FROM THE KC CHAMBER’S PRESIDENT AND CEO
Each year, the KC Chamber’s Leadership Exchange allows our region’s business, civic and community leaders to step outside Greater Kansas City, study another successful metropolitan area and ask: What can we learn from them? The goal isn’t to replicate what another city has done, but to bring home ideas we can adapt while strengthening the relationships that help move our own region forward.
On Monday, more than 100 leaders from across our region will travel to Phoenix, Arizona, for our 2026 Leadership Exchange. Over three days, we’ll explore how collaboration among business, government, higher education, and community organizations has helped Phoenix attract transformational investment and create new opportunities.
And there is plenty for us to learn. We’ll look at how Phoenix supports local businesses and entrepreneurship, creates opportunities for people with autism, builds a collaborative bioscience ecosystem, invests in transit and urban development, and embraces emerging technology. We’ll also examine Arizona State University’s role in economic competitiveness and how TSMC’s semiconductor investment is reshaping the regional economy.
I’m especially looking forward to moderating a conversation with Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego and Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas about challenges our cities share—from housing and public safety to infrastructure, economic development and quality of life—and the partnerships required to address them.
But the real value of Leadership Exchange comes when we bring those lessons home. The ideas we encounter can give us new perspectives, but the relationships strengthened among Greater Kansas City leaders are just as important. When leaders from across sectors and state lines learn together, we come home better prepared to work together. And that is what Leadership Exchange is all about: learning from another region, strengthening our own relationships and bringing home ideas that can help us build an even stronger Greater Kansas City.
NEIGHBORHOOD NETWORKING – BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS
Start your Friday by growing your network and learning more about an organization making a difference in the lives of young people across our community. Join the KC Chamber for Neighborhood Networking at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Kansas City from 8:30–10:00 a.m. Friday, September 18, at 1709 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Kansas City creates one-to-one mentoring relationships by matching “Bigs” with “Littles,” building friendships that help young people recognize and reach their full potential. The organization currently supports more than 1,000 active matches across the region.
Neighborhood Networking is your opportunity to meet fellow members of the Greater Kansas City business community, hear more about the work of Big Brothers Big Sisters and tour its space. Come make a few new connections while discovering how mentorship is making a BIG difference in Greater Kansas City. Register now!
GENKC PINS & PROFESSIONALS
If you’ve never tried Fowling, the concept is simple: football meets bowling as players compete to be the first to knock down all 10 pins with a football. Whether you’re ready to compete or just want to give it a try, the evening will feature both free-play and competitive lanes, along with plenty of opportunities to meet and connect with fellow emerging young professionals from across the Kansas City region. Your $25 ticket includes pizza, drink tickets and access to 10 Fowling lanes, plus arcade games, shuffleboard, pool, cornhole and more.
The evening also offers an opportunity to give back. Attendees are encouraged to bring gently used professional attire for UMKC’s Professional Closet, which helps students access clothing for interviews, internships and the start of their careers. Come ready to make new connections, support a great cause and find out whether your football skills translate to the Fowling lanes. Register today!
2026 ATHENA AWARD RECEPTION
Celebrate exceptional leadership at the 2026 ATHENA Awards Reception, presented by KPMG, from 5–7 p.m. Tuesday, September 29, in the Grand Hall at Union Station (30 W. Pershing Rd., KCMO). This year, the KC Chamber is proud to honor Angie Long with the ATHENA Leadership Award and Elaina Paige with the ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award.
The ATHENA Awards recognize leaders who demonstrate professional excellence, give back to their communities and help create opportunities for others to succeed. Long, Chief Investment Officer of Palmer Square Capital Management and a Co-Owner of the Kansas City Current, and Paige, owner of The Next Paige Talent Agency and founder of the Next Paige Foundation, exemplify that commitment through their leadership and service.
The celebration will also welcome ATHENA International President & CEO Traci Costa. VIP ticket holders can attend a private reception with Costa and the award recipients from 4–5 p.m., followed by the main reception at 5 p.m. Join us for an inspiring evening as we recognize two outstanding leaders and celebrate the impact they continue to make across our region. Register now!
KANSAS CHILD CARE TAX CREDIT SUMMIT
Access to quality, affordable child care is more than a family issue; it’s a workforce and economic issue. Kansas recently strengthened its employer child care tax credit, creating new opportunities for businesses to play a greater role in addressing the challenges affecting employees and employers across the state.
Join the KC Chamber on Wednesday, September 30, from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the KC Chamber Board Room at Union Station (30 W. Pershing Rd., KCMO) for the Kansas Child Care Tax Credit Summit. The event will bring together business leaders, policymakers, child care providers and community partners to explore how the tax credit works, opportunities for employers to put it to use and ways to maximize its impact across Kansas.
Whether your organization is already exploring child care solutions or wants to better understand how this new tool could support your workforce, the summit offers an opportunity to learn, connect and be part of the conversation. Registration is free, so reserve your seat today!