Ingram's October 2022

ether and with the intent for all parties to be successful.” Family, too, was a consideration for Kaitlyn DeYoung, an attorney with the global firm K&L Gates. At this point in her career, she says, “it’s a place close to my family, and I had the opportunity to work at a great law firm. … I’ve always lived in the Midwest, and Kansas City represents the collision of Midwest values with the amenities of a big city. Arielle Nash, who grew up here, has had a chance to see other cities with her work developing affordable-housing projects for the Nash Group. “I do think KC is a great place to start,” she said. But her challenge as a developer is finding people who are hungry and understand the risk associated with working in the development space. Millions of workers nationwide have come to realize that they can live anywhere and still contribute to companies with operations in distant cities, adding additional leverage to what’s known as the Kansas City Value Proposition for business. “Because of this, it’s easier to live wherever you’d like and still be able to make connections with others throughout your industry,” DeYoung said. Pittsburgh-based K&L has offices here, but most of the client base is outside of Kansas and Missouri. “That said, many of our clients engage our firm because we can be competitive with our rates due to our Midwest location, but we still provide the same high-quality work as the firms in New York and Los Angeles.” That dynamic also resonates withMicah Proctor, a medical economics actuary for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City. “Increased prevalence of remote work makes Kansas City and our low cost of living an attractive place for people at all levels in a company,” Proctor said. While life in the nation’s capital is an animal completely different fromKC, Pitts- burgh isn’t a big stretchwith its demographic profile. Two years away from her roots in those cities made Hannah Morrey Brown realize that coming back was prudent. Now she has a key leadership role with Burns & McDonnell’s consulting offshoot, 1898&Co. “The size of the city, central location, and the fact that it is an engineering hubmake it

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1. Austin Miller cites the collaborative nature of business leadership as an attribute that helps set Kansas City apart. | 2. Many of the amenities that his peers cited as contributing to the quality of life in this region stem from work done by the Greater Kansas City Sports Commission & Foundation, said Jacob Robertson. | 3 . The prevalence of remote work in the pandemic era, says Micah Proctor, combined with comparative housing affordability, is a powerful tool for retention of workers at all levels. | 4 . Sidney Miller noted the challenges facing many young home-buyers with the increased presence of corporate buyers driving up demand, and with it, prices.

a uniquely perfect option outside of D.C. for someone in energy policy,” Morrey Brown says. “I was drawn to my past experience living and working here where the business community is small enough to easily connect across but large enough to offer numerous opportunities.” The large footprint of global engineering, construction, and architecture firms, she said, made it one of few places outside of D.C. where she could realistically pursue a career in energy policy. Sarina Shanks is a St. Louis native who saw KC as the place to pursue her passions as a designer with BRR Arch itecture. This community, she says, “is currently a foundation for me in my career. I hope my career growth aligns with the growth of the city.”

His family’s ownership of a concrete and masonry company was one factor that pulled Will Thomas back here after a short stint in Tulsa. It was the right move, he said, in large part because of opportunities that abound here. “At this time, absolutely,” he said. “The government released the infrastructure package, the airport will be completed in March 2023, the NFL draft will be in April 2023, and then the World Cup will be here in 2026. Kansas City is growing quickly with internal and external investment. I want to be here and be part of the growth.” Jake Durham of Brush Creek Partners says he found a hidden gem when he moved here after earning his degree at Texas A&M. “I honestly did not know what

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Kansas City’s Business Media