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Crain's Detroit Business Executive Editor Kelley Root chats with Paul W. Smith on WJR AM 760 about stories from this week's issue.

What we talked about:  2:00 - The state of McKinley and how the business has changed over 30 years 3:05 -Why they are staying in the workforce housing market 4:40 - Why they won't be expanding to regions outside of Ann Arbor and Orlando 12:40 - How they handle rising rents 14:00 - How to improve affordable housing 16:50 - How they retain staffers 18:10 - What they are doing for a succession plan 18:55 - What it was like coming to the U.S as a refugee 19:55 - His management style and how he uses social media 22:15 - His biggest mistake in business and how he overcame it

Crain's Detroit Business Executive Editor Kelley Root chats with Paul W. Smith on WJR AM 760 about stories from this week's issue.

Monique Becker and Elyse Wolf call each other "sisters since four."  They went to school together and live together. And in the last five years, the two have navigated the challenges of parlaying a lifelong friendship into a business partnership. It hasn't always been easy.  "The work never ends," says Becker. "It's really hard to have any types of boundaries." "We definitely have other friends who have to remind us to pump the breaks on things," added Wolf. The 28-year-olds are now developing properties into multi-unit housing and Airbnb properties in Detroit while doing their own general contracting and management through their company Mona Lisa Living. They've also purchased an 11-acre property near Mackinaw City with a lake which they plan to turn into an elevated camp and cabin experience.  "It just kind of started from that idea of really wanting a place to be able to go and rest our minds and be creative and just explore Northern Michigan," Wolf said.  Listen for more on: 1:25 - Challenges of going into business with your friend 3:20 - Dividing the workload 4:35 - Getting help from family 6:30 - Why they rebranded 7:30 - Why they chose to develop in the Virginia Park neighborhood 9:10 - What it's like to renovate and live in a duplex 10:35 - Why co-living spaces and equitable development are important to them 13:45 - How to overcome financing issues 17:15 - How their vision has changed for their company 19:15 - Why they are expanding to Up North 25:15 - Challenges of being young women in a field dominated by older men 29:15 - Their biggest mistake in business

Kerry Duggan and Jonathan Overpeck talk with Crain’s Executive Editor Kelley Root about UM’s new SEAS Sustainability Clinic in Detroit aimed at combating the effects of climate change, including residential flooding.

Trevor Lauer, president and COO of DTE Electric, speaks with Crain's Detroit Business Managing Editor Michael Lee about work to reduce power outages, warnings from some about power shortages this summer and the future of green energy technologies.

Crain's Detroit Business Executive Editor Kelley Root talks with Skillman Foundation President and CEO Angelique Power about the importance of engaging young people in philanthropy, her impressions of metro Detroit and her goals for the organization.

Bob Riney considered pursuing the permanent CEO job at Henry Ford Health. He tells Crain’s on our Mackinac Policy Conference podcast about why he didn’t.

Ric Devore, the new president of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, talks to Crain’s Managing Editor Michae Lee about jumping from finance to foundations – and succeeding a legend.

Peter Quigley, president and CEO of Troy-based Kelly Services, spoke with Crain’s Detroit Business reporter Kurt Nagl about the labor shortage, how long it will last and what long-term impact it will have on industries from manufacturing to health care. The exodus of nurses from the profession in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic overwhelming hospitals is symbolic of what the coronavirus crisis did generally to the job market. The impact on health care has been a shortage of nurses, but at the same time, Quigley said, the company has seen improved fill rates of substitute teachers as nurses flock to other professions.

Hayley Murphy, director and CEO of the Detroit Zoological Society and Detroit Zoo, spoke with Crain’s Detroit Business reporter Kurt Nagl at the Mackinac Policy Conference about adjusting to the role she took on a little more than six months ago. Murphy, the first female CEO of the zoo, said she has a lot on her plate as its new leader, including opening the Belle Isle Nature Center by early or mid-July and moving forward on the Great Lakes Center for Nature in Macomb County, which was stalled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Simon Whitelocke, president of ITC Michigan, talks with Crain’s Managing Editor Michael Lee about how the Novi-based electric transmission company hardens its grid against major weather events and the odds of electric demand outstripping supply this summer.

David Parent, managing principal for the Deloitte LLP’s Michigan practice, talks with Crain’s Managing Editor Michael Lee about the future of office work and his own company’s big downtown office move.

Quentin Messer, CEO of the Michigan Economic Development Corp., chats with Crain's Detroit Business reporter Kurt Nagl about luring large investments to the state after losing a recently announced Stellantis EV battery plant to Indiana.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan talks about bringing jobs to Detroit, environmental issues at the new Stellantis plant on the city’s east side, and how his administration is making sure residents are benefitting from development.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel talks with Crain's Detroit Business reporter David Eggert at the 2022 Mackinac Policy Conference.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer talks with Crain's Detroit Business reporter David Eggert at the 2022 Mackinac Policy Conference.

Jeffrey Donofrio, president and CEO of Business Leaders for Michigan, talks with Crain's Detroit Business reporter David Eggert at the 2022 Mackinac Policy Conference.