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A Living Legend

Wichita native and aviation legend Clay Lacy entertained a capacity audience in Wichita with a few stories from his long career. Yeah we know. Legend is overused. Tiresome. Sometimes, though, no other description will do. See if you don’t agree.

  • The world’s top aerial cinematographer
  • Nearly 50,000 flight hours in 50-plus years
  • A commercial pilot for more than 40 years
  • Type-rated in 30 aircraft, from helicopters to 747s
  • One of the first pilots type-rated in Learjets
  • Owner of one of the nation’s top jet charter firms
  • Pilot for celebrities and presidents
  • Still flying at age 75

We could go on. But you get the idea. World-renowned (we resisted the temptation to say “legendary,” but we could make the case) air-to-air photographer Paul Bowen chatted with Lacy for the benefit of an appreciative crowd at Wichita State University, eliciting a number of nuggets from among Lacy’s endless trove of aviation tales.

WSU’s Ulrich Museum of Art brought the two together to discuss the art of aviation as part of an exhibit, “Aircraft: The Jet as Art.” Lacy said when he first was contacted, he wasn’t sure that he knew much about aviation art. But the more he thought about it, he said, the more he realized that, “I think airplanes are art. I think that airplanes in flight – all of them – are absolutely beautiful. I’ve seen more of them in flight than anyone ever, and I still love them.”

Then Lacy showed two short films, one showcasing his air-to-air cinematography and one covering a few highlights of his life in aviation. They erased any doubt about whether airplanes constitute art or whether Lacy is an artist of the first order. Bowen described the complex choreography and precision flying required for one of Lacy’s photo shoots as an aerial ballet. We think that’s a perfect description.

Sonia, who serves on the Ulrich board and knows more than a few aviation luminaries, finds new inspiration each time she hears the words of masters such as Lacy and Bowen. “Aircraft are the perfect expression of function driving elegant form. Clay’s cinematography, like a Paul Bowen photograph, is truly breathtaking. Graceful. Fluid. It’s such a privilege to hear these men in person, talking about their lives and their work. It’s one of the real advantages of living in the Air Capital.”


Kansas Aviation Museum’s Gala

My dad, aviation photographer Paul Bowen, has developed amazing relationships over the years. I recently accompanied him to the Kansas Aviation Museum gala honoring one of his dearest friends: Mort Brown, Aviation 2008 Hall of Fame Inductee. Mort turned 100 this year, which made this honor even more special. During Mort’s years as Cessna’s production-flight-test chief pilot, he released more than 85,000 new aircraft to owners. This man has stories.

Other highlights of the evening included Director Lon Smith sharing what the countless hours of volunteer time from the Wichita community have meant to the museum. Had the museum had to pay for those hours, the costs would be in the millions. Wichita loves its aircraft – and their preservation. It made me proud to see the museum’s new Greteman Group-created identity so prominently displayed throughout the evening and to know that it’s playing a role in the museum’s outreach and growth.

Dave Franson, friend and executive director of the recently launched Wichita Aero Club, kept busy spreading the word about the organization and its plans. Of course seeing Dave talk nonstop is nothing new. I say that with love.

Aviation reporter Molly McMillin was also sharing news. Her’s was about her new blog, the Air Capital Insider, which launched this week. Be sure to check it out.

Keynote speaker Eric Lindbergh, grandson of the first man to fly nonstop across the Atlantic, reminded us of how far we’ve come since 1927. Discussions with leaders from some of the industry’s leading aircraft manufacturers inspired us with new boundary-busting visions. The entire evening made me glad that I make the Air Capital my home.

Photo credit: Wichita Business Journal


What This Election Taught Us About Branding

Whether or not your candidate won on November 4, we can all learn something from Barack Obama’s successful presidential campaign.

He had a single, voter-resonating message – change – and stuck with it. And he bolstered traditional tactics by using new media in ways never before seen in an election. Working with chief strategist David Axelrod and campaign manager David Plouffe, Obama crafted a strategy that made him Advertising Age’s “Marketer of the Year.”

Businesses Can Learn Much from Obama’s Campaign

Here are just a few of the lessons:

  1. Consistency. Obama’s branded “change” campaign set him apart from the pack. As branding guru Al Ries points out, do you even remember Hillary Clinton’s creative? Here she was, the beneficiary of Bill Clinton’s eight years in office, with the most experienced campaign team, yet her message kept morphing into something different. (If you can’t remember, you’re not alone. There’s a number to keep track of. First, came “Experience,” then “Countdown to change,” then “Solutions for America.”) McCain threw out numerous branded images and hoped one stuck. Maverick. Straight talker. American hero.The public and media’s infatuation with Sarah Palin drowned out McCain and, at times, made it feel like he was second on the ticket. Obama, meanwhile, stayed with his message: Change.
  2. Resonance. Obama had the luxury of distance from George W. Bush’s policies. McCain did not. And if McCain tried to create that same distance, Obama would remind us how often McCain voted Bush’s position. You heard it often enough to recite it, too: 90 percent.
  3. Tactics. Obama successfully employed social media to speak directly to his supporters and, equally important, to get their feedback. He listened. And learned. Obama created a groundswell of support at the micro level and communicated with his base via what insiders call MyBO, or “MyBarackObama.com.” He used email, text messages and Twitter. If you attended an event, he sent an email saying thanks. If a candidate attacked him, he refuted the attack with a video, delivered directly to your inbox. These tactics helped him earn votes. But they also helped him harvest an unprecedented $650 million from more than three million supporters. That war chest allowed him to purchase the ads he needed to win: $160 million on broadcast media, almost $14 million on print, $12 million on digital media. Note that while his social media campaign was phenomenally innovative and effective, he still spent the bulk of his outreach dollars on traditional media.

Applying the Principles

Whether you voted red or blue, remember that branding principles, properly executed, can help you succeed. Know your audience. Speak to their dreams. Create a vision of what you will do. Choose the right message and stay with it. Work tirelessly and well using both traditional and new media tactics. Reach out and energize new customers. Give them the tools to convert others to your product or service.

And once you’ve made the sale, remember to keep building and deepening the relationship. What’s happening now that Obama won the election? The millions who used MyBarackObama to organize 35,000+ groups and host more that 200,000 events are now being encouraged to continue the community, to stay connected, to collaborate, to add members and to move forward. Together.

Winning Is Only the Beginning

Check out the new transition social media site, appropriately named Change.gov. It lets you upload your ideas for the country, apply for a job, check out the developing face of the new administration and more. Want to see images of the election? You can view them on Flickr.

A brand is what people think of you. And that perception constantly shifts. So you must keep building your brand. Every day. It will be interesting to watch Obama these coming weeks and months.


Just a Bunch of Health Nuts

After glugging our way to victory in the YMCA’s August “Eight-A-Day Water Wellness Challenge” the October “Stretch to De-stress” challenge had us competing against other local businesses to see who could complete the largest number of stretches over a five-day period. We came out on top with 30 percent participation and averaging 12 stretches per person.

We may have looked a little odd doing stretches at our desks, but that made the non-stretchers among us laugh, which added to their stress relief as well.

The YMCA’s traveling corporate cup will grace our offices once again throughout the month of November.


Celebrating the Learjet Legend

Members of Greteman Group joined the thousands who gathered at One Learjet Way on October 25 to celebrate the Year of Learjet finale. The day kicked off with a commemoration ceremony that included a Learjet 24 flyby by renowned pilot and aerial cinematographer Clay Lacy.

If Lacy’s name isn’t familiar to you, his work is. He’s shot scenes for everything from such Hollywood blockbusters as Top Gun and The Right Stuff to airline commercials. That coupled with his other flying experience – air race, alrline, experimental, military, private – has racked up 50,000 flight hours, earning him more time flying a jet than any person worldwide. Oh, and did we mention that he was born and raised in Wichita?

The first Learjet 35, now on permanent display at Bombardier Wichita, made a beautiful backdrop for a ceremony that included words by Mayor Carl Brewer, Bombardier Learjet VP and GM David Coleal and VP John Dieker. Employees who worked on the original Learjet 35 program were recognized onstage.

Eleven Bombardier aircraft made for a stop-you-in-your-tracks static display, while a mockup of the new, all-composite Learjet 85 midsize aircraft had everyone talking. The interior, designed by Wichita’s own Bill Goings and Laurie Cox, includes a sleek black and white cabin with a stunning raw silk headliner. This will be one gorgeous, high-performance jet.

A small evening reception for customers, state officials (including aviation-booster Gov. Kathleen Sibelius) and partners looked ahead to new opportunities while reflecting on all that’s happened since 1963 and that first history-making flight. When the Learjet 23 took to the skies over Wichita, it created a new category of flight. Business aviation. And a new breed of traveler. The jetset.

Sonia had great fun reconnecting with longtime friend Don Grommesh, who helped Bill Lear develop the original Learjet.


Two Stellar Brands

Two great examples of branding took place recently. First: LawKingdon’s much-anticipated open house celebrating its new brand and revamped offices. The other: a presentation at the WSU School of Art & Design by renowned air-to-air photographer (and father of our very own Ashley Bowen Cook) Paul Bowen. Here are a few highpoints about each.

LawKingdon – Inspire. Create. Achieve.

We’ve worked with this outstanding architectural firm for years, assisting with environmental graphics on everything from the Provo (Utah) Towne Center to the Keeper of the Plains Plaza at the rivers’ confluence in downtown Wichita. When LawKingdon decided it was time to develop a brand that more truly conveys their architectural philosophy – they turned to us. We’re glad they did.

LawKingdon gutted its offices and completely re-imagined them, creating an innovative, must-experience environment. What walls remain are covered in vibrant yellow, red, gray and black graphics showcasing the firm’s work and approach.

Dennis Smith has grown this employee-owned and managed firm from 27 team members in 1994, when he was named president, to approximately 100 today (six work at the Dallas branch office).

One of his first initiatives was to diversify the company, moving it into health care, hospitality, new retail markets and special projects.

Dennis says our 3D invitation has been a huge hit with customers, who’ve been displaying it on their desks and telling LawKingdon how much they love them (the cards and the firm).

To learn more about LawKingdon, visit their new website.

One look at Paul’s body of work tells you this man is a master. But what’s not so immediately apparent is an equally important component of Paul’s incredible success. Early in his career, he branded himself as as aviation expert, and even more specifically, an artist who knew how to capture an aircraft in flight. He says, as a freelance photographer, “I’m unemployed until the phone rings.” Constant innovation, a to-die-for Rolodex and a willingness to strap himself into the tailgunner position of a B-25 (practically hanging out of the plane at 10,000 feet) has kept Paul in demand for 30+ years. Paul blazed new trails, showing us mortals images previously the provenance of angels. His first in a long list of now-famous, otherworldly vortices photographs was of a graceful Learjet rising out of a cloud bank over California. Others have emulated the technique, but Paul will forever be linked with these groundbreaking images. “We’ve milked it for all it’s worth,” Paul laughs.

Wichita Eagle aviation reporter Molly McMillin asked Paul questions we secretly wanted to. Most scared moment? Once when, after half an hour of shooting out of the open back of his B-25, he looked down and saw the strap buckling him in had come undone. He “changed his pants” and went back to shooting, he said.

Today, Paul has published four books and his work has graced the covers of 950 magazines. He has been inducted into the prestigious Canon Explorers of Light program. You can see his work for yourself at his website.

GG brand director Ashley Bowen Cook shares much with her famous pop. Including the fact that they each got airsick the first time they flew. To this day, both are afraid of heights.


Dreaming of a Bright Christmas

We’ve started planning our holiday GG team activities. (Sorry, super secret for the moment, but we’ll be sure to share details later.) All this how-can-we-make-the-world-better thinking has got us, well, thinking.

If you’re stretching a bit more this holiday season and maybe looking for a new outlet for making a difference, we hope you’ll consider some of these worthy causes supported by our clients.

Give Kids the World (GKTW)

Every year Signature Flight Support helps make magical memories for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. The GKTW 70-acre Orlando-based resort – design-built for children with special needs – has brightened the lives of more than 88,000 families from around the world.

ORBIS

FlightSafety International founder Al Ueltschi has long championed this wonderful organization and serves as chairman of the ORBIS International Board of Directors. As many as 28 million people worldwide have blindness that could have been prevented or treated (out of a total blind population of 37 million). ORBIS takes treatment to where it’s most needed – developing countries, where 90 percent of these cases reside.

Or that you’ll consider spreading the joy to some nonprofit clients we’ve had the privilege of working with.

Kansas Children’s Service League

KCSL has been helping Kansas children and their families since 1893 – working to keep children safe, families strong and communities engaged. Its Kids Now! program helps children in foster care by providing funds for everything from school supplies and graduation gowns to athletic shoes and music lessons.

Envision

This incredible organization provides choices and resources for people who are blind or low vision. And has for 77 years. It uniquely combines employment opportunities with rehabilitation services and public outreach. Your gift can provide training that enables a senior to stay in her home, adaptive aides for a student with impaired vision, education that helps prevents blindness and much more.


Rise and Shine: Promoting Wellness in the Workplace

Every employer knows about the skyrocketing costs of health care. Employees nationwide do, too. In the past six years, they’ve seen their health insurance premiums rise four times faster than their wages. So anything that can help push down costs while also increasing employees’ health and wellness is worth investigating and implementing.

Getting Started

At Greteman Group, we apply our cut-to-the-chase creative philosophy to our approach on wellness. Rather than treat the symptoms, we go to the cause. That may be smoking, lack of exercise, high stress, unwanted pounds, unhealthy eating habits, you name it.

Like any creative challenge, we began with our discovery process. Talking to team members and other business owners. Researching industry best practices. Defining our resources. We created an online survey to give team members a platform for providing confidential input. After all, no program would work if it not designed to meet real needs and if they didn’t feel a sense of buy-in.

What we learned was that team members want support – but they don’t want to be pushed. No surprise there. Artistic, free-spirited rebels aren’t likely to love anything shoved down their throats. And, naturally, that’s not our culture anyway. We welcome individual thought and expression, so there’s no groupthink to our wellness program, launched October 2007. (We ought to point out, too, that this approach falls in line with the law, which says you can reward positive behavior but can’t punish negative behavior.)

Motivating Members

We launched the program with a sure-to-please activity: free, 10-minute onsite shoulder massages. That really got team members’ attention – and made them eager to see what was coming next. Participation continues to grow. You might say it’s contagious. Currently 35 percent of employees participate in after-hours yoga, 50 percent participate in lunchtime aerobics and more than half participated in our recent step challenge. We offer all at no cost.

In addition to our twice-weekly noon aerobics and Wednesday-evening yoga classes, we provide an exercise area that can be used anytime. Feel stressed or just need a break? Jump on the elliptical machine or balance ball. Play with the hula-hoop. Use some free weights or yoga accessories. Release frustration by throwing some darts.

It helps that CEO Sonia Greteman leads by example. She walks our talk, living a well-balanced and healthy lifestyle. She financially supports the wellness programs, considering it just another part of company overhead. Office manager Carol Farrow runs the program and serves as a cheerleader, encouraging members when they don’t hit their goals or fall off the fitness wagon. She leads by example, too. She was one of the first to sign up for our stop-smoking program.

Achieving Results

Our smoking-cessation incentive helped two (out of five) heavy smokers quit. They’ve been smoke free for more than six months. The agency reimbursed team members for the cost of the program if they stuck with it. We’ve offered annual onsite flu clinics for several years and will continue. We coordinate everything for the convenience of our staff. Each team member covers the costs of the actual shot. Concerning fitness results, we don’t do weigh-ins or measure muscle mass. But we do have eyes. And people look like they’re feeling good. Smiles are up and sniffles down.

Creating a Culture of Wellness

For birthdays and holidays, we discourage bringing in bags of donuts and other tasty but high-calorie, low-nutrition foods. Instead, we encourage treats that are wholesome and not so processed. That doesn’t mean boring. We lay out lavish, beautiful spreads. The company covers the cost.

We removed our vending machine and replaced it with our GG Snack Attack bar. Our office manager purchases fruit, veggies, yogurt, energy bars and other healthy snacks and passes them on at cost. Team members buy items on the honor system. You just toss your money into a pot. Prices are better than what you would pay for something in a vending machine. And the snacks are certainly better for your waistline and blood-sugar levels.

Maintaining Enthusiasm

We offer monthly challenges to keep mixing things up. To date we’ve encouraged staff to take 10,000 Steps a Day, Eat 5 A Day of Fruit & Veggies and increase daily exercise with our Cardio Chaos challenge. We even won the YMCA’s “Eight A Day Water Challenge” for the month of August. Our well-hydrated selves have the added benefit of viewing our traveling trophy throughout September. During a recent noon hour, we held a Healthy Brown Bag on the benefits of whole and raw foods. From the number of questions asked, it’s apparent some learning took place.

Head and Heart

Of course, good physical health also means good mental health. We encourage team members to work reasonable hours (i.e. to not lash themselves to their computers for 10 hours a day), but to get out and live a well-balanced life outside of work. We also encourage giving back to the community and working for good. As an agency, we’ve planted vegetable gardens for inner-city kids, read to shut-ins and distributed coats to the needy. When we feel we’re contributing, we’re happier – and healthier.

Resources

Thinking about ramping up your own wellness program? Here are some links that might spur your thinking. Go forth and be well.

 


A Little Decorum

We’ve been reading about the intense social protocol and cultural sensitivity training the US Olympic team received before the games commenced last Friday. No hugging their Chinese hosts. No improper chopstick spearing of food. No loud, inebriated bar scenes. Seeing our better-conditioned, more-disciplined American selves on the world stage these past few days has prompted inner-office discussion among Greteman Group team members. What impression do we create when we travel abroad? Or closer to home, when we attend public events such as the upcoming Kansas State Fair? (You ARE going, right?)

You have decorum suggestions?

Allow us to start the ball rolling with a few.

  • Don’t push. Your turn will come.
  • Smile. It’s universally understood.
  • Cover up. Leave something to our imaginations.

 


Reflections from CA: Design Heroes

If you were to make a list of your design heroes, who would make the cut? This is the task we tackled during one of the judges’ late-night conversations.

This effort was actually inspired by Jean Coyne’s (pictured to the right) stories about Paul Rand, who, interestingly, was never asked to judge CA. Of course, Jean had countless other stories, but we were sworn not to let them leave the table. (Jean, you rascal, you.)

So here’s the list we assembled of our favorite designers:

  • Milton Glaser
  • Tibor Kalman
  • Woody Pirtle
  • Herb Lubalin
  • Lou Dorfsman
  • Saul Bass
  • Alexey’ Brodovitch
  • Ivan Chermayeff

Thank You CA. I’m incredibly fortunate to have been selected to judge CA. The work inspired me. The judges delighted me. And the whole experience is unforgettable.