Inland Business Catalyst

In Depth

In Design in the Inland Northwest

The city of Spokane, for example, issued building permits for about $100 million worth of commercial construction projects through the first six months of this...

Rising Stars - 20 Under 40

Each year, Inland Business Catalyst highlights 20 young professionals who are emerging as leaders in their respective fields with Rising Stars: 20 Under 40. This...

Impact Sports

Events this year, in near future expected to bring almost $30 million to region.When Spokane made a successful bid for the 2010 U.S. Figure Skating...

Winning is Everything

While local professional teams have been successful in recent months between the lines, the Inland Northwest teams also are successful in the box offices. Spokane...

Pruning e-mail for productivity

When I sent my first e-mail in 1991, it felt like the biggest technological advancement for improving workplace efficiency since word processors and computers replaced typewriters. I worked as a...

Greener fields

ReliOn Inc., the Spokane Valley-based fuel-cell maker, is moving on to greener pastures.To be more precise, the company, which manufactures fuel cells that are used in backup power systems for...

Quality is both a battle cry and a boasting benchmark in corporate America, with organizations implementing processes to reduce waste, minimize defects, maximize resources and improve efficiency. The intent, of...

Palouse Power

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories Inc., the Pullman, Wash.-based maker of power-protection systems and other technology for power generators, crested $300 million in sales last year, according to company spokeswoman Susan...

Ron Wells' Next Step

Spokane developer returns to professional roots with apartment project, consulting work. Ron Wells is returning to his professional roots.A couple of decades ago, the North Carolina-born architect came to Spokane and began to establish himself...

A Force on the Waterfront

Bill Fanning spends career marketing waterfront, now joins forces with John Beutler.For more than 30 years, real estate broker Bill Fanning has played the part of waterfront matchmaker. Give him an outline of any water-adjacent...

Building Friendships While Constructing Homes

At a birthday party for his wife, Art Elliott looked at the gathered crowd and realized half the guests were clients of his.In addition to constructing homes, the 64-year-old president of Coeur d’Alene-based Shelter Associates...

P. Mike Taylor

P. Mike Taylor is a partner and founder of Taylor Engineering Inc., a 56-employee civil engineering, surveying and landscape-architecture firm. The company has offices in...

Cody George

Cody George, co-owner of Vintage Hill Cellars (www.vintagehillcellars.com) and Georgetown Properties (a real estate investment, development and rental firm), went from basement vintner to commercial...

Otto Klein

OTTO KLEIN, PART OWNER OF THE SPOKANE INDIANS BASEBALL CLUB, has worked for 17 years in the sports-marketing field. He has been with the Indians...

Deanna Davis

As luck would have it, most—if not all—of my really profound “aha” moments in business and life have come in the guise of some spectacular...

Flunking Retirement

Many people are returning to work—some because they want to, some because they have to. Unlimited leisure time. An end to office politics. Freedom to...

Questioning the Process

Refined interview techniques can lead to more successful hires.The success of employee selection has the potential to help or hinder corporate culture and profitability. For...

Flexibility at Work

From fitness classes to free tuition, perks keep employees happy, productive. What if you could take a kickboxing class at work during your lunch hour?...

An Enjoyable Commute

Segway is ‘cheaper than a convertible and a lot more fun.’According to Roger Chase, one of the best things about spring returning to the Inland...

Thriving in a recession economy

It seems every time the economy slows down, people start talking about a recession. The hot business climate we enjoyed for many years seems to be cooling off; it is...

The New Rush

Once dependent on mining industry, Silver Valley makes transition to tourism destination. Not long ago, many residents in the sleepy-yet-hardworking town of Kellogg feared the worst for their community. A...

Emerging Professionals

With five major universities and several smaller colleges in the area, Spokane has no trouble attracting young adults. The difficulty comes in keeping them here once they graduate. According to...

Beyond Burial Vaults

Wilbert Precast continues to diversify its product mix.Will all those who think Wilbert Precast only builds burial vaults and other products related to cemeteries please raise their hands? Most people...

Bruce Blackmer, CEO of NAC

For NAC|Architecture, Spokane’s business climate has remained strong through the present, but there are certainly many signs that suggest opportunities will be less robust in the short-term future. Spokane has...

Tim Komberec, President/CEO of Empire Airlines

I believe that Spokane and North Idaho will weather the current economic downturn better than many parts of the country, but it is still going to have a negative effect...

Steve Dahlstrom of STCU

Spokane is uniquely positioned for growth with a focus on health care, education and transportation. Our diverse economy allows us to take advantage of changes in the economy, as well...

Nancy Nelson of Humanix Corp.

It is the staff of Humanix that collectively makes us a great company. As CEO, my philosophy is to lead by example, activate our vision into our service, practice business...

Investing in Apartments

Tales of woe riddle the residential real-estate market. For those in the apartment market, however, the picture isn’t quite so bleak. Apartment-vacancy rates are low, and values have climbed in...

John Ames of IT-Lifeline, Inc.

Data management when things go wrong—really wrong!When businesses think about disaster preparedness, they often think of a fire or another sort of cataclysmic occurrence. But there are other events—hardware failures,...

Built Green in the Inland Northwest

This month, the Spokane Home Builders Association plans to launch its green-home-construction certification program, called Built Green of the Inland Northwest. SHBA is unveiling details about the environmentally sustainable building...

Preparing for a Remodel

As home sales have slowed, more homeowners have taken on projects remodeling what they have rather than moving on to something new. But what kind of time and money is...

Warm-Weather Wines

When the temperature hovers around triple digits, everything sizzles, including me. But I’m not complaining, especially when I’m sitting on my shady deck with some tasty cheese, fruit and a glass of wine. I might be hot, but I’m happy.

The Dirt on Grapes

“Good wine can’t be made from bad grapes.” This adage has been bandied about in the wine industry for years, and to my knowledge, no one has ever disproved it. What makes grapes—or any plant, for that matter—high or low quality? Gene Nolin might not...

Web World and Wines

Nick Brumback didn’t wake up one morning with a burning desire to be in the wine business. No, it sort of sneaked up on him, slowly put a strangle hold on his blossoming career in the investment business, and then convinced him to quit his...

Supplies and (little) demand

Building material prices have changed dramatically during the past year.Think they’re just going down due to a slumping home market? Think again.

High-end Advice

High-end home market slows at greater rate than market as a whole. Trying to sell a high-end home in the current market often isn’t a luxurious experience. Sales of second homes and luxury homes have slowed at a greater rate than the market as a...

A Victorian Home with Some RPM

Custom-built house combines 19th-century architecture with motorcycle motif. Tom and Caroljean Thosath’s home is a mixture of Victorian style and hogs. Harley hogs, in this instance. Tom loves motorcycles. It’s no wonder he couldn’t find any house plans that melded the two. Fortunately, he is...

Will Work for Offer

The excess inventory of unsold homes, a side effect of the slumping market, is evident in newspaper ads, Web site banners, conditional selling clauses and promotional one-upmanship. Many homeowners and builders are forced to compete against one another by offering buyers’ incentives ranging from upgrades...

In Depth

Technology

Professional Profiles

What Works For Me

Culture

Smart Business

Executive Spotlight

Ask The Expert

Food & Wine

Home

Business News

User Login