KC Rising
KC Rising is a Kansas City civic economic development organization operating since 2015 across seven pillars — Connectivity, Neighborhoods, Enterprise, Industry, Inclusion, Education, and Culture — serving regional stakeholders through convening, alignment programs, and a regional data dashboard.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersKansas City, United States
- Headcount—
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What KC Rising does
KC Rising is a Kansas City-based civic economic development organization founded in 2015 and headquartered at 2300 Main Street, Kansas City, Missouri. Its stated purpose is to achieve a shared vision of regional prosperity by aligning and accelerating community efforts across the Kansas City metropolitan area spanning Kansas and Missouri. The organization operates a collective-impact model convening regional leaders, businesses, government entities, and civic institutions around shared economic goals.
The organization's principal product is the Kansas City Region Data Dashboard, a data visualization platform that tracks regional prosperity metrics and enables stakeholders to monitor economic development progress. KC Rising's programmatic surface is organized into seven strategic pillars — Connectivity, Neighborhoods, Enterprise, Industry, Inclusion, Education, and Culture — each with a dedicated page on the organization's website. Distribution channels include direct community engagement, a speaker program, a self-serve member portal, and pillar alignment programs that allow organizations to formally affiliate with specific focus areas. A publicly noted supporting partnership with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation provides image assets and mission alignment in entrepreneurship and economic development.
KC Rising's revenue model is membership- and partnership-driven, supported by recurring contributions from member organizations, grants, and public/private partnerships. The organization does not sell products or services in a traditional commercial sense; pricing is not applicable and pillar alignment programs are offered at no cost. Leadership is provided by co-chairmen Carolyn Watley and Doug Girod. The organization is privately held, with no disclosed parent company, subsidiaries, funding rounds, M&A activity, or revenue figures.
KC Rising firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- KC Rising
- Legal name
- KC Rising
- Website
- https://kcrising.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Short description
- KC Rising is a Kansas City civic economic development organization operating since 2015 across seven pillars — Connectivity, Neighborhoods, Enterprise, Industry, Inclusion, Education, and Culture — serving regional stakeholders through convening, alignment programs, and a regional data dashboard.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
KC Rising industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Regional Economic Development
- NAICS
- Civic and Social Organizations (81341), Business Associations (81391), Administration of Housing Programs, Urban Planning, and Community Development (9251)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- State/Provincial Housing, Urban/Regional Planning & Community Development (BPAIABAM)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Economic Development & Business Licensing (Local) (BPAIACAN), Education Sector Coordination, Clusters & Working Groups (EDADALAE)
Keywords
Where KC Rising is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Kansas City
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
KC Rising business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Membership and organizational funding: KC Rising operates as a civic organization funded through membership contributions, grants, and public/private partnerships to support regional economic development initiatives. The organization references a member portal indicating membership-based support structures.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
KC Rising product offering
Product offeringCore offering
KC Rising aligns and accelerates community efforts to advance regional prosperity in the Kansas City region through seven strategic pillars (Connectivity, Neighborhoods, Enterprise, Industry, Inclusion, Education, and Culture). It provides a Regional Data Dashboard for tracking prosperity metrics, coordinates cross-sector partnerships, and convenes civic leaders, businesses, government, and education institutions around shared regional priorities.
Product overview
KC Rising is a regional economic development initiative for the Kansas City area, organized around seven strategic pillars: Connectivity, Neighborhoods, Enterprise, Industry, Inclusion, Education, and Culture. The organization offers a Regional Data Dashboard as its primary product to track regional prosperity metrics. The seven pillars function as distinct programmatic focus areas that collectively aim to achieve shared regional prosperity by aligning and accelerating community efforts across the Kansas City metropolitan area.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Regional Data Dashboard
Companies that use KC Rising
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
KC Rising technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
KC Rising partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundationsupporting partnerEwing Marion Kauffman Foundation provides image assets for KC Rising's communications and marketing materials. The foundation supports entrepreneurship and economic development initiatives aligned with KC Rising's mission.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights3 records
KC Rising competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce: The Kansas City region's principal business membership and economic development body. Highly comparable to KC Rising in convener role, regional remit spanning Kansas and Missouri, and focus on growing the regional economy.
- Greater Cleveland Partnership: Cleveland's regional economic development and business advocacy coalition combining chamber, economic development, and civic functions. Highly analogous multi-stakeholder alignment model in a mid-size US metro.
- Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce (Partnership 2030): Lead regional chamber running cross-county economic prosperity initiatives. Shares KC Rising's structure of convening business, government, and civic stakeholders around an explicit regional growth agenda.
- Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber: Cross-county regional chamber and economic development coalition. Operates as a business-led alignment body for a mid-size Midwest metro with a similar civic-convening remit to KC Rising.
- Regional Plan Association: Nonprofit urban planning and regional development organization for the New York–New Jersey–Connecticut region. Analogous in providing research, data, and convening around cross-jurisdictional regional prosperity.
Broad incumbents
- Atlanta Regional Commission: The federally recognized regional planning and community development agency for metro Atlanta. Compares as a broader institutional actor in cross-jurisdictional coordination, infrastructure, and data dashboards.
- Chicago Metropolitan Planning Council: Regional planning body for metropolitan Chicago focusing on land use, transportation, and inclusive growth. Comparable role to KC Rising's Connectivity and Neighborhoods pillars in a larger metro.
- Brookings Metro: National research and policy program focused on economic inclusion and competitiveness of US metro areas. Comparable in producing regional prosperity research and policy frameworks that KC Rising operationalizes locally.
Regional players
- St. Louis Regional Business Council: Senior-executive civic organization focused on the St. Louis region's competitiveness. Comparable convening-of-leaders model and emphasis on regional economic agenda in a neighboring Midwest metro.
- Silicon Slopes: Regional technology and entrepreneurship convener for the Utah tech corridor. Comparable as a regional brand unifying business, government, and civic actors around growth and inclusion of an industry cluster.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
KC Rising social profiles
Digital presenceKC Rising financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
KC Rising leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
KC Rising funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
KC Rising M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about KC Rising
What does KC Rising do?
KC Rising aligns and accelerates community efforts to advance regional prosperity in the Kansas City region through seven strategic pillars (Connectivity, Neighborhoods, Enterprise, Industry, Inclusion, Education, and Culture). It provides a Regional Data Dashboard for tracking prosperity metrics, coordinates cross-sector partnerships, and convenes civic leaders, businesses, government, and education institutions around shared regional priorities.
Is KC Rising a public or private company?
KC Rising is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was KC Rising founded?
KC Rising was founded in 2015.
Where is KC Rising based?
KC Rising is headquartered in Kansas City, United States, in the North America region.
How does KC Rising make money?
One revenue line is on record: membership and organizational funding.
Who are KC Rising's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, Greater Cleveland Partnership, Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce (Partnership 2030), Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber and Regional Plan Association. Broad incumbents are Atlanta Regional Commission, Chicago Metropolitan Planning Council and Brookings Metro. Regional players are St. Louis Regional Business Council and Silicon Slopes.
Does KC Rising have an API?
No public API is recorded for KC Rising.
What industry is KC Rising in?
KC Rising's product category is Regional Economic Development. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAIABAM, State/Provincial Housing, Urban/Regional Planning & Community Development, with a secondary code of BPAIACAN, Economic Development & Business Licensing (Local). Its NAICS code is 81341 and its SIC code is 8600.