March 22, 2024 - Build-a-Bear Maxine Clark and FranklinCovey Project Management Kory Kogon

School for Startups Radio

Maxine Clark – Founder of Build-A-Bear Workshop®, CEO of the Clark-Fox Family Foundation, and Chief Inspirator of the Delmar DivINe™

Office buildings empty but we have 670 people that come here to work
at least several times a week. We don’t have a problem filling our space.
There is something about working in community and being part of something
that’s bigger than you that makes you feel like you can do more than you
have already done.

Maxine Clark founded Build-A-Bear Workshop®, a teddy-bear-themed retail-entertainment experience, and under her leadership, it became a publicly traded company on the NYSE in 2004. Today, Build-A-Bear boasts more than 500 stores worldwide, with more than 500 million stuffed animals sold globally. Upon stepping down from her role as Chief Executive Bear in 2013, she embarked on a mission to empower women and minority entrepreneurs while using her entrepreneurial skills to create opportunities for St. Louis families. Her latest venture, the Delmar DivINe™, transformed the historic St. Luke’s Hospital in the St. Louis West End into a multi-use real estate development, which opened its doors in late 2021. Recently, Venture For America, a national nonprofit and two-year fellowship program for recent college graduates pursuing careers in entrepreneurship, announced the appointment of Maxine Clark as the newest member of its national board of directors. She is recognized not only for her business accomplishments but also for her dedication to education and community engagement. She’s an active member of the Build-A-Bear Workshop Board of Directors, a past member of Footlocker, Inc.’s board of directors, and serves as an Emeritus member of the Washington University Board of Trustees, and of Goldfarb School of Nursing. In recognition of her contributions, Clark was named to the Missouri Public Affairs Hall of Fame in 2017 and was honored as Women of the Year by the Greater Missouri Leadership Foundation in 2015. About Venture For America: Venture For America (VFA) is a national nonprofit organization designed to create entrepreneurial opportunities for early-career professionals. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Detroit, VFA is a two-year paid Fellowship program that helps its Fellows find job opportunities at startups in cities across the United States. Through its Fellowship, VFA serves as an on-ramp to entrepreneurship by providing Fellows with coaching, connections, and community. The nonprofit is committed to ensuring those who have been historically excluded, especially women and people of color, see themselves as future startup leaders or founders.
Kory Kogon – Vice President of Content at FrankilnCovey and Author of Project Management for the Unofficial Project Manager: A FranklinCovey Title

Project managers need to master 5 behaviors. It sounds simple but
it’s really hard when you’re under pressure. Demonstrate respect for
everybody, listen to their people, clarify expectations, extend trust and
practice accountability.

Kory Kogon is FranklinCovey’s vice president of Content and Senior Consultant. She is the Wall Street Journal bestselling co-author of The 5 Choices: The Path to Extraordinary Productivity, and has appeared as an expert on TODAY, MSNBC’s Your Business, Forbes.com, Inc.com, and on FastCompany.com. She is also one of the authors of the following FranklinCovey work sessions: The 5 Choices to Extraordinary Productivity®, Project Management Essentials for the Unofficial Project Manager™, and Presentation Advantage®. Kory brings more than 25 years of business expertise, from frontline positions to an executive team member.