Local landscape construction company Envisioning Green has grown its business from the ground up by intentionally creating a corporate culture that embraces joy, hard work and positivity—values its field employees demonstrate on each and every job site.

This “people first” attitude has not only resonated with satisfied homeowners in the St. Louis region, but also caught the attention of New York Times bestselling author Mark Sanborn who chose to spotlight Envisioning Green as an example of the power of clarity in business in his latest book, “The Intention Imperative: Three Essential Changes That Will Make You a Successful Leader Today.”

Sanborn, an award-winning keynote leadership speaker, is the author of nine books, including “The Fred Factor,” which has sold over two million copies worldwide. In “The Intention Imperative,” Sanborn explains how different businesses use clarity of purpose and consistent action to achieve extraordinary results.

People-centered Business

After hosting a training seminar with the Envisioning Green team, including owners Steven and Erika Johns, in 2017, Sanborn recognized that the company exemplified the very message he was trying to impart to his readers, especially those small business owners.

As he writes in Chapter 12, “You can often judge the success of a company by the style and substance of its leaders, and it was easy to see that Envisioning Green is a standout company in what is often a tired and uninspired green business. The difference? Both Erika and Steven understand the power of clarity in their company: ‘Clarity to us is like success,’ they agreed. They know that you don’t really get one without the other.”

Through the Envisioning Green case study, Sanborn highlights how the company defined its role as a people-centered business, both in terms of its employees and clients. Its efforts have included finding ways for their employees to work in a notoriously seasonal industry, hiring workers for their attitude and training them for their skills, and instilling confidence in its employees that translates into better customer service for its clients.

For the Johnses, the profile in “The Intention Imperative” is a testament to the success they’ve been striving toward. “We’re honestly so humbled and honored to be included in Mark’s book,” said Erika Johns. “At Envisioning Green, we believe that business is built through relationships, so everything we do goes through that filter of ‘how can we be the best part of someone’s day?’ To be recognized for that means so much to us.”