Thinking Bigger Business Magazine - December 2018

VOL. 27 // ISSUE 12 // DECEMBER 2018

A GOOD MATCH

Merger brings powerhouse firms together.

ARGUMENT FOR INNOVATION

New technology disrupts the status quo in the legal industry.

INFLUENCER MARKETING How does it work, and is it right for your business?

» iThinkBigger.com

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S E C A .

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CONTENTS

D E CE M B ER 2018 VOL. 27 // ISSUE 12

F E AT U R E

28 SBA Lending Increases

The Kansas City district saw a 10 percent jump in SBA lending in 2018 compared with the previous year.

IN FOCUS

45 The Argument for Innovation Cloud-based services disrupt the legal industry, creating greater efficiencies.

D E PA R T M E N T S

07 The Bigger Picture 08 Legislative Briefs 09 Biz Bits 12 25 Under 25 Updates 13 BIG | deals 50 BIG | shots

S M A R T S T R AT E G I E S

24 | KC ENTREPRENEURS

34 BIGGER | retail Prepare for the New Year

36 BIGGER | HR

HE ON T R E V CO

Appreciation vs. Recognition

38 BIGGER | finance

VOL. 27 // ISSUE 12 // DECEMBER 2018

Year-End Tax Planning

40 BIGGER | marketing How to Leverage Social Media Influencers

THE RIGHT MATCH Two law firms decided they would be

A GOOD MATCH

Merger brings powerhouse firms together.

stronger together rather than competing.

ARGUMENT FOR INNOVATION

New technology disrupts the status quo in the legal industry.

INFLUENCER MARKETING How does it work, and is it right for your business?

» iThinkBigger.com

16 BIG INFLUENCE 4

THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

|

19 BIG STARTS

|

19 MADE TO LAST

Chuck Rouse, second from left, and Harold Goss lead a meeting of their newly merged law firm, Rouse Frets White Goss Gentile Rhodes PC. No staff or attorneys were asked to move, but Rouse and Goss switched offices to get to know everyone.

17

C O M PA N Y T O WAT C H

21

KC M A D E I T

22

ENTREPRENEURIAL JOURNEY

KC CREW

The City Girl Farm

Gina Stuelke

Adult sports league facilitates connections.

A flock of artisans creates barnyard ottomans.

Third-generation leader opens door to changes.

SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

5

CONTENTS

D E CE MB ER 2018

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1 8 TH A N N U A L 2 5 U N D E R 2 5 AWA R D S 25 Under 25 Awards

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THE BIGGER PICTURE

Use December Downtime to Think Bigger For 2019

D

ecember is often a slow month

Take a time-out from the holiday hustle

in business, which makes

and bustle. Put a few hours on your

it a good time to reflect on where your

calendar to think bigger — and don’t

company could go in the coming months.

cancel it! Honor that time as you would any

At the end of the year, we have a tendency to look back and think about making changes. Small businesses owners are always thinking about their companies, but take this time to think about the bigger picture.

December also happens to be National Write a Business Plan month — and what better time to make a plan for growing your business, on the heels of November’s

other appointment.

It’s amazing what we can think of when we give our brain a rest from the everyday tasks we have to do.

Surely I can’t be the only one who gets those “aha!” moments while driving or as soon as I step away from my computer.

Global Entrepreneurship Week? Put some of those ideas

This month, make time to contemplate growth, enjoy

into action.

the holidays and have a BIGGER new year!

Katie Be an

// Edi tor and Managing D irec to r // kbean@iThinkBigger.com

SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

7

L E G I S L AT I V E B R I E F S

Federal departments propose expansion of HRAs In October, the U.S. Departments of the Treasury, Health and Human Services, and Labor issued a proposed regulation that expands the usability of health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs).

This proposed regulation is in response to President Trump’s executive order on “Promoting Health Care Choice and Competition Across the United States.”

HRAs allow employers to reimburse their employees for medical expenses in a tax-favored way. Because medical expense reimbursements from HRAs are tax-preferred, HRAs provide the same tax advantage enjoyed by traditional employer-sponsored coverage.

The proposed regulation would not alter the tax treatment of traditional employer-sponsored coverage. It would create a new tax-preferred option for employers of any size to use when funding employee health coverage. While the employer would fund the cost of individual health insurance coverage, the employee would own the coverage, allowing the employee to keep the coverage even if he or she left the employer and was no longer covered by the HRA. Comments on the proposal can be made through Dec. 28. If finalized, the regulation would go into effect for plan years beginning Jan. 1, 2020.

Health care, ACA likely to continue debate in new Congress Health care is likely to be a visible debate in the next two years.

In November’s elections, Democrats gained control of the U.S. House of Representatives, while Republicans kept a majority in the Senate. With the split Congress, significant policy changes are unlikely, although both sides are likely to focus on the Affordable Care Act.

MISSOURI Minimum wage to increase Jan. 1 Missouri voters approved Proposition B, a minimum wage increase on the November ballot.

8

THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

Businesses have a short time to implement changes. Starting Jan. 1, 2019, the hourly minimum wage will increase from $7.85 to $8.60. The rate will increase by 85 cents per year until 2023: » $9.45 per hour in 2020 » $10.30 per hour in 2021 » $11.15 per hour in 2022 » $12 per hour in 2023 Employers who fail to comply with the law will be penalized — they will have to pay an employee the full amount of wages owed, plus a fine equal to twice the unpaid wages.

In 2015, Kansas City and St. Louis voters passed city ordinances that would increase the minimum wage to $10 in those cities.

However, in 2017, the state legislature passed a law barring municipalities from raising minimum wage higher than the state’s minimum.

Gas tax increase fails

marijuana, which remains an illegal drug under federal law.

By next summer, the state will have to create applications for medical marijuana cards, as well as an application to grow or sell medical marijuana. Regulations will include how much of the substance people can buy and possess at one time.

Bill expands computer science opportunities in schools Gov. Mike Parson signed a law that aims to expand computer science in Missouri high schools.

“Improving our workforce is a top priority with this administration, and in order to help move Missouri forward, we need to expand opportunities for our students,” Parson said.

“Missouri currently has a high demand in this field, and by signing this bill, our students will be able to get the proper training to succeed in computing jobs.”

House Bill 3 passed during a special legislative session.

KANSAS Democrat’s election spurs talk of Medicaid expansion A gas tax on the November ballot failed.

Proposition D aimed to raise Missouri’s gax tax by 10 cents over 4 years in order to pay for repairing state roads. Gov. Mike Parson had supported the measure, which was expected to raise an additional $412 million for infrastructure needs.

Fifty-four percent of Missourians voted against the measure.

Without the increase, Missouri’s gas tax remains the second-lowest in the nation; only Alaska’s rate is lower.

Regulation ahead for medical marijuana Missouri voters passed Amendment 2 in November, approving medical marijuana in the state.

The state will spend several months creating rules around sale and use of

Laura Kelly, a Democrat, was elected Kansas governor in November’s closelywatched race.

Kelly, previously a state senator, defeated Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach and independent businessman Greg Orman.

The governor-elect said that voters “put partisanship aside” and that she will bring “a change of tone in the state.”

Kelly has indicated her support for Medicaid expansion in Kansas, which previous Republican Govs. Jeff Colyer and Sam Brownback had blocked. In 2016, the Kansas Legislature voted for expansion, but Brownback vetoed the measure.

Tax increases may be on the horizon to raise funds for education and other services.

BIZ BITS

Deadline to apply for ScaleUP! KC is Dec. 31 ScaleUP! Kansas City — a free, four-month program that teaches driven small-business owners how to propel their established business to the next level of success — seeks entrepreneurs who are ready to grow and scale their operations.

The ninth cohort will begin in February 2019. Applications are due Dec. 31.

Eligible business are at least two years old, have two employees,

Application deadline to pitch at InvestMidwest is Jan. 4

The 2019 InvestMidwest Venture Capital Forum is accepting applications through Jan. 4 for presenting companies at its 20th annual conference.

Highlighting an average of 45 high-growth startup companies in the life sciences, technology and food/agricultural bioenergy industries, InvestMidwest brings more than 300 attendees and investors together to explore potential investment opportunities.

The goal is to provide access to capital for emerging, privately held companies and to promote business growth, entrepreneurship and expansion across the Midwest.

Applications to present an eight-minute case for funding are reviewed by a selection committee.

generate annual sales of more than $200,000 and are in a market capable of supporting more than $1 million in annual revenue. They also must have a desire to grow the business.

ScaleUP! KC is administered by the University of Missouri-Kansas City Innovation Center. More information on applications can be found at ScaleUpKC.com.

Qualifications include number and/or percentage increase in jobs resulting from international activity; innovations in global marketing; number of export destinations; effective use of international distributors; long-term international strategies and prospects for future growth; and trade shows and/or international expositions.

Any Kansas company engaged in exporting is eligible for the award. The deadline for nominations is 5 p.m. Jan. 25, 2019.

Visit KansasCommerce.gov/ GovernorsExporterOfTheYear for more information.

KCSourceLink earns 5-year grant Missouri agriculture conference set for January 2019

Kansas seeks nominations for 2019 Exporter of the Year Kansas Department of Commerce is accepting nominations for the 2019 Governor’s Exporter of the Year Award.

2019, at Tan-Tar-A Resort in Osage Beach.

The event is open to Missouri ranchers, farmers, agribusiness leaders and aspiring agriculturalists.

“Agriculture is Missouri’s No. 1 industry, with nearly 100,000 family farms,” Gov. Mike Parson said. “To prepare the next generation of Missourians who will be a part of this industry, we must unite and focus on important issues that matter to all of us, including agriculture workforce development and rural infrastructure.”

The 48th Missouri Governor’s Conference on Agriculture will take place Jan. 10-11,

KCSourceLink, a program of the Innovation Center at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, has earned a large grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce to continue its work building the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

The U.S. Economic Development Administration grant will allow KCSourceLink to continue its work as a University Center Economic Development Program to spur entrepreneurship, economic growth and job creation. KCSourceLink received its first University Center Program grant in 2013.

The grant is for $162,500, renewable each year for five years, pending performance.

In addition, KCSourceLink has secured matching funds from companies including SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

9

BIZ BITS

Burns & McDonnell, Black & Veatch, JE Dunn Construction and KCP&L among others, as well as foundations including The Illig Family Foundation, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundations, Regnier Family Foundation and more.

Over the next five years, KCSourceLink will focus on building regional collaborations with university, government, community and business leaders to further identify and fill gaps in Kansas City’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Over the next six months, KCADC will conduct a listening tour, convening groups small and large, in person and through social media. For the following six months, it will work on development of a new brand, to be unveiled in November 2019.

Contact Darcy Groce at groce@thinkkc. com to give feedback.

Study: Missouri Hyperloop is possible

More businesses for sale in KC metro in 2018 Nearly 200 Kansas City-area businesses were listed for sale in the third quarter of 2018.

The total of 198 businesses listed on BizBuySell.com was an increase of 41.4 percent compared with the year before.

Businesses listed for sale had a higher median revenue, $588,091, compared with the same time last year. Median cash flow for these businesses was up to $126,27 in Q3, compared with $121,000 in the previous quarter.

However, the median asking price was lower in 2018 Q3 at $332,000, compared with $350,000 a year ago.

KCADC to study KC’s image, create new brand identity

At its annual meeting in November, the Kansas City Area Development Council announced that it would conduct a “regional brainstorm on KC’s image.”

“Now is the time to take a hard look at KC’s reputation, image and personality in the hearts and minds of the rest of the world. A place brand is, at its core, a reflection of its people, businesses and neighborhoods,” KCADC wrote on its website.

10

THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

nonprofit hosted a three-month accelerator program, Leanlab’s K12 Fellowship, which connected teachers and students to early-stage entrepreneurs for the purpose of mentoring through coaching and direct feedback on the startups.

Founded in 2013, Leanlab began as a small group of passionate community members who wanted to make a difference in education. Today the nonprofit organization has impacted over 1 million students across the nation and more than 14,000 students in Kansas City.

Startup Champions earn funding

After nine months of research, engineering firms Black & Veatch and Olsson Associates released the results of the Missouri Hyperloop feasibility study.

The study confirmed viability of a hyperloop route along Interstate 70, connecting Kansas City, Columbia and St. Louis. The hyperloop is similar to a train but moves freight and passengers at superfast speeds through a tube using magnetic levitation and electric propulsion.

A hyperloop would cut travel time from KC to St. Louis to about 28 minutes, compared with about 3.5 hours by car. A ticket between the two cities was estimated at $30.

Factors that added to viability in Missouri included flat terrain and the fact that Missouri Department of Transportation owns or manages right-of-way along I-70.

Leanlab Education turns 5 In November, Leanlab Education celebrated its fifth anniversary and fifth class of entrepreneurs with the culmination of its K12 Fellowship at Launch[ED] Day. Leanlab promotes the advancement of education-geared startups. Recently the

In October, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation bestowed a planning grant to the Startup Champions Network, a national organization of entrepreneurial ecosystem builders.

According to SCN, an ecosystem builder is a person who helps to create the systems that makes it easier for others to start businesses and succeed. They can be found at chambers of commerce, coworking spaces, accelerators or other organizations.

In Kansas City, the Startup Champions are Andy Stoll of the Kauffman Foundation, Adam Arredondo and Matthew Marcus of Kansas City Startup Foundation and Melissa Roberts of Enterprise Center of Johnson County.

Regional organizations receive SBA grants Two nonprofit organizations within the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Region VII, covering Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa, earned Prime grants from the SBA. The grants of $150,000 apiece went to Justine Petersen LLC and Grow Nebraska.

Both organizations provide training, education and microfinancing to entrepreneurs.

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2 5 U N D E R 2 5 ® U P DAT E S

Local companies involved in new KCI terminal project include 25 Under 25 alumni When Edgemoor Infrastructure & Real Estate LLC was selected as developer for the new Kansas City International Airport Terminal project, it pledged to work with local firms, especially woman- and minority-owned businesses.

In November, Edgemoor announced 51 local contractors on the project. Of those, 33 are WBE/MBE. Seven are alumni of Thinking Bigger’s 25 Under 25 Small Business Awards program, as noted below.

Participating local businesses: » 3T Design & Development LLC, Kansas City » Alexander Mechanical, Kansas City » Alpha Energy & Electric, Kansas City (Class of 2013) » Anlab Environmental, Kansas City » Argus Consulting, Overland Park » Astra Enterprises, Kansas City » Capital Electric Construction Co., Kansas City » CityFi, Kansas City » Craig T. Watson AIA, Kansas City » Custom Engineering, Kansas City (Class of 2002) » DRAW Architecture + Urban Design, Kansas City (Class of 2015) » DuBois Consultants Inc., Kansas City (Class of 2017) » EG Tech, Kansas City » FSC Inc., Kansas City (Class of 2018) » Garver, Kansas City » Henderson Engineers, Kansas City

Structura Structura (Class of 2015), an Olathe firm specializing in public lighting and poles, recently collaborated on a project in Detroit with architecture firm HOK and Detroitbased Smith Group JJR. The three firms worked on Little Caesars Arena and The District Detroit, an area surrounding the arena that offers entertainment, 12

THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

» HG Consult Inc., Kansas City » Infinite Energy Construction, Kansas City » JE Dunn Construction, Kansas City » Kansas City Electric Supply, Kansas City » Kansas City Industrial » Development Authority, Kansas City » Kutak Rock, Kansas City » LAND3 Studio, Kansas City » Lead Bank, Kansas City » Leigh & O’Kane LLC, Kansas City » Lewis Rice, Kansas City » Lightworks Inc., Weston » LMG Construction, Kansas City (Class of 2014) » Lockton Cos., Kansas City » Mark One Electric, Kansas City » Max Electric, Kansas City » Michele & Associates, Kansas City » MJ Builders, Kansas City » Olsson Associates, Kansas City » Parris Communications, Kansas City

dining and shopping. Structura contributed by crafting unique lighting elements.

Working with designers at Smith Group and HOK, Structura engineers, designers and fabricators created custom light fixtures.

Platinum Realty Two Overland Park companies have formed a strategic partnership.

» Parson + Associates, Kansas City » Premier Mechanical Products, Kansas City » Premier Engineering Consultants LLC, Kansas City » Pro Metals/Pro Insulation, Kansas City » Rouse Frets White Goss Gentile Rhodes PC, Kansas City » S&S Engineering Inc., Overland Park » SK Design Group Inc., Kansas City » Taliaferro & Browne, Kansas City » Transformation Consultants Inc., Kansas City » TREKK Design Group LLC, Kansas City » TSi Geotechnical Inc., Kansas City » U.S. Engineering Co., Kansas City » Vazquez Construction, Kansas City » Wellner Architects Inc., Kansas City » Whatever It Takes Electrical Contractors LLC, Kansas City (Class of 2015) » Wilkerson Crane, Kansas City

Platinum Realty (Class of 2016) teamed up with Lula, an app that connects homeowners with vetted home service providers. About 1,100 area real estate agents will have access to Lula in order to make recommendations to clients.

Lula allows providers to bid on requested jobs, and they must arrive within four hours to complete it.

BIG | deals

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Walz Tetrick unveils new logo, larger office A Johnson County advertising firm has room to grow after a recent move. Along with the new space, the 51-year-old firm unveiled a fresh logo and brand position.

Walz Tetrick Advertising has moved into a 14,000-squarefoot space at 5201 Johnson Drive, Mission.

The new offices feature a central open café and bar area, multiple collaboration rooms, photo/video production studio, private phone booth and wellness room.

The most dramatic feature of the new offices is a 32-foot-wide, hand-painted mural that greets visitors as they enter the lobby. Centered above an illustration of a flaming torch, the words “Ignite an Evolution” reflect the agency’s approach to marketing. The torch imagery also is seen in the agency’s new logo.

“A flaming torch has always been associated with enlightenment,

leadership and passion,” said Jeff Chase, creative director. “When we look in the mirror and think about our history and our culture, we see fanatical evolutionaries committed to helping our clients stay ahead of the changing conditions in the marketplace. We like to say we have all the fun of a revolution without all the mess.”

The mural, logo and new branding all illustrate the agency’s shift from a traditional, full-service advertising agency to a comprehensive evolutionary marketing firm with a focus on digital services and audience reach. Walz Tetrick acquired Ruth Burke & Associates media planning, buying and consultancy agency in January 2018, doubling its media buying and planning capabilities, and created a digital services department. Today, 50 people work at the agency.

Warehouse1 launches employee recognition awards As part of its 30th anniversary celebrations, Warehouse1 launched an employee recognition program that included honoring Employee-Owner of the Year.

Dennis Delantonas, who has been with the Kansas City, Mo., company since 1996, earned the top honor as well as the Excellence Award.

Fellow employee-owners nominated and voted to choose the inaugural winners.

Others receiving recognition: » Leonardo Colunga, Performance Award » Myra Struchtemeyer, Respect Award » Tommy George, Innovation Award » Judi Petersen, Dedication Award » Daren Froeschle, Tom Doty Spotlight Award “I am so proud of our employee owners.

They all work so hard and they have made our company into one of Kansas City’s strongest employee-owned small businesses,” said Mary Lou Jacoby, CEO of Warehouse1.

“Our employees are our biggest asset.”

Architecture firm earns 2 IIDA honors Helix Architecture + Design had two projects recognized at the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) Mid America Awards, which honor exceptional design work.

Projects are evaluated for functionality, innovation and implementation of overall design intent and brand.

The University of Kansas Medical Center Health Education Building earned a silver award in the higher education/research category. Its interior environment is designed to foster interaction between students, faculty and staff of all disciplines.

Helix also earned a silver award in the health care category for Spira Care, a primary care center experience from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City that approaches the health care experience from a holistic, SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

13

BIG | deals

the health care experience from a holistic, patient-centered standpoint. Pulse Design Group was one of Helix’s collaborators on the Spira Care project.

Area contractors earn Excellence in Construction Awards Associated Builders & Contractors Inc., Heart of America Chapter, announced its 2018 winners of the Excellence in Construction Awards in November.

Mega Industries Corp. earned Top General Contractor Award for the nature play area project at the Kansas City Zoo. HTH Cos. Inc. was named as Top Subcontractor for the Tate & Lyle Boiler 5 project.

Subcontracting category winners included Pro Circuit Inc., JPI Glass and HTH Cos. Inc. Winners in general contracting included Fogel-Anderson Construction, HarenLaughlin Construction, Mega Industries Corp., Crossland Construction Co. Inc., Nabholz, Lee Mechanical Contractors Inc. In the safety categories, Fatboy Electric Inc., Sieve Contractors Inc. and Wachter Inc. took home awards.

Josh Wehmeyer of Thermaltech Inc. earned the Arthur C. Waugh Keystone Award.

EXPANSION LA tech platform that aids local restaurants expands to KC metro A Los Angeles company that provides restaurants with website ordering capabilities and digital marketing announced in November that it would open a regional office in the Kansas City metro.

ChowNow has created a platform that allows local restaurants to increase online sales and digital presence. It is used by more than 10,000 restaurants in North America and processes $500 million in online orders annually.

The new regional office will employ about 100 people. The KC area competed withz Austin, Texas; Boise, Idaho; Nashville, Tenn.; and Phoenix for the operation.

Made in KC to open in unique venue Made in Kansas City plans to open a location in the River Market in early spring — inside a vintage streetcar.

The retailer sells works by local artisans 14

THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

and makers online and in stores throughout the metro. The new location, at 426 Delaware St., will have a café offering coffee, beer, wine and some food items, in addition to local goods.

The vintage streetcar is owned by Epoch Developments, which is redeveloping several blocks of the River Market. It is on the Kansas City streetcar line.

NEW BUSINESS New pop-up concept expands networking, social options The owner of Cowork Waldo is bringing a

new social concept to the metro.

Melissa Saubers quit drinking alcohol two years ago and said she wanted to offer “thoughtful options for people who don’t drink.” For that reason, she is bringing Sans Bar to the metro.

Sans Bar was founded in Austin, Texas, and offers a bar-like environment with nonalcoholic drinks.

Sans Bar Kansas City will begin with pop-up events as Sauber tests the market, with the first event on New Year’s Eve at Hagoyah Hair Studio & Yoga Den in Waldo, 515 W. 75th St., Kansas City, Mo. NEW PRODUCTS Delden introduces new medium-duty commercial garage door Kansas City, Mo.’s Delden Manufacturing Co. Inc. has introduced a new commercial garage door — the CDC-2027 triple-layer

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polystyrene insulated steel door.

A company representative described it as a medium-duty option and “an ideal choice for International Energy Conservation Code/ insulated door projects that are budget-sensitive.”

Broadcaster launches podcast, website Longtime Kansas City sports broadcaster Danny Clinkscale has launched a new website and podcast.

The Reasonably Irreverent Podcast kicked off in November. The broadcaster plans to share his insights on sports, film, music, public affairs and human interest stories. The podcast, as well as Clink Scale Reviews of music and

movies, can be found at DannyClinkscale.com.

In May, Clinkscale ended his tenure at WHB 810 AM. ON THE MOVE

change, both as a business and also within the industries and communities that we serve,” said Preston-Cargill.

OTHER NEWS

Allen Press names new EVP Maria Preston-Cargill has been promoted to executive vice president at Lawrence-based Allen Press Inc. In addition to her current responsibilities leading corporate sales and marketing, Preston-Cargill will oversee Allen Press’ scholarly publishing services division and is tasked with innovating our service offerings and growing market share.

“Our top priority in 2019 is creating

CitySmart benefits from Austin accelerator Leawood startup CitySmart was one of 15 companies selected for the Quake Capital accelerator in Austin, Texas, which has helped lead to $200,000 in investment and connections that are helping the company grow faster.

CitySmart is an app that aims to connect small businesses and organizations with local consumers. It’s led by founder Donald Hawkins.

Roughly 5,000 startups applied for the 12-week accelerator that ended in November.

“Nationally Certified Woman-Owned Business”

PRINT

•

MARKETING

•

DESIGN

•

SIGNS

AlphaGraphics 1717 Oak St | Kansas City, MO 64108 | 816.842.4200 alphagraphicskc.com | us190@alphagraphics.com | /alphagraphicskc SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

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AT A G L A N C E K C

E N T R E P R E N E U R S

BIG INFLUENCE | CTK REAL ESTATE

KC developer helps veteran bring vision for gathering space to fruition A

local real estate company is working with a group that helps to bring military veterans together.

CTK Real Estate, a Kansas City-based commercial real estate development company, worked with After Action Network to create the first physical location for the nonprofit.

“It has been gratifying to work with Joey as he takes After Action Network to the next level with a physical location,” said Chris Kamberis, founder of CTK Real Estate. “After Action Network will help countless veterans regain confidence and purpose as they assimilate back to civilian life.”

After Action Network started as an online community founded

by U.S. Marine veteran Joey Williams. Williams’ military career ended suddenly after a serious injury.

“My recovery was long and difficult. Although it was a dark time, my recovery ultimately led me into the arts, which added a new purpose and direction to my life,” Williams said. “I founded After Action Network to help other veterans find their passion as well.”

With the help of Kamberis and others, Williams will open The Garrison Café powered by The Roasterie at 512 Southwest Blvd.

His dream is to create a place for veterans and civilians to make meaningful connections through a variety of programs and events.

Kamberis met Williams through another Crossroads Arts District real estate developer, Suzy Aron. He said the mission of working with veterans who have struggled with everything from housing to everyday activities resonated with him.

He helped After Action Network work out an agreement to be in the space for several years. The location is currently undergoing renovation.

Williams also connected with local coffee purveyor The Roasterie, which created a specialty blend coffee called Reveille roasted exclusively for After Action Network. The Reveille blend will be sold by local retailers and online at TheRoasterie.com, with 10 percent of proceeds going directly to veterans and their families.

“The Roasterie is honored to be part of this very special collaboration,” said The Roasterie founder Danny O’Neill. “Meaningful community involvement has been an integral cornerstone of our company since we opened in Kansas City 25 years ago. When I met Joey and heard his story and vision, I knew instantly the After Action Network campus aligns with our passion for serving a city we dearly love. The Roasterie Team is proud to have to have our coffee served in The Garrison Café.”

16

THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

U.S. Marine veteran Joey Williams, pictured, will open The Garrison Cafe powered by The Roasterie in the Crossroads Arts District. Chris Kamberis with CTK Realty helped Williams bring his plan for a gathering space for veterans to reality. (Photos courtesy of CTK Real Estate) above //

C O M PA N Y T O WAT C H K C

KC CREW

E N T R E P R E N E U R S

Teeming With Teams KC CREW CONNECTS PEOPLE WITH EACH OTHER AND BUSINESSES.

L

uke Wade wasn’t looking for a new career.

He was just looking for a place to play.

Wade was living downtown and working as a web developer and graphic designer when the former college football player grew frustrated with the lack of options for adult sports in the city.

ENTREPRENEUR

Luke Wade C O M PA N Y I N F O R M AT I O N

KC Crew 816-812-1829 KCCrew.com TYPE OF BUSINESS

KC Crew is an adult recreational sports league and special events company.

YEAR FOUNDED

2012

Wade, a self-described “tech nerd,” rented a field and put his skills to use by building a website for players to join teams and teams to join leagues.

“It was for me and my friends to play softball and sand volleyball,” said Wade, the founder and owner of KC Crew. “Three years later, we had 3,000 people playing.”

REJUVENATING PARKS

Now in its seventh year, KC Crew has six full-time employees and 70 part-time officials and has grown beyond its downtown roots, partnering with parks and recreation offices in Overland Park, Belton and Kansas City, Mo., to offer enhanced adult recreation leagues. The company has 15,000 league participants, and 4,000 people have participated in its one-day events this year.

“They are focused on helping the community and youth programs,” Wade said of city parks offices, “and they have to deal with maintenance issues. They don‘t have someone committed to adult programing.”

KC Crew, he said, can focus on adult sports and add a social aspect. KC Crew partners with local bars and restaurants to offer specials to athletes during “bar-of-the-week” promotions that provide social events for participants and improved weeknight receipts for businesses.

Wade said KC Crew has been successful in

(Photo courtesy of Austin Studios) “activating unused parks” aroundWalsh the metro.

It started in 2012 in Roanoke Park in Kansas City, Mo. Wade said that park had one sand volleyball court, no lights and no bathrooms when KC Crew started scheduling games there. The company brought in lights and portable toilets and sold out the court every night.

The city’s parks and rec department responded by adding lights, new sidewalks, a new playground and five more courts. KC Crew later replicated that success at Berkley Riverfront Park.

“You’ve heard of, ‘If you build it they will come,’” Wade said, quoting “Field of Dreams.”

“Well, if you play there, people will come.

We‘ve broken down barriers. Then it’s perceived as a safer, more vibrant community.”

CONSOLIDATING

In September, KC Crew’s indoor leagues — volleyball, basketball and pickleball — moved to HyVee Arena. The company offers games five nights a week in the renovated venue formerly known as Kemper Arena. Its offices will move to the arena by the end of the year.

“We were working with five or six community centers with different managers, and it was hard to program,” Wade said. “Now all our indoor activities are in one place.”

The arena, which will be home to bars, restaurants and shops, also fits Wade’s mission to combine sports and socializing.

“This is why I started KC Crew,” he said. “More and more people — young professionals — are living down here, and the arena is the closest thing. Come play a game and have a beer.”

David Mitchell is a freelance writer in the Kansas City area.

SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

17

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AT A G L A N C E K C

E N T R E P R E N E U R S

BIG STARTS | PORCH LIGHT PLANS

Home plans offer accessible, sustainable option for buyers

MADE TO LAST | LIVERS BRONZE

Metalwork fabricator sticks to its niche

COMPANY // Porch Light Plans ENTREPRENEUR // Katie Hoke, Jared Hoke, Roy Ley WHAT THEY DO // Porch Light Plans offers sustainable,

customizable house plans that bridge the gap between hiring an architect and using a builder’s home plan.

INSPIRATION // “I’ve always felt like design should be for

everyone,” Katie Hoke said.

The three architects, who also run the firm Hoke Ley Architecture & Design in Lawrence, had a background in high-end residential design and wanted to make the option for a modern, sustainable home more affordable and accessible. After buying a plan online, it’s ready to build, but Porch Light can customize it if requested.

In addition to solving a problem for consumers, offering readyto-buy plans brings in passive income that helps the small firm to smooth out the “feast or famine” revenue cycle, Hoke said.

WHAT’S NEXT // To make its designs even more accessible,

Porch Light will roll out a builder series, which Hoke said will target homebuilders and developers who focus on sustainable and infill development.

“If someone were to buy 20, 30, 40 home plans, we could create a package for them and cater that package to their needs,” she said.

Because they are licensed architects, Hoke said they could create a plan for multifamily or commercial buildings within the development that follow the same principles.

CONTACT // PorchLightPlans.com // info@porchlightplans.com //

(206) 384-3168

Like a lot of U.S. businesses, Jack Livers’ lighting company didn’t survive the Great Depression.

After the end of World War II, however, his sons found a new use for the family’s foundry and their metalworking skills: Livers Bronze Co. was born.

Livers Bronze initially focused on casting bronze grave markers, but it soon expanded into signage and more. In the mid-1950s, a customer asked Richard Livers if he could produce custom bronze railings, and the company soon found its niche.

“He was an entrepreneur, and he was always looking for opportunities,” said Richard’s son Charlie Livers.

The company still designs, manufactures and installs bronze railings, but Charlie Livers said the company adapted to trends and architect specifications, adding aluminum, brass, stainless steel and wood railings to its lineup over the years.

“A lot of fabricators have closed,” said Livers, 63, who became company president in September when his brother, Richard “Deuce” Livers, retired at age 66. “We’re one of the few who still manufacture what we sell. We’re a one-stop shop.”

Charlie Livers is one of eight siblings, and he credits their close relationships with the company’s longevity. His sister, Brett Walter, is the company’s chief financial officer; brother Albert Livers is director of sales; and sister Robin Waldon also works for the company.

“We work very well together — unlike a lot of families,” he said.

“We have been able to keep the business going, successful and moving forward in a constantly changing industry.”

SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

19

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KC MADE IT K C

T H E C I T Y G I R L FA R M

E N T R E P R E N E U R S

Artistic flock Team creates furniture art eet Meredith, Harley, Rosie, Tabitha and Lady Flannigan.

They are just some of the “chicks” hanging out in the coop of The City Girl Farm, a Kansas City business. These chicks are the creation of Sally Linville and her team of artisans.

These unique chicken footstools are made by hand from fiber, wood and bronze. Each chick is a one-of-a-kind functional piece of art with its own posture and personality.

Linville is a co-owner with Jon Hubbard in the business.

M

‘HAPPY CHILDHOOD CHICKEN EXPERIENCES’

Linville’s fondness for chickens goes back to her youth.

“I was raised on a third-generation farm in central Kansas in Lyons,” Linville said.

“I grew up with chickens, and I had happy childhood chicken experiences.”

Linville’s mother worked with fiber using a loom, and she would watch as her mom created various projects. That love of fiber and fabric influenced Linville’s path in college at Kansas State University, where she was able to weave her passion into her degree program of interior architecture and product design.

It was during her workshop component that Linville designed and built furniture, “and that’s where the chicken idea was hatched,” she said. “I was inspired by a sheep ottoman designed by Claude and FrancoisXavier Lalanne. I always loved those. They used wool and they used bronze on them.”

A COOP OF ARTISANS

After college, Linville took the time to learn the processes involved and began creating her first chicken stools in 2010.

“I asked myself what design features needed to be there to tell it’s a chicken, and how it would stand with two legs.”

Over time, Linville refined her systems for creating the chicks – the process involves numerous artisans. By 2017, Linville and Hubbard teamed up, formed a limited liability corporation and were into the chicken ottoman business.

Each chicken is made of several parts including wood, bronze, wool and upholstery fiber, all sourced in the United States.

It is a multistep process with many loving hands creating each chicken.

“The feet and beaks are cast in bronze.

I did the original sculpture and created a mold, and Ad Astra Art Bronze outside of Lawrence cast them,” Linville said.

An artist outside of Hesston, Kan., makes the chicken’s wood core, crafted from fallen logs into the shape of an egg using a lathe.

The next step takes the core to Linville’s parents farm.

“My dad, Harlan Ebright, does the tremendous labor of love of building the chicken. He welds and pounds and drills— everything to get the chicken standing,” Linville said. “We call him the chicken engineer.”

The chickens then arrive in Kansas City for further assembly, including the muslin fabric form and its feathers. The fabric feathers are stitched by hand.

“My favorite part is the pinning, sculpting and fashioning of the feathers onto the chicken. They have become a blank canvas of fiber art,” she said. “That’s why it is so fun to design—there’s almost nothing we can’t do.”

‘LABOR OF LOVE’

Each chicken gets its own name. Linville said it is hard to estimate how many hours

go into each chicken.

“It’s a lot of hours,” she said. “We always have several going on at one time. It’s a labor of love that goes into it.”

The large chicken stools are priced at $2,400 and up, while the smaller chickens begin at $1,450; pricing is dependent on both the fiber content and intricacy of design.

Linville said her team has sold about 600 stools. In addition to her dad and team of artists, Linville credits both her husband Evan Linville and mother Susan Ebright for The City Girl Farm.

EXTENDED RANGE

In addition to the chickens, The City Girl Farm also sells journals and shopping bags.

Linville and her team have branched out into a new area, too.

“We had the opportunity to make a large fiber wall in the entry way of BNIM’s new office space in Crown Center,” Linville said. “It allowed us to explore knowledge in large-scale work. We are looking forward to more fiber work in commercial or residential settings.”

Will there be more animals for The City Girl Farm barnyard?

“We have been asked about other animals since Day One, and we have been so busy with chickens and satisfied with chickens that I haven’t made the time to do a full design on the next animal,” Linville said. “There are tons of ideas on table.”

For now, Linville is concentrating on her chickens “and connecting more with local artisans and farmers in general to celebrate fiber and traditional craftsmanship in new fresh ways.”

“I love to see where the chickens go and what kinds of stories people share…and they way they come into peoples lives.”

Ruth Baum Bigus is a former managing editor of a weekly newspaper and a longtime freelance writer.

SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

21

ENTREPRENEURIAL JOURNEY K C

( by Kate Leibsle )

E N T R E P R E N E U R S

Gina Stuelke is CEO of Kenton Brothers Inc. and a fourth-generation leader of the family business. (Photo courtesy of Kenton Brothers Inc.)

Opening new doors Gina Stuelke balances change, upholding company history.

G

ina Stuelke never intended to run, join or be anything other than a cheerleader for her family’s more-than-100-year-old business, Kenton Brothers Inc. It’s not that she was opposed to the business, which began as a lock-and-key business in the late 1800s — it just wasn’t a part of her overall life plan.

22

THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

“I was the first generation to go to college,” said Stuelke, “and I was ready to slay the advertising world.”

But in 1992, her grandfather, whose father and uncle were the company’s founders, asked if she’d consider joining him and her mother at the office in an official, permanent capacity.

She agreed to a six-month trial, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Now, more than 25 years later, she’s overseen the company’s transition from a low-tech to high-tech security system company and a recent move into a new headquarters.

Overseeing change Stuelke’s entrepreneurial journey began when Kenton Brothers was still primarily a lock-and-key company. The Internet wasn’t around, there was no such thing as a smartphone, and securing a space with cameras was clunky, expensive and obvious.

Stuelke’s plan from the start was to “be in charge of change.” The speed of change accelerated with the 2008 recession. It was a time of insecurity, and Kenton Brothers wanted itself and its customers to be in a strong position moving forward.

The company’s plan included changing the types of employees it hired — moving to a stronger IT focus — and building an in-house apprentice program.

Stuelke also emphasizes the company’s

culture as a point of pride and part of why it thrives some 120 years after its founding with its 40 employees.

“We have a strong culture here,” she said.

“It’s the KB way. It’s really just about being good humans.”

Stuelke learned about the KB way from her grandfather and her mother, who stepped away from a day-to-day role in the company in 2006.

“My mom has been very open and welcoming of new ideas,” Stuelke said. “Really, as long as I’m healthy and OK, she is good. When we are not here, it is more of her being mom.”

Continuous improvement How did Stuelke make the change from employee to owner? It was a process, she said — one that really continues today.

“I came in as a 30-year-old,” she said. “For some, I was ‘entitled.’”

It took time and effort on her part, but eventually the team realized that she was up to the challenge and “maybe she does have some ideas, and know a little about modernizing our systems.”

Stuelke also takes comfort and a sense of stability in having a business that is Kansas City born and bred. She’s never lived anywhere else and hasn’t ever wanted to be anywhere else. When it was time for a new location, she was adamant the company stay downtown.

“We are excited about the east side,” she said. “We have lots of room to grow here.”

Advice What advice does she have for up-and-coming entrepreneurs?

First, unsurprisingly, she advises against resting on your laurels.

Stuelke is proud that Kenton Brothers continues “challenging the status quo.”

Secondly, she said, “Get a mentor.”

Throughout the years, Stuelke has relied on her mother for advice but has also looked outside of the business for inspiration and help.

She is a fellow with HEMP (Helzberg Entrepreneurial Mentoring Program) and counts Barnett Helzberg, Lee Harris and Mary Lou Jacoby as friends and mentors. She’s also been in Kauffman FastTrac. The experiences are valuable, she said, because of the opportunity to meet other entrepreneurs who are in similar places with their businesses.

“We have a strong culture here.

It’s the KB way. It’s really just about being good humans. ” “The exposure is invaluable,” she said.

Lastly, she encourages fun and balance in life. She can’t fathom what retiring would be like, but she also makes sure to spend time outside of the office, enjoying life.

The KB way The new offices for Kenton Brothers are the perfect space for Stuelke and her team to continue their growth and make positive changes for their customers. With a nod to the past, there is an area of the offices dedicated to telling the story of the company, complete

with life-sized cutouts of the company’s founders greeting visitors at the front door.

As she continues the company’s fourth generation of leadership, she is happy to continue looking forward and doing things the KB way, however that takes shape.

“Old ways don’t open new doors,” she said. “You have to continue learning and innovating.”

Kate Leibsle is a freelance writer in the Kansas City area.

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23

Chuck Rouse, left, and Harold Goss decided to merge law firms rather than compete.

Combined, their litigation team has experience in 30 states and eight federal circuits.

24 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

KC ENTREPRENEURS

The Right Match With planning and communication, law firms avoid potential hurdles for merger.

ENTREPRENEURS

Chuck Rouse & Harold Goss C O M PA N Y I N F O R M AT I O N

Rouse Frets White Goss Gentile Rhodes, P.C. 5250 W. 116th Place, Suite 400 Leawood, KS 66211 (913) 387-1600 rousepc.com TYPE OF BUSINESS

Law Firm YEAR FOUNDED

1995 E M P L OY E E S

65 KEYS TO SUCCESS

“We want entrepreneurial lawyers with a high skill set that fit with our culture.”

— Harold Goss

L

awyers spend their careers helping clients grow businesses and navigate hurdles along the way. Some firms are so focused on clients that they don’t always stop to strategize their own business future.

That’s why it caught some by surprise this fall when two heavy hitters — Rouse Frets Gentile Rhodes LLC and White Goss PC — decided to stop competing against one another. They joined forces instead to expand their local, state and national reach.

The result — Rouse Frets White Goss Gentile Rhodes PC — sent a strong message to clients about its team of professionals. It unites 65 lawyers, including some of the most well-known and experienced lawyers in the Midwest and country. It puts the firm among the top 10 largest in Kansas City and makes it one of the largest in Kansas.

“We’re surrounded with some really good talent,” says Harold Goss. “It makes life fun and easy when you’re in a law firm of talented lawyers.”

‘A CHANCE TO BUILD SOMETHING’

Goss and Chuck Rouse are the new firm’s managing officers. The two said that while this growth is reason to celebrate, it won’t change the small-firm feel and atmosphere that they’ve worked hard to create. Clients can still directly call their lawyers, and rates will remain competitive.

It positions the firm well to represent several challenging regulatory areas for clients, including banking transactions, commercial lending, higher

education, renewable energy, prepaid instruments, employment, ERISA, wage and hour, environmental law, economic development incentives, land use, and federal, state and local regulations.

The firm has a significant litigation presence including a substantial catastrophic loss team.

Combined, these lawyers have experience in 30 states and eight federal circuits. The firm’s business and corporate attorneys have experience in more than $1 billion in mergers and acquisition and corporate finance projects.

The firm will retain its three offices, one in Leawood and the Kansas City offices downtown and at Country Club Plaza.

The managing partners agree that change is a vital component to evolving with clients and offering the best service. Change isn’t the enemy.

“We both had the mindset of knowing how to do change. And change reinvigorates lawyers,” Rouse says of the firms. “There’s a chance to build something again.”

Lawyers want to be part of building and creating something new. Building something has its own energizing, entrepreneurial spirit, Rouse says.

COMPLIMENTARY PARTNERS

Although this marks a new era, the firms are used to steady and controlled growth.

Rouse Frets Gentile Rhodes started in 1995 with five attorneys. It grew to 45 members and was ranked

by U.S. News as among the best law firms.

White Goss was founded in 2000 when five

by Dawn Bormann // photography by Dan Videtich SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

25

Before moving forward with a merger, managing partners from both firms wanted to make sure they fostered the same culture. In the end, Rouse said it was “easy to check the box” on culture fit.

established attorneys made headlines by leaving Polsinelli. Goss and Michael T. White, former Jackson County executive, were among the first lawyers hired at Polsinelli. White Goss was ranked

by Chambers USA as among the top firms in its practice areas.

The latest move positions them to leverage their strengths and better serve clients, Goss says.

Unlike many business mergers, the firms didn’t unite and start cutting employees. It was exactly the opposite. They knew that each firm complimented the other.

The firms each had a long resumé of large economic development projects, including by providing legal counsel regarding the Kansas City airport while serving on the team for Edgemoor.

“We think there are some

business synergies,” Rouse says.

“We want to stay vibrant.

The merger makes their real We don’t want to stand still.” estate development team even Chuck Rouse // Managing Officer stronger. White Goss had a strong economic development team.

Led by White, they targeted the EMPOWERING ATTORNEYS development in Kansas, you need Missouri side of Kansas City.

The new firm also stands out, a Kansas base,” Goss says. “Greg “But clients sometimes want Rouse says, because it offers highly a Kansas lawyer and sometimes Musil could compete with Mike skilled lawyers at reasonable rates want a Missouri lawyer, and you White, or we could join forces.” that are below their competitors. need to be able to cross that state They have a team of attorneys In addition, lawyers are given more line without a problem,” Goss says. with eyes and ears in local and “Without a major office on each state government — be it Topeka or flexibility than large firms, with hundreds of lawyers, can offer. side of the state line, that’s hard.”

Jefferson City — to understand how “We want to empower lawyers Rouse Frets Gentile Rhodes had policy changes play out practically to deal with their clients. That an equally strong team in Kansas for clients. includes negotiating a rate. As with Greg Musil, a Johnson County “That gives us a really good abilopposed to management saying, Community College board member ity to serve a client who is coming ‘This shall be the rule,’” Rouse says. and former Overland Park to the city,” Rouse says. “They may The firm believes part of their city councilman. even be in the process of deciding success is the ability to grow Their clients deserved a firm where to go. Which side of the methodically by hiring the right that was strong in both states. people or acquiring firms with “To really grow that border do they want to be on?”

26 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

Part of the culture of the newly merged firm is empowering attorneys to set rates and avoiding micromanagement.

well-trained, experienced lawyers.

“Clients don’t pick law firms.

They pick lawyers,” Goss says.

That means hiring the right professionals is critical.

“We want entrepreneurial lawyers with a high skill set that fit with our culture,” Goss says.

Then management can take a step back let them do their work, Rouse says. If someone doesn’t work out as expected, the key is to identify it early, he says.

“If it doesn’t work, you go in happy and you part happy,” Rouse says.

Many of the firm’s lawyers have left large firms to join them because they want more freedom, Rouse says. Some want to get away from large firms that sometimes dictate one-size-fits-all policies.

The firm is on the short list of places lawyers call when they want to leave the city’s biggest firms.

“We went from 5 to 65 for a reason,” Rouse says. “Part of that is giving good-quality lawyers the freedom to exercise their skill set.”

It means Goss and Rouse set aside their egos and let lawyers handle their niche. They are there for guidance but not to force a plan on anyone.

“So it creates that diversity and we empower them,” Rouse says.

“That’s why lawyers like it here.”

SUPPORT SYSTEM

That philosophy immediately stood out to Sarah Stork Meyer when she and her partner also merged their boutique firm with Rouse Frets Gentile Rhodes in September.

The partners don’t micromanage her work, she says, but they are there for advice.

“If you ever need the support of anyone here, you have it,” she says.

“We have a good breadth of the business world covered here.”

It was ideal for Meyer, who co-founded StartMeUp KC with Analisa Cox. The legal firm specialized in guiding small businesses, including startups. The firm provided a flat fee, which was a big factor for small businesses. It allowed the lawyers to talk often with clients and get to know them and the business better. That’s a more difficult relationship to form at a big firm because the hourly rates prove too intimidating for small business owners. Small talk could be considered wasted money in that case.

“We were able to do it in a way where we were still able to make money, but we didn’t have to keep track of our hours,” Meyer says.

None of that has changed since the merger, she says. Instead, the firm’s take was: “You know what

you’re doing. You got this. Go get it done,” she says.

The trust, she believes, inspires a friendly spirit that stands in stark contrast to the intense culture in other legal communities.

STAYING TRUE TO THEIR ROOTS

One of the biggest challenges to overcome before the merger was determining whether the firms had the same culture. That, the managing partners believe, was the lynchpin.

If one firm offered lawyers flexibility to make big decisions without administrative oversight, the other firm had better agree.

Also, since the merger didn’t mean a major shakeup in personnel, it also meant that the business and financial administration had to be in sync, too. Ultimately, it proved to be an easy decision.

“It was kind of easy to check the box on those,” Rouse says.

They still worked hard to implement the change. They held meetings to answer questions with staff.

The work was easier with lawyers, many of whom had worked with or knew one another, given the small but mighty legal community in Kansas City.

The potential for unease and tension was higher for

administrative staff, the managing partners said. They didn’t know many of their new co-workers, let alone their operating style. The partners worked to ease potential worry by visiting one-on-one with employees, answering questions and addressing concerns during several meetings.

Creating the new firm meant nearly all administrative staff had a slightly different job. No one was assigned to a new building.

However, Rouse and Goss did switch offices to get to know staff better.

The process has flowed smoothly, they say.

The next big challenge will be managing long-term growth and staying true to their roots.

Growing too big changes the feel of a firm that gives clients more access and lawyers more flexibility.

Rouse points out that they need time to digest the merger and discuss what’s next. They won’t grow simply to become big. But they will work to fill holes in their offerings in order to better serve growing clients.

“We want to stay vibrant,” Rouse says. “We don’t want to stand still.”

Dawn Bormann is a freelance writer in the Kansas City area.

SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

27

SBA LENDERS

2018

SBA Lending Increases in Fiscal Year 2018 KC District had 10 percent increase in lending over previous year. he U.S. Small Business Administration Kansas City District Office saw increases in small business lending in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30.

The SBA Kansas City District Office oversaw $363 million in SBA loans for fiscal year 2018, a 10 percent increase in lending over the previous year.

U.S. Bank made 69 SBA loans, more than any other lender. OakStar Bank loaned the greatest dollar volume at $38 million.

“The KC (district office) continues to lead the region in loan production because of the dedication and commitment of our lenders,” SBA Kansas City District Director Jon

T

28 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

Malcolm Richards said.

Richards expects SBA lending to increase further in FY 2019 thanks to reduced guarantee fees for loans made to rural businesses.

“We expect our lenders to take advantage of this rural fee relief and increase lending,” he said. “This way we can get more loans in the hands of our local entrepreneurs and small businesses and eventually create more economic opportunities in the rural communities.”

In addition, the Kansas City District Office secured $387 million in federal contracting dollars to Kansas and Missouri small businesses in FY 2018 — an increase of 62 percent

compared with FY 2017. Those contracts helped to support about 3,900 jobs.

“It is an exciting time for the 8(a) small business development program in Kansas and Missouri,” Kansas City District Deputy Director Dennis Larkin said.

The Kansas City District Office serves 61 counties in western Missouri and 28 in eastern Kansas and oversees a branch office in Springfield, Mo. The office serves a population of more than 4 million people and nearly 350,000 small businesses. Small businesses represent nearly 97 percent of the all businesses in the district.

BY THE NUMBERS

BY THE NUMBERS The government’s fiscal year (FY) runs from Oct. 1 through Sept. 30.

$363 MILLION

$148 MILLION

44

SBA lending in the Kansas City District in FY 2018

Increase in federal contracting dollars secured in the KC District in FY 2018, which is up 62% over FY 2017

SBA 8(a) firms that received

$34 MILLION Increase in SBA lending in the Kansas City District in FY 2018, which is 10% more than FY 2017

$387 MILLION Federal contracting dollars secured for Kansas and Missouri small businesses through the SBA KC District in FY 2018

$3.6 MILLION Average size of a small business federal contracting offer letter in FY 2018

$1.4 MILLION Increase in average size of federal contracts awarded in FY 2018 to small businesses

federal contracting offers in FY 2018

7 SBA 8(a) firms receiving federal contracting offers in FY 2018 that did not the previous year

3,917 Jobs supported by federal contracting offers received by Kansas and Missouri businesses in FY 2018

Source: SBA

Loan programs designed for you.

Since 1876, our goal has been to provide the resources our customers need to succeed. We know running a business isn’t easy. That’s why we are dedicated to being a SBA Preferred Lending Partner that handles your financial affairs in a way that supports the growth and future of your company.

Call us at 316-383-6011 or visit intrustbank.com.

SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

29

Member FDIC | © 2018 INTRUST Bank

SBA LENDERS

2018

Top 25 SBA Lenders—FY 2018 RANKED BY THE NUMBER OF SBA-GUARANTEED LOANS TO BUSINESSES IN THE KANSAS CITY REGION.

Lender Name

FY18 Loan Number

FY18 Loan Dollars

U.S. BANK Minneapolis, Minn.

69

$4.3 M

64

$38.4 M

38

$27.4 M

34

$11.9 M

32

$7.3 M

25

$24.2 M

24

$6.6 M

18

$10.9 M

18

$6.1 M

17

$14.2 M

San Francisco, Calif.

Springfield, Mo.

Wichita, Kan.

Salt Lake City, Utah

Manhattan, Kan.

Rogersville, Mo.

Wilmington, N.C.

17

$2.2 M

Topeka, Kan.

$1.5 M

11

$1.3 M

10

$4.6 M

9

$6 M

9

$3.6 M

9

$1.9 M

8

$10.8 M

8

$1.4 M

8

$1.2 M

UNITED MIDWEST SAVINGS BANK

16

$5 M

15

$5.4 M

De Graff, Ohio

CENTRAL BANK OF THE MIDWEST Lee's Summit, Mo.

12

CAPITOL FEDERAL SAVINGS BANK

COMMERCE BANK Kansas City, Mo.

$13.1 M

LIVE OAK BANKING CO.

INDEPENDENCE BANK Owensboro, Ky.

12

LEGACY BANK & TRUST CO.

CROSSFIRST BANK Leawood, Kan.

Greenwood Village, Colo.

LANDMARK NATIONAL BANK

ARVEST BANK Fayetteville, Ark.

$9.7 M

CELTIC BANK CORP.

WELLS FARGO BANK Sioux Falls, S.D.

13

Overland Park, Kan.

INTRUST BANK

THE BANK OF MISSOURI Perryville, Mo.

$6.7 M

MID-MISSOURI BANK

CORE BANK Omaha, Neb.

14

Kansas City, Mo.

BANK OF THE WEST

SIMMONS BANK Pine Bluff, Ark.

FY18 Loan Dollars

COMMUNITY BANKS OF COLORADO (BANK MIDWEST)

GUARANTY BANK Springfield, Mo.

FY18 Loan Number

HEARTLAND BUSINESS CAPITAL, INC.

RURAL MISSOURI, INC. Jefferson City, Mo.

Lender Name UMB BANK

OAKSTAR BANK Springfield, Mo.

Source: SBA

30 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

SBA seeks nominations for Small Business Week Awards he Small Business Administration T is accepting nominations for its 2019 National Small Business Week awards, including the annual Small Business Person of the Year.

The awards coincide with National Small Business Week, May 5-11, 2019.

SBA Administrator Linda McMahon said in a news release that the National Small Business Week award is one of the nation’s highest honors for small business achievement.

“This is a great opportunity to recognize those small businesses that have contributed significantly to their local communities, developed creative products or made advances with innovative technologies,” McMahon said.

The Small Business Person of the Year is awarded to one business from each state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam.

In addition, awards will be given for the following categories: Here’s a look at the numbers from FY 2017: » Exporter of the Year » Phoenix Awards for Disaster Recovery (given to a small business, public official and volunteer) » Federal procurement awards: • Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year • Small Business Subcontractor of the Year • Dwight D. Eisenhower Awards for Excellence (for large prime contractors who use small businesses

as suppliers and contractors) • 8(a) Graduate of the Year » Awards to SBA resource partners: • Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Excellence and Innovation Center Award • Women’s Business Center of Excellence Award • Veterans Business Outreach Center of the Year » Jody C. Raskind Lender of the Year » Small Business Investment Company of the Year Small businesses can self-nominate. All nominations must be mailed or handdelivered to the local SBA District office by 2 p.m. Jan. 9, 2019. Email submissions will not be accepted.

The SBA Region VII Office, which serves Kansas City, is located at 1000 Walnut St., Suite 530, Kansas City, MO 64106. Find nomination forms online at SBA.gov.

SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

31

SBA LENDERS

2018

Report Reveals Roadblocks for Veteran Entrepreneurs Access to capital, mentors among challenges faced. small businesses face V eteran-owned more financing challenges compared with nonveterans.

“Financing Their Future: Veteran Entrepreneurs and Capital Access” was created by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Among the report’s findings: » Despite similar demand for financing, veteran-owned small business applicants were more likely than non-veteran-owned small business applicants to experience “financing shortfalls,” where they received less than the amount of credit they sought.

» Veterans have lower approval rates at the most popular lenders, and the amount of SBA-guaranteed loans they have received has increased more slowly over time than for nonveterans. » This discrepancy in financing experiences could be attributable to the smaller loan amounts that veteran-owned businesses seek, higher credit risk and lack of information.

“To solve a problem, it’s critical first to understand its scope. This report presents the most substantial evidence to date of the challenges veteran-owned businesses face in accessing capital,” said Claire Kramer Mills, New York Fed assistant vice president. “By

understanding how much credit veteran-owned businesses are seeking, where they’re applying, and the nature of their financing challenges, policy makers and service providers can better help veterans overcome financing shortfalls.”

The report also notes a generational decline in veteran business ownership, with fewer younger veterans taking the path of entrepreneurship. The rate of veterans who own businesses is now lower than the rate of non-veterans who own businesses.

In addition, for businesses that have one to four employees, veteran-owned businesses see 16 percent lower average sales per firm compared with non-veteranowned companies.

To further the research on small business financing, business owners are invited to participate in the 2018 Small Business Credit Survey at bit.ly/2018SmallBizCreditSurvey.

BY THE NUMBERS 75% Veteran entrepreneurs who reported encountering challenges when starting and growing their businesses.

The most common challenges reported were access to capital and access to networks and mentorships.

60% Veteran-owned businesses reporting obtaining less financing than requested, compared with 52 percent of nonveteranowned businesses

33% Decrease in veterans reporting that they are self-employed in 2017 compared with 1998 32 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

61% Veteran-owned businesses deemed low credit risks, compared with 69% of nonveterans. According to the report, veterans’ overall higher credit risk status may be attributable to the challenges of building credit history and increasing credit score when frequently moving and living overseas.

33% Veteran-owned businesses deemed medium credit risks, compared with 24% for non-veterans

11% Veterans reporting that they are self-employed in 2017

LOANS Loan approval rates from the top three sources of credit—large banks, small banks and online lenders—were about 10 percent lower for veteran-owned businesses than for nonveteran-owned businesses.

Between 2010 and 2017, SBA-guaranteed loans increased by only 48 percent for veteran borrowers, compared with an increase of 82 percent for nonveteran borrowers.

According to SBA officials, many veteran entrepreneurs seek SBA assistance after they have attempted and failed to obtain business financing.

Source: “Financing Their Future: Veteran Entrepreneurs and Capital Access” report; figures from fiscal year 2017

SBA Kansas City District Office Directory Want to learn more about SBA services? Contact one of the following people from the Kansas City District office.

Jon Malcolm Richards // District Director (816) 426-4903 // jon.richards@sba.gov

Ken Surmeier // Business Opportunity Specialist (816) 426-4919 // kenneth.surmeier@sba.gov

Dennis Larkin // Deputy District Director (816) 426-4914 // g.d.larkin@sba.gov

Ram Basnet // Economic Development Specialist/PIO (816) 426-4908 // ram.basnet@sba.gov

Mike McWhorter // Lead Lender Relations Specialist (816) 426-4916 // michael.mcwhorter@sba.gov

Don Reese // Springfield Branch Manager (417) 890-8501 x215 // don.reese@sba.gov

Carolina Vargas // Lender Relations Specialist (816) 426-4913 // carolina.vargas@sba.gov

Lisa Zimmerman // Lender Relations Specialist (417) 890-8501 x203 // lisa.zimmerman@sba.gov

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BIGGER | retail S M A R T

( by Ritchie Sayner )

S T R AT E G I E S

Prepare For the New Year Take time to consider strategies to increase profit.

I

f this year is turning out as planned, congratulations on a job well done.

If the year is NOT hitting your expectations, here are a few things that you might consider focusing on in the new year, beginning now: PERSONNEL // You may not want to make any

people changes now, but prepare now for the new year. Way too many stores allow poorperforming associates to stick around. This may include more than just salespeople.

Sometimes other folks in key positions are allowed to stay as well, which does great harm to not only morale, but also company profits.

Does your son or daughter, niece or nephew really want to work there? Do you really want them there? If not, you may be simply buying them a job. This helps no one in the long run.

The question needs to be asked. Sometimes everyone is better off if a change is made.

OPERATING EXPENSES // Though normally

reviewed after the year is complete, a quick scan of the profit & loss statement will reveal where 34 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

you are over or under your budgeted goals.

Are your occupancy costs in line? How about payroll costs? Do they match up well to industry benchmarking numbers? Don’t forget those marketing costs. I see many stores today dropping big dollars into internet/online marketing that they are not getting a reasonable return on and most likely never will.

STAY FRESH // Nothing in retail improves

profitable sales faster than a constant flow of fresh new inventory delivered on a regular basis.

There is a definite correlation between sales increase and new inventory. With many customers shopping your stores regularly, the last thought they should have is that they saw the same merchandise on their last visit to your store.

OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW // If the

data supports making line changes, now is the time to rid your inventory of under-performing vendors. Purging slow-selling stock at year-end has multiple benefits; the “hard markdown,”

often referred to as a permanent or back-office markdown, reduces inventory levels, in turn opening up additional OTB dollars for new product. Applied consistently, over time this strategy increases annual stock turn, too.

Another benefit is that there won’t be as much old product to count at inventory time for stores that take physical inventory on a calendar schedule.

TEST NEW PRODUCTS // Commit to testing

new vendors next year. Most retailers have a mainstay of vendors that customers can count on finding at your store. It is a good practice to reserve a percentage of open-to-buy dollars for testing new lines in order to keep customers interested.

Always be on the lookout for the next hot trend or item (think Crocs, Uggs, Birkenstock, water bottles, novelty socks, etc.). Remember, most big-volume vendors in your store most likely started out as limited test orders.

SET UP YOUR PROMOTIONAL CALENDAR //

Review and fine-tune with your staff or marketing department what the promotional plans are for year end as well as Q1 of next year.

This would include not only social media, but also advertising buys if applicable.

Confirm trunk show schedules with vendors as well as other events that are NOT price driven. These events can be either in-store or

sometimes at a remote location that the store participates in (races, bike rides, hikes, etc.).

VENDOR RETURNS // Start the new year off

fresh by making sure that all return authorizations for merchandise being sent back are out of the warehouse or back room by year end. This includes damaged goods, merchandise being swapped out, or excess inventory being returned per vendor agreement.

PROMOTE SERVICES // Do you offer added-value

options that your customers might not get online? If so, be sure to communicate it: free gift wrapping, free delivery, or stride analysis or foot scans.

Give some thought to complimentary shoe shines if your physical set-up allows for something like that. Not many stores provide it, and most customers won’t take you up on it too often anyway, but it’s something to talk about. How about free laces? Doesn’t cost much, but does bring customers a reason for another visit.

GIFT CARDS // Promote aggressively starting

now! A gift card in hand from your store is one less online sale.

GOAL SETTING // Consider setting small,

achievable goals, but set them every day.

Remember the old saying, “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”

Your goals need not be monumental to make an impact. Retail is detail, and the sum of all the little things you do daily will make a substantial impact on your organization.

Here’s one example of what I mean. Round up your initial markup to the next dollar. Don’t believe me? Determine how many transactions you have annually by dividing your annual volume by the number of transactions. Now add $.50 or $1.00 to each one all year long and see what you get. The dollars will drop right to the bottom line. If you put just this tip into

practice now, I guarantee it will more than cover the cost of your next vacation.

Use our vibrant economy to your advantage next year. People are spending money, and it’s not all online. Prepare now to make next year your best ever!

Wish all of you the happiest of holidays and a healthy and prosperous new year!

Ritchie Sayner is a retail expert and author of the book Retail Revelations: Strategies for Improving Sales, Margins and Turnover, available on Amazon. // AdvancedRetailStrategies.com // ritchie@arsotb.com

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BIGGER | hr S M A R T

( by Leslie Anderson )

S T R AT E G I E S

Appreciation vs. Recognition Observe team dynamics to find the right way to motivate employees. different communication Istyles,Wewaysall have of thinking and making decisions, it‘s a safe bet to say we are all different.

and individual motivations. Why should the way we go about showing appreciation be any different? I intentionally used the word appreciation versus recognition because there’s a big difference and impact between the two approaches.

Recognition is the act of being rewarded for a specific behavior we would like to see repeated. Often, the focus is on performance, and our intended outcome is that rewarding will cause the behavior to repeat. This is true, up to a point.

The unintended long-range outcomes of recognition are demotivators because comparing degrades trust: » Judging others to be either more or less fortunate than us » Experiencing distress from being a point of comparison 36 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

» Outperformers may want to protect their relationship with their peers versus achieving goals In short, when we compare, someone will lose.

Appreciation is the act of valuing and being seen a whole person (both professionally and personally). Remarkably, tailoring our appreciation methods has long-term outcomes: » Building a teamwork environment » Improving organizational loyalty » Encouraging self-competition — an employee’s focus on his or her individual accomplishments and what steps could be taken to arrive at their future.

Appreciation unites the bifurcated mindset of being human in the workplace.

Language of Appreciation In the book The Five Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, there are five distinct languages of expressing appreciation in the workplace. Some will seem obvious and others perhaps conflicting. Read through the list, and we’ll recap next steps at the end. » Words of Affirmation is the most common. To be effective, this form of verbal praise needs to be specific — meeting a

sales goal, finishing a project on time or something less concrete like personality or character traits — willingness to ask the tough questions, having a positive attitude. Take into consideration, too, how to deliver the verbal praise. Would the individual prefer a public shout out? A handwritten note? A private conversation?

Remember – be specific and tailor to when they would be receptive to the verbal praise. » Quality Time is giving your focused attention to someone. Having a quality conversation means practicing a discerning approach and listening for what is really wanted. Some individuals may want to discuss their professional goals and then hear more from their leader. Others may seek a safe environment to voice their successes and frustrations. Bring your best listening skills to the conversation and sincere curiosity to understand what they are wanting at that moment. » Acts of Service is being of service to others and could be articulated as ‘actions speak louder than words’ or ‘don’t tell me, show me your appreciation.’ These are the folks that are motivated by doing for others and feel appreciated when things are done for them. This could be accomplished by asking questions like: What could I do to

make your work easier? What can I do to be of help on the project? Or simply, How can I help? » Tangible Gifts is the giving of the right gift. I emphasize “right” because this means meaningful thought was taken to select something specific for someone.

Many organizations use this method of recognition. Take the time to tailor the gift from general to specific. » Physical Touch is the simple act of human contact. The thought of expressing appreciation with physical touch can seem conflicting with the #metoo and #timesup social movements. This workplace appreciation language could be simply a handshake, high five or fist bump coupled with specific words on why you’re showing appreciation.

All the languages warrant mutual consent and commitment to learning more about what

an individual’s specific views and preferences are.

Next Steps Before taking action and implementing any languages of appreciation, take the time to observe and evaluate the current situation. » What are current the dynamics between you and each individual team member?

And between the team members themselves? What do you notice? » What clues and information could you infer from past or current recognition programs? How is the current program working? Not working? What could be improved upon? What is the participation level? » What are the people saying? What is being asked for? From their point of view, what’s missing?

If what you discover informs that a shift

may be worth exploring, put your research hat on! Start small and ask those in your immediate team, “How do you know you’re valued at work?”

Listen — get curious to better understand what is important to them, and take notes.

Build on this knowledge by slowly adding in more people to ask the same questions.

Ultimately, you will have a base of qualitative data, and themes will emerge to inform how to move forward.

Leslie Anderson of Beta Aquarii Consulting, is an expert in helping others learn how to improve and build trusting relationships. She guides her clients in expanding their self-awareness and emotional capacity which, in turn, enables them to build stronger relationships.

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SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

37

BIGGER | finance S M A R T

( by Bret Curtis)

S T R AT E G I E S

Year-End Tax Planning

Review new tax laws to maximize benefits.

historic Tax Cuts and Jobs Act offers W year-end tax planning opportunities for ith over 130 new tax provisions, the

individuals and businesses.

It’s a perfect time to double-check whether any of these opportunities are a fit for your situation.

For Business Owners Business Income Deduction

The new 20 percent deduction from qualified business income (QBI) has received a lot of attention since it was enacted last year.

Known as Section 199A, it permits owners of sole proprietorships, S corporations or partnerships to deduct up to 20 percent of the income earned by the business.

However, while a lot of advisors know “of” the deduction, relatively few have really dug into the details of the new provisions and the proposed treasury regulations that were issued this summer.

While the purpose of Section 199A is crystal clear, the provision is still up for interpretation, so it’s a good idea to have an accountant 38 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

or adviser who really understands how it will impact tax planning.

Excess Business Losses

While the QBI has garnered a lot of talk, a separate provision has received relatively little attention. The latter provision limits the deductions that can be taken for “excess business losses.”

Essentially, these are losses from trades or businesses of the taxpayer that exceed $250,000 per year ($500,000 for joint filers).

This provision prevents utilizing large business losses to offset income from investments and wages and can create huge surprises for business owners who are unaware of the provision.

Bonus Depreciation and Section 179

For years, a significant portion of year-end planning has involved selecting from among available depreciation alternatives for business property added each year. That planning has become even more important with the new 100 percent bonus depreciation deductions, which allows businesses to take 100 percent

bonus depreciation on qualified property acquired and placed in service after Sept. 27, 2017, and before Jan. 1, 2023.

In addition, Section 179 allows business owners to deduct the full purchase price of qualifying equipment and/or software purchased or financed during the year.

These are two opportunities for business owners to ask their advisers about during year-end tax planning.

Operating Losses

The rules relating to overall net operating losses changed drastically beginning in 2018.

Historically, those types of losses could be carried back up to two years in most circumstances and carried forward up to 20 years. The loss carrybacks and carryforward could also fully offset taxable income in a given year.

Those rules are no longer in place, and net operating losses in 2018 can no longer be carried back. Carry-forward losses can only offset up to 80 percent of taxable income in a subsequent year.

These provisions make proper timing of deductions and income planning even more critical to ensure that overall tax goals are reached.

Payroll Taxes, Self-Employment Taxes and the Net Investment Income Tax

Though not a direct change related to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, recent years have seen many changes to the overall taxation of income outside of the income tax arena.

Rules related to taxation of income outside of the income tax context (specifically employment tax and net investment income tax) have been changing significantly in recent years. The overall effect of those nonincome taxes is becoming a bigger part of overall tax liability for many business owners.

Proper planning needs to be in place to avoid, to the extent possible, the application of these taxes to portions of a taxpayer’s overall income.

For Individual Taxpayers Itemized deductions

Personal income tax planning has similarly seen a lot of changes this year.

In years past, many business owners automatically assumed that they could itemize deductions because that itemization generally resulted in lower overall tax.

As such, many business owners made

charitable contributions personally and out of their business if they would receive tax benefits for those contributions.

That is not necessarily the case beginning in 2018.

While charitable contributions are still deductible, they only produce a benefit if a taxpayer itemizes deductions versus taking the standard deduction.

The standard deduction increased in 2018 to $24,000 for married-filing-jointly taxpayers, and many itemized deductions were taken away or limited.

Specifically, the itemized deduction for state and local taxes has been limited to $10,000 per year (that includes all state and local income taxes, as well as real estate taxes and personal property taxes on nonbusiness assets), and miscellaneous itemized deductions have been eliminated altogether.

Therefore, many taxpayers will find that modest charitable contributions may not produce any significant tax benefit. Proper planning needs to be considered to make sure that the maximum benefit available is achieved for that charitable giving.

Capital Gains on Investments

While the rates applicable to ordinary income have changed, the rates for capital gains have remained substantially unchanged. Therefore, it is necessary to take

a closer look at the tax burden associated with these types of gains.

While the market may dictate whether you have gains, taxpayers can control the timing of those gains by choosing when to liquidate appreciated investment positions, or alternatively “harvesting” loss positions in the same year. Many taxpayers also choose to utilize appreciated investment assets for charitable giving to avoid capital gains.

529 Plans

Historically, 529 plans are a great way to save for college tuition. Earnings in a 529 plan can be withdrawn tax-free only when used for qualified higher education at colleges, universities, vocational schools or other post-secondary schools.

However, thanks to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, 529 plans can now be used to pay for tuition at an elementary or secondary public, private or religious school, up to $10,000 per year.

Bret Curtis, JD, CPA, LLM, is a tax shareholder with Mize Houser & Company PA in the Overland Park office. You can learn more about Mize Houser at MizeHouser.com.

SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

39

BIGGER | marketing S M A R T

( by Valerie Jennings )

S T R AT E G I E S

How To Leverage Social Media Influencers Target your audience using niche experts.

I

nfluencer marketing is the latest buzzword trending in digital marketing. Who is an influencer and what do they even do?

An influencer or micro-influencer is someone who is perceived as an authority or expert in a specific domain and who influences others via social media or various digital channels.

They can have a large or small following; however, it is their ability to influence clickthrough rates and lead generation that is most important from a sales funnel perspective.

Micro-influencers typically have a smaller following but cater to a very niche audience and influence their followers on unique topics.

Ultimately, to reach a select audience, the sales funnel begins with the right influencer channels.

Working With Influencers Working with a social media influencer is not much different than pitching a specific beat writer in the news media about a particular product or service.

40 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

Currently, the primary platform for influencer marketing is via Instagram, especially for reaching millennials. Most influencers can be contacted via direct message, or via email through their blog or website. This approach is much more informal than if you were to reach out to news media.

Keep your first message short and sweet.

Do not overburden them with the details but simply ask if they are interested in collaborating or sponsoring posts on their blog and/or social media channels, and request their rates.

Influencer rates start at roughly $100 for a sponsored post or Instagram story and climb from there. Rates depend on the number of followers an influencer has, how established they are in a niche market and what type of work you are asking for. Something like a product review or product giveaway may require additional content planning and therefore costs more.

Give them the basics about your brand and why working together is a fantastic idea. You are not trying to sell them on anything but demonstrate how your brand is relevant to their audience. Ultimately, the influencer will decide whether it makes sense to collaborate.

However, if your influencer outreach list is targeted, there should be no reason to have to elaborate on this point. It should be a very obvious connection for everyone, making the collaboration a straightforward process.

To target your influencer list, choose keywords to find influencers who specialize in a certain area. For example, if you are an eco-brand, find influencers who are sustainability-focused.

You should do market research or a brand audit to identify a persona for your brand that best fits your brand’s customer profile. Those profiles should align with the influencers you contact. If you are trying to influence millennials who are passionate about using ecofriendly products, then find influencers who fit that market and start your campaign.

Measuring Success of Your Influencer Campaign It is a fun and rewarding process to work with influencers. In order to measure success, you will want to choose tactics based on your specific campaign goals.

If you want to increase Instagram engagement and help grow your following, then

consider collaborating with influencers on sponsored posts or coordinating giveaways.

Stories are short snippets, usually an image accompanied with text overlay, and can also help increase your Instagram following.

YouTube influencers are great for documenting the unboxing of your product, or for how-to videos and product reviews. A sponsored or guest blog post is another tool for helping your search ranking and driving traffic to your website.

Use the following tactics to track success: » Unique promo codes per influencer to track sales » Custom web tracking links from blog placements to track referral traffic » Post engagement on sponsored posts » Increase in followers coinciding with an influencer placement Overall, brand awareness and engagement are the best and easiest ways to notice a spike in your brand’s reach, especially among your targeted audience. Don’t forget, if you have a successful program, you can build a longer-term relationship with that influencer.

Valerie Jennings An early adopter of social media since 2005, Valerie Jennings founded Jennings Social Media Marketing (JSMM) in 2003 at the age of 24 and in 2012 founded a second creative agency, Viral Bolt Media (VBM). // jsmm-vbm. com // valeriejennings.com

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SCALEUP! KC

SIMMONS SECURITY & PROTECTION SERVICES

( by Dawn Bormann )

‘Getting Over that Hump’ NEW STRATEGIES OFFER SENSE OF SECURITY IN GROWING BUSINESS. ngela Turner spent years helping to scale her family’s business, Simmons Security & Protection Services Inc. The business has always been well-regarded for its high-quality, professionally -trained security guards that worked well with law enforcement. That’s in part because Simmons Security was founded with a mission to improve the level of security guard services offered in the community by her husband, John Turner, and brother-in-law, Michael Simmons — who have deep roots in law enforcement.

The company offers security plans, unarmed guard security services and services from off-duty, armed law enforcement officers. The business has several ideal

A

42 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

clients ranging from a downtown district, churches, state agencies and more. Yet Angela Turner, as operations manager, knew the business should be focused on bigger goals.

“We felt like after being in business for 10 years, we just weren’t getting over that hump,” she says.

When a business coach suggested ScaleUP! Kansas City, Turner knew it could be the push they needed to scale.

ScaleUp! KC is a free program offered by the University of Missouri-Kansas City Innovation Center with support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. The program includes classes, peer mentoring, professional guidance and more. It’s open to small businesses like Simmons Security & Protection Services who operate in a market capable of supporting more than $1 million in annual sales and who want to rapidly grow their business.

TURNING POINT

Turner often left classes with an arsenal of clear direction to move her company forward. But even with the intense pace of the course, Turner felt assured that the strategies would work and be a turning point for the business.

“It really allowed me to dig deep in our business and really analyze numbers,” she says.

Almost immediately Turner realized that she needed to thoroughly understand her financials. It went beyond looking at a financial statement, she says. Turner needed to understand every detail but especially the profit margins.

There were days when Turner’s ScaleUP! coach pushed her beyond her comfort zone, but it was necessary in order to move the business forward.

“She will challenge you to the extent of your soul,” Turner says, laughing.

Turner trusted the coach and knew she

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else did clients need? What need wasn’t being met?

Turner created an entire strategy to offer new services that will ultimately increase the business’ profit margins. She’s keeping some of that quiet for now until the company launches new services in mid-2019. But she says the company expects to offer background checks as part of that plan.

“Not only because financially it makes sense, but also because we’re listening to our clients and hearing what they’re asking for,” she says.

Simmons is also building strategic partnerships with other businesses as the business scales to provide additional services to clients.

GROWTH STRATEGIES

offered solid insight about scaling.

“They really helped and they were there to answer questions,” Turner says.

NEW PERSPECTIVE

Studying her financials helped Turner determine an ideal customer. It also helped the owners decide which customers were costing them too much money.

Turner used to jump when someone called and asked, “Can you have a guard at my place by 5 p.m. today?”

It forced Turner to wipe the day clean to prepare for that one new client, who might never call again. Just preparing the proper paperwork took hours out of the day for the entrepreneur. ScaleUP! coaches questioned if the profit margin was the right fit for the business. How could Simmons Security scale and continue to serve customers that didn’t produce long-term revenue?

Since ScaleUP!, Turner has turned down those one-and-done clients.

“It just simply isn’t profitable for us,” she says.

Instead, ScaleUP! experts convinced Turner to think about new markets. What

Sometimes ScaleUP! experts surprised Turner, including when they urged her to think about borrowing money from a bank.

Until recently, the owners alone had funded the business.

“We learned that getting over that hump means you have to take some risk and that borrowing money isn’t a bad thing,” she says. “It’s not a negative. It doesn’t show a weakness or anything. It’s just that sometimes to get where you’re going you have to borrow some money and have some debt.”

Since ScaleUP!, the company took out a loan to purchase a marked vehicle – the company’s first.

Turner is more confident with the decision once ScaleUP! experts showed her how to project revenue and strategize.

The class also taught Turner how to delegate the work. The business employs about 35 people. About two-thirds of those employees are off-duty, sworn law enforcement officers working about one shift a week. She also employs five full-time employees.

After ScaleUP!, Turner realized she needed more team meetings with her full-time employees to make sure everyone understood the business goals and their roles in that effort. Turner also began to delegate more work so she could focus on growing the business.

She promoted a longtime employee, Abraham Santana, to site supervisor to oversee employees. He’s welcomed the changes, especially the team meetings to keep

ENTREPRENEUR

Angela Turner, John Turner, Michael Simmons COMPANY

Simmons Security & Protection Services Simmons-Security.com Simmons Security & Protection Services offers private security guard services including security assessments, individualized security plans, unarmed guards and security from off-duty, unarmed sworn law enforcement officers.

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everyone focused and directed for the overall good of the company.

“It just puts us all in the same place,” he says. “It gives us perspective.”

‘IT WAS WORTH IT’

One of the highlights for Turner was the entrepreneurial connections she made through ScaleUP! The program allowed her to sit down every week and learn from other entrepreneurs going through similar challenges. They used peer-to-peer roundtable discussions to help solve problems.

“Everybody there had committed to working on their business,” she says.

When Turner was struggling with the proper way to send confidential information using technology, another entrepreneur was not only familiar with the dilemma but also able to help solve it.

“I feel like I made some friendships that are going to benefit me over time,” she says.

Turners says ScaleUP! wasn’t one of those leadership courses where she found herself filing paperwork never to be used again.

“The time that I committed to it really felt that it was worth it,” she says. “ScaleUP! gave us more confidence to do things we knew we needed to do.”

Dawn Bormann is a freelance writer in the Kansas City area.

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44 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // November December 2018

IN FOCUS

LEGAL INDUSTRY ( by Katy Ibsen )

2018

THE ARGUMENT FOR INNOVATION

CLOUD-BASED SERVICES DISRUPT THE LEGAL INDUSTRY, CREATING GREATER EFFICIENCIES.

C

hris Brown is part startup attorney and part entrepreneur.

His firm, Venture Legal, works with various small businesses and startup companies in the Kansas City metro area. To say that Brown values the technology would be an understatement—rather, he sees it as a lifeline in which his firm operates.

“When I started my law firm, I made a very intentional decision to make it more of a business and less of a law firm,” he said.

“Most of my clients are startups and freelance

businesses, and so I just kind but as long as you’re smart of learned from them, and I about … it’s really not use the same tools they use.” that dangerous.”

While the practice is still From Dropbox to Evernote, taboo to many attorneys, Ch SalesForce to Slack, these are ris Brown Brown uses Dropbox for the just a sample of the cloud-based purpose of sharing client files platforms and softwares that are or contracts, as well as for document disrupting the legal industry. storage.

SECURING DOCUMENTS “Why not use it?” he asked. “That’s kind of In 2016, the American Bar Association my first instinct, is ‘why not use it?’ So some of the reasons might be security or whatever, said only 38 percent of lawyers used cloud SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

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LEGAL INDUSTRY ( by Katy Ibsen )

2018

computing. In just a year, that share rose to 52 percent in 2017, making Brown ahead of the curve.

Venture Legal is a one-man firm, suggesting that Brown’s use of Dropbox is a creative solution to a lack of manpower, but Brown would argue the contrary — it simplifies things and, in his opinion, is safe, if not safer than storage of paper documents.

“A lot of lawyers are really afraid of this because they think putting all their client data in the cloud is risky. But the funny thing is a lot of lawyers say they don’t use the cloud, but if they’re using Gmail, they’re using the cloud,” Brown said.

“A lot of lawyers will have paper libraries in their office, but I would ask them, ‘What do you do to protect your office? Somebody could break in and take all your files.’ That’s a lot easier to do than hacking Dropbox … I would challenge a lot of lawyers on that premise.”

A 2017 Legal Technology Survey Report by 46 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

the American Bar Association (ABA) saw a slight decline, 72 to 69 percent, of attorneys that reported confidentiality/security concerns; meanwhile, 69 percent of those not using the cloud reported confidentiality/ security concerns as the No. 1 reason they have not adopted such technologies.

The perception of risk attached to cloud computing remains the leading reason for legal professionals to shy away from such efficiencies. A 2017 Deloitte report, “Objections overruled: The case for disruptive technology in the legal profession” confirms that attorneys are risk-averse and reiterates Brown’s argument on whether tangible records are more secure.

According to the Deloitte report, “paper records are not encrypted and are vulnerable to theft and loss. Virtually every significant case of corporate data loss on record has been either due to loss or theft of physical storage media. (Inadvertent compromise of passwords

through phishing attacks is much rarer and can be traced to inadequate awareness and training.) Cloud-based computing is arguably now the best-protected data storage and sharing solution available.”

Despite the concerns among the industry, startup platforms forge ahead with advanced security framework such as blockchain and encryption.

COLLABORATION PLATFORM

Vector Legal Method addresses the need for efficiency and security within the legal industry through its cloud litigation management platform. Deploying centralized control in the form of a dashboard, a firm or attorney can manage documents, deadlines, tasks and case history in one place by using a Vector’s litigation-specific framework designed for federal and state rules of civil procedure.

“Vector was designed and built by veteran litigation partners who saw a need for a

“The biggest challenge is getting attorneys and law firms to adopt new technology and change processes,” said Hale. “We are working to combat this by bringing the law firm’s client into the conversation and showing both parties how the process can be improved by working collaboratively in a single system.”

DeZe

w

E

litigation-specific platform where all stakeholders could collaborate from the beginning of a case through case resolution,” said Thadd Hale, Vector Legal Method CEO. The platform ensures all uploaded content is encrypted at rest and in transit.

“We are a Box Platform company, so we have the liz ab same document security as the eth leading enterprise cloud-based solution,” added Hale. Box Platform is a security system used in applications for cloud content management.

Vector is intended to help attorneys differentiate their services and show clients that they can manage the litigation process better than their competitors. Of course, given the slow adoption of cloud computing among attorneys, Hale and his team are taking a different approach to illustrating Vector’s value.

eu

FIRM MANAGEMENT

In a similar approach to Vector Legal Method, Intelligent RMS is a new cloud-based business management platform geared toward the legal industry for the purpose of internal efficiency. Unlike Vector, however, Intelligent RMS does not manage cases; rather, it combines a firm’s business data into a single, real-time view for the purpose of firm management.

“All organizations face similar core

challenges — they have invested in multiple core technologies that don’t integrate causing increasing complexity to gather meaningful information. Notwithstanding, the outlying manual processes and spreadsheets that have to be aggregated,” said Elizabeth DeZeeuw, president and CEO of EDZ Systems, developer of Intelligent RMS. DeZeeuw explained that by combining internal and external tools into one interface, firms can realize a greater level of efficiency and transparency.

“This includes productivity in matter management as it aligns with financial forecast to actuals; assignment of resources to matters based on prior history and skills; providing clients a greater level of transparency into firm’s management of their matters,” she said.

CLIENT-DRIVEN TREND

While adoption of cloud technologies is slow, the 2017 ABA Survey actually indicates SMART COMPANIES THINKING BIGGER®

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LEGAL INDUSTRY ( by Katy Ibsen )

2018

that consumer cloud platforms are in higher use among attorneys compared with platforms dedicated to legal services.

According to the report, “Legal-specific cloud services have not reached the same levels of popularity as the consumer services. … These results might reflect both the difficulties lawyers and others have with determining what exactly is a ‘cloud’ service and the increased number of legal cloud service providers, especially in the case management category.”

Intelligent RMS counters this sentiment by addressing time and resources.

“Current trends are also impacted by existing solution’s cost and time to implement that are often expensive and take many months for deployments,” DeZeeuw said. “Our tool 48 THINKING BIGGER BUSINESS // December 2018

does this at a lower cost and with an implementation timeline of weeks — not months or more — supported by the flexibility of the tools configuration management and common interfaces.”

While the time it will take attorneys and law firms to grow in their acceptance of cloud computing is unknown, it is suggested that an accelerated acceptance among clients will likely move the needle.

Valuing time and increasing communication with clients, matched with cost savings, will prove to be critical advantages to a legal industry operating in the cloud.

Brian Kearns, CEO of HipHire and Venture Legal client, values Brown’s use of technology for his business.

“We found the two main benefits are cost

and speed of delivery,” said Kearns. “Blending cloud-based legal services with Chris Brown’s face-to-face conversations enables our business a cost-effective way to balance legal obligations with financial constraints.”

Brown said the bottom line will continue to drive law firms to new technologies.

“I think a lot of clients, especially small business owners, want a law firm that is efficient and that uses the proper technology,” Brown said. “They don’t want to print something and sign it by hand and scan it back — they just want to sign something in DocuSign.

It’s just so much faster.”

Katy Ibsen is a freelance writer and editor who enjoys the opportunity to share others’ stories.

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BREAKING GROUND Edison District celebrated a groundbreaking ceremony Oct. 17 with the Overland Park Chamber of Commerce for a new five-story mixed-use space at 80th and Marty streets. The $54 million Edison District will boast a first-floor food hall, outdoor gathering space and include a 396 space parking garage. It expects to open in fall 2019.

WELCOME HOME Raymore Mayor Kris Turnbow joined city officials and Summit Homes team members to celebrate the grand opening of Cunningham at Creekmoor. The community is located within the master-planned community of Creekmoor on the east side of the golf course just south of 155th Street. The first homeowners moved in this fall.

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