Status and Health of Local Corporations

[Chris Stritzel]

Can some explain to me what difference it makes if companies are on these lists? As long as companies have jobs here, I don't care if they're based here.

[langosta]

Can some explain to me what difference it makes if companies are on these lists? As long as companies have jobs here, I don't care if they're based here.

HQ’s generally have the higher paying jobs, more corporate travel, entertainment, philanthropy spend. Less likely to be cut or moved than a regional or back office.

HQ’s, their owners, and executives generally play a major role in the surrounding community’s civic and philanthropic circles. They help to land new businesses in the region, fund raise museum expansions, support flights to Europe, sponsor sports teams, etc.

[KC_Ari]

How close would Black and Veatch and Burns and McDonnell be to the list? Those are two large employee/privately owned companies.

[FangKC]

One of the first things economic development entities do when trying to lure new businesses to a Metro area is to list the Fortune 500 and 1000 companies, and other large companies, that are headquartered or have a large presence in the area.

It gives outsiders some sense of the economic health of the community.

[Highlander]

It's been dying for a while but the Interstate Bakeries > Hostess Brands tenure has now ended in Kansas City. Parent company Smucker (as a result of 2023 acquisition) made the announcement today. KC loses another legacy company and HQ. Not a huge loss in terms of employment.

[langosta]

Jamie Dimon was in KC today to visit clients and staff. Believe he was scheduled to visit the current stadium as well. Very cool. How many does their operation in KS employ?

[SingleMalt12]

He was all over the midwest today.

[langosta]

He was all over the midwest today.

How many are employed by the KS operation? Think it’s shrunk to a middling back office from what once was a respectable support operation.

[Chris Stritzel]

If a post on Twitter is to be believed, Morton Salt is leaving their office in Chicago’s Loop for Overland Park. The headquarters has around 180 employees (according to Google, they had 300 until 2021 when they laid off 120).
https://x.com/illinijen/status/1822017975291146638?s=46

[langosta]

If a post on Twitter is to be believed, Morton Salt is leaving their office in Chicago’s Loop for Overland Park. The headquarters has around 180 employees (according to Google, they had 300 until 2021 when they laid off 120).
https://x.com/illinijen/status/1822017975291146638?s=46

Morton has job listing for OPKS. Google search seems to return an office within Executive Hills.

Within 30 years, this once great American brand has been reduced from their own 36 floor tower on the Chicago river to a few floors in some random Kansas surban office building

[Cratedigger]

He was all over the midwest today.

How many are employed by the KS operation? Think it’s shrunk to a middling back office from what once was a respectable support operation.

Not sure - a significant portion of the office used to be the retirement planning services which were sold to Empower a while back

[herrfrank]

If a post on Twitter is to be believed, Morton Salt is leaving their office in Chicago’s Loop for Overland Park. The headquarters has around 180 employees (according to Google, they had 300 until 2021 when they laid off 120).
https://x.com/illinijen/status/1822017975291146638?s=46

Morton Salt built that Wacker Drive tower (Chicago, pictured) not from its table salt, but from its brief dominance in the automotive component market, specifically airbag deploy mechanisms.

That was sold, and now it's back to just table salt.

Overland Park should take the Win. LOL

[Sani]

They're probably thanking their lucky stars that they got out of airbag deployment components when they did. They had enough issues being one-half of Morton Thiokol after the Challenger disaster.

[langosta]

Cross first bank bought out with the banking HQ moving to Illinois. Holding co claims it will stay in KC HQ

[Anthony_Hugo98]

Cross first bank bought out with the banking HQ moving to Illinois. Holding co claims it will stay in KC HQ

Constantly being picked apart

[langosta]

Cross first bank bought out with the banking HQ moving to Illinois. Holding co claims it will stay in KC HQ

Constantly being picked apart

Lack of talent, lack of tech, lack of capital

[Rusty Irish]

Yeah that'll be nothing more than a regional back office in Leawood.

[TheLastGentleman]

Cross first bank bought out with the banking HQ moving to Illinois. Holding co claims it will stay in KC HQ

Constantly being picked apart

Lack of talent, lack of tech, lack of capital

Did we used to have more talent/tech/capital or something? The fact that we keep losing corporate jobs while the city is by all accounts improving does not make sense to me. Did employers really prefer running a business out of the gutted burnt out wreck of 1980s KC?

[langosta]

Constantly being picked apart

Lack of talent, lack of tech, lack of capital

Did we used to have more talent/tech/capital or something? The fact that we keep losing corporate jobs while the city is by all accounts improving does not make sense to me. Did employers really prefer running a business out of the gutted burnt out wreck of 1980s KC?

KC’s talent has become progressively more mediocre over time has been my takeaway. Similarly relative wealth growth has lagged as peers surpassed, same with general economic growth and job creation. Investment in higher education would boost job creation and business attraction/retention in the metro,

Regarding technology, a relevant example has been the expansion of national banks into KC. The result of a few factors including increased regulatory burden benefiting economies of scale. Quite plainly, larger national banks can invest in technology lowering their costs, Kansas City’s banks haven’t kept up creating an opening for outside players - something confirmed by one of the largest national banks’ statements.

[SingleMalt12]

The large national banks are expanding in a lot of cities, not just Kansas City.