Opinion Stories
Brown: ‘Most entrepreneurial city’ should act like it with Airbnb regulations
Editor’s note: Kansas City is mulling regulations that would affect the operations of more than 300 “home-sharing” properties in the area. The proposed regulations would impose a $600 permitting fee and a host of other stipulations on hosts of Airbnb, VRBO and other similar services. New technology brings promises of a better future. But it…
The impact and challenges of cultivating champions of your startup
I recently wrote about the importance of building a close relationship with a champion of your company. Sylvia Ann Hewlett, author of Forget a Mentor, Find a Sponsor, notes that “women have twice as many mentors as men, but half as many sponsors.” A mentor can provide advice and perspective, but a sponsor or champion…
Research on your startup’s crazy idea can yield cash
You know the feeling when you find $20 in your pocket that you forgot was there? Or have you seen the late-night infomercials about all the “found money” just sitting around waiting for you to claim it? It’s exciting stuff — the kind that makes your pulse race and your mind wander to the endless…
Blake Miller: Missouri should scrap its ‘Show Me’ slogan
Editor’s note: The following piece was inspired by recent news that Acre Designs, a startup that launched in Kansas City, will be relocating to San Francisco after facing a tepid, area investor market. Cue the somber violin music. Another sad, all-too-familiar Kansas City story recently played out with news that Acre Designs will be leaving the…
Byrd: How the Silicon Prairie can avoid Silicon Valley’s diversity issues
When Google and Intel first released their employment statistics in 2014, the topic of diversity was nowhere as elevated as it is today in corporate circles. Silicon Valley and its many companies from large tech giants down to startups are under the diversity and inclusion microscope. Why all of the emphasis on diversity? Demographically our…
