BIG Report FY17 - Barton International Group

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National Debate Championships. Cynthia Matson .... BIG had the opportunity in April to present to the NAC within the WSU
The BIG Report Fiscal Year 2017

Letter from the CEO Fellow Stakeholder, As the Barton International Group, we strive year-round to develop educational enrichment opportunities for our members, to best provide for our clients exceptional, diverse and creative business solutions. From feasibility studies to consumer surveys, we aim to deliver essential information used to enhance the go-to-market strategy for our clients’ products and services. Earlier this year, we had multiple news entities from Wichita and across the country publish stories about BIG involving our mission, our history and recent achievements. In an effort to become better integrated into the Wichita community, to the benefit of not only the city but also ourselves with the connections and experiences gained, we recently joined the Wichita Chamber of Commerce to provide additional exposure and available resources for our team. We are extremely thankful for the response we have received from the community as well as the relationships that have grown from the efforts everyone involved is making. This year, BIG completed multiple projects, providing clients with in-depth, applicable and cutting edge recommendations for their specific problems and needs. Using the charitable contributions collected from these projects, we had the opportunity again this year to travel to an innovative domestic city in order to gain valuable insights into a new business community and provide our members with networking opportunities. We are very excited about the advancements and connections made this year and are looking forward to the opportunities that will be available to us in the future. Jacob Archer CEO

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Table of Contents 1

Letter from the CEO

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The Team

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Member Highlights

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History, Mission, Specializations

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Project Highlight

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Travel

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News

The Team

Barton International Group, otherwise known as BIG, is a student run company comprised of driven, diverse undergraduate students working in partnership with the W. Frank Barton School of Business at Wichita State University. As of the spring of 2017, BIG had 32 members ranging in majors from Engineering to Psychology and Marketing. In the fall of 2017, BIG will go through its annual reruitment in order to find even more exceptional individuals to join the group.

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Member Highlights Amy Vuong

Brian Gericke

Interning at Koch Supply & Trading as an Exchange Risk Analyst

Koch Discovery Scholarship Finalist

Nominated as 2016 Order of Omega Outstanding Greek Junior

Interning at Spirit Aerosystems Studied abroad in San Sebastián, Spain.

Caelan Dean

Carmen Resco

Interning at Great Plains Industries

Interning at e2e

Won Clay Barton Scholarship Competitor at 2016 & 2017 National Debate Championships

Presented research at the Human Factors and Ergonomics in Health Care International Symposium

Cynthia Matson

Jacob Archer

Interning at KNOXX

Accepted position as Director of New Business at Sweetman Investments

Kansas Financial Scholar Koch Discovery Scholarship Finalist

Levi Iseman

Whitney Feltrop

Accepted position at Commercial Laundry Sales and Service

Interning at Textron Aviation

Awarded 1st place in the Shocker New Venture Competition with business Pinole Blue

PR Officer for the Barton School Dean’s Ambassadors Koch Discovery Scholarship Recipient

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History, Mission, Specializations History BIG’s 13 founding members knew they needed to do more than what was offered in the classroom; they needed the opportunity to put their skills to the test. With the help of an outstanding supervisor, Kate Kung-McIntyre, Wichita State Univeristy’s very first student run consulting company was launched in 2008.

Mission To offer specialized services to local companies and international corporations through innovative and competitive business strategies. The employees at Barton International Group bring fresh perspectives and “big” ideas to clients in the global marketplace.

Specializations From feasability studies to consumer surveys, we provide essential information to enhance your go-to-market strategy for your produt or service, and allows us to tackle today’s business challenges.

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Project Highlight

The Focus Star Lumber is a local lumber supplier serving Wichita and the South Central Kansas area since 1939. Asked to analyze Star Lumber’s residential flooring division in comparison to other local competitors, BIG invoked a variety of tools and strategies to answer the call.

Our Solution Our team collected data through customer interviews, “secret shopper” research, and an internal focus group focused on how the company can improve from within.

In The End The data was used to build a comprehensive SWOT analysis and perceived value analysis to help Star Lumber enhance and refine their business efforts. Star Lumber is now better able to serve their customers as they recognize the areas that keep customers from buying their products. The company was also reassured that many of their customers found their products and services valuable.

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Travel Seattle, WA

Companies Visited • Costco Headquarters • Neiman Marcus

• Avvo • Avalera

• Taphandles

Knowledge Gained The first major takeaway from each company was the importance of developing a unique work environment and continuously finding ways to improve that environment so that it was efficient and enjoyable. While one company kept a very simple and conservative layout to their offices, each employee sitting in a cubicle, even the CEO. Another was designed so that employees could keep a sense of personal identity in their work space. The walls were covered in writing as employees brainstormed, the halls were lined with cardboard cutouts of various celebrities, and there were even a few dogs running around the halls. This taught us that one environment was not better than the other, but that both were adapted to fit the ideals and needs of both the companies and their employees. The other major take away from the Seattle trip came from the individuals that we spoke with. Whether it was a member of the executive team or an associate, everyone had passion for what they were doing. These individuals were perfect examples of what to remember when choosing a post college career; find something you can care about and the "job" won't really matter.

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bartoninternationalgroup.com

1845 Fairmount St. Wichita, KS 67260

facebook.com/wsubig

twitter.com/wsubig

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News One Million Cups Presentation In June, BIG was invited to present our company to One Million Cups, an event organized by the Kauffman Foundation that is a free program designed to educate, engage, and connect entrepreneurs with their communities. The presentation was given by CEO Jacob Archer and EVP Kristen Boxman, and it gave an overview of the group as well as brief coverage of some past projects that we had done.

National Advisory Council Presentation BIG had the opportunity in April to present to the NAC within the WSU Foundation. The experience was beneficial for the group and gave us the opportunity to share the great things we are doing with even more people within WSU and the community.

Wichita Chamber of Commerce Membership BIG recently became members of the Wichita Chamber of Commerce. This membership provides our members with access to exclusive events and opportunities to grow professionally. Additionally, members have an opportunity to network and create connections for the group.

Confirmed Office Space on Innovation Campus In May, BIG recieved confirmation from the Dean of the business school, Anand Desai, that the group would be receiving space within the new business building on the Innovation Campus to function as our office and headquarters. This will be the first time in BIG’s history that the group will have a permanent residence and space to call our own.

News Articles An article in January by The Wichita Eagle highlighted the group’s growth, specialities, mission as well as the assumptions that are made about the work done because of the average level of experience within the group. KWCH12 published a story in February featuring an interview with CEO Jacob Archer about the work that BIG has done and the experiences we are striving to give our members. The Washington Times, based in Washington, DC, wrote a publication in January referencing the article in the Wichita Eagle that covers BIG’s development and the work that the group does to make it stand out from other businesses and student organizations similar to it.

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