{"id":407382,"date":"2026-04-19T23:13:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T23:13:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/407382\/"},"modified":"2026-04-19T23:13:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T23:13:19","slug":"we-always-seemed-to-be-in-the-right-place-at-the-right-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/407382\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018We always seemed to be in the right place at the right time\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Never underestimate the power of good luck among entrepreneurs, serial founder Cliff Illig told a crowd of founders, investors, and business leaders this week during a fireside chat that touched on the journey to Cerner\u2019s $28.3 billion exit.<\/p>\n

Innovation and a readiness to take action don\u2019t hurt either, the 2025 Kansas Citian of the Year<\/a> added.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe always seemed to be in the right place at the right time,\u201d said Illig, who co-founded Cerner alongside Neal Patterson and Paul Gorup in Kansas City in 1979, building one of the world\u2019s leading healthcare IT systems before selling it to Oracle<\/a> in 2021.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Cliff Illig speaks during the Corporate Connections Summit led by Endeavor Heartland at Keystone CoLabs; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News<\/p>\n

The Kansas City native joined Clete Brewer \u2014 managing partner of NewRoad Capital Partners<\/a> and board member of Bentonville, Arkansas-based Endeavor Heartland<\/a> \u2014\u00a0Wednesday in conversation at Keystone Innovation District<\/a>. The chat was part of a Corporate Connections Summit led by Endeavor, a global organization that supports high-impact entrepreneurs in scaling their businesses and driving economic growth.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe took advantage of the wave that was there,\u201d Illig explained. \u201cBut we used innovation as our lever to make sure that our clients understood that we were thinking ahead of them. So not only were they buying a system, they were buying a future when they signed up for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The co-founders\u2019 good fortune started as soon as they left their jobs at Arthur Andersen accounting firm to start a software business, he noted.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe made a list of the industries we knew something about,\u201d Illig explained, \u201cmanufacturing and distribution and trucking and public utilities \u2014 a bunch of stuff on our resumes.\u201d<\/p>\n

The founding team didn\u2019t know much about health care, he acknowledged.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut very early and just serendipitously \u2014 pure luck,\u201d Illig added, \u201cwe were exposed to a situation that involved health care.\u201d<\/p>\n

Specifically, medical labs. And after learning about manufacturing processes in those labs, they set out to write \u2014 from scratch \u2014 a laboratory information system.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe happened to hit the market at a very good time,\u201d Illig said. \u201cMost of the systems that were out there at the time had been developed by very large companies that were having trouble keeping up with the innovation and the challenges and changes in the lab.\u201d<\/p>\n

That right-place, right-time fortune continued for Cerner when it came time to raise capital, he noted. The co-founders \u2014 who raised two rounds for a total of $4 million before going public in 1986 \u2014 couldn\u2019t find venture money in Kansas City, so they went to Chicago and connected with First Chicago (now Madison Dearborn), Illig said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a situation where, again, pure luck,\u201d he explained. \u201cWe walked in and they had just finished a retreat at the venture fund, where they decided \u2014 as a venture group \u2014 that they were going to get involved in more IT, and separately, more health care. And we walked in with an IT, health care thing, and it took, literally, 48 hours to get a thumbs up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the most capital efficient story I\u2019ve ever heard,\u201d Brewer added.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Cliff Illig laughs on stage alongside Clete Brewer, managing partner of NewRoad Capital Partners and board member of Bentonville, Arkansas-based Endeavor Heartland, at Keystone CoLabs in Kansas City; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News<\/p>\n

Heartland on stage<\/p>\n

Illig and Brewer\u2019s fireside chat was just one piece of a two-day series of events in Kansas City to convene high-growth entrepreneurs, corporate partners, investors, and ecosystem leaders for programming focused on entrepreneurship, business growth and regional connectivity, according to Endeavor organizers.<\/p>\n

Wednesday\u2019s Corporate Connections Summit focused on bridging the gap between startups and established institutions that included interactive workshops, lightning talks, an angel network update, and a corporate reverse pitch session.<\/p>\n

It was followed Thursday by an invite-only National Selection Panel at Union Station, the penultimate step in Endeavor\u2019s global selection process that brings together top founders from across the United States with seasoned investors, operators, Endeavor board members, and mentors for a day of interviews, feedback, and deliberation. Featured speakers included Sandy Kemper of C2FO<\/a>, Charley Lingerfelt of QuikTrip, Maximiliano Caballero Vieyra of T-Mobile, Dan Kerr of Flyover Capital<\/a>, and Maggie Kenefake of Iron Prairie Ventures<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cKansas City has long been home to visionary builders and companies with outsized impact, and this gathering is an opportunity to connect that legacy to the next generation of high-growth<\/p>\n

founders,\u201d said Canem Arkan, managing director of Endeavor Heartland. \u201cBy bringing Endeavor\u2019s National Selection Panel and the Corporate Connections Summit to Kansas City, we\u2019re creating space for meaningful relationships between entrepreneurs, investors and corporate leaders, showcasing the strength of the Heartland on a national stage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Building together<\/p>\n

Success stories like Illig\u2019s are the kind of journeys Endeavor Heartland would love to share from within its own ranks of alumni, Brewer said, noting he could think of few people who have done more to give back to their community than Illig and his co-founders.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

An in memoriam photo honoring Neal Patterson; photo courtesy of Sporting KC, Cerner<\/p>\n

On top of Cerner\u2019s good fortune through the years, Illig also addressed his 40-year partnership with the late Neal Patterson<\/a> (who passed away in 2017 after a battle with cancer), why he decided to invest in soccer in Kansas City, and how AI is changing \u2014 and isn\u2019t changing \u2014 the world.<\/p>\n

Within his long-term partnership with Patterson, Illig said he always liked to refer to his colleague as the parade and himself as man with the pooper scooper.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI played the role of wingman pretty effectively,\u201d Illig added. \u201cI was the inside guy.\u201d<\/p>\n

When they left their full-time jobs at Arthur Andersen, he recalled, their contemporaries gave an over\/under of three weeks on how long their partnership would last.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe ended up spending 40 years together,\u201d Illig continued, \u201cliving out of the same pocketbook, working on everything. Neal was a very direct guy and could be kind of difficult to get along with. He and I got along superbly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their partnership was effective, Illig said, because even though they often disagreed about how to get there, they always agreed about where they were going. And their debates never got personal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were always focused on the bigger picture,\u201d Illig explained. \u201cOver the years, we had to work through a lot of stuff. I think Neal, literally, has said that he could count on one hand the number of times we disagreed to the point where one of us got up and walked out of the room.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of times our talks were over glasses of scotch, late in the evening, just sitting there with our feet up, watching the sunset, talking about what we were trying to accomplish,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

\u201cI encourage partnerships because it\u2019s a lot easier when you\u2019ve got somebody that you can share it with,\u201d Illig added.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Cliff Illig speaks during the Corporate Connections Summit led by Endeavor Heartland at Keystone CoLabs; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News<\/p>\n

Dining with destiny<\/p>\n

Everything the duo did together was 50-50, whether it was company involvement or real estate deals and that included investing in soccer in Kansas City. A group including Illig and Patterson purchased Sporting KC<\/a> (then the Wizards) in 2006 from Kansas City Chiefs founder Lamar Hunt. Illig sold his majority ownership to Peter Mallouk, CEO and president of Creative Planning, earlier this year, retaining a minority stake.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

A crowd of entrepreneurs and investors listens to Cliff Illig speak during a summit at Keystone CoLabs; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News<\/p>\n

Hunt \u2014 who brought Major League Soccer to Kansas City \u2014 pitched the idea to Illig and Patterson over a dinner at the Capital Grille, Illig recalled. At the time, Hunt owned three MLS teams and the league was starting to limit each owner to only one; because Kansas City was not drawing fans well, the league had suggested he move the team to Philadelphia.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe says, \u2018I want Kansas City to have soccer,\u2019\u201d Illig noted.<\/p>\n

Hunt emphasized several points to the Cerner co-founders, Illig continued, including the importance of Kansas City playing the world\u2019s game, rising Latino demographics, and the popularity of youth soccer in the area. But the point that resonated most with them was that Kansas City would be considered less of a major league city if it lost the MLS.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe says, \u2018I need somebody to step up,\u2019 Illig recalled. \u201cWe were not anxious to become sports folks, but we were anxious to make sure that we did not lessen the magnetism that Kansas City has to people wanting to move someplace for a great lifestyle that included soccer and major league sports.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the dinner \u2014 on the sidewalk outside of the Capital Grille \u2014 Illig said Patterson looked at him and asked if they were going to do it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI said, \u2018After that, Neil, I don\u2019t think we\u2019ve got a choice,\u2019\u201d he continued. \u201cSo I went home and told my wife we were buying a soccer team. She says, \u2018Oh, you\u2019re killing me. I couldn\u2019t wait till our kids quit playing soccer.\u201d And now she\u2019s the biggest fan.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Cliff Illig, honorary co-chair of KC 2026 for FIFA World Cup, speaks in 2023 at KC Rising\u2019s Horizon event; photo by Channa Steinmetz, Startland News<\/p>\n

Now on top of MLS ownership, Illig is the honorary co-chair of KC 2026<\/a> \u2014 along with Chiefs owner Clark Hunt. Preparing Kansas City for the World Cup this summer \u2014 which is less than 55 days away now \u2014 is the biggest project he\u2019s worked on, he noted, since prepping Cerner and its clients for Y2K.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Cliff Illig, co-founder of Cerner and longtime Sporting KC owner, smiles on stage at Keystone CoLabs; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News<\/p>\n

\u201cWe actually started here in Kansas City, preparing for the World Cup 10 years ago,\u201d he explained. \u201cEvery day. I\u2019m just struck further by how big it really is. But again, all the lessons we learned doing the Cerner thing over the years have ended up being very valuable.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the MLS league meetings, he said, the other owners have jokingly asked him what Kansas City paid FIFA to be a host city, as all of the other host cities in the U.S. are in the top 15 population centers. Kansas City is 33rd.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are the city that\u2019s probably doing the best up against all the other cities,\u201d he continued. \u201cEverybody has been blown away at the way we\u2019re showing up. We\u2019re busting our buns to make sure that we put on a great show here in Kansas City.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve put together a really, really capable team,\u201d he added, \u201ca highly-empowered team that has done a great job of pulling together all the pieces, transportation, security, game production. There\u2019s just tons of things to worry about. It\u2019s close to a $200 million project here in Kansas City.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roll up your sleeves<\/p>\n

As for AI, Illig said things are changing fast and everyone is wondering if AI is going to turn the world upside down.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s something we all ought to be paying attention to,\u201d he noted. \u201cBut at the same time, AI\u2019s not gonna do debits and credits for you. You\u2019ve still gotta have systems that automate workflows. AI can make it much more effective. But you\u2019ve still gotta roll up your sleeves and do the hard work on the IT.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Never underestimate the power of good luck among entrepreneurs, serial founder Cliff Illig told a crowd of founders,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":407383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[103,397,396,61,60],"class_list":{"0":"post-407382","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-health-care","10":"tag-healthcare","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/407382","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=407382"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/407382\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/407383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=407382"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=407382"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=407382"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}