Latest Stories

Reboot U revives tech talent for KC startup

A growing event photography company in Kansas City is looking to the past to find the tech talent it needs to build its future. SportsPhotos.com founder Brandon Schatz is a small-business participant in the Full Employment Council’s “Reboot U” program, which provides technology training for the chronically unemployed. Schatz’s company manages photos for sporting events,…

Product Hunt enters KC market, offers onboard for entrepreneurs

A popular international product discovery platform is hoping to engage more tech entrepreneurs in the Kansas City area. Product Hunt — a website that features new products such as apps, hardware and other tech creations — recently launched a series of meetings in Kansas City in hopes of garnering more products from the area for…

Developer conference hopes to boost KC’s tech profile

A group of local tech talent is banding together to bring global exposure to Kansas City’s tech scene. Set to kick off Wednesday, the two-day Kansas City Developer Conference hopes to engage techies with all aspects of software development. In addition to connecting developers, the seventh-annual conference aspires for a bigger mission: to put KC…

Blooom makes national TV debut

Overland Park-based financial tech firm Blooom hopes to seed new growth opportunities after a recent national TV appearance. Blooom CEO Chris Costello and President Greg Smith hopped onto Fox Business Tuesday to discuss 401(k) management and their company, which created an online 401(k) management tool that’s seen solid early traction. The tool uses a flower in various…

Think branding: The importance of internal marketing

In this Think column, hr-haven founder Belinda Waggoner dissects the imperative of a coherent, thoughtful internal identity within one’s company. The Think column helps entrepreneurs to stop and think about the various aspects of starting and running a business. If you haven’t unlocked the secrets or even considered the benefits of internal branding, here’s a little story we tell…

KC tech firms respond to ‘bleak’ millennial voter turnout

A meager millennial voter turnout in Kansas City’s recent municipal elections is compelling local organizations to combat apathy with technology. More Kansas Citians 90 and older cast ballots in the City of Fountain’s 2014 municipal elections than voters under 30, according to a study by Kansas City-based civic engagement company mySidewalk. A paltry 0.7 percent…

Katie Boody Carrie Markel Lean Lab

Lean Lab announces new, mature fellowship class

The Lean Lab, an education innovation incubator, announced its second cohort of fellows who hope to bring meaningful change to Kansas City education. In the 2015 class, 10 fellows with seven solutions for Kansas City’s urban education will be participating in the Lean Lab’s summer program. Fellows arrive at the program with ideas in various…

KC newbie Rex tops $1M in revenue, kicks off hiring

Surging growth at one of Kansas City’s newest startups is leading it to hire a staff six times its current size. Rex, an animal health tech company that recently graduated from the Techstars-led Sprint Accelerator, is hoping to quickly boost its headcount from two to 12. In the days following a pitch at the accelerator’s…

ShotTracker, NBA champ Klay Thompson set for virtual camp

The Golden State Warriors weren’t the only team elated from its Tuesday night NBA Championship win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. Overland Park-based ShotTracker also snagged a win alongside the Warriors’ first championship since 1975, as the wearable tech firm’s recent endorsement deal with Golden State guard Klay Thompson received another coat of varnish. Golden State’s…

Digital Sandbox helps entrepreneurs fight summer slump

With summer knocking at the door, Digital Sandbox KC is taking initiative to provide resources and instruction to keep entrepreneurs engaged and on-point. Digital Sandbox, a proof-of-concept program that expedites area businesses’ projects, will host the third-annual “Summer in the Sand Series” as a way of prompting discussion around relevant topics for entrepreneurs. “The Summer…