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Wichita Business Journal: 40 Under 40 Hall of Fame

Each year we have difficult choices to make.

While a committee of previous 40 Under 40 winners select the annual honorees, we at the Wichita Business Journal choose the people who are added to the list of 40 Under 40 Hall of Fame honorees.

So far a dozen 40 Under 40 hall of famers have been chosen, four per year in 2014, 2015 and 2016. They’re featured in the attached photo gallery.

As you check out the photos of the hall of famers, think about who should be nominated for the 2017 honors and let us know. You can email me at [email protected], DM me on Twitter, @ICTBiz_BRoy or leave a comment on Facebook.

We are also taking nominations for the 2017 40 Under 40 honors. If you have someone in mind please nominate them here. And check out the class of 2016 in the related content section on the left.

Bill Roy is the editor of the WBJ.

Wichita Business Journal, October 20th, 2016

10.21.16 · Greteman Group

GDUSA Magazine: Greteman Group 2015 holiday outreach recognized for responsible design

Several years ago, GDUSA began to spotlight the good works of design firms active in “green” design. In the early days, the focus was well-meaning but narrow: how designers used and sourced specific products or services ‒ good examples being recycled papers or vegetable inks ‒ to reduce waste.

Then, over time, a more holistic notion of “sustainability” arose that encompassed papers, products and services, yes, but also took into account broader concerns such as energy and emissions, forest stewardship and conservation, third party certifications and sourcing, media alternatives and relative footprints, shipping and distribution, internal studio procedures ‒ all now seen as integral factors in sustainable design.

Then the circle expanded even further. Designers moved beyond asking questions about their specific area of design and production expertise, and sought to align sustainability with the client’s brand, products, mission, processes, and practices in ways that are real, verifiable, transparent, commonsensical.

Last year, we noted another expansion. In what seemed like a tipping point moment, more and more designers embraced the notion of responsibility writ large ‒ linking environmental responsibility and social responsibility, designing for good and for positive social change ‒ and in the process blurring or erasing the lines between these concepts. This showed up first in non-profit or advocacy clients but is fast becoming a staple of the for-profit sector as well.

And so, it has come to feel anachronistic to invite design firms to participate in a traditional “green” issue because sustainable design and socially responsible design are so intertwined. I struggled with how to frame this evolution but, luckily for me, the creatives we spotlight get the point. Stripped to its essence, we are talking about “responsible design.” Designing responsibly matters no matter how you label it or what you call it.

screen-shot-2016-10-19-at-9-31-31-amSonia Greteman, President and Creative Director writes:

Over our 27-year history our agency has developed an international reputation for concept-oriented creative delivered with integrity. Our niche as aviation-marketing specialists developed naturally from our base in Wichita, Kan. ‑ the Air Capital. But while we advance products and services that help us fly, we care greatly about strong communities and paying it forward. We’ve always taken on causes close to our heart ‑ animals, art, children, wellness. Donating or steeply discounting our services. We live life with passion and pour our energies into efforts to make our community and the world better. Our agency manifesto calls us to be pathfinders that connect and spur people to action. We harness technology to reach new audiences. We seek beauty in service to our efforts. And sometimes simply for beauty’s sake. We strive to be more forge than factory. To trust our instincts and protect our standards, while striving for the unexpected.

Greteman Group’s holiday gift-giving tradition works on several levels. It celebrates clients, benefits a worthy cause and provides a creative showcase. The agency makes a donation on clients’ behalf and sends symbolic gifts. For the 2015 holiday season, the agency discovered a local charity in need, one that helps injured raptors fly again. The concept, Wings in the Wind, communicated the desire to help get these birds of prey back in the air. Clients couldn’t miss the agency’s wishes for a new year distinguished by free, unfettered flight. Beautiful script font Wings in the Wind promised something special. Tucked inside they found a 10” x 12” card holding ready-to-color owl and eagle masks plus a large set of colored pencils: renewable, recyclable materials. Original illustrations play off the stress-relieving adult coloring books that are all the rage. The masks reinforce Greteman Group’s aviation market niche while communicating the agency’s choice for the nonprofit gift: Eagle Valley Raptor Center. Recipients were encouraged to bring the black-and-white creations to life with color and to share them by posting photos on social media and tagging them with #MyWings. People who didn’t receive the mailing could still join in by downloading online versions, a solution that kept printing to a minimum. Birds of prey exhibit power and grace. They inspire us to conquer the sky and soar with them. Restoring injured birds to health and returning them the wild, where they belong, puts the world in greater balance. Which manifests the season’s messages of peace and joy.

Download Masks Here.

GRETEMAN GROUP PROJECT DESIGN TEAM
Sonia Greteman, president and creative director
Marc Bosworth, art director
Meghan Smith, art director

Published October 18th, 2016 by GD USA magazine.

10.19.16 · Greteman Group

Business Aviation: Situationally Aware

Business aviation took a front-row seat in the Air Capital last Thursday. First at a Richard Aboulafia-led aerospace panel at Wichita State University’s annual economic outlook conference, then at the Wichita Aero Club October meeting featuring John and Martha King. Both shared insights I’ve been mulling over.

Let’s start with the aerospace panel and Aboulafia’s reassurance that his forecast would be more positive this time. He said his earlier projection when the global aviation downturn hit in 2008 “falls under the category when bad things happen to good people.” Then just to remind us how bad it was, he showed an aircraft delivery chart full of downward lines and said, “That red line at the bottom, that’s what happened to Wichita.” The difference this time around, he said, is that the strong correlation between oil prices and large aircraft has less effect on Wichita’s small and midsize markets. He practically had us dancing in the aisles when he added that the serious body blow to Wichita’s small and midsize markets is a thing of the past. The worries today, he said are more for big aircraft, such as those manufactured in Savannah.

Aboulafia’s chart for aircraft production from 2006 to 2025 shows growth. That steady, light-blue ribbon represents business aviation.

Not soaring, but certainly holding its own. Steady as she goes.

Aircraft Production Chart

Fellow panelists Jason Cox and Dave Franson acquitted themselves well, as always. Franson recounted why Wichita will remain the Air Capital – not the least of which is that we’ve manufactured more planes than anywhere on the planet – more than 300,000 since the 1920s.

Cox, a third-generation aviation supplier, spoke about the fourth revolution or the internet of things having arrived “like a teenager on Instagram.” And, it’s obvious Cox welcomes the innovation these new technologies and possibilities bring.

At the Wichita Aero Club luncheon following this panel, John and Martha King provided a global picture of flight training. John started things off with a bold statement, “Flight training determines the future of aviation.” Yes, they’re apt to be biased since flight training is their business, but they also bring a perspective molded by decades of experience. “Flying made the world accessible to us and changed our view of the world forever,” said John.

After coming from a panel more focused on the manufacture of aircraft, it was good to be reminded of the importance of the human element – specifically pilots. Having enough of them to fly our fleets and training that keeps them aloft.

“Experience is a lousy teacher,” John said. “It gives the test first then teaches the lesson after. … We need to develop a new risk-management vocabulary and system.”

As always, technology keeps things interesting. “Here come the drones, and they’re a big deal,” said Martha. In less than a year, more than 550,000 unmanned aircraft were registered. Manned aircraft number less than half that. And the drones keep getting better, with huge advances in drone see-and-avoid technology.

“Boy is it coming fast,” said Martha. Both Kings encouraged the aviation community to welcome remote pilots into the fold, but they acknowledged that privacy concerns make us look at operators skeptically. “We have a fascination and a fear of anything that rises up into the third dimension,” said John.

“It’s a wonderful, wonderful thing to be in this sacred place of Wichita, Kansas,” said John King, pictured here with his partner and wife Martha. Together these legendary instructors co-run and co-own the King Schools. And have for more than 40 years. Photo credit: Visual Media Group, photographer Brett Schauf.
“It’s a wonderful, wonderful thing to be in this sacred place of Wichita, Kansas,” said John King, pictured here with his partner and wife Martha. Together these legendary instructors co-run and co-own the King Schools. And have for more than 40 years. Photo credit: Visual Media Group, photographer Brett Schauf.

I had the privilege of having dinner with John and Martha King the night before their Wichita Aero Club presentation. My dad, aerial photographer Paul Bowen, joined in the fun, too.
I had the privilege of having dinner with John and Martha King the night before their Wichita Aero Club presentation. My dad, aerial photographer Paul Bowen, joined in the fun, too.
John and Martha signed my 1996-era private-pilot coursebook and VHS tape when they came to Wichita recently. Yes, they taught me to fly just as they have so many others. Nothing like learning from the best. They are the first and only husband and wife to hold every category and class of FAA pilot and instructor certificates.
John and Martha signed my 1996-era private-pilot coursebook and VHS tape when they came to Wichita recently. Yes, they taught me to fly just as they have so many others. Nothing like learning from the best. They are the first and only husband and wife to hold every category and class of FAA pilot and instructor certificates.

Seems like wherever the topic centers around aviation, I run into my dad, Paul Bowen. You may, too. He gets around. May be how his work has landed on more than 1,000 aviation magazine covers.
Seems like wherever the topic centers around aviation, I run into my dad, Paul Bowen. You may, too. He gets around. May be how his work has landed on more than 1,000 aviation magazine covers.

This column ran in the October 13th issue of BlueSky Business Aviation News.

10.12.16 · Ashley Bowen Cook