When Jason James, CTSP, ISA Certified Arborist and owner of Tree Wise Men LLC – a TCIA member company since 2022 – started noticing the ash tree epidemic spreading across southern Wisconsin, he saw a demand for tree work he knew he could fill. “The first tree job I took was to cut down a neighbor’s diseased tree for the firewood,” notes James. “I actually got paid for my second job, but I lost quite a bit of money doing it,” he adds with a laugh.

Jason James says he started Tree Wise Men because he saw a demand and had a desire to create something extraordinary. All photos courtesy of Tree Wise Men LLC.

Tree work started out as a weekend gig for this arborist/owner operating out of Janesville, Wisc. He notes that his background actually was in IT for a Fortune 500 company. “My end goal when I started (Tree Wise Men) in 2014 was to have an autonomous business,” says James. “For me, it was more about the demand I saw and a desire to create something extraordinary. And I was lucky that I had a high-paying job that allowed me to bankroll a new company.”

In the very beginning, it was just James and some basic equipment. But that changed quickly as his professionalism shone through. “I answered the phone, I showed up on time and I dressed professionally,” he says. “I had so many people tell me they left messages and then never heard back from other tree companies, or that jobs were not done well.”

James quickly hired on Anthony Curcio, now foreman and aerial-lift operator, “and he’s been with me since day one,” he says. Both worked full-time jobs in addition to doing tree work when the business first took off.

Tree Wise Men has 22 full-time employees.

Getting things rolling
According to James, he envisioned starting a company that would not just meet industry standards, but would set new benchmarks. Hence his desire to become TCIA accredited – but more on that later.

The arborist says he basically is self-taught. “When I started out, I read every book I could get my hands on, I watched YouTube videos, I read the ISA certification book and became a Certified Arborist and I attended (TCI) EXPO every year,” he says. He also became involved in the Wisconsin Arborist Association (WAA) and attended its conference in Green Bay.

Currently, Tree Wise Men has 22 full-time employees. They service a 50-mile radius in southern Wisconsin, doing everything from planting and pruning to plant health care, tree removals, emergency storm work and tree risk assessment. “We have commercial and municipal clients, but residential is our bread and butter,” says James. “And I’d say that 70% of our residential work is tree removals.

“We really are all about tree preservation, so I’m trying to educate our clients about ways to do that rather than just remove trees. I’ve had people want to get rid of the whole tree for just one broken limb, or because it’s a mess for them or it’s too close to their home. Don’t get me wrong, in some cases that might be necessary, but not always.”

Paths for growth
James says building relationships within the community is another way he hopes to educate people about the importance of tree preservation. “We’ve done community outreach and also had a booth with the South Central Wisconsin Builders Association.

“Another thing I really want to push is plant health care,” he continues. “We’ve been doing PHC for three years now, and it’s a great recurring service. Mainly we’re doing fungicides for oak wilt, needle cast and sudden oak death.”

Tree Wise Men’s reputation for quality tree care is based on several things that set his company apart, according to James. These include being TCIA accredited, having multiple ISA Certified Arborists on staff (including himself), offering a comprehensive set of services and having highly trained and professional crews.

James notes that his company has pretty much experienced double-digit growth every year. “Our growth during COVID was insane,” he says. “It really was crazy, something like 36%.” As a result, James says he hasn’t actually been working in the field for years, but is dedicated to doing sales and estimates full time.

Jason James, CTSP

Motivated to be better
James says he learned about Accreditation while attending a TCIA Executive Arborist Workshop several years ago. “I was motivated to be better as a company. We knew we weren’t perfect, so we wanted to pursue the industry best practices and professional development and training that were offered.

“My goal is to make this industry – and my business – better, safer, more efficient,” he continues. “This area (southern Wisconsin) is full of unqualified competitors.”

As a company, Tree Wise Men was doing a lot of things from the Accreditation process correctly, James says, “but TCIA helped us take documentation to a higher level. Also, I had thought our business plan was good, and it turns out it wasn’t.

“Our safety training also was a surprise. Where we had quarterly safety trainings before, now we have weekly meetings in addition. We’ve hired third-party trainers to come in and do our quarterly trainings, and we have quizzes on the material.” He adds that operations manager and CTSP (Certified Treecare Safety Professional) Andrew Cristl handles in-house safety training on tools and equipment.

Having highly trained and professional crews helps set Tree Wise Men apart, says Jason James.

Getting it right
James says it took two extensions to get the Accreditation process and audit done, but they finally succeeded this past summer. “It was a team effort. I got lots of help from the office staff, my wife Jenna, Andrew and especially my office manager and sister-in-law, Brey James. Brey really took it to the next level.”

The biggest challenge in Accreditation was getting employee buy-in, says James, and making sure everyone understands that safety is important for everyone, from the person dragging brush to the aerial-lift operator. “We want to have a company culture built around safety,” he notes. “No injury, no loss.”

Patricia Chaudoin has been a freelance writer/editor for more than four decades, in areas as disparate as tree care, golf, weddings, luxury travel and international non-profit NGOs. She has been writing for TCI Magazine since 2016.