NKY Business Journal Fall 2016

BUSINESS JOURNAL OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF NKY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

FALL 2016

OUR MILLION REASONS Y

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

FRONTIER FOLK NEBRASKA P. 12 BREXIT BRIEFING P. 17 LAURA LYONS P. 24

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CONTENTS

FALL 2016 VOLUME 35, NUMBER 8

4 From the President, Trey Grayson 6 From the Chair, Bob Heil 10 Politics on Main Street 12 Frontier Folk Nebraska 14 Enhancing Communications 17 Brexit Briefing 19 Leaving Dollars on the Table 20 Around the Chamber 24 Laura Lyons 26 Camp Joy

— #NKYBecause... in fifteen minutes I can go from the urban core to enjoy the rolling countryside.

— BOB HEIL CHAIR, NKY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

29 Changing Faces of Poverty 30 Emerging 30 32 Member Milestones 35 Events 36 Ribbon Cuttings 39 Restaurant Guide

PHOTO CREDIT: RUDY HARRIS PHOTOGRAPHY BOTH COVER AND THIS PAGE

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

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LETS GET TO WORK

By: Trey Grayson President & CEO NKY Chamber of Commerce To Follow: @KYTrey; @nkychamber

“A BRAND IS MORE THAN JUST A BADGE, TAGLINE OR A COLOR SCHEME...

IT’S AN EXPRESSION OF AN ESSENTIAL TRUTH. IT’S WHO YOU ARE.”

THIS PAGE PHOTO CREDIT: CHARLIE VANCE, CEO ERIGO EMPLOYER SOLUTIONS

OPPOSITE PAGE PHOTO CREDIT: RUDY HARRIS PHOTOGRAPHY FOR BLDG

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AS YOU HAVE UNDOUBTEDLY HEARD

BY NOW, we have unveiled a new brand to help both the Chamber and Northern Kentucky tell our story.

A brand is more than just a badge, tagline or a color scheme – although of course those are all important. It’s also about your competitive advantage and how you would like your customers to perceive you. It’s an expression of an essential truth. It’s who you are.

To better understand this new brand and where we are going, it helps to know the story about how the brand came to be.

A few years ago, the Chamber started using the tagline, “It’s a New Day.” The aim was to cause people to think a new about the Chamber and its important role in Northern Kentucky – to spur businesses to join if they weren’t currently members, or to become more involved if they already were members.

We also used it as a way to encourage staff and volunteers to think anew about how best to meet the needs of our members and our community.

It worked in many respects. Many people told us that something did seem new about the Chamber. But, deep down, we knew that we really needed more than just a catchy tagline to tell our story, to communicate our competitive advantage. We needed a new brand. So we started having conversations with other groups and organizations to see what that might mean.

Around this same time, Dave Heidrich was nearing the beginning of his term as Chamber chair, and he said that he often wished Northern Kentucky had a flag that could help unify our region. He was sort of joking, but not really. He felt that such a “flag” – however that turned out, literal or otherwise – could bring us closer together and help us tell our story to our friends across the Ohio River or in the rest of Kentucky.

Out of all of these conversations came the realization that a new brand for the Chamber could also be a brand for the region. Who knows, maybe someday we’d even get Dave that flag!

Thanks to the generosity of Toyota, which underwrote the project, and the creativity of the local branding firm BLDG, that day has come. The Chamber and the region now have that new brand, and we have been gradually unveiling it over the past few weeks, starting with our Annual Dinner.

So yes, we have a new badge, a simple yet sleek blue box with the letters N, K and Y along the edges. We chose to use the abbreviation because more and more often people are referring to our region with those three letters, presumably in part because of the forced economy of Twitter’s 140 character limit. Another important feature of that acronym is that it also contains an embedded question because of the last letter – Y – which we further accentuate by giving the Y a different color so that it stands out.

Thus, this simple badge provides a jumping off point to start telling the story of our Chamber and our region in response to those questions. Why NKY? Why Northern Kentucky? Why the Chamber?

As current Chamber Chair Bob Heil writes in his column, it’s hard to give a single answer to the question: “Why Northern Kentucky?” Northern Kentucky has so many layers and is alive, thriving and constantly evolving, so there’s no one answer, no one tagline that can capture the essence of our region.

That’s why this brand doesn’t force you into a single answer. It lets you tell your own story. It lets you answer the “Why?” question with your own answer, with your own “Because”. We know that the sum total of those answers, especially when presented within this unifying framework, will create a brand experience like no other.

So we are calling upon all Northern Kentuckians to tell their own story on social media with #NKYBecause. We are also asking you to endorse this brand by putting the badge on the website of your business. Fly our region’s flag, if you will, by putting an NKY bumper sticker on your car.

NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

PICTURED: BLDG TEAM

Make the brand your own. While we have official colors (our yellow is NKU’s yellow, for example), go ahead and make a tie-dye version, or one with a rainbow, or whatever helps you tell your story.

I was really pleased with the reaction to the brand at our Annual Dinner, and #NKYBecause quickly became a trending topic on Twitter. I also have to admit that I got a kick out of the fact some teenagers immediately started mocking it. In the social media context, that’s a sign that you’ve made it!

Over the new few months, we will unveil more elements of this branding strategy.

You are looking at one element right now – a new look and feel for this Business Journal. It has a more modern design with more of a lifestyle content focus. We hope you like it.

We also have a new website. And have rolled out a new way to communicate via email, tapping the power and expertise of local startup Cerkl to deliver emails with the content you want and that arrive in your inbox at frequency and the time of day that you want.

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

In addition, we are changing the name of our affiliated foundation from IMPACT Northern Kentucky to the NKY Chamber of Commerce Foundation. It only made sense to call the foundation that supports the Chamber’s mission by a more appropriate name. Because we don’t want to confuse things. (Yes, I couldn’t resist that!)

I want to conclude with my top #NKYBecause. (Like Bob, I have several answers to this question.)

Why Northern Kentucky? Because Northern Kentucky offers the best of both worlds – the major league amenities of Cincinnati and the beauty and charm of Kentucky.

— TELL US WHAT YOU THINK!

WHAT’S YOUR BECAUSE? #NKYBECAUSE

LET’S GET TO WORK!

PAGE 5

BUILDING A BETTER COMMUNITY STARTS WITH HELPING THE PEOPLE WHO BUILD IT.

CHAIR’S LETTER

By: Bob Heil CEO, KLH Engineers Chair, NKY Chamber of Commerce

“#NKYBECAUSE... IN FIFTEEN MINUTES I CAN GO FROM THE URBAN CORE TO ENJOY THE ROLLING COUNTRYSIDE.”

WHAT IS YOUR “BECAUSE?” Why NKY from your perspective? That is the question that the Chamber’s new brand asks all of us. And I say all of us, because the brand was designed to transcend the chamber and serve as a brand for the entire Northern Kentucky region.

We have all seen the bumper stickers that have become synonymous with a destination. Using one example, the first time I saw an OBX bumper sticker on a car, I had no idea what it stood for.

A quick Google search revealed that it was a brand marker for the Outer Banks in North Carolina. Many other examples exist, but my point is that until we put our brand marker out for everyone to see, people will continue to look at us as just a geographic heading within the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

But there is so much more to us than that! As Trey Grayson has said, “we are 400,000 people — we have a story to tell.” So what’s your story? Why have you chosen Northern Kentucky to live; to work; to dine; to be entertained; to recreate?

I have lived in Northern Kentucky for 90 percent of my life. So when asked, ‘Why Northern Kentucky,’ it’s hard for me to give a single answer. When I have my business owner hat on, I would reply… ’because Northern Kentucky fuels my entrepreneurial spirit.’

As a parent…’Because Northern Kentucky is a great place to raise a family.’

As a cycling enthusiast…’Because Northern Kentucky is a bicycle-friendly community.’

As a foodie…’Because the dining scene in Northern Kentucky is terrific.’

As a community leader… ‘Because of the renaissance taking place in our urban core.’

As an outdoorsmen… ‘Because in fifteen minutes I can go from that urban core to enjoy the rolling countryside.’

And, of course… ‘Because of Northern Kentucky’s proximity to Cincinnati.’

Any brand expert will tell you that your brand is much more than your logo or brand marker. Your brand is how your customers perceive you. So while you will see our brand marker all over Northern Kentucky in the coming weeks and months, you will see us at the NKY Chamber living our brand. We will continue to promote and support the development of strong businesses and a vibrant economy in the Northern Kentucky region, through leadership and advocacy, resulting in a better quality of life for all.

As you read this issue, contemplate your ‘because’ answer to Northern Kentucky — Why? But more importantly, live the Northern Kentucky brand every day through your support of the businesses and institutions in our region, by enjoying the myriad of recreation, shopping and cultural assets we have in our region, and by sharing with others your ‘because’.

Our community’s strength can be measured by the amount of resources available to help it grow and improve. Every day, Central Bank works in the community to help businesses be as strong as they can be.

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POLITICS ON MAIN STREET

...ALLOWING OURSELVES TO BE OPTIMISTIC & WELCOMING A CONVERSATION WITH PEOPLE WHOM WE DISAGREE. FROM THERE COMES RESPECT & EVENTUALLY, UNEXPECTED AREAS OF COLLABORATION.

AS YOU READ THIS ISSUE of the Business Journal, I can only hope that the new NKY Chamber brand as well as the updated layout of the publication can help you heal from the traumatic experience that was the 2016 election cycle.

As this edition goes to print, Election Day hasn’t arrived. Without knowing for sure what the final result will be, two things are still clear to me. One, this year is important to take stock of and remember, no matter how dissatisfying your individual experience with it may be.

Second, the two major candidates were disappointing enough in how they’ve conducted their campaigns that the challenges that lay ahead for our “Main Street” America will remain the same.

First, let’s take stock of this year.

Day in and day out, there was scandal after scandal. WikiLeaks emails, Russian tampering, “basket of deplorables”, health issues, private basement servers, and assault accusations. I, no doubt, am leaving off a couple hundred incidents here or there that could be attributed to one side or the other.

As the race got worse, so did many of our personal social media feeds and conversations with friends and families.

As each campaign did their best to look even worse off day-to-day on the campaign trail, most supporters of a given side only dug in their heels to support their original choice because, after all, the other side seemed worse in each of their respective opinions.

The debates were in no way constructive or illuminating to the American people. Hillary Clinton rarely got specific with her policy initiatives, while Donald Trump rarely talked policy at all. The moderators failed at keeping

After the Campaign Deluge By: Scott Sedmak Vice President, Public Affairs & Communications NKY Chamber

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NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

control, and were in large measure the same media figures that helped to turn a potential national discussion on real issues into a three-ring circus that diminished so many important policy issues.

Nevertheless, it’s important to admit that some of this ridiculousness is on our shoulders. Let’s make sure that it doesn’t happen again. In the future we need to hold ourselves accountable to focus on policy issues and not get sucked into meaningless campaign rhetoric and cult of personalities.

On that very point, comes the second part, the policy challenges that lay ahead. Regardless of who won, the challenge from a Chamber of Commerce perspective will largely be the same. Washington’s ineffectiveness has reached new levels in terms of addressing regulatory reform, national infrastructure needs, improving our health care system, and making longterm budget decisions.

As such, these two trends have developed: 1) the Executive Branch largely governs via executive order and bureaucratic maneuvering 2) the business community seeks more relief than ever from state and local governments for their problems, often not bothering with Washington if possible.

When corporations do have to approach the Federal Government, bureaucratic battles with entities such as the National Labor Relations Board or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau are truly where the action is when it comes to helping or hurting commerce. Regardless of the victor on November 8th, these hundreds of agencies aren’t just going away overnight and the battles will continue.

The new wrinkle in all this won’t be a change in stance in Washington, but a change in stance of the electorate. There has been a realignment of politics in this country. Regardless of your personal stances, the unpredictable success of Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump during parts of 2016 shows that. An underperforming Washington was in large part to blame for both groundbreaking political movements. If DC continues to underperform in the opinion of both sides of the political spectrum, the political convulsions we’ve seen this year will continue in foreseen ways.

The good news is that we live in a land with a less than perfect, but resilient democracy. We all have a role to play in the coming months. We have serious issues to address and we must do what we can to ensure our leaders can work together to solve them.

— It’s time to appeal to the better angels of our nature.

In the meantime, enjoy the break from the campaign. And remember, as a people, Americans have gotten through much worse times than this. I think of Kentucky’s greatest statesman, Abraham Lincoln appealing to the “better angels of our nature.” To me, that means allowing ourselves to be optimistic and welcoming a conversation with people whom we disagree. From there comes respect and eventually, unexpected areas of collaboration. NKY

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SPOTLIGHT

By: Ben Gastright Manager, Export Compliance Officer Business Growth & International Trade NKY Chamber

HIGHLIGHTED BY A NEW RECORD LABEL, A NEW LIVE ALBUM, A FEW FESTIVALS AND AN OPENING SLOT FOR THE BAND GAVE THE WORLD “MORE THAN A FEELING.”

Frontier Folk Nebraska

FRONTIER FOLK NEBRASKA, the Covington quartet on the verge of celebrating 10 years of existence, is having their most robust year yet, highlighted by a new record label, a new live album, a few festivals and an opening slot for the band gave the world “More Than A Feeling.”

“No one asked us to do a double live album, so that’s exactly what we did,” deadpans lead axe man Travis Talbert.

“We have three [self-released] albums and relatively few people know about us, why not make an overly bold gesture like a live album? It was our way of doing a greatest hits record.”

This One’s For The Kid In The Back: Live at the Southgate House Revival, an 18-track ear-feast recorded over two nights last August, was released in April on Cincinnati’s Old Flame Records and is the first album featuring the band’s current lineup: founders Michael Hensley (vocals, guitar) and Talbert (guitar), and now-solidified rhythm section Matt McCormick (bass) and Mark Becknell (drums).

This year’s extensive touring has taken them to familiar spots like Whispering Beard Folk Festival in Friendship, Indiana, and expanded their sonic reach to cities like Champaign, IL, where they just played Pygmalion Festival alongside Vince Staples, Russian Circles, and Wolf Parade. And, while most readers probably won’t recognize any of those bands, these Kentucky gentlemen also opened the sold-out Boston concert on their stop in Dayton back in May. “There was a grand total of six people we knew that were coming to see us, and when we walked out on stage most of them

The Covington quartet on the verge of celebrating 10 years of existence, is having their most robust year yet.

PICTURED: Travis Talbert, Matt McCormick, Michael Hensley & Mark Becknell

— ABOUT FRONTIER FOLK NEBRASKA

10 YEARS TOURING

LIVE! NOVEMBER 23 AT THE SOUTHGATE HOUSE

OPPOSITE PAGE PHOTO CREDIT:

were about 10 rows back, in a crowd of thousands, yelling our names, so that was cool,” says the nonchalant Talbert, humbly adding, “More than anything it was nice that it all went so smoothly and we got to be ourselves.”

— No one asked us to do a double live album, so that’s exactly what we did.

— TRAVIS TALBERT LEAD AXE MAN And what exactly does being themselves sounds like? For the sake of comparison, their version of rock and roll is rooted in the soil of Neil Young and The Replacements, pays respect to regional contemporaries My Morning Jacket and The National, and stands uniquely with a foot on each bank of the Ohio.

“Cincinnati has a great blend of styles and a history all its own. You can come from here and basically have license to sound like anything you want,” says Talbert. “Our sound is first and foremost about our enjoyment of what we play. We just try to mean it.”

Seeing their varied palate live is all the proof you’ll need that they do indeed mean it. It’s rock music for everyone, really. And we get to claim them.

Did you miss FFN at UpStart Celebration of Entrepreneurship on October 6th? Come hear FFN headline a sonic buffet of bands at The Southgate House Revival’s “Get Stuffed on Local Music” on Thanksgiving eve, November 23. NKY

LISA SULLIVAN

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NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

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FEATURE

IS IT ANY SURPRISE THAT 75% OF PEOPLE REPORT FEELING OVERWHELMED?

By: Rachel Folz Director of Digital Marketing for Cerkl

Enhancing Communication Cerkl is taking the traditional digital communication model & turning it upside down.

PAGE 14

LET’S GET PERSONAL: If you’ve noticed an email asking you to “Get Personal,”we’re putting you in control of the type of news and events you receive from the us. It only takes 1 minute to personalize!

NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

1FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

THE WORLD IS A VERY NOISY PLACE. Every minute we create 3.3 million Facebook posts, 204 million emails and 300 hours of YouTube video. Is it any surprise that 75% of people report feeling overwhelmed by the volume?

Cerkl founder and CEO Tarek Kamil knows the struggle. Tarek was serving on the Madeira Board of Education.

Over and over again he’d hear from parents that they wanted to attend school events, but they just didn’t know they were going on, despite the school creating flyers, social media posts and an email newsletter. Tarek set out to solve the problem of engagement and Cerkl was born.

What Tarek discovered is the typical, 21st century email newsletter isn’t much different from the newsletter of 100 years ago. It’s meant to go to a wide audience; nothing is really tailored.

But audiences have become busier and more discerning - they are used to Netflix, Amazon and Pandora and the personalized experience they provide.

People are tuning out because the content isn’t relevant, it looks bad on their phone or it just comes too often.

The NKY Chamber was feeling it.

Hours of staff time each week were being spent producing email newsletters that didn’t really represent what the Chamber has to offer our community.

It was time to innovate the way communications were being handled.

As part of this fall’s re-branding project, NKY Chamber joined Cerkl.

Cerkl is taking the traditional digital communication model and turning it upside down by letting you decide what content you want to receive when you want to get it and how you want it to look.

If you get the Chamber’s email newsletter, you might have noticed an email asking you to ‘Get Personal’. The goal of that email is to put you in control of the type of news and events you receive from the Chamber. It only takes 1 minute to personalize!

— Personalization works.

On average, Cerkl’s open rate is twice the national average After that, Cerkl uses your explicit and implicit interests to deliver personalized email communications. Cerkl is taking in the great events and blogs NKY Chamber is posting on their beautiful, new website, along with stories curated from Trey and other Chamber staffers, to deliver an engaging, personalized email newsletter for each member individually.

The Chamber is joining more than 400 organizations in 28 states who are using Cerkl to send engaging, personalized, mobile-friendly emails.

Personalization works. On average, Cerkl’s open rate is twice the national average and our click rates, the true measure of content resonance and reach, is 689% higher than the national average. We hope you are enjoying your new, personalized email newsletter.

Welcome to the future of engagement, NKY Chamber members. We are glad you are here! NKY

PAGE 15

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Brexit Briefing

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Cincinnati

By: Ben Gastright Manager, Export Compliance Officer Business Growth & International Trade NKY Chamber

West Chester

“BREXIT IS NOT THE BEGINNING OF AN AVALANCHE OF COUNTRIES LEAVING THE E.U.” — FRANK SCHIMMELFENNIG PROFESSOR OF EUROPEAN POLITICS, SWISS FEDERAL INSTITTE OF TECHNOLOGY

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FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

WHAT DOES BREXIT MEAN? It’s the clever, shorthand way of saying the United Kingdom’s leaving the European Union, by combining the words Britain and exit.

The UK joined the EU in 1973 when it was known as the European Economic Community. The EEC was created as a result of World War II in 1950 by France and Germany to ensure they would never again go to war against each other.

WHAT IS THE BREXIT TIMELINE? On June 23 the UK held a referendum to let the voting public decide whether or not to remain in the EU. Before the vote took place it seemed the UK would unquestionably remain, with Prime Minister David Cameron staking his job on it, saying if the people voted to leave, he would step down. The Leave camp won by a 4% margin, Cameron followed through and former home secretary Theresa May took over as PM a few weeks later.

Like Cameron, May was in favor of remaining in the EU, but she does want to execute the will of the majority and has promised to negotiate the best deal for leaving the EU and forging a new role for the UK in the world.

“We have voted to leave the European Union and become a fully independent, sovereign country,” Mrs. May said in her annual Conservative Party speech early this month. “We will do what independent, sovereign countries do. We will decide for ourselves how we control immigration. And we will be free to pass our own laws.”

While the Brexit vote will make Britain the first country to leave the 28-member bloc, according to Article 50 of The EU’s Lisbon Treaty, they have two years to negotiate their withdrawal. May recently announced such negotiations

would begin at the end of March 2017, and with all the benefits the UK is losing by leaving, these talks are likely to be arduous, intricate, and rife with disagreement.

WHAT HAS BEEN THE IMPACT SO FAR? Predictably, the British pound dropped immediately. Over the last four months it continued to decline and now remains at a 30-year low, £1 equaling approximately $1.21.

Contrarily, amidst concern that Brexit would cause a small domino effect of other EU countries to vote themselves out, such a rush to leave has not materialized.

“Brexit is not the beginning of an avalanche of countries leaving the E.U.,” said Frank Schimmelfennig, professor of European politics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich in a recent New York Times article.

Austrian presidential candidate, Alexander Van der Bellen, concurred that in his country, “since the tragic Brexit decision, the sense of belonging to the EU suddenly moved to the forefront.”

WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD? As ever, the future remains unknown.

Many have speculations, predictions, and plenty of questions, with trade and immigration being the biggest concerns for the UK’s relationship with the EU. In the meantime, until negotiations are tentatively finished in 2019, the existing trade and immigration laws will remain the same on both sides of the English Channel.

As for America, our upcoming presidential election will certainly have an impact, as will the future of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TTP). And while the pound is down, importing from and traveling to the UK is at its most affordable. Tea, anyone? NKY PAGE 17

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Kentucky’s Highly Under-Utilized Tax Credit for Small Businesses ARE YOU ONE OF THE MANY KENTUCKY SMALL BUSINESSES that are leaving millions of dollars on the table?

Since the inception of the Kentucky Small Business Tax Credit (KSBTC), the state has allotted $6 million to the KSBTC, however, it has only awarded $2.2 million to Kentucky small businesses.

According to the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, 96.5% of the businesses in the state of Kentucky are small businesses, employing nearly 700,000 Kentuckians.

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MASTER OF SCIENCE IN EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP AND ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE The Masters in Executive Leadership and Organizational Change program at Northern Kentucky University allows individuals to develop the leadership competencies that organizations are seeking. The ELOC program, unique to the region, teaches students to facilitate organizational change by using leadership competencies learned through action learning, competency development and team-based environments.

Stacey Kampsen and Ryan Redleski are tax specialists with VonLehman CPA & Advisory Firm. learn more about VonLehman at vlcpa.com.

— The driving force behind the KSBTC is job creation.

When a business creates or fills one or more eligible positions and invests $5,000 or more in qualifying equipment or technology, the program provides a credit between $3,500 to $25,000 per calendar year.

Learn more about NKU’s ELOC Program at eloc.nku.edu.

This credit is available to for-profit businesses having 50 or less full-time Kentucky employees. It is important to note that an employee who works in Kentucky, but resides outside of the state, is not included in the small business employment calculation. If a business has 60 employees, but 20 of them reside outside the state of Kentucky, the business is still eligible for the credit.

OTHER PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING: 1. At least one position has been created and filled for 12 consecutive months; the employee must work a minimum of 35 hours or more per week and have an hourly wage of at least $10.88.

2. The investment of $5,000 in qualifying equipment or technology; defined as a life greater than one year (i.e. computers, equipment, furniture, fixtures and software). NKY

THE KENTUCKY CABINET WILL WORK WITH BUSINESSES TO ASSIST CREDIT APPROVAL . IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS AS TO WHETHER OR NOT YOUR BUSINESS QUALIFIES FOR THE CREDIT, PLEASE COTACT STACEY KAMPSEN OR RYAN REDLESKI AT 859.331.3300.

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FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

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AROUND THE CHAMBER

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NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

EGGS ‘N ISSUES

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

PAGE 21

Women’s Initiative Presents:

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2017 Awards Presentation Luncheon April 5, 2017 St. Elizabeth Training & Education Center Erlanger, Kentucky

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MEET ATECH PRESIDENT LAURA LYONS

FOR LAURA LYONS, president of ATech Automotive Technology, Northern Kentucky is the perfect location for her company. “We are in a very central location in the country,” she says. “Cincinnati is not too large a city yet we are still close to the airport and major highways. We have a great work ethic in our area and a solid manufacturing base. In fact, we are one of the original manufacturing belts.”

The manufacturing community has also been welcoming to Lyons since she is one of the first women to oversee a local advanced manufacturing complex. She serves as chair of Raise the Floor, an initiative to get more women employed in advanced manufacturing, and is on the board of the Advanced Manufacturing Workforce Development Coalition. A U.S. Army veteran, she is a native Northern Kentuckian.

The Women’s Initiative recently talked to her about efforts to direct women toward careers in STEM and manufacturing.

Laura Lyons

WI: YOU WERE ONE OF THE FIRST WOMEN TO HEAD A NORTHERN KENTUCKY MANUFACTURER. DID YOU GET PUSHBACK FROM THOSE NOT USED TO SEEING A WOMAN AT THE HELM? LL: I never really thought about being one of the first. I guess I was too busy trying to do the job. I do not recall having pushback from those who I dealt with in the manufacturing community as a manager. I had more push back within the automotive community (a very male-dominated field). I have typically been the only woman in many positions such as in the military and electrical engineering co-op, and grew up with more boys in our neighborhood. So I did not perceive myself as “different.”

For ATech Automotive Technology, Northern Kentucky is the perfect location.

Interview By: Laura Kroeger President, Communication Project Partners

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NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

WI: WHY ARE YOU INVOLVED WITH RAISE THE FLOOR? LL: I want to promote manufacturing as a career for women. It has been a great experience for me. Also, I want to promote women in manufacturing since half of our population is female.

If you want to impact something, you have to be committed.

WI: WHERE DID THE IDEA FOR RAISE THE FLOOR COME FROM? LL: Dr. Angie Taylor and Janice Urbanik created the concept. In 2013, 26 founding members—all women--of the Raise the Floor initiative included a cross-section of professional women from education, non-profits, and advanced manufacturing, including two company presidents. Raise the Floor is a unique training and support program created by women for women.

Our objectives are to (1) Increase the number of women in advanced manufacturing jobs allowing these women to be self-sufficient while also allowing them the opportunity to move forward in their careers; and (2) Increase the pipeline of skilled workers into manufacturing companies

— I want to promote manufacturing as a career for women.

— LAURA LYONS

WI: WHAT DO YOU FORESEE IN THE FUTURE OF WOMEN IN ADVANCED MANUFACTURING? LL: There are opportunities for women in advanced manufacturing. Women bring unique skills such as handeye coordination that are needed in manufacturing and other industries.

WI: HOW CAN WE GET MORE WOMEN IN STEM CAREERS? LL: There are many people in our Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky community working to engage girls into STEM. We need to start earlier in feeding the pipeline so that girls/ women perceive STEM careers as opportunities besides what they have traditionally always chosen.

WI: HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED IN THE WOMEN’S INITIATIVE? LL: I went to a Women’s Initiative event and learned about the Roundtables.

I joined one and have expanded my knowledge of other companies and developed many relationships with other women in our community.

WI: HOW ARE YOU INVOLVED AND WHAT HAVE YOU GLEANED FROM YOUR INVOLVEMENT? LL: We have learned from each other and collaborated on projects from our companies. There is a lot of attention being paid to diversity. I think we are already past that and we should be paying attention to diversity of thought. We want to hire people for their skills and thinking ability.

WI: HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR LEADERSHIP STYLE? LL: I pretty much call it the Golden Rule: treat people how you would like to be treated. I believe in collaboration, teamwork, placing people where their strengths lie (think Strengthsfinder), and making sure that the customer is successful.

WI: WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU WILL BE DOING 10 YEARS FROM NOW? LL: Manufacturing something, gardening, some type of home improvement project, and hopefully more travel.

This does not sound different from what I am doing now. I am very humbled to know so many people with a passion for improving our community, and grateful for the opportunity to work with them. NKY

PAGE 251

REGIONAL YOUTH LEADERSHIP

Camp Joy By: Aneesh Singh Indian Hill High School

“I REALIZED THAT MY INPUT CAN BE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SUCCESS & FAILURE”

PAGE 26

THE REGIONAL YOUTH LEADERSHIP (RYL) RETREAT to Camp Joy was an incredible experience where we received the opportunity to meet and become friends with many of our fellow RYL members and learned skills that can be useful for the rest of our lives. There were numerous things which I learned during our time there, such as the benefits of taking risks and the value of positive leadership and reinforcement.

We have all heard things along the lines that the bigger risk you take the bigger reward you will get but, not many of us have ever actually used that saying in our lives. During the retreat we got numerous chances to take risks and although they are very different from “real world” risks, they were very effective in showing the benefits of

risk. One example is during the games we played, they were simple games but they were hard to actually complete.

Almost every time we encountered a tough challenge but, we took a risk and tried to find a different way to complete the activity.

By taking a risk and not playing in the most “ideal” or “obvious” way, we were able to find a far more effective way to complete the activity. Another risk that I took was on the High-Ropes course I was discouraged by my fear numerous times and I am sure other people were too. But all of us took a risk by participating, we were taking a risk by stepping out of our comfort zone and trying something new.

I also learned about positive leadership and positive reinforcement while on the ropes course.

NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

There were 3 times that I wanted to completely back out of the course but, the positive reinforcement that everyone gave me helped me complete the course. I realized that although it may seem unimportant, simply saying kind and encouraging words can completely change a person’s mentality and motivation. But the same also applies to negative and discouraging words, they can make a person completely quit something that they could actually do very easily. This is why it is very important for leaders to have a positive and outgoing personality that encourages that people around them. After the time I had at Camp Joy I have changed not only in my ability to complete ropes courses but also in my personality in situations like the retreat.

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

I realized that my input can be the difference between the success and failure of our entire group. And this extends far beyond playing games, this idea can apply in school, in college and even in the workplace. Almost everywhere you go in life, you will be working and interacting with other people and the ability to share and communicate your ideas can mean that you entire group will succeed. The entire experience has opened my eyes to qualities of leaders that I never would have learned without the experiences and activities in which we participated today.

Overall, Camp Joy has made a significant impact on my personal leadership abilities and my understanding of working with other people. NKY

RYL CLASS OF 2017 (IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER): Matthew Arentsen, Ellee Arnold, John Baldan, Madison Banks, Naomi Belanger, Andrew Belton, Bowie Bender, Abigail Blink, Maggie Brockhoff, Chingyi Chan, Emily Chien, Sydney Craddock, Quinlan Creech, Parker Dixon, Megan Dwyer, Jenna Eveslage, Alexandra Grayson, Shaylee Hall, Hayden Handel, Harrison Heist, Connor Herbert, Katherine Holtz, Lauren Hudson, Tiffany James, Maia Johnson, Reagan Karwisch, Grace Kelley, Daniel Keyes, Savannah Kleeman, Sarah Krebs, Carter Kunstek, Louis Langen, Jourdhel Mabunay, Tyler MacKnight, Sean McIntyre, Lauren Minella, Allison Moore, Benjamin Murrin, Molly Mysogland, Emma Nurre, Owen Piatt, Sidney Reagor, Emma Rogg, Maycee Searp, Aneesh Singh, Ryan Tufts, Bonnie Walton, Eric Winter, Anna Wolfe

— LEARN MORE ABOUT RYL AT NKYCHAMBER.COM

PAGE 27

Women’s Initiative

FEATURE

Sponsored by:

Annual Breakfast Wednesday, January 18, 2017 7:00am - 9:30am Northern Kentucky Convention Center This year’s keynote speaker is Laura Stack, President and CEO of The Productivity Pro, Inc.

A Gateway Out Of Poverty By: Carla Landon Marketing & Communications Manager NKY Chamber Sarah Young

NKYChamber.com/events

Save the Date:

Wednesday January 18, 2017 The Carnegie in Covington, KY Proceeds Benefit RYL

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Title Sponsor

Event Sponsor

K

NKY Chamber Small Business Academy Sponsored by:

Designed for NKY Businesses Classes Begin January, 2017 NKY Chamber Offices 300 Buttermilk Pike Ft. Mitchell KY 41017

SAVE THE DATE MARCH 29, 2017 2017 BUSINESS IMPACT AWARDS NKYChamber.com/events

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Register at NKYChamber.com Or contact Debby Shipp at dshipp@nkychamber.com or 859.578.6385

AS MANY PARTS OF AMERICA FACES CHALLENGES with today’s changing economy, Northern Kentucky also grapples with the problem of curbing poverty amidst our community.

Matthew Strother, Ready to Work (RTW) Coordinator at Gateway Community & Technical College, explains that many community college students do not just come to class then go home to do homework and hang out with friends. “Most are employed while also attending school. Most also have other familial obligations such as caring for their own children or an elderly adult. Students simply have their schedules packed with academic, economic, and personal obligations that have no room for flexibility- as a result if something goes astray with one obligation; it can be a domino effect into tumbling the others down.”

As a region we work together on many programs to address this need, but programs often come with statistics, data, and goals. At times that takes the human face off of what lifting a person or family out of poverty truly takes.

Strother was kind enough to share one of the success stories.

Sarah Young was a client of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and former RTW student with Gateway.

She had quit school after the 8th grade and education was not a high priority FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

in her family. Young would however receive her General Equivalency Diploma (GED) when she was 17 years old. She gained a seasonal job at the Internal Revenue Service, which did not become permanent. Young was also a new teen mom. With little work history, finding a stable job was not automatic.

With few other options, Young applied for services at Kentucky’s Department of Community Based Services (DCBS). She was referred by the case worker to Gateway as an option of completing her participation hours and furthering her education.

As Young threw the RTW coordinator’s contact information into her purse, she initially didn’t like the idea of going back to school. Curious to see what Gateway had to offer she called the RTW coordinator and was encouraged to come in for an appointment. Strother’s office convinced her to start classes that following semester. Oddly enough, Sarah surprised herself — she liked school.

Between her RTW placement at DCBS and a contract position Young had taken to extend her time working there; she eventually came to work at the Cabinet for nearly 5 years. She then left that position to start working for the Child Care Council helping clients apply for state child care services.

Not only is Young an alumnae of Gateway where she earned her Associate’s

Degree in Applied Science, she later received here her Bachelor’s Degree from Western Kentucky University in Sociology with a minor in Family Studies. Young is now a Kentucky Colonel and occasionally teaches an “Introduction to College” course for Gateway.

Due to Young’s new found love of learning she is now attending Murray State for her Master’s degree in Human Development in Higher Education and will finish this Spring 2016. She is now the Community Resources Success Coach at Gateway Community and Technical College, where Young has worked for six years. In this position she assists students by referring them to various resources on and off of campus; as well as assisting them with applying for state benefits. Young just recently got married and built her own home.

While there is much to be learned from the level of success or failure of a program by statistics, all the more often people need to see a real-life example to know that something is having an impact on our community, which Gateway’s “Ready to Work program has. Now Sarah Young is using that experience to impact others in Northern Kentucky.

To learn more about what is being done in our region to fight poverty or to get involved contact the Northern Kentucky Education Council at nkyec.org. NKY

PAGE 29

EMERGING 30

Emerging 30

hires those with the necessary language skills and, more importantly, those with a great attitude.

Emerging 30 is comprised of local businesses making a significant economic impact on the community based on annual revenue growth.

Winners receive public acknowledgement of their achievements and are encouraged to offer their guidance to help other small businesses grow during events tailored specifically to Emerging 30 designees.

BANNOCKBURN GLOBAL FOREX, LLC Bannockburn Global Forex finds itself back on the Emerging 30 list for the second straight year and is showing no signs of slowing down. The company was founded by a group of bankers who saw an opportunity to improve the process for currency transactions for organizations doing business outside the U.S. Drew Collins and his team are able to save their clients significant money on the execution of currency trades, as well as provide unique services to support their clients’ needs. Drew says the biggest challenge is education on foreign exchange issues faced by companies across a wide range of industries. If allowed jus 15 minutes to review a company’s currency transactions and explain the value-added services it can provide, Bannockburn estimates it will be successful in building a new partnership one 80% of the time.

Bannockburn works with manufacturers, service providers, non-profits, private equity groups, and large pensions and endowments. Bannockburn takes a personalized and custom approach to each relationship and is confident in its ability to add value to any firm, even with just one currency trade per year. Drew and his team have countless examples of how PAGE 30

they have been able to help clients recoup hundreds of thousands of dollars they were not aware were being lost with their current FX provider. A wise man once said, “The best way to make money is to help other people make money.” Bannockburn is a prime example of just that.

FLORENCE ANTIQUE MALL Antiques, collectibles, retro and vintage goods, furniture and home décor — shoppers from near and far have discovered that the Florence Antique Mall is THE best place to find an amazing selection of these treasures from the past.

Since opening in 1998, there have been numerous awards, including “Best in the City” by both Cincinnati Magazine and CityBeat Magazine, “Best of Northern Kentucky” by Northern Kentucky Magazine, “Top Antique Store”

by Kentucky Monthly Magazine, and “Emerging 30” recognition by the NKY Chamber of Commerce.

So how does an 18 year old local retail store achieve continued growth and success while large national retailers struggle and shrink?

“First and foremost, we don’t offer mass produced goods found in the average retail store,”, explains President

Coleen Detzel. “We have over 200 great dealers displaying an amazing selection of unique, quality items in our showroom.

No traditional retailer even comes close to that.”

“We also understand that keeping our customers happy is what makes us successful,” says General Manager Mike Detzel. “We have a wonderful staff to assist our customers, and we listen to their suggestions and comments. For example, over the years we extended our open hours and went to being open seven days a week, and we added gift certificate and layaway programs, all based on customer suggestions.”

“We serve all manner of shoppers: from teenagers to retirees, college students to busy families and young couples just starting out,” adds Coleen.

“We’ve also become a destination for travelers passing through the area, and when it comes to finding terrific gifts for someone special, we have truly have something for everyone”.

The Florence Antique Mall is located on Mall Rd. in Florence, Kentucky, 10 minutes south of downtown Cincinnati, and is open every day from 11 am to 8 pm.

SUBMITTED BY: SCOTT J. MALOF, CPA/PFS, MALOF & ASSOCIATES CPAS AND STEVE BRUNSON, FORCHT BANK

NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

GLOBAL TO LOCAL LANGUAGE SOLUTIONS “Like A Caterpillar” Global to Local Language Solutions (G2L), headquartered in Cincinnati (Norwood), is a multi-year repeat Emerging 30 honoree since 2012.

President and founder, Grace Bosworth, established the company in 2009.

G2’s growth has been nothing short of spectacular. Sales have doubled almost every year, with 2016 forecasting to continue that same sales growth trend.

While the back bone of the business is translation and interpreting, Grace indicated that G2L now offers remote interpreting. And at a much faster speed than a caterpillar, G2L also provides emergency interpretation services in as little as 15 minutes with interpreters in over 150 languages available by phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Bosworth is Cincinnati native, growing up in Anderson with 5 siblings.

She attended Anderson High School, then Ohio University for her bachelors, and Xavier and Keller Universities for her multiple graduate degrees.

Bosworth’s challenges in managing the company’s extraordinary growth have been, in her words, “like a caterpillar.” As the company inches along, it sheds its old skin and emerges as a newer and better service provider. She credits some of G2L’s success on focusing on self-improvement— her own. She has attended executive training courses by Aileron and WBENC. Serving the Northern Kentucky, Cincinnati, Dayton and Columbus regions, G2L’s primary client bases include hospitals, medical clinics, schools, and the legal court systems. Much of the growth of the company is attributed to the explosion of need for G2L’s particular services. At one point G2L had 500 interpreters, and is now up to 1,500.

Locating the right kind of talent is a challenge, as schools rarely train for the job of being an interpreter. Bosworth now

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

SUBMITTED BY: SCOTT J. MALOF, CPA/PFS, MALOF & ASSOCIATES CPAS, LLC

LGI CFO Sometimes, Emerging 30 winners are companies that have been around for a number of years and then experience fast growth. LGI CFO is one of those companies. LGI CFO, established in 1990

by Steve Lumley, specializes in effective financial management solutions for closely held businesses and not-forprofit entities. LGI provides outsourced financial management and acts as the CFO, controller,or business advisor to companies in the Northern Kentucky and southwest Ohio region.

Steve Lumley, Founder and CEO, explains, “A big challenge to growth was the sales side and finding people who understand the sales side of the business.

Our CFO’s work very hard for their clients.

Over time, a major key to our growth has been happy clients and professionals who refer us to other businesses.”

Lumley also shares that there is a questionnaire for companies to use on their website (lgicfo.com) to see if they need an outsourced CFO. LGI created a unique process called Financial Frontiers in 2007 as a way to help businesses become more profitable and poised for growth and eventual transition.

For those starting a business, Lumley shares, “Business owners need to think about where their revenue is going to come from. You have to be prepared for a tough 1-3 years starting out. If you can make it to five years and beyond, owning your own business can be very rewarding.”

PROLOCITY CLOUD SOLUTIONS Prolocity Cloud Solutions, headquartered in Covington, was founded in 2010 with a mission to deliver transformational results for their customers. Today, the company is a national Salesforce partner helping businesses and non-profits fully leverage the cloud based software platform to turbocharge their sales, marketing, and development efforts, while improving communications and operating efficiencies.

Prolocity is committed to creating a competitive advantage for their customers and not just product delivery.. Organizations often attempt to implement new software solutions without clearly defining their desired outcomes, and measure of success.

Prolocity’s unique process ensures that all factors impacting results, including user adoption, are taken into account throughout each engagement. As a testament to this focus, Prolocity maintains a five star client satisfaction rating on the Salesforce AppExchange, the highest in the industry.

While Prolocity defines what it means to be an emerging business in terms of revenue growth, John McKenzie, founder and CEO, is a strong believer in creating a work environment that is collaborative and mutually successful and attributes much of the success of the business to its employees and the values driven culture of the organization.

Building smart, hard-working teams that know how to have fun with the process of solving complex problems for clients is crucial for Prolocity’s continued growth.

SUBMITTED BY: EMIR HODZIC, CPA, VONLEHMAN

SUBMITTED BY: DARYL EVANS, FIFTH THIRD SECURITIES, INC.

PAGE 311

MEMBER MILESTONES

Member Milestones NORTHERN KENTUCKY COMMUNITY ACTION COMMISSION (NKCAC) is excited to announce the newest members of the 2016-2017 Board of Directors.

Dr. G. Edward Hughes, immediate past president of Gateway Community and Technical College has continued his career in areas that focuses on helping people and organizations prosper and fulfill their missions and visions.

With two former community college presidents, he formed Star Educational Programming, LLC to assist community colleges as well as non-profits in a variety of ways from fundraising and strategic planning to CEO coaching. He created The Hughes Group to provide connections for the innovative ideas of people to organizations and resources to help reduce the impact of poverty and to increase the flow of people out of poverty and into self-sufficiency. He is married with three daughters and three grandchildren.

Joe Schlimm is Vice President of PNC Bank Commercial Banking. Prior to that he worked at Provident Bank.

He currently sits on three non-profit organization boards in Greater Cincinnati. Joe is married, with six children and five grandchildren all residing in Northern Kentucky. Joe loves the area and getting involved to make the community a better place for everyone.

Laurie Peace is an Early Childhood Educator for preschoolers with special needs in the Campbell County School District and is active in the district’s Summer and After School Program.

Laurie’s education, her experience, her deep seated roots in Northern Kentucky, and her genuine concern and care for others will make her an excellent resource to NKCAC. Laurie is married, with four children. Laurie is looking forward to serving her fellow citizens of Northern Kentucky.

PAGE 32

Nichole Marie Braun is the Program Director of the Newport Adult Learning Center and is responsible for all the adult education programming in Campbell County. Nichole started her career as a kindergarten teacher at Lincoln Elementary School in Dayton, KY. She holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in education. In 1998 she moved from elementary education into the world of Adult Education. This includes GED services, college preparatory classes and adult basic education. She has been actively involved with NKCAC’s YouthBuild students since 2008. Serving others is just a way for her to put her faith in action. Nichole and her husband, Mark, love cooking for their blended family that includes five children and three grandchildren.

Rick Skinner is the Mayor of Williamstown, KY. During his tenure he has been an active member of the National League of Cities Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Committee and he serves on the Board of Directors of the Kentucky League of Cities (KLC) and is Chairman of the KLC Bond Committee, as well as serving on the Northern Kentucky Area Development District (NKADD) Board of Directors, acting as the Vice President on the NKADD Executive Committee. He has also worked closely with state officials and Answers in Genesis

throughout the development of the “Ark Encounter” theme park. Rick is the 2016 Northern Kentucky Health Department Excellence in Public Health recipient and the Williamstown Independent School 2016 “Wall of Fame” recipient. Rick is married with four children and one granddaughter.

Other members of the Board of Directors include: Linda Viox, President; J.C. Morgan, Vice President; Kimberly Timmons, Treasurer; Aurelia Rodriguez, Secretary; Charles Alexander; Steven Bradley; Steve Butts; Steve Cruse; Lewis Diaz; Cindy Millay; Jo Ellen Mitchell; Gina Parsons; Beth Sewell; Patty Wininger; Paul Wirtz, PhD; and Aaron Wolfe-Bertling.

Recently moving to Emeritus status: Barbara Haun and George Kent, PhD. “The NKCAC board has intently listened to the community’s needs and acted to embrace and develop projects to support and assist those who have fallen on hard times,” said Linda Viox, President. “The board and staff of NKCAC feel the pain of those who struggle with the burdens dealt them and need assistance, reassurance and guidance. It takes people from many backgrounds and positions pooling their resources to lift up struggling community members and transform lives. This is what drives the determination of all involved in NKCAC and why I am so excited to welcome these new board members.”

NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

CERKL is proud to welcome their new Digital Marketing Manager, Rachel Folz to our team of innovation rock stars.

Rachel comes to Cerkl from the Campbell County Public Library where she was their first-ever Digital Marketing Manager.

During her time at the library, Rachel was a Cerkl customer. “I knew from the second slide of my demo that Cerkl was the solution the library was looking for. Libraries serve many audiences and Cerkl’s automated personalization technology made it easy to engage all of our patrons with the library news and events that matter to them. Plus, I saved the two hours each week that I was spending designing email newsletters.”

“Rachel brings more than a decade of digital content experience to the Cerkl team,” Sara Jackson, Cerkl’s Distributor of Pixie Dust said. “We are ecstatic to have Rachel as her passion to truly help organizations engage their audience aligns with our team’s values. Her unparalleled digital marketing expertise is exactly what Cerkl needs to keep up with our immense growth and speed.”

Rachel will focus on spreading the good word of Cerkl. “I am so honored to be a part of this company,” Rachel said.

“Cerkl is a paradigm-shifting technology whose time has come. This squad is on fire and I can’t wait to see what the engineers make next.”

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

LIFETIME FINANCIAL GROWTH named Robert Franklin president of their downtown Cincinnati office.

Franklin said Lifetime Financial Growth represents six percent of all lines of the Guardian Life Insurance Company of America and is on track to grow that percentage to 10 percent over the next several years. He said most of Lifetime’s clients are doctors, dentists, small business owners, executives and professionals.

The Cincinnati office has been located at 419 Plum St. in downtown Cincinnati for eight years. It was the recipient of the Guardian President’s Cup awarded to the leading firm in the Guardian network and is ranked as a Platinum Agency in the Guardian system, its highest category.

Lifetime Financial Growth focuses on macro-economic principles, fiscal education and asset-servicing solutions for clients. ” A highly-secure online vault allows clients to keep important documents in a “digital shoe box” with continual online access, allowing them to take a snapshot of their portfolios at any time.

This provides clients with peace of mind, he added.

GBQ PARTNERS LLC is proud to announce that the firm has been named an INSIDE Public Accounting Best of the Best Firm for 2016.

INSIDE Public Accounting’s (IPA’s) annual Best of the Best recognition honors 50 CPA firms across the country for their overall superior financial and operational performance on more than 70 IPA criteria.

IPA considers a wide variety of metrics to evaluate who is a Best of the Best firm,including metrics that measure growth, profitability, income, productivity, accountability, turnover, professional development and governance.

“Best of the Best firms are financially successful, but that’s only part of what makes them exceptional,” says Michael Platt, principal of the Platt Group and publisher of the accounting trade publication, INSIDE Public Accounting.

“Best of the Best firms are built on a strong foundation that consider the needs of staff, owners and clients as the three key constituencies of any successful business. They are not content to stand still. They plan ahead for the future of the firm and they anticipate the needs of their clients.”

This is GBQ’s 8th appearance on the list: 2000, 2001, 2004, 2010, 2011 – 2013 and 2016.

PAGE 331

EVENTS

MEMBER MILESTONES

Events Northern Kentucky Business Journal is published quarterly by: Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, Inc. 300 Buttermilk Pike Suite 330 P.O. Box 17416 Ft. Mitchell, KY 41017 859-578-8800 www.nkychamber.com The Business Journal is a benefit of membership and included in membership fees. Annual subscription rate for nonmembers is $24.

Periodicals Postage Paid USPS-548630 at Covington, KY. Postmaster: Please send address changes to the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, 300 Buttermilk Pike, Suite 330, P.O. Box 17416 , Ft. Mitchell, KY 41017-0416.

CITIZENS BANK OF NORTHERN KENTUCKY is pleased to announce that Kevin Kloentrup has been appointed Senior Vice President and Trust Officer.

Mr. Kloentrup has over thirty years in Wealth Management and Trust Services experience and has held senior trust officer positions at other financial institutions in the area.

Mr. Kloentrup is a Northern Kentucky native and is a graduate of the University of Dayton School of Law with a Juris Doctorate. His undergraduate degree is from the University of Kentucky.

RUDLER, PSC is pleased to announce that Shareholder, Lori D. Warden, CPA, CGMA, has been elected President of the Kentucky State Board of Accountancy.

Lori was appointed to the Kentucky State Board of Accountancy by Governor Steve Beshear in 2014 to serve for a term expiring June 30, 2018. She also serves as a Compliance Assurance Committee Member of the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy.

Dedicated to consistent professionalism and standards in the industry, Lori is the Accounting and Auditing Quality Control Shareholder for Rudler, PSC. She is especially skilled in the public accounting areas of captive insurance and peer reviews.

THE NKY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE is pleased to announce the promotion of Christie Rogers to Vice President, Special Events.

Rogers oversees key events at the NKY Chamber including the Annual Golf Outing and Annual Dinner.

“Christie has certainly earned this promotion through her hard work, dedication and attention to detail. In this new position, she will become an even more important member of our staff leadership,” explained Trey Grayson, President & CEO of the NKY Chamber.

Christie has been with the NKY Chamber for over four years. During that time she has shown a commitment to membership and enhanced events.

Christie attended Northern Kentucky University where she received her B.A in History. She is an active NKU alumna who currently serves on the NKU Alumni Board.

Subscribers: Please send address changes by e-mail to info@nkychamber.com. © 2016, The Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, Inc. and by the individual authors. All rights reserved.

CEO/Publisher Trey Grayson

NOVEMBER: — 11/1

Small Business Academy: Open House

11/2

Workforce Peer Exchange: Employee Evaluations and Performance Feedback

11/3

Legacy: Inside Look - Duke Energy Envision Center

11/15

Eggs ‘N Issues: Regional Economic Outlook

11/18

Government Forum: Justice and Public Safety Cabinet Secretary John Tilley

11/29

Women’s Initiative CONNECT Hour —Buona Vita

11/29

Sales Workshop: Your Chamber is a Goldmine

DECEMBER: — 12/13

Eggs ‘N Issues: Real Estate Development

12/13

Getting the Most from Your Chamber Membership

12/14

Board of Directors/Board of Advisors Lunch - Invitation only

12/15

2017 Where We Stand

Vice President Public Affairs & Communication Scott Sedmak | ssedmak@nkychamber.com Marketing / Communications Manager Carla Landon | clandon@nkychamber.com Vice President Membership – Sponsorship Sales Lynn Abeln | labeln@nkychamber.com

JANUARY: — 1/5

Health & Wellness: 2017 Wellness Kickoff

Director, Sponsor Investments Diana McGlade | dmcglade@nkychamber.com

1/9

Wellness Challenge begins (1/9-2/17)

Chief Administrative Officer Ruth Eger | reger@nkychamber.com

1/10

Eggs ‘N Issues: 2017 Preview of the General Assembly

1/17

Small Business Academy: Microsoft Excel Level 1 Class Starts

1/17

Small Business Academy: Active Listening Class Starts

1/18

Talent & HR: Peer Exchange: Small Business Practices

1/18

Women’s Initiative Annual Breakfast

1/18

RYL Fundraiser: The Music Man

1/24

Sales Workshop: TBD

1/30

Women’s Initiative CONNECT Hour– Woodhouse Day Spa

Chamber Communications Committee Rachel Folz, Meredith Fossett, Mindy Kershner, Amanda Nagelsisen, Bill Powell, Kelly Rose, Katie Scoville, Emily Gresham Wherle Designers Steve Fine | stevef@artboyanimation.com Chris Ritter | christopherritter@gmail.com

— SHARE YOUR GOOD NEWS!

All NKY Chamber members are invited to share announcements & personal achievements in the Milestones column.

LOOKING FOR MORE EVENTS? NKYCHAMBER.COM/EVENTS

Send Milestones to clandon@nkychamber.com PAGE 34

NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

FALL 2016 | VOLUME 35 NUMBER 8

PAGE 35

RIBBON CUTTINGS

RIBBON CUTTINGS

AQUISENSE TECHNOLOGIES

BAD GIRL VENTURES

4400 Olympic Blvd, Erlanger, KY 41018 | 859.869.4700 | aquisense.com

14 W. Pike Street, Covington, KY 41015 | 513.421.0305 | badgirlventures.com

PICTURED: Dave Hahn, City of Erlanger; Barney Creevy, CPC ExterminatorsNKY Chamber Ambassador; Kevin McCullough, Stockyards Bank; Trey Grayson, NKY Chamber President; Saketh Thanneeru, AquiSense Technologies; James Sciarrino, AquiSense Technologies; Molly McKain, AquiSense Technologies; Oliver Lawal, AquiSense Technologies President; Sally Gutiérrez, Director of EPA; Jackie Spjut, AquiSense Technologies; Mitch Hansen, AquiSense Technologies; Michael Hymas, AquiSense Technologies; Valerie Johnson, L&N Federal Credit UnionSponsor; Casey Barach, Tri-ED Senior VP; Dan Tobergate, Tri-ED President; Jeff Loy, PEI – NKY Chamber Ambassador

PICTURED: Karen Finan, BGV Board Chair; Sherry Carran, Mayor of Covington; Trey Grayson, NKY Chamber President; Mary Ann Pietromonaco, BVG Board member; Steve Frank, City of Covington Commissioner; Kathy Mitts, BGV Board member; Janet Schlegel, BGV Board member; Cheryl Stamm, BGV Board member; Michelle Andersen, BGV Board Member; Michelle Metcalf, Haute & Humble; Angela Ozar, BGV Program Manager; Nancy Aichholz, BGV Executive Director; Jeanne Schroer, Catalytic Fund; Tony Kreutzjans, Orleans Development; Tom DiBello, Center for Great Neighborhoods; Marc Tischbein, Tischbein Design and partner in Pike Star, LLC; Chuck Eilerman, City of Covington Commissioner; Bill Wells, City of Covington Commissioner; Larry Klein, Covington City Manager PHOTO: BGV

PHOTO: AQUISENSE

PITA PIT

ADDICTION SERVICES COUNCIL

2740 Alexandria Pike, Highland Heights, KY 41076 | 859.380.9998 | pitapitusa.com

799 Ann Street, 2nd Fl., Newport, KY 41071 | 513.281.7880 | addictionservicescouncil.org

PICTURED: Dan Hammons, Shared Wellness-NKY Chamber Ambassador; Judy Pogue, Comey & Shepherd – NKY Chamber Ambassador; Scott Sedmak, Highland Heights City Council & NKY Chamber; Amie Imbus - Pita Pit partner; Lillian; Jim Swan, Owner/ Operator – Pita Pit; A’janai Swan; Dorothea Swan; Mason Swan; Amy McCabe, L&N Federal Credit Union-Sponsor

PICTURED: Jeff Loy, PEI Logistics – NKY Chamber Ambassador; John Hayden, City of Newport Commissioner; Bob Byrne, ASC Board Member; Bill Koshover, ASC Director of Outpatient Services; Nan Franks, ASC CEO; Chris Hamilton, ASC Clinical Triage Specialist; Tim Davis, Mass Mutual Financial; Valerie Johnson, L&N Federal Credit Union-Sponsor; Kevin Garrett, United Community Bank – NKY Chamber Ambassador

PHOTO: ADDICTION SERVICES

PHOTO: PITA PIT 1

SULLIVAN UNIVERSITY

WALMART-FLORENCE

207 Grandview Drive, Suite 300, Ft. Mitchell, KY 41017 | 859.331.1548 | sullivan.edu

7625 Doering Drive, Florence, KY 41042 | 859.282.8333 | walmart.com

PICTURED: Ellen Barnett, L&N Federal Credit Union-Sponsor; Jeff Loy, PEI – NKY Chamber Ambassador; Kelsey Wicher; Charles Brown; Dr. Keith Bird, Glenn Sullivan, Sullivan University President; A.R. Sullivan, Sullivan University Chancellor; Kelly Bass; Hazel Matthews; Butch Callery, Villa Hills Mayor; Dr. Angie Taylor; Dr. Vicki Berling; Ken Moran; Dan Hammons, Shared WellnessNKY Chamber Ambassador

PICTURED: Mack Slocum. Legal Shield – NKY Chamber Ambassador; Jacob Helton, Walmart GM, Kathy Stewart, Walmart; Doris Freeman, Walmart; Susan Barnett , Walmart; Trey Grayson, NKY Chamber President; Robert Hammerle, Walmart; Joyce Sand, Walmart; Kevin Richardson, Addiction Services Council – NKY Chamber Ambassador

PHOTO: SULLIVAN UNIVERSITY

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RIBBON CUTTINGS

RESTAURANT GUIDE

CHICK-FIL-A 3436 Madison Pike | Ft Wright, KY 41011 | 859.331.0276 | chick-fil-a.com

PICTURED: Mark & Jeannine Linn; Chick-fil-A Guest; Maria Ulloa, NKU-NKY Chamber Ambassador; Ellen Barnett, L&N Credit UnionSponsor; Captain Kevin Chesnut, US Army; Normarys PerezLinn, Chick-fil-A; Trey Grayson, NKY Chamber President; Brent Linn, Chick-fil-A-owner/operator; Ryan Pitts, Waddell & ReedNKY Chamber Ambassador; Cow; Jonathan Johnson, Chick-fil-A Corporate; Mark Kiser, Kwik Kopy-NKY Chamber Ambassador; Ed Butler, City of Fort Wright.

PHOTO: CHICK-FIL-A 021E

THE HOT SPOT 6415 Dixie Highway | Florence, KY 41042 | 859.534.2459 | thehotspotbar.com

PICTURED: Alex Mattingly, Elsmere City Administrator; Joanne BarnettSmith, Elsmere City Council; Dan Hammons, Shared WellnessNKY Chamber Ambassador; Maria Altamira, The Hot Spot; Alfredo Saldivar; The Hot Spot; Summer Kaiser, The Hot Spot; Trey Grayson, NKY Chamber President; Bill Bradford, Elsmere City Council.

PHOTO: PITA PIT 1 THIS PAGE PHOTO CREDIT: ANITA SANTAVICCA FOR BOUQUET RESTAURANT

ENVOY MORTGAGE 2890 Chancellor Dr., Ste. 250, Crestview Hills, KY 41017 | 859.534.2459 | envoymortgage.com

Looking for some last minute ideas on where to host your holiday party or are you wanting some new suggestions on what to cater for your next meeting or out-of-town guest?

Check out our online member directory at nkychamber.com/search.

PICTURED: Amy Armstrong, Colonial Life-NKY Chamber Ambassador; Trey Grayson, NKY Chamber President; Karrie & Josh Worley, Envoy Mortgage; Paul Meier, Mayor & Tim Williams, Administrator-City of Crestview Hills; Ellen Barnett, L&N Credit Union-Sponsor

PHOTO: ENVOY MORTGAGE1

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NORTHERN KENTUCKY BUSINESS JOURNAL

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We build quality relationships, environment and buildings centered around people.

WWW.KLHENGRS.COM 859.442.8050

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