Pop” subsidized by the city or by Do we want our size business here in taxpayers in any way. children and Columbia.

The most vivid grandchildren to To bring the matter a example of this may be inherit a ghost little closer to home, let’s the Community of Old town? That’s the look at how our citizenHawthorne development direction we’re owned Boone Hospital that has been under Center would be affected heading. construction over the last under the proposed permit few years on Route WW. – Fred Parry fees for the construction of The developer of that buildings on the hospital’s neighborhood spent more new South Campus at the corner of Nifong than $20 million out of his own pocket and Forum boulevards. With 132,000 to build roads and bring sewer to his square feet of finished space, the Boone development. Not one dime of taxpayer Hospital Center Board of Trustees would money was used to build any of the pay $66,000 in current permit fees for this infrastructure. The same can be said for project. Under the proposed fee structure, Thornbrook, The Cascades, Copperstone, Boone Hospital would face a whopping Bellwood and every other development $264,000 just for building permit fees. built in Columbia over the last 20 years.

Keep in mind that Boone Hospital Skala, Hoppe and Thomas have discovered is not only making medical care more that they can be more successful in accessible to the fastest-growing area of shutting down growth and development our community, it’s also creating new jobs. using misinformation and innuendo

rather than stating actual facts. That’s unfortunate for Columbia.

Most savvy Columbians understand that these increased fees will simply be passed on to the end user. The new homebuyer will absorb 100 percent of these new impact fees. Business owners will pass on the added costs of fees to their customers. In the end, these City Council members are ultimately punishing the citizens of Columbia and anyone who chooses to buy a home or trade with our locally owned businesses.

If you study economic development, you know that most healthy cities in Missouri and across the United States are offering incentives and abatements to encourage business growth and expansion. The state of New York offers 10 years of tax abatements for new business startups. In Missouri, Warrensburg just attracted an automotive parts manufacturer by offering a free building site. Yet Columbia wants to assess penalties on commercial building sites to discourage growth. Do we want our children and grandchildren to inherit a ghost town?

That’s the direction we’re heading.

I spent eight years as a commissioner for the Columbia Housing Authority and I learned a thing or two about the fast-fleeting dream of homeownership in our community. With these proposed fee increases, it will be nearly impossible for schoolteachers, police officers or factory workers to buy a suitable home for their families here. They will be forced to either rent substandard housing or move to surrounding communities to achieve home ownership. As a community, we must create an inventory of housing options that are affordable and accessible to those across all socio-economic groups.

The anti-growth ideology of Skala, Hoppe and Thomas is a toxic mindset.

As a community, we must recognize the connection between economic opportunity and those who build businesses and create jobs. Penalizing those who build affordable homes and those who create jobs is a disastrous step in the wrong direction.

FALL 2014

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

81

CLOSING QUOTES

What Columbia’s Business People And Community Leaders Are Saying

“It almost looks like you’re incentivizing people to live out in the county.”

— Columbia Mayor Bob McDavid on the proposed new system of development fees that the City Council has placed on the November ballot

“It really has felt like a yearlong wedding.”

— Dean Joan Gabel on the planning process for the centennial celebration of MU’s Trulaske College of Business

“The charter members of ALMM were passionate. They took a leap of faith that they could start a new chapter of the national organization. Their enthusiasm and perseverance was infective.”

— Barbara Trabue, president of the Assistance League of Mid-Missouri, on the growth and enduring strength of the all-volunteer organization

82

I

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO

I

FALL 2014

“Stay on top of what the employers really want and need and expect from the contemporary graduates …

It’s OK for a professor to pick up the phone and ask, ‘What can I do to make my students more valuable to you as a prospective employer?’ ” — Leggett & Platt CEO David Haffner’s advice to business educators in the Trulaske College of Business Centennial Speaker Series

“You cannot operate a business, no matter how small, without there being some sort of international aspect.”

— Matt Jenne, co-owner of Addison’s and Sophia’s restaurants

INSIDE COLUMBIA’S CEO OutFront Communications, LLC 47 E. Broadway Columbia, MO 65203

PRSRT STD U.S. Postage

PAID

Columbia, MO Permit 286