K4 GIVES THANKS!

This year (and every year) K4 is thankful for our clients who allow us to practice our passion for a living and keep us in business, our partners who we enjoy working with, and a really cool building designed by us that keeps a roof over our heads and keeps us all warm (too warm for some, too cold for others depending on your gender or where you sit….)

Image Source

We are most thankful for our employees, the pulse of K4, the people who make our home away from home what it is. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, we’d like to personally thank our employees for their contributions to K4 throughout the year, professional or personal, that are appreciated and definitely don’t go unnoticed.

“We must find time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives.”

― John F. Kennedy

Starting from the top…

Jeff Klump – We so grateful for your teambuilding skills and insisting on a sense of unity in the office. “This project doesn’t belong to one person, it’s a K4 project.” Thank you for your kindness, your inspiration as a leader, and for always volunteering to drive. Thank you for always having gum and Advil, and your willingness to share both.

Rick Posey – We appreciate your thought provoking questions and respect the depth of your knowledge. Thank you for sending us articles that pertain to a conversation we were having earlier today, or even last week. It shows you care enough to still be thinking about your employees, and that matters. Thank you for always being ready for Burger Friday. Thank you for always smelling of clean laundry, it reminds us of springtime in the dreary winter months.

Jack Neu – Thank you for joining the K4 team and your enthusiasm remaining as strong one year later as the first day you started. Thank you for starting First Friday, thank you for starting employee committees and your commitment to the wants and needs of our company and dedication to continual improvement. Thank you for your positive attitude and being a good listener. Thank you for your fairness. Thank you for your open door policy on your stash of snacks. Thank you for assisting with the authorship of this blog post, as someone who makes time to get to know each and every employee, your input was invaluable.

Shelly Ridge – Thank you for your kindness and strength. Thanks for cleaning up after all of us even though you shouldn’t have to do it. Thanks for keeping after all of us to turn in our time sheets. You always meet your deadlines although dependent on others to do so, very impressive. Thanks for being the “go to” girl in the office; you know so much about K4. Thanks for your sensitivity to the various needs of our employees. Thank you for helping to keep the peace. Thank you for filling the candy jar.

Rick Metzger – Thanks for being such a great person to work with. We are thankful for your positive attitude, friendly greeting and smile. Thanks for caring so much about our Adopt A Class kids. Thanks for being willing to try new things and participating in the K4 blog. We appreciate your respectful attitude toward everyone.

Dick Wuest – Thank you for being focused and having strong opinions. We honor you for your convictions, including your dislike of the color orange. Thank you for your exceptional proofreading skills and extensive knowledge and history with clients. We depend on your knowledge of our industry and value the relationships you have built. Thank you for having the largest bin of pretzels one has ever seen.

Grania Frueh – Thank you for your fresh “millennial perspective.” You seldom send forwards, and when you do, they are always cool and interesting. Thank you for your involvement and dedication to the University of Cincinnati, your OTR neighborhood, the design community, and the city of Cincinnati as a whole. Thank you for often bringing breakfast and sending your hungry coworkers an email that it is available in the kitchen, usually on the day we haven’t had time for breakfast. Thank you for sharing your talent with us and coming on board as the solo K4 graphic designer. Thanks for always knowing the best places for lunch.

Tricia Bertke – Thank you for your kindness, we appreciate your amiability more than you know. Thank you for your endless dedication to Adopt-A-Class and for coordinating and leading this cause, it is a lot of work. Thank you for inspiring all the women in the office to step up their fashion and experiment with mixing patterns. Thanks for keeping the lines of communication open and being one of the people in the office that everyone enjoys working with for your skills, talent and personality.

Shannon McGill – We celebrate how you share your enthusiasm and value your well-considered solutions. We admire your ability to balance work life/family life while keeping a tiresome travel schedule, and making things important like the First Friday school lunches you provided. Your attention to detail is impeccable. Thank you for your inability to pronounce the word “documentary” – it’s pretty adorable.

Matt Remar – Thank you for your flexibility. You put in endless hours at the office and squeeze in ways to support K4 on the little time you take off. Thank you for your endless dedication to the Rosenow Project. Thanks for hoping we can all have fatter pockets by purchasing the company lottery tickets and gathering contributions. Thank you for carrying heavy things, manning the grill, and protecting the K4 ladies when we come running for help. Thank you for how amazing you are with our Adopt A Class kids and your involvement, we are in awe of how engaging you are with them, definitely a gift!

Mike Christensen – We appreciate your creative long-term views, and dedication to quality. Thank you for taking the time to teach others and be invested in the success of all the projects that you manage. The K4 employees and clients depend on your support. Thank you for your extensive array of K4 apparel and polo shirts in every color of the rainbow.

Sandy Tenhundfeld – Thank you for coming on board and being a perfect fit for K4. You are helping us lead this organization and your skills and attitude are a shining example of what we stand for. Thank you for motivating other employees. Thank you for your unexpected sarcasm and ability to throw in a “zinger” at the perfect time. Thanks for coming over and visiting the “other side” when you need to clear your head. Your visits are appreciated and your frankness is refreshing!

Connie Stephens – Thank you for being the quiet, sweet, young thang that the ladies side was so desperately lacking. Thank you for letting us comment & touch your growing baby bump daily. Gosh that must be annoying, I guess this is also sort of an apology.

Aaron Andriacco – Thank you for knowing all the coolest apps and sharing them with everyone in the office. Thanks for knowing the words to most song lyrics. Thank you for your pleasant attitude and your encouragement of others.

Bob Welling – Thanks for always keeping us guessing. Your timely and comedic one liner delivery during the First Friday newlywed game still has us all cracking up. Thanks for your dedication and passion for Architecture. Thank you for bringing your daughter Mya in to visit the office. Her inquisitiveness and friendliness makes our day special!

Ken Miller – Thanks for all your help in getting our projects completed and helping us to set up workable budgets. Thank you for the service of your son to our country. Pop seems to be pretty proud of his “submariner.” Thank you for matching your cool Nike belt to your cool Nike kicks on casual Friday.

Steve Scott – Thanks for being a part of K4-Stein, and then K4 Architecture + Design. You are a constant reminder of always being able to move forward. Thank you for being a devoted father, no matter what the sport or event, or what time or what campground. What big mosquitoes?

Mike Kolenz – Thank you for being a Cleveland Browns fan. It keeps all us Bengal fans guessing when the “Battle of Ohio” will mean something twice a year, every year. Thanks for being a loyal Bearcat and being a shining example of how you can work out every day and still be a normal person!

Robby Blum – We recognize your easy resilience in dealing with the office IT problems and for dropping everything to help everyone with a smile. Thank you for wearing the shoes that spark conversation. Thank you for wearing them proudly.

Matt Meyer – Thanks for becoming a member of our team after working on a contract for a while. At least you got to try us out before working with us every day. It remains to be seen if you made the right choice! Thanks for your commitment to the BSA organization and helping young men become better adults.

Jeannette Mascari – Thank you for coming on board and integrating yourself into the position and projects so quickly. We are very grateful for your help and how you hit the ground running. Thank you for your ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and helping to accomplish our client’s goals. You are great addition to K4 Interiors!

June Landrum-Springer – Thank you for what you bring to the K4 team. We are proud to have assisted with the launch of your company, Landrum Designs and wish you much success. Thank you for your quick wit and perseverance in pursuing projects and working with many different K4 teams. Thank you for posting cartoons on the side of your cubicle. Thank you for offering to drive to lunch in the JLS van & for sharing your love of wine with the office!

Nicole DeRogatis – thank you for writing this blog and spreading the spirit of Thanksgiving

And finally…

Architecture, design, and graphics are services afforded when business is good. They are signs of growth. For those of us fortunate enough to experience them in our lives, we should be thankful.

Author’s Own

Photo State Bank of Lizton – Branded Exterior

A branded environment is created by combining a number of components such as the architectural elements, interior layouts, floor and wall finish materials, lighting, environmental graphics, way-finding devices, signage, and even furniture that reflects and reinforces the personality of a business.

Author’s Own Photo

State Bank of Lizton – Branded Interior & Graphics

The same branding as used in your physical property of interiors and exteriors should further be expanded upon in your company marketing materials and website. Have you taken the leap into email communications and social media? Those pieces should be consistent too, and don’t take the leap without first thinking how this will support the brand.

State Bank of Lizton – Branded Website

K4 helps companies build their brands and delivers total solutions that keep consistency of a message and facilitate the entire branded experience.

For the exterior of a facility; the use of architectural iconic elements, consistent materials, vivid colors, lighting, signage, merchandising panels, and window graphics can create a consistent message through prototype design. That same message should then translate into, and throughout the interior environment, an organizing theme that couples space functionality with brand expression. The use of compatible materials and colors combined with strategically placed furniture, casework, signage and graphics turn your space into one of your most powerful marketing assets.

We can all learn something from McDonald’s – early branding experts

McDonald’s was the first major company with the vision to develop a branded prototype with the original red mansard roof with the yellow light bars, a standard brick texture and color, consistent and vivid color pallets, and a large expanses of windows to bring the interior branded environment to the exterior. No matter where you traveled or what city you visited, your children could spot the McDonald’s restaurant.

McDonald’s has recently modified their prototype restaurants with a more progressive and contemporary appeal, but in keeping with their original intent of a consistent and recognizable appearance using the yellow arch, brick & stone materials, and the bright colored awnings, the defining elements that reinforce the brand.

It’s not your building, it’s your brand!

What we’re really talking about is making sure all of the components that make up your brand fit together and support it consistently. Your building is your presence within the community, a revenue generator, and where your customers interact with your brand, so therefore it should be a reflection of your story. This story should be further communicated in everything that you do while supporting your business strategy and your marketing goals. It’s not just your building, it’s your BRAND! And it’s not just a brochure or website, it’s BRANDING!

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