Explore perspectives on the issues impacting business in Kansas City.
Hear from local entrepreneurs, innovators and community leaders as they share insights and commentary on topics impacting business and innovation.
The TAM Scam: Why the next economy won’t need your pitch deck’s market-size slide
For most of modern business history, directly observing economic activity was slow, expensive, or impossible. We developed proxies to compress uncertainty into numbers that executives, lenders, and investors could use. But as technology makes economic activity more observable, the proxies we built for an earlier era become harder to defend.
I was wrong about sports: Why KC’s ‘escape velocity’ keeps pointing back to 18th and Vine
Sports, music, and barbecue are not three separate Kansas City brands, writes urbanist and entrepreneur Kemet Coleman. “They are one story, and it starts at 18th and Vine,” the Vine Street Brewing co-founder explained.
300 pitches later, GIFT founder offers a cheat sheet for selling your vision (hint: it starts with the pitch deck)
“What does your business do? Tell me directly, clearly, and avoid unnecessary fluff,” writes Brandon Calloway in an open letter to entrepreneurs. “As someone making a snap judgment about your business, I need to quickly understand what it offers.”
Smart glasses at work: How employers using (or banning) the tech could face legal challenges
AI-enabled smart glasses take a step further than the traditional “body camera” surveillance footage, given the technology’s ability to retain and assess information, such as biometric information. That creates new concerns for employers who might want to implement the devices — or even keep them out of the workplace altogether, writes a team of attorneys from Polsinelli.
Missouri founders need rules for crypto, digital assets that protect infrastructure and consumers, advocate says
Congress should act quickly, writes Ryan Wright. If the United States waits too long, other countries will continue setting the standards for digital assets, AI provenance, and the next generation of financial infrastructure. Missouri should not be left reacting to that future. We should help build it.
Royals chose Crown Center; KC now must decide how 18th & Vine stays in the game
The Royals ballpark announcement was still eye-opening, because moments like this reveal what a city is actually willing to organize itself around, writes Kemet Coleman.
How can 90 days fix 18 months of revenue? Make trust and consistency your currency
Many leaders start buying marketing the same way they buy any other solution .. one need at a time. It’s not uncommon for one company to have a web vendor, a PR partner, a graphic designer, an email vendor, and so on. The hire is based on need, not strategy; and the real cost shows up in places most leadership teams don’t calculate.
Greta Perel: Forget formality (plus four other copywriting secrets for startups)
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Entrepreneurs have to wear all sorts of hats — but what if one of those “hats” doesn’t fit so well? Can you just throw it into the dark depths of your closet? Definitely not that “writing hat.” Writing your own website copy, tweets,…
April Boyd-Noronha: GEW showcases STEM topics facing women of color
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. This year’s Global Entrepreneurship Week in Kansas City featured many enterprising events and networking activities for aspiring entrepreneurs of all ages. It also served as a speaking platform for local entrepreneurs to share their expertise on topics that might usually get no play…
Ginsburg’s Podcast Preview: StartUp offers taste of building a business
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. You’ve likely heard of podcasts, but for the uninitiated, podcasts are portable on-demand recordings that can be listened to nearly anywhere or anytime. Most are a monologue or dialogue, and regardless of your interest, almost anyone can find many informative podcasts. Gardening, money, real…
Etsy exec: Tax reform leaves out entrepreneurs of the gig economy
Editor’s note: Althea Erickson, head of advocacy and impact at Etsy, wrote this opinion piece in response to tax reform bills being considered in the U.S. House and Senate. The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. For all the talk of tax reform that’s swirling around Washington, D.C., there’s one group that’s…
Tech exec to startups: Give employees late start Tuesday for airport vote
Editor’s note: Luke Norris, head of local government solutions for Kansas City-based PayIt, wrote this opinion piece in response to the Nov. 7 single terminal airport ballot questions facing Kansas City, Missouri voters. The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. November 7. It will be a day that a lot of us…
Denise Kruse: So your startup wants to be acquired – now what?
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. In the first column this three-part series, I discussed how a stellar strategy only gets your company halfway, but executing can take you to the finish line. Next, we took a deep dive into what startups should do after landing a first big…