William Kiper is the cofounder of our company. He has forbidden us to put his full biography on this site. We rarely ignore his requests and if he doesn't check this site we will have the opportunity to tell you that he is not only the visionary that created our association, but the man who has brought joy and success to organizations throughout the US and Britain. William co-founded IMA in New York in 1989 and was instrumental in developing the focus of IMA during his tenure as guest professor for Bloomsburg University in Pennsylvania. As part of a successful venture in teaching a graduate course called "Marketing the Arts", Mr. Kiper became recognized for his assistance in coordinating volunteer contributions of professional assistance to arts organizations in New York and Pennsylvania. As the demand for his services grew, Mr. Kiper formed a private company to consolidate professional services for regional arts organizations and artists. Through his initiative, IMA created a company-funded program that annually contributes over 15% of IMA revenue to not-for-profit clients. Mr. Kiper was born in the small community of Downs, Kansas in 1958, where his family was involved in farming, ranching and contracting. William grew up working in the family businesses. He was the son and grandson of redheaded Texas women with fiery passions for the arts. As a young man he was privately tutored in voice, instrumental music and art. Growing up in a family of rural artists, Mr. Kiper developed an understanding of the importance of creating opportunities for artists and students of art in rural areas. His empathy for artists and arts organizations developed into volunteer actions in support of professional and amateur arts organizations throughout the United States. Following his graduation from the University of Kansas, Mr. Kiper worked for twelve years in the telecommunications industry. As Corporate Vice President of Marketing and Business Administration for one of the nation's largest telecommunications company, he developed extensive skills in training, brand management, negotiation, crisis management and design. He has lived in and worked closely with many communities, including Denver, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Phoenix, Houston, Austin and New York. In each city Mr. Kiper found a way to funnel professional talent to area arts organizations. His choice to leave the corporate environment and develop IMA as a marketing resource company was a natural outcropping of his efforts to coordinate professional services for nonprofit and rural organizations. IMA is strong endorsement of the personal values he learned growing up in a family of rural artists. William and his wife Emma reside in Houston where they are the proud new parents of a five-year old daughter, Emily Rebecca Kiper, and a one-year-old son, Peter James Kiper.   William is our head coach for a reason. He is the most over-trained executive in the United States and his inability to say "no" has left him with an extensive resume of leadership positions. This is the part he will make us take out, so read it quickly and you might even print a copy. His professional training includes: Supervisory Skills - Xerox Learning Systems Listening Skills - Xerox Learning Systems Dealing With Dissatisfied Customers - Xerox Learning Systems Public Leadership - Kansas Leadership Academy Government and the Law - Kansas Leadership Academy Financial Management - Kansas Leadership Academy Fundamentals of Effective Leadership - Kansas Leadership Academy Ethics and Conflict of Interest - The Center for Leadership, Ethics and Public Service Human Resource Management - Kansas Leadership Academy Building an Effective Team - Kansas Leadership Academy Effective Citizen Communication - Kansas Leadership Academy Strategic Budgeting - Kansas Leadership Academy Challenges and Responsibilities of Board Governance - AGRIP Legal Authority in a Crisis - Kansas Emergency Management Administering Federal and State Grants - U.S. Department of HUD Supplemental Administration of Federal and State Grants - U.S. Department of HUD Uniform Relocation Act - U.S. Department of HUD     He has served as and has received honors as: Recipient of The President's Award - TCI - 1985, and the CTAM award for excellence in multilingual marketing - 1989 Chairman of the Board of Commissioners - Osborne County Kansas Osborne County Republican Chairman - Alternate Delegate to the 2000 Republican National Convention President - Kansas County Association Insurance Pool President - Northwest Kansas County Commissioner's Association Vice President and President Pro Tem of the Kansas County Commissions Association Vice President - Northwest Kansas Planning and Development Commission Youth Leader - Downs United Methodist Church and Rose Valley United Methodist Church Guest Speaker - The Kansas Association of Counties Guest Speaker - The Mid-America Arts Alliance Guest Speaker - The Center for Leadership, Ethics and Public Service   If you want to to turn challenges into opportunities, find new ways of developing markets or audiences, raise $2.6 million for your community or organization, or just be lifted up in spirit, the associates of IMA recommend that you contact our head coach.