Education: University of Kansas.

Hobbies: Golf, skiing, and rooting for my
beloved Jayhawks.

What is the significance of the Archer logo? The power of strategic thinking combined with great creative will result in work that's on target every time.

Tell us about your most obscure job. I worked in a truck stop one summer, changing the tires on semis. I don't know too many people who can do that.

What did you want to be as a kid? An artist.

Tell us about how Kuhn & Wittenborn started: Dale and I were both at Hallmark which is a great company. There's no better training ground for learning the business of design and marketing. After a few years we both had been promoted into middle management and were no longer on the drawing board so we started doing some freelance projects together. Next thing you know, we were talking about how great it would be to start our own business. And we finally did it. We both turned in our resignations on September 15, 1978 and never looked back. The rest is history.

What is the most important thing you've learned about running an advertising agency? The great thing about advertising is that you learn something new everyday, because you work for so many clients in different industries. But the most important thing I've learned about running an agency over the years is to have the best people you can. If you always have people who are better than you, the company will prosper. I've often asked myself if I could get hired at Kuhn & Wittenborn if I applied for a job today. As long as the answer is "no" I know I've achieved my objective.

Who has been the biggest influence in your career? Jim Stowers, the founder of American Century Investments. I had the privilege of spending countless hours with him over the years and hearing first hand his philosophy about business.

What is your favorite Kuhn & Wittenborn tradition? The KU/MU rivalry. I have eleven $5 bills to make me feel good about this.

What's your biggest achievement in life? My family - wife, Fran and sons, Toby and Blake.

What was your first car? 1970 Maverick.

Describe your perfect day. Getting the call from a prospect saying we won the account, and then celebrating with the team.

What's the best meal you can prepare? Smoked ribs, tacos and several German dishes I learned from my mom.

Who is in your ideal golf foursome? Fran, Toby, Blake and myself.

Your favorite drink? A very good red wine, probably a "97 Cabernet.

Tell us a client story that helped shaped your business philosophy. Early on we had an assignment that represented one of the largest budgets we had worked with up to that time. The project was a counter top point-of-purchase display, and two semi-truckloads of displays were to be delivered to the client's distribution center. They were very adamant about not going over budget. We designed a display that was solid silver.

One day our vendor called and said there was a problem with the silver ink rubbing off. The only solution would be to varnish them - at an additional cost of $10,000! Knowing the client would hit the roof about the additional expense, we asked what our options were. The vendor told us that the mess would be pretty bad at the warehouse, but not too bad at the point-of-sale. And they assured us that the ink was not toxic and would wash off easily. We told the vendor to proceed.

The trucks arrived on schedule at the warehouse. Shortly after they started unloading, we received a call from our client saying the warehouse people were covered in silver ink. Needless to say, they were not too happy. I was summoned to their corporate offices for a meeting the next morning.

Neither Dale nor I got much sleep that night. $10,000 was a lot of money in those days and we were genuinely afraid of going out of business over this. But after a lot of discussion we decided to do what I'm sure our mother's would have advised - tell the truth.

When I arrived at the meeting the next morning, every officer in the company was present and there wasn't a smile in the room. In front of each person was setting a display. The president of the company asked me to explain what was going on. I took a deep breath and then told the truth about everything. Then I promised to send the displays back to the manufacturer for a coat of varnish, at no cost to the client. Dale and I had decided to make good - even though we had no idea where we would get $10,000.

Everyone in the room was stunned. They were expecting some elaborate excuse, or that I would try to squeeze them for more money. I think they were so surprised at my candor that they began to feel sorry for me. Then they started offering ideas about how to solve the problem. In the end, they had their warehouse people wear jumpsuits and gloves to handle the displays.

We had that account for several more years, until it was sold. You know the saying 'honesty is the best policy' - believe me, it's true!