“We were growing but constantly hitting roadblocks, operating in a reactive state, putting out fires,” recalled Allen Greene II, Co-Founder, Envision Construction Services. It’s a description of his business that could have come from any business owner, on any given day.
This was no ordinary year. It was 2020.
Five years ago this week, the U.S. joined the global shutdowns caused by Covid-19. Here in Tampa Bay, Envision was one of two Chamber Member companies in the Minority Business Accelerator. “My MBA experience was anything but traditional. It was a year of uncertainty, but also deep learning and adaptation. We had faced a major loss in 2018 that tested our resilience and forced us to rethink how we operated. The accelerator helped us rebuild, refine our strategy, and implement stronger systems for sustainable growth,” said Greene.
Founded in 2009 by Greene and his father, Allen Greene Sr., Envision serves a variety of industries. Their clients come from the sectors of education, aviation, healthcare, commercial retail and hospitality, just to name a few. When the coronavirus unilaterally paralyzed construction in all of these sectors, the family owned company had been in business for 11 years and in year two of the accelerator program. Envision was poised to scale. Instead, its employees in construction oversight, design coordination, tenant improvements and real estate development were forced to quarantine at home, along with everyone else.
Looking back to that difficult time, Greene credited the accelerator with helping his team build resilience. The MBA sessions reinforced “structured leadership, accountability, and operational excellence,” he said.
“Running a business means constant challenges - balancing growth, managing people, and ensuring operational efficiency,” said Greene. It’s a mindset he picked up from a fellow Chamber Member who introduced him to the concept of EOS - the Entrepreneurial Operating System, created and trademarked by EOS Worldwide.
“EOS provided a structured approach that turned the chaos into clarity… helping us define our vision, establish core processes, and create a rhythm of accountability,” said Greene. “It gave our team a shared language to solve problems, align priorities…”
The accelerator experience and the EOS advice from a fellow Chamber Member helped Greene share the weight of responsibility he was carrying solo as a co-founder. The result was business and professional growth that was sustainable. “We equip our team with what they need to learn, grow and lead,” explained Greene.
The words are music to the ears of Jeff Jackson, a local franchisee and implementer of EOS, and a mentor of the MBA ‘26 Cohort. “My favorite thing to do is give entrepreneurs their lives back. Give them back to their spouse, their children, or even just their dog,” said Jackson. “Most of my clients come to me when they are at the end of their rope,” he added. “The single biggest issue in companies causing so much doubt in the mind of entrepreneurs… is a lack of clarity…The biggest roadblock to success is not taking the action necessary to get 100% of the right people into the right seats to drive the business.”
Envision has come a long way since that historic week in March 2020. Lessons learned in the accelerator and connections made with other Chamber Members helped tremendously, along with something else.
“Every setback, and every step forward was part of a greater plan,” Greene explained. "It was a pivotal time that pushed us to seek better ways to scale… one that we continue to walk in Faith, trusting that we are building to make a lasting impact, not just for today."
