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.
Mycroft CEO: Ditch Amazon bait for better investment — KC startups
Editor’s note: Kansas City-based Mycroft CEO Joshua Montgomery wrote this piece in response to the area effort to attract Amazon’s prospective HQ2. The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. My first face-to-face meeting with an Amazon employee took place on his day off. He was at the Sprint Accelerator on the Missouri…
April Boyd-Noronha: Q&A offers cyber security insight ahead of Tech on Tap
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Cyber security is a topic worthy of constant discussion because the threat landscape, as well as the needed protective measures, are ever-evolving, Kara Lowe said. Lowe, vice president of the KC Tech Council, joined me for a Q&A on the coming Tech on…
April Boyd-Noronha: 9 takeaways from KU’s GenCyber Summer Camp
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. I’m the product of two retired educators in the Kansas City metro area, so I know that learning is a lifelong process. The summertime, for many educators, is the perfect time for professional development. I applaud the efforts of the University of Kansas’…
Denise Kruse: So your startup landed its first big client — now what?
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. As a startup, it takes hard work to get a potential client through the door. You have to get them to believe in your business model and product or service you’re offering; wow them with your expertise and industry knowledge; and finally, close the…
Tommy Felts: How ruffled business feathers led me to Startland
My first attempt at entrepreneurship quickly ran afowl of reality. (Now before you assume the new guy at Startland doesn’t know how to spell “afoul,” please bear with me. I’ve earned my on-the-job Dad Joke credentials through hundreds of clever — some would say eye-rolling — puns that formed the character of my best headline…
Bobby Burch: Nonprofit change reinforces Startland News mission
In case you missed the flurry of headlines, Startland News is now a nonprofit. I wanted to take moment to share with readers what this change means for our future as mission-based storytellers. To explain, let’s look back at how Startland News evolved from initially just an idea into what it is today. Nearly three…