Ingram’s September 2022

Tony Bowen CFO, H&R BLOCK

Andrew Bowne CHANCELLOR, JOHNSON COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE Across the state, 19 community colleges overseen by the Kansas Board of Regents are tasked with instruction deemed most imme diately relevant to workforce development. None of the 18 others approaches JCCC in scale, measured either by programming or enrollment. In the driver’s seat for the Overland Park campus is Andrew Bowne, who arrived in 2020 and oversees instruction for nearly 11,000 collegiate undergrads.

A leadership role at the world’s largest tax-preparation firm implies helping a lot of people maximize their returns. This past year, Tony Bowen helped shareholders maximize value, as well. The company took advantage of a depressed market with a $550 million stock buyback at $23.80 a share; this month, it was trading a hair below $45. Bowen leads all financial functions and sets the overall finan cial strategy for the firm.

COLLEGE: B.A., Finance, University of Missouri THE CORPORATE LADDER: Bowen has held various senior leadership roles since joining the compa ny in 2004: vice president of finance for the U.S. Tax Services division and vice president and general manager of H&R Block’s DIY Tax Services business. He has managed online, mobile, and desktop software products and served as assistant vice president of corporate development, program director of finance, director of hedging, and senior treasury analyst. SUCCESS METRICS: H&R Block announced that it was raising its quarterly dividend to 29 cents a share, an increase of 7 percent, and through 2025, the repurchase of $1.25 billion in additional shares. SERENDIPITY: Even before the pandemic set in, Block was building out its virtual capabilities—real estate is one of the biggest expenses for the firm, and the ability to reduce square footage needed in thousands of offices, cutting costs and bolstering efficiencies.

COLLEGE: B.A., Geography/Urban & Regional Planning, M.A and Ed.D., Education, Western Michigan Univ. JCCC PERSPECTIVE: How big is the college? With 16,500 students enrolled either part-time or full time, the undergraduate enrollment is higher than all but two institutions: The University of Kansas (23,958) and K-State (19,753). RESUMÉ HIGHLIGHTS: Bowne’s extensive experience in higher education administration has in cluded an emphasis on institutional culture, workforce training, partnerships with K-12 schools for lifelong learning, working with community stakeholders, successful fundraising, and promoting public-private partnerships. BEFORE JCCC: Bowne previously served as senior vice president and chief operating officer for the entire Indiana community college system of 18 campuses, chancellor of Ivy Tech in Muncie, Ind., and associate vice president of the Grand Rapids Community College Foundation in Michigan.

David Brain CEO, ENFINITE CAPITAL

Mark Brandmeyer PRINCIPAL, BRANDMEYER ENTERPRISES

He’s done a lot of big things in his career, but David Brain is also a testament to the Power of Thinking Little. “You have to celebrate the little victories,” Brain says. “I think more of that is the best thing we can do to build momentum and a positive outlook because they feed on themselves.” In his own case, that has led to Enfinite, which focuses on Brown Cow Capital, a real estate and development firm; and before, EPR Properties, which he co-founded in 1997. He became CEO there in 1999 and led EPR from zero to over $5.5 billion in enterprise value.

You’ve heard of serial entrepreneurs? Mark Brandmeyer goes them one better as a serial executive, with varying C-level engagements over the past 37 years in medical-device production, medical claims payments, construction, venture capital—even baseball. He spent 23 years helping his father build a medical device company, Enturia, that eventually sold to Cardinal Health for a whopping $490 million in 2008.

COLLEGE: B.A., MBA, A.B. Freeman Graduate School of Business, Tulane University NEW VISIONS: Brain is part of the group that took the old Westport Middle School campus and converted it into Plexpod Westport Commons, billed as the world’s largest co-working space when it opened in 2017. Other locations have been created Downtown, in the Crossroads, and Lenexa. POWERING BUSINESS: Enfinite Capital is an investment firm specializing in utility and large-scale commercial and industrial renewable energy, infrastructure, and real estate. Enfinite worked with Black & Veatch’s Diode Ventures to transform the data-center landscape in Virginia in a project valued at $1.6 billion. KC’S CAPITAL ECOSYSTEM: “KC is a big enough business and financial node that it has investment cap ital and professional support services to support a wide variety of business activity. [We have] tended to be at the cutting edge of emerging things. It’s a little difficult, I have to confess, because of the highly conservative nature of the business community, but it’s getting better. I’m pretty excited about early stage investment.”

COLLEGE: B.A., Business, University of Kansas SAVVY MARKETER: Brandmeyer put together the group that stepped in to breathe new life into the flagging T-Bones baseball franchise playing in the Village West stadium, then quickly—and wisely— collaborated with Negro Leagues Baseball Museum to capitalize on an iconic brand: Kansas City Monarchs. SAVVY INVESTOR: Brandmeyer Enterprises invests in health-care companies, especially those in the therapeutic space, at every stage of company development, with a 13-year history that includes multiple acquisitions and exits. OTHER DUTIES: Brandmeyer is also a partner with Built, an interior-construction company, and director of the MoKan youth basketball club. WAIT! THERE’S MORE!: He’s a man who likes his scheduling calendar full: Brandmeyer is also a principal with Valmar, a property investment and management company.

Pamela Breuckmann CEO, FERRELL CAPITAL

Robin Broder Gibson CHAIRMAN/CMO, HENDERSON ENGINEERS

Heading up the organization tasked with preserving the Ferrell legacy, Pamela Breuckmann takes every success personally. “As a member of the Board at Ferrellgas,” she said, “I am very proud of the nearly $2.9 billion recapitalization of Ferrellgas we completed inMarch 2021.” At her offices, things are clicking, too. No “great resignation” there: “It is because we have hired some really bright people that work hard and enjoy being challenged; in turn, they are appreciated and rewarded.”

Robin Broder Gibson has not just one title at Henderson Engineers. Or two. She’s hit the trifecta: As CMO, she leads a team of business development professionals in procuring work, building client rela tionships, and creating brand awareness while fostering employee engagement. She has developed and taught classes within the Henderson University curriculum and speaks nationally on topics on soft skills and empowering employees to become brand ambassadors.

COLLEGE: B.S., Business Administration and Accounting, University of Kansas; M.A., Accounting and Information Systems, University of Kansas RECESSION OUTLOOK: “Unlikely in 2022, maybe in 2023. At Ferrell Capital, we are primarily inves tors, so we do the same as in all cycles: do business with smart people. This leverages our team and results in more smart minds making decisions at each underlying business. Said another way, invest with smart people and get out of their way.” CHALLENGES: “Rising interest rates increase the cost of capital and reduce ultimate investment liquidity.” NEXT BIG THING FOR KC: “I am so proud of KC and how it has come onto the scene. KCI, NFL draft, World Cup, Panasonic—the sky is the limit. It is really a tribute to the people in the city, thrusting it forward. I would love to see the city continue to develop and attract businesses, adding to the economic engine.”

COLLEGE: B.A. Communications, Bethel University; Certified Professional Services Marketer A BIG YEAR: “We rolled out a company structure we’d been working on for 18 months. We moved from a regional market model to a new vertical market model, bringing our depth of expertise to gether in a more collaborative way as a national powerhouse. That has been a game changer for us. RECESSION OUTLOOK: “A recession is somewhat likely, but we joke that we have decided not to participate in it when it does happen. Kidding aside, we have a depth and diversity of clientele that is well-positioned to weather the storm.” KC’S NEXT BIG THING: “The upcoming KC Current Stadium at Berkley Riverfront will be a game-chang er as the first stadium built exclusively for a women’s team.” (Henderson is a project partner.) CHIEFS PREDICTION: “No one else has Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid on their side, so I believe we’re going undefeated and bringing home another Super Bowl championship.”

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I n g r a m ’ s

September 2022

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