Biztalk With Bill Roy

Reverie Roasters founder Andrew Gough talks about taking the risk of creating his own business, the assistance he got and his plans for the future.

Wichita Police Chief Gordon Ramsay believes that law enforcement is an important part of a business community and local economic development efforts. He says companies don't want to come to a community if they feel that their employees and their families aren't safe. Chief Ramsay is my guest this week on the BizTalk with Bill Roy Podcast. We're up to Episode 21.

Manufacturing is important to Wichita's economy, and 4th District Rep. Ron Estes says gains in the U.S. economy, thanks to the Trump Administration, will help boost manufacturing companies in south central Kansas. Estes is my guest again this week on the BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast, as we feature part two of our discussion.

When Kansas 4th District Congressman Ron Estes returns to Washington D.C. after the August recess he'll take with him a message from his constituents: Make sure Congress gets something done. And he says another effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act might be more successful after the start of the new year, when people are feeling even more pain from the impact of Obamacare. Estes got the job in April, winning a special election to take Mike Pompeo's place as he moved on to director of the CIA. He is my guest this week on episode 14 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast.

Hundreds of thousands of people attend each year Wichita's biggest party, the Wichita River Festival. While rain impacted the 2017 Riverfest, entitled River Madness, Wichita Festivals Inc. President and CEO Mary Beth Jarvis says the event was a great success. In Episode 8 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast, we learn more about Jarvis and her path to Wichita and Festivals Inc. She fills us in on some of this year's Riverfest numbers and talks about the positive momentum for our community.

Chuck Coffey is a doctor, but he's also a businessman. He earned an MBA and a master's in public health in addition to his MD. He says business and health care have not always played together well. Coffey and his partners at FreeState Healthcare are trying to merge the two with their clinic and telemedicine idea.

The Amazon Effect: How taxpayers are funding Amazon's disruption of the U.S. economy. This week's BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast features Wilson, and discussions with a couple of leaders at our parent company, American City Business Journals: Jon Wile, chief content officer; and Craig Douglas, director of editorial research and analysis.

A discussion with Hatman Jack Kellogg, owner of Wichita Hat Works.

The city's decision on the future of Century II will have a big impact on the community. It will also have a big impact on the organizations that call Century II home, including Music Theatre Wichita. MTW Producing Artistic Director Wayne Bryan says his organization supports making a change, but he fears how a renovation or the construction of a new building might impact them. He's hoping MTW and other stakeholders are able to give their input on the future of the building. The WBJ wrote last week about the options being considered by the Wichita City Council. Bryan is my guest for Episode 18 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast.

Jennifer Ray wanted to run her own business. She had worked at bars and restaurants, but wanted an establishment to call her own. She heard some space became available in Delano and she jumped on it. She was serving her first customers in 62 days. And she learned lessons along the way. Jennifer Ray, owner of The Monarch, is my guest on Episode 17 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy Podcast.

Jeff Herndon hit the big time. He was a news anchorman in Chicago, the third largest market in the United States. Herndon enjoyed his time there and got to cover a lot of great stories featuring interesting and, sometimes, famous people. But after four years the former KAKE anchorman was ready to return to Wichita. He begins the next chapter in his career Monday as assistant news director and anchor at KSN. In episode 16 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy Podcast Herndon talks about his decision to leave, his decision to return and what he hopes to accomplish now that he's back.

The Wichita Business Journal started writing about Josh Umbehr and his Atlas MD medical practice even before it was opened. Seven years later Umbehr's practice is growing, his idea is spreading and he's getting national and international media attention. HIs idea was to create a physician practice in which patients pay a monthly fee and have no copay. They have access to their doctor through text and email on top of making phone calls. They can send pictures of their injuries or maladies to their doctors or even video. And physicians make house calls. That idea has had some appeal throughout the country for patients, policy makers and physicians, especially as we try to figure out our health care system. And he and his co-founder have been written up by national magazines, newspapers and TV shows. He's lost count of how many times Sean Hannity has invited him to appear on his Fox News program. Umbehr is this week's guest on episode 13 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast.

Tom Devlin is a business legend. Devlin is the founder of Rent-A-Center. He created it, became CEO then sold it. Then he created one of the top-rated golf courses in the country, Flint Hills National in Andover. Devlin is my guest in episode 12 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast, along with the president-emeritus of Flint Hills National, Tom Dower. Devlin asked Dower, his good friend, to build the golf course and fulfill Devlin's vision for it.

When I'm speaking to groups or making connections with people at events I've been asking where this newfound excitement about the Wichita flag came from. Most tell me it's the work of Janelle King. King is the owner of JK Design and The Workroom at 155 N. Cleveland. She's my guest this week on episode 11 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast.

If all goes as planned Wichita State University could see a new business school building open for use in a year and a half. The timeline and fundraising effort for the new Barton School of Business building on the WSU innovation campus was one of many topics I discussed with Dr. Anand Desai and Paul Allen in episode 10 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast. Desai is the dean of the Barton School of Business. Allen is the chair of the WSU Foundation and chief executive at Allen, Gibbs and Houlik LC.

We believe it's important to hear opinions on Wichita from young professionals. In Episode 7 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast we talk with a pair of 2017 40 Under 40 winners: Jennifer Hughes, director of human resources for High Touch Technologies Inc., and Doug Ledbetter, assurance senior manager at EY.

Christina Long grew up in Wichita, became a journalist and later created her own business. Now Long, owner of CML Collective, is a member of the Entrepreneurial Task Force and is helping others, particularly minority businesspeople, reach their goals of business ownership.

It's one of the great business success stories in recent Wichita history. Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers started with one store in west Wichita and is now up to more than 250 locations around the country. And Scott Redler has used his experience in the restaurant industry to help lead Freddy's to impressive growth. Redler, CFO of Freddy's, talks about growing up in St. Louis, entering the food service industry as a teenager and how Freddy's got started in Episode 5 of the BizTalk with Bill Roy podcast.

Is your company having trouble attracting and retaining talent? You're not alone. Most of the company leaders we talk to say they are trying to find more talented workers to join their teams. The intensity of the search depends on the industry, but many say they have openings and they can't fill them with the right people. Jeff Fluhr and Leah Lavender say they're trying to help.

On episode 3, we talk with Jeff Fluhr, president of the Greater Wichita Partnership, to get an update on the importance of talent attraction and retention. We also discuss the importance of the continued progress in the downtown area.