Ingram's October 2023

FAMILIAR CONCERNS FOR A NEW GENERATION

by Dennis Boone

Here’s a measure of the pace by which time’s relentless march is redefining generations: When Ingram’s launched its 20 in Their Twenties awards in 2008, the oldest eligible members of that age cohort hailed from the trailing edge of Generation X. Today, those same people are hit ting their mid-40s. The last of the Millennials who succeeded them will age out of this category in about two more years. That means Gen Z now dominates the demographic, and will for the better part of the next decade. Do those differences matter? They have to—the world today, and the business world in particular, isn’t the same one that confronted people at the start of their careers 15 years ago. Happily, young entrepreneurs and executives are rising to the challenge of a new era, as you’ll see with Ingram’s 2023 Class of 20 in Their Twenties.

Drawing on a network of thousands of corporate leadership contacts, Ingram’s solicits nominations each year for 20 in Their Twenties. We ask them to identify high achievers who demonstrate attri butes of entrepreneurship in their work. Here are a score of promising young executives seen as outstanding examples of that.

JULIANA ALVEY CBIZ

LAKYN BOLTZ SPORTING KANSAS CITY

Working for a large employee benefits company is no barrier to personal entre preneurship. Case in point: Juliana Alvey, 29, a client-services executive with CBIZ. Whether it’s procuring new business through RFP selling, nationalizing a service function, or formulating new on boarding processes, “In every position

“Entrepreneurs start from scratch and strive every single day to enhance their own book of business,” says Lakyn Boltz. That approach has worked out well for this 27-year-old senior account executive at Sporting Kansas City. From a blank book of business in 2021, she is now generating ticket sales revenue

I’ve had at CBIZ, I’ve created something new that had never previously existed,” she says. Those RFP sales have brought in more than $10 million since 2018, and her service team’s KPIs are near the top of the scale. The onboarding effort produced a 90 percent retention rate after two years, with nearly half being promoted in that time frame—and the program will be extended across the employee benefits operations nation- wide in 2024. “Being an entrepreneur means very little if we are not using our talents in the service of others,” Alvey says. “I am dedicated to creating sustainable cultures of growth and opportunity that persist beyond my tenure.”

that ranks among the highest in the team’s history for an individual in her position. “I increased my year-over-year sales by 140 percent in 2022 and I am currently on pace to surpass last year’s number for the 2023 season,” Boltz says. She attributes her success in part to the sales of two long term suite leases to up-and-coming Kansas City businesses. Rarities among new account execs, these suite leases reflect her ability to connect with leadership in the rising business community while bringing in new revenue and new guests for Sporting KC’s premium spaces at Children’s Mercy Park.

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I ngr am ’ s

Kansas City’s Business Media

October 2023