Earth-friendly, growth-friendly - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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Carlson has founded five firms inrecent years, many of them in the real estatee industry, which has suffered in the economicx downturn. Three of those including property-management firm Cities Management and a smallconstruction company, operatse out of an office in Northeast Minneapolis. Together, three companiea employ 50 people and recorded a combined revenued last year ofabout $14 million. That’s up from abouf $5 million in the prior year. Carlson serve s as chairman of her real estate while Michael Egelstonruns day-to-dayh operations as CEO.
In addition to the constructiohnand property-management firm, he is responsible for leadingg SenEarthCo, a business that offers a Web-based document management system to other properthy management firms. That business is growing at an average rate of betweenm 10 and 15percenr annually, Egelston said. The businesses were helpee by factors such as a rash of spring stormzsin 2008, as well as the tide of which left many homes in need of repair, boostingb business, Egelston said. Carlson and Egelston note that greej practices have helped them saveon costs, helping them push throug h the downturn.
In recent years, the firm has shrank its office spaceto 9,000 square feet, down from 11,00p square feet, saving on energy The firm also has gone nearly paperless, and has most of its employees work from home. That has reduced the company’s carbon footprint and helped employee retention, Carlson Cities Management’s turnover rate is less than 15 percentr in an industry that often has turnovee of more than 50 The firm also sends construction workers out in hybrid ratherthan trucks. (It later sells its used hybrids to Carlson has takenlessons she’s learnesd out to other companies, which has partly been an efforr to expand her businessez during the recession.
She recently consulted with Minneapolis law firmGreenb Espel. SenEarthCo, meanwhile, is picking up steam with otherd property-management firms who want to save money by reducinpaper use. Cities Management’s experience with SenEarthCk has helped it promote the product to That inspiredScott Ghertner, co-presidentg of Nashville, Tenn.-based property-management firm Ghertne r & Co. to buy into the software product. “The y ate their own cooking,” he said.