As spring turns into the month of May and Indy 500 season, broadcaster Kevin Lee is reviewing his notes for many hours on radio and TV, explaining the nuances of IndyCar and its drivers to fans. Lee has had a 30-year history covering sports, a career that included doing play-by-play work for the Indianapolis Colts and the Indiana Pacers but is focused today largely on auto racing. He’s in the pits for most IndyCar races and hosts the radio show “Trackside” on The Fan, 93.5-FM and 107.5-FM, among other racing duties. And in his spare time, Lee manages a racing team in the USF2000 Championship—a rung in the Road to Indy developmental program—for which his son, Jackson, is the driver. Lee talked with host Mason King about his broadcasting career, what it takes to prepare to announce an IndyCar race and how managing a racing team has helped him better understand the sport. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.      

Elanco Animal Health on March 12 broke ground on its $100 million headquarters campus on the former GM stamping plant site just west of downtown Indianapolis. CEO Jeff Simmons explains why the project is far more than simply an office building. He tells host Mason King that the goal is to create what the company calls "a post-COVID workplace destination" that attracts talent to the city and the company and gives workers more flexibility and engagement. And Simmons is aiming to make the campus an epicenter for animal research and innovation, while connecting the neighborhood to downtown. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.    

Matt Gentry was just 26 when he was elected mayor of Lebanon in 2015, after running a campaign in which he argued it was time for the Boone County city to embrace change, attract jobs and revitalize its downtown. Since then, Lebanon has become one of the fastest growing communities in the state—both in terms of population and commercial development. And now, the state is negotiating to buy as many as 7,000 acres of land just outside Lebanon for what could be a high-tech business park. Gentry talks with podcast host Mason King about his approach to growth, why he's excited about the state's efforts and how he's trying to ensure Lebanon retains its character while embracing change. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.

The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra announced last week that Andrea Bocelli, the operatic star who has sold more than 90 million albums worldwide, will perform Dec. 7 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse along with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. In this week's episode of the podcast, IBJ arts reporter Dave Lindquist talks with James Johnson, the CEO of the orchestra, about how the show came to be and what will make it special for the ISO and the city.  Plus, they dive into what’s upcoming for the orchestra, how the hunt for a new music director is going and how the symphony is working to diversify its organization as well as the works its performs. Dave is filling in for host Mason King, who is on vacation and will return next week. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

Anyone who has driven past a car lot knows that dealers have virtually no inventory. So what do you do if you need a car? IBJ personal finance column Peter "Pete the Planner" Dunn found himself in just that predicament recently. And he tells host Mason King that shopping for a car was like nothing he's experienced before. Buyers have no negotiating power. Zilch, he says. And that's because there are as many buyers on a lot looking for a vehicle as there are cars. In fact, dealers are pre-selling the cars they're expecting to receive. The upshot, Dunn says, is to try to avoid buying or leasing a car right now. But if you have little choice, you might want to listen to this conversation before you head out to the lot. For more, read Dunn's latest IBJ column: Pete the Planner: Time bigger purchases (if and when you can)   The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.    

The Children's Museum of Indianapolis has just reopened its Dinosphere exhibit after a year of renovations that added two huge long-necked sauropods and a new prehistoric marine area—all based on bones found in a museum-owned dig site. CEO Jennifer Pace Robinson, who took on the museum's top job about a year ago, talks with Mason King about the importance of the exhibit, the logistics of hanging all those bones, and what makes the experience different than visitors might find at other museums. Plus, King quizzes Robinson about what's ahead for the museum, what it plans to do with the historic Drake building that it owns and why it costs so much to buy a family membership. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.

Hoosiers For Good Inc., the brainchild in part of Cook Medical Group President Pete Yonkman, is a new organization that is looking to pay Indiana University athletes to represent and promote Indiana not-for-profit organizations. Just a year ago, such an arrangement would not have been possible. But last summer—under pressure advocates for student-athletes as well as  states legislatures and Congress—the Indianapolis-based NCAA approved new rules that let student-athletes be paid for endorsements, autographs and more. In most cases, companies will pay athletes for the right to use their name, image or likeness—referred to as NIL—to sell shoes or endorse other products. In many cases, that will involve athletes using their social media accounts to align with brand. But the organizers of Hoosiers for Good thought the new rules could also be used to pay athletes to endorse causes or charities. So the group has well more than $1 million, according to Yonkman, and will use that to connect athletes with not-for-profit groups they believe in. The goal is to benefit the not-for-profit but also to help student-athletes become community leaders.  Host Mason King talks with Yonkman and the group's executive director, Tyler Harris, about the mission. To learn more, read IBJ reporter Mickey Shuey's story about Hoosiers for Good.   The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.

Buying a franchise is one way to become an entrepreneur—and it can be an effective way. You’re starting with an established brand, some built-in marketing and, hopefully, a solid business plan provided by your franchisor. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Just ask Lori Meyer, owner and operator of Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh in Zionsville, and Melinda Rowan, owner and operator of The Human Bean at 5405 N. Keystone Ave. On this week’s IBJ Podcast, the new business owners detail just how much money and time they spent launching their stores in the middle of a pandemic. And they tell host Mason King about the biggest hurdles (think rising labor costs and supply chain troubles) and why they don’t regret their mid-life career changes. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

In 2020, Colts owners Jim Irsay and daughters Kalen Jackson, Carlie Irsay-Gordon and Casey Foyt launched the "Kicking the Stigma" campaign to boost awareness about mental illness and raise money to help not-for-profits expand addiction and mental health treatment. Since then, the effort has committed more than $16 million to local and national organizations—and most of that was donated directly by the Irsay family. The Irsays have created and paid to broadcast several national public service announcements, many featuring prominent celebrities and athletes, including Snoop Dogg, Rob Lowe, Mike Epps, Carson Daily and Peyton Manning. More than a dozen organizations have received game-changing grants, and the Irsays recently donated $3 million to Indiana University to create a research institute to study mental health issues. Jackson is a vice chair in the Colts organization, overseeing operations and community relations, including the club's philanthropic efforts. That includes overseeing the Kicking the Stigma campaign. She talked with host Mason King about why the family decided to focus on mental health, what they've learned about the problem along the way and how they got so many celebrities to participate.   The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.      

Entrepreneur Madame C.J. Walker. International sports star Marshall “Major” Taylor. The Indiana Avenue commercial and entertainment district. Crispus Attucks High School. The foundations and luminaries of Black history in Indianapolis have received due attention in recent decades and have been the subjects of books and documentaries. But there hasn’t been an authoritative history of African Americans in Indianapolis—featuring the highlights as well as the crushing obstacles thrown in the path of the Black community—until this month.Historian David Leander Williams has built on his previous works documenting the city’s jazz and rhythm-and-blues legacies with “African Americans in Indianapolis: The Story of a People Determined to Be Free,” published by Indiana University Press. It covers the 150-year period between 1820 and 1970—from the establishment of the Black community on the banks of the White River after a ruinous flood and malaria epidemic to the destruction of Black neighborhoods due to the construction of Interstate-65 through downtown and the expansion of IUPUI.In this week’s edition of the IBJ Podcast, Williams discusses his personal connections to some of the key figures and places in the Black community, including jazz legend Wes Montgomery, the Bethel AME Church and Crispus Attucks High School. He also explains the clever ways he was able to reconstruct Black life in the city’s first decades, when record keeping was rare. And he pinpoints the ways the Black community has been set back economically, including the loss of thousands upon thousands of jobs in the city’s manufacturing sector that once served as passports to the middle class. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

Stephen Goldsmith is the Indianapolis mayor who pushed Circle Centre Mall into reality some 27 years ago. But he's not surprised the mall needs some reimagining—something its owners are now undertaking. In fact, Goldsmith—who is now a professor at the Harvard Kennedy School—says he's surprised the mall remained as successful as it did for long. That's because the project was less about creating a retail space, he says, and more about spurring downtown revitalization.  Host Mason King talks with Goldsmith about how the city and the mall owners should think about what's next. And they talk about Goldsmith's new book, "Growing Fairly: How to Build Opportunity and Equity in Workforce Development," which includes some examples from Indianapolis. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

The Legislature is debating a bill that could clear a path for nuclear energy to come to Indiana, a controversial move that could help the state reduce its reliance on fossil fuels. Indiana has never had a nuclear plant—and the one attempt to local one in southern Indiana failed when the utility building it ran out of money. So why are Indiana and other states talking about nuclear power now? IBJ reporter John Russell joins the podcast to explain how the technology is changing and why lawmakers are interested. You can read more from Russell about nuclear power here. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.      

Following an unexpectedly strong year for the stock market, 2022 is starting with far more volatility, as concern about interest rate hikes and lingering supply chain issues have kept investors jumping. So what do you do as you watch the balance in your 401(k) fund rise and fall (and so far this year, mostly fall)? IBJ investing columnist Mickey Kim said to stick with your plan—which probably means doing nothing, although that can be tough. "When things get rocky, we want to protect ourselves," he tells host Mason King. "We are thinking: Don't just sit there, do something. And I will tell you: Doing something is the wrong thing to do." Kim explains why and offers some thoughts on why the market is so jittery. You can read more from Kim at IBJ.com. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

In a wide-ranging conversation with IBJ reporter Dave Lindquist, Tom Griswold — Tom of "The Bob & Tom Show" — talks about working with his sons (one on the air and one off), recovering from heart surgery and the future of the iconic radio program.  Plus, Griswold offers his take on the show's cast, including Chick McGee, Kristi Lee and Ace Cosby. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.

The 150-acre estate of the late Indianapolis philanthropist Christel DeHaan is on the market for $14 million, with the proceeds earmarked for an endowment that will help support and expand Christel House International, which operates schools in poor areas around the world. Host Mason King talks with Mike Johnson, the Sothebys International agent who has listed the property, about what makes the house and grounds special, what kind of interest the estate has generated and whether it's likely to remain a single family residence. In addition, Christel House CEO Bart Peterson, a former mayor of Indianapolis, and Mark Willis, chief investment officer at CD Enterprises and president of the Christel DeHaan Family Foundation, join the conversation to talk about DeHaan's wishes for the proceeds and how the money will help expand the not-for-profit organization's reach. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.

The population of Indianapolis swelled by about 100,000 headed into Monday night’s College Football Playoff National Championship game. Fans from Georgia and Alabama filled hotel rooms, injected adrenalin into the local restaurant scene, rented cars, shelled out for keepsakes and, hopefully, told their friends back home how much they’re enjoying the city despite absolutely dreadful weather.City tourism officials say their best estimate of the economic impact from hosting the championship is about $150 million. But how can they possibly produce an accurate prediction in such a complicated economic environment? Wasn’t the economic impact prediction for March Madness last year off by $50 million? In the first half of this week’s edition of the IBJ Podcast, Visit Indy’s Chris Gahl explains how precisely the estimates are calculated—when good data is available—and why the CFP figure should be more accurate.Decades into Indianapolis’ sports tourism strategy, we essentially take it as an article of faith that hosting huge sporting events is worth all of the trouble and expense. But why? Beyond the dollars visitors drop in Indianapolis, what is the ultimate value of repeatedly playing host? In the second half of the podcast, Mark Rosentraub, a sports business expert at the University of Michigan, explains the less quantifiable benefits and why Indianapolis might always have to prove it’s worthy. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.      

In this week's episode, IBJ Editor Lesley Weidenbener steps in for host Mason King to lead a year-in-review discussion about 2021 and the people who made headlines in 2021. IBJ Managing Editor Greg Weaver and reporters Dave Lindquist and Mickey Shuey talk about the reasons that IBJ named The Sports Corp.'s Ryan Vaughn its newsmakers of the year and why the new IU president, chair of Newfields, High Alpha partners, a SPAC specialist, an arts community power couple and the head of a local real estate investment trust all made the newsmakers list. You can read more details about IBJ's newsmakers by clicking here and more about the year's top stories here.   The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

With the holidays upon us—and only a small percentage of kids vaccinated against COVID-19—host Mason King has been wondering what's safe when it comes to family gatherings, parties and public events So he called Dr. James Wood, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Riley Children's Health, to talk about vaccinations for children, how latest strains of coronavirus are affecting younger kids and whether it's safe for grandkids to gather with their grandparents at the holidays. (Hint: You're safest if the kids are vaccinated and the adults are boosted.) Plus, King asks Dr. Woods to share what he's done about vaccinations with his own young kids and how they're treating family outings. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.      

Local tech executive Eric Tobias and two partners bought the entertainment business that stages events at the Vogue in Broad Ripple in early 2019. “When people ask me about this, I say, ‘Owning a music venue—best first year of my life … but maybe one of the most challenging second years,’” Tobias says.The Vogue closed abruptly on March 12, 2020, just as that night’s band—Drive-By Truckers—was warming up on stage. The pandemic of course hit the live entertainment industry like a sledgehammer, and Tobias and his partners had to think outside the box—literally, outside the venue itself—to keep the business going.In this week’s edition of the IBJ Podcast, longtime local music journalist (and newly minted IBJ reporter) Dave Lindquist catches up with Tobias to discuss how the group has been able to weather the pandemic. Tobias says he has seen convincing proof that some patrons aren't sold on attending live events. The ownership group is getting more involved in livestreaming concerts and promoting shows in other venues. Tobias also explains the Vogue’s policy on health checks for patrons, how the Vogue intersects with his high-tech daytime gig, and what he sees as a vital need in order for the local music scene to thrive going forward.The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

Investment adviser Morningstar has issued new guidance that changes the conventional wisdom about how much you can expect to withdraw from your investment accounts in retirement. The change in the so-called 4% rule has podcast host Mason King worried, and so he and Peter "Pete the Planner" Dunn dive into the details in search of clarity. Pete also predicts what the omicron variant will mean for the market and why the debate about the debt ceiling might actually be more important. You can read more from Pete at IBJ.com. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

Experts expect shoppers to drop a record amount of money this holiday season. The National Retail Federation forecasts sales for November and December to grow between 8.5% and 10.5% over the same months in 2020. In total dollars, that would be between $843.4 billion and $859 billion.At the same time, the supply-chain issues that have plagued commerce since the start of the pandemic are expected to complicate gift buying and limit stock for some products.The answer is to get your shopping done as soon as possible, because you might not get a second chance, says John Talbott, the director of the Center for Education and Research in Retailing at the Indiana University Kelley School of Business. In the latest edition of the IBJ Podcast, Talbott explores other big questions with host Mason King. Does Indy’s status as a leading U.S. logistics hub give Hoosiers a leg up on gift availability? What role might inflation play in this year’s shopping season? Why are gift cards even more valuable than usual this year? How can we avoid cybercrime? And are there any blockbuster, must-have gifts for this season? The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

In the second part of a two-episode interview, Martha Hoover—founder of the Indianapolis-based Patachou Inc. restaurant company—explains how the pandemic pulled back the curtain on problems in the restaurant industry, especially how little workers are paid and how vulnerable most eateries really are. Hoover—known for restaurants including Cafe Patachou, Public Greens and Napolese—tells host Mason King that because she came from outside the restaurant world, she charged appropriate prices from the start, with the goal of providing a living wage to workers. But she said the industry has historically put too much emphasis on quantity and price at the expense of quality, as well as the people making the food.  She talks about what she thinks the public and the media get wrong about the industry and what might change things. Click here to listen to Part 1 of the interview with Hoover.   The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.      

Indianapolis restauranteur Martha Hoover launched her first Cafe Patachou at 49th and Pennsylvania in 1989 and has since expanded her company to 13 eateries spread across several distinct concepts. Like other restaurants, though, Hoover had to close the doors at all of her Patachou Inc. locations when the pandemic hit, a time she calls "frightening." But Hoover tells host Mason King — in the first of a two-part interview — that Patachou is now "very healthy," in part because she and her leadership team started making some tough decisions pre-pandemic to streamline and become more efficient. Now, Patachou is looking to expand. Tune in next week for part 2 of King's interview with Hoover, when she explains what she thinks the public — and especially the media — don't understand about the restaurant business. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

Veteran real estate agent Matt McLaughlin reached more than $1 billion in career sales in September after some 22 years as an agent for F.C. Tucker. It's a milestone the firm's CEO, Jim Litten, called "one of the most challenging to attain in our industry." And yet McLaughlin said it was not particularly a goal and he wasn't fully aware he was approaching it until the folks in his office mentioned it earlier this year. Host Mason King sat down with McLaughlin to learn how he closed so many sales (he attributes some early success to the gray hair he had as a young man), what makes his approach different (he still dresses up for clients) and what he thinks about central Indiana's red-hot real estate market (it's not a bubble). Plus, McClaughlin shares the advice he'd give a young broker.   The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.  

Indiana’s unemployment rate inched down to 4% in September, but what does that actually mean? How many people are in the Indiana workforce? And why are so many companies struggling to find workers? Host Mason King talks with Fred Payne, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, about what the state is doing to help more Hoosiers find jobs and more companies find workers.  Plus, King quizzes Payne about whether Indiana should join most of its neighbors in raising the minimum wage. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.