Your Chamber at Work - November 14, 2023

FROM THE KC CHAMBER'S PRESIDENT AND CEO

This message is NOT from Chamber President & CEO Joe Reardon.

Members of his marketing team are taking this space over to do something Joe Reardon would never do – brag about his honors and achievements. So we’re bragging for him. (He doesn’t know we’re doing this.)

On Sunday, November 19, Joe will receive the prestigious Henry W. Bloch Human Relations Award at the Sheraton Crown Center. Presented by the Jewish Community Relations Bureau|American Jewish Committee (JCRB|AJC), the award is given each year “to a leader in Kansas City who demonstrates exceptional moral and civic leadership in making our region a better place to live.”

In announcing Joe’s selection for the award, they said “Joe has spent his career leading with heart – committed to improving quality of life for every Kansas Citian.” He’s been Mayor/CEO of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas, and as Chamber CEO, has established new initiatives focusing on workforce development, supporting small businesses, inclusive prosperity, crime and violence, and diversity and inclusion. A lawyer by training, he also served as President and CEO of the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority.

We know him as a great boss and visionary leader.

If you’d like to attend the awards ceremony, please click here.

Congratulations, Joe!

--Your team

GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP WEEK – KANSAS CITY 2023

Global Entrepreneurship Week – Kansas City has begun! You can attend sessions at no cost by signing up or logging in to the online agenda. Visit gewkc.com/sched and build your agenda from over 100 sessions that can help you start a business or side hustle, grow your operations or boost your marketing. Sessions run until November 19, and in-person base camp sessions at Plexpod Westport at Park 39 are November 15 to November 17.

To conclude this engaging week of learning, join the KC Chamber and KCSourceLink on Friday, November 17 from 4 to 6 p.m. for Capital Connections Happy Hour at Plexpod Westport (300 E 39th St., Kansas City, MO). The focus of this event is on building connections between Kansas City’s lending community, minority businesses, and Entrepreneurial Support Organizations (ESOs). Register here today.

136TH ANNUAL DINNER

At the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce 136th Annual Dinner, you’ll learn how the KC business community is preparing for a surge of power, progress, technology, and people that will lead our region to generational change. And we are doing the work now, to make Future KC ready for all that we have coming, including the things we haven’t dreamed of yet. The agenda for the evening includes honoring outgoing Board Chair Mark Garrett of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City and welcoming Board Chair Lisa Ginter of CommunityAmerica Credit Union. Our 2023 keynote speaker is David Pogue who will provide invaluable insights on how technology impacts our work, businesses, health, society, and connections with each other—now and into the future. He’ll also moderate a panel of local Kansas Citians as they discuss AI and technology within our community. Last but certainly not least, the event will conclude with the announcement of the 2023 Kansas Citian of the Year. You won’t want to miss the exciting reveal!

The Kay Barnes Ballroom at the Kansas City Convention Center is the place to be on Tuesday, November 21. A networking reception begins at 4 p.m., followed by dinner and the program that begins at 5:30. Online registration has concluded, so please email Laura Dryden to reserve a seat. Thank you to our sponsors for making this annual celebration of regional businesses possible! Our presenting sponsor is Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City. Premier sponsors are Hallmark, JE Dunn Construction, and UMB Bank.

NORTHLAND COMMUNITY LISTENING SESSION WITH KCPD CHIEF GRAVES

On November 28 from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. at the Mid-Continent Public Library’s Green Hills Library Center, 8581 N. Green Hills Road, Kansas City, MO 64154, you’re invited to a Community Listening Session with Kansas City Police Department Chief of Police Stacey Graves. The Community Listening Sessions are a partnership between the Kansas City Public Safety Coalition and the Police Department, facilitated by the Northland Regional Chamber of Commerce. Chief Graves will open the session by sharing her ideas on ways to reduce KCMO’s high rate of violent crime, and then community members will engage in world café-style conversations around tables, reporting out their thoughts and concerns. The Chief is eager to hear what the community has to say. Admission to this session is free, but please RSVP. We appreciate the willingness of both the community and Chief Graves to come together for this vital conversation, and we hope to see you there.

The Kansas City Public Safety Coalition consists of 17 business, civic, and interfaith organizations, convening since early 2022. The Coalition has facilitated community listening sessions during the search for Kansas City, Missouri’s Chief of Police, presented community feedback to the Board of Police Commissioners, and engaged in policy matters regarding public safety in Kansas City.

ECONOMIC FORECAST BREAKFAST 2023 – VIRTUAL EVENT

Our annual Economic Forecast Breakfast on December 7 will highlight the economic trends, opportunities and challenges business will likely encounter in 2024. Spend the morning taking a deeper look at the impact and opportunities of the bistate healthcare economy. The healthcare sector is one of the most consequential portions of the US and KC metro economies impacted by medical innovations, valuable research advancements, workforce challenges, and the cost of delivering care in our states with two different approaches to Medicaid expansion.

Speakers include Frank Lenk, Director of Research Services at Mid-America Regional Council, and Max Timm, Senior Vice President at Kaufman Hall. Virtual ticket pricing is $10 for members and $20 for nonmembers, with a Zoom link sent to registrants 24 hours before the program. The presentation begins at 8 a.m. and will conclude at 9:30 a.m. Register here to attend.