Ingram's April 2023

40 UNDER FORTY

startup to Top Five among the biggest banks based in this region. Mariner Wealth Advisors was still a gleam in MARTY BICKNELL ’s eye when he cracked the 2005 lineup while still with A.G. Edwards & Sons. He founded Mariner a year later and since then, has leveraged organic growth and a monster appetite for acquisitions to take it past $90 billion in AUM. He didn’t have any rungs above him on his career ladder in 2005— TIM BARTON was the founder and CEO of Freightquote.com. The year he was honored, this freight-shipping specialty concern posted a respectable $138 mil. in revenues. But there were plenty of rungs to climb with revenues, and Barton’s company did just that on the way to being acquired by C.H. Robinson in 2015 for a whop ping $365 million. PETER MALLOUK headlined a stellar 2007 class and telegraphed what was to come with his leadership of Creative Planning. He’s taken the advisory to No. 1 among wealth-management firms in the region, surpassing even American Century in recent years. It now boasts more than $240 billion in assets under management. NEAL SHARMA , another 2007 honoree, was part of the founding leadership of Digital Evolution Group, which roared up the fast-growth charts as a digital marketing agency

for nearly 20 years until it was acquired by a Japanese con- glomerate in 2018 at a reported price of $150 million. He’s still active with his roles on boards and civic groups. Yet another 2007 honoree, SCOTT LYNN , under- stood the power of Internet advertising as a teenager and founded the online marketing company Virtumundo about the time he was old enough to buy a beer in Missouri. At 24, he launched Adknowledge, which became a digital marketing monster with nine-digit revenues; today, its successor is V2 Ventures, with 2011 alum MARCO ILARDI as CEO. TODD CROSSLEY , a 2013 honoree, cracked the lineup in 2013, largely for his administration of the Northland car dealership founded by his father. But he also flashed his entrepreneurial chops as founder of VinSolutions, a digital platform that allowed other dealers to streamline sales oper ations. That was acquired by AutoTrader.com for a reported $135 million. There are virtually hundreds (945 to be precise) more highly-achieved 40 Under Forty alums in leadership posi tions throughout the greater KC area and several others serving communities across the nation. We’re confident that the 2023 class of honorees will continue to grow and further claim their position of greater influence in the coming years.

KANSAS CITY’S BUSINESS MAGAZINE

COMING IN MAY . . .

Best Companies to Work For Who are the best employers in the Kansas City region? Find out in May when Ingram’s brings you our 2023 Best Companies to Work For . From compensation and benefits, to work environment, training, fiscal health, civic engagement, and now all the things firms are doing in response to the pandemic, you’ll read about companies that are setting new standards for attracting and retaining a new kind of employee dominating today’s work force. Consider nominating your company.

2023 TOP PRIVATE COMPANIES

Ingram’s Top 100 Private Companies Year in and year out, you’ll find the pillars of the Kansas City business community in the Ingram’s 100, featuring the biggest organizations with top-line revenues that shape the regional economy. Our May edition will feature the 13th annual install ment of this prestigious roster of high-performing companies. Enter today to claim your hard-earned place among Kansas City’s pinnacle companies in Ingram’s 100.

INGRAM’S

Nominations for both awards are due by Wednesday, April 26, 2023. Register on-line at www.Ingrams.com/Nominate Questions? Contact Dennis Boone at 816.268.6402 or 816.842.9994, or email Editorial@Ingrams.com.

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April 2023

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