Diversity runs in Greenfire’s blood

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In just six years, Greenfire Management Services has grown from a team of 12 employees to 40 and has managed more than $400 million worth of projects. It is the sixth largest Milwaukee-area, minority-owned business and a top-25 fastest growing tribal business in the country.

The construction-management firm is based in Milwaukee and has a regional office in Wausau. Founded in 2010, Greenfire is 100 percent owned by the Forest County Potawatomi Community’s 1,400 tribal members.

President Kip Ritchie said the company’s rapid growth has provided invaluable lessons on everything from the need to do exactly wht customers want to the need to hire the most talented people in a tight job market. Teamwork is a key value within the company.

“We haven’t had a lot of turnover and I think that’s because we are a family friendly company, there is a lot of camaraderie, and we focus on communication, trust, transparency and community,” Ritchie said, adding employees and their families often participate in community service and leisure activities like trips to the zoo and state fair.

He noted that Greenfire takes pride in being able to hire other minority-owned businesses for its projects. It employs an in-house Diversity Initiative Coordinator who completes its RPP and SBE participation management and tracking, and it works with various minority-owned subcontractors, including Ezzard White. White started One Hope Made Strong, a free skilled-trades training program for young women and men living in the city.

In recent years, the company was awarded contracts for some of Milwaukee’s most significant construction projects, including the $36 million Chiswick at Dunwood new development, the $18 million Maxwell Apartments historic redevelopment, the $12 million Gold Medal Lofts historic redevelopment, and the $50 million redevelopment of its Wgema Campus.

Greenfire recently completed the construction of the community-driven Griot Apartments and Legacy Lofts, both of which are designated for low-income areas and were selected as 2018 Top Projects by The Daily Reporter.

Other notable projects include the Gerald L. Ignace Indian Health Center, a non-profit clinic developed to provide more accessible health services to tribes and people living on Milwaukee’s south side.

Among other endeavors, Greenfire has worked with the Milwaukee Christian Center to develop a program for local teens; it participates in the YouthBuild program, which offers first-hand experience on a jobsite; and it recently conducted a food drive to support the program.