KC Crew founder Luke Wade loves playing sports. But as an urban dweller, he tired of driving to the suburbs to play in organized leagues. So, he started forming leagues for fellow downtown Kansas City residents who wanted to participate in leagues closer to where they lived. In its first year, KC Crew signed up nearly 1,000 participants. That was in 2012. During the next two years, the company saw…

Former Kansas Citian Jeanne Johnson joins Smart Companies Thinking Bigger host Kelly Scanlon to discuss what it’s been like to be the “only woman in the room” during her tech career, and she passes along the insights she’s learned to create a pathway to success. Johnson is currently Americas Azure Strategist in the Global Black Belt organization at Microsoft focused on Azure. She has spent her career in the technology…