Success Comes Down to Ability to Sell

Reprinted from Traditions, Summer 2018
September 25, 2018

Cretin Profile: Thomas LaSalle'68

"Success in business comes down to one thing - the ability to sell," said Thomas LaSalle '68, President and CEO of the LaSalle Group and Tapestry Management.  "Whether selling product, services, or yourself, you need to be able to communicate with others in a way that is meaningful to them."

For more than four decades, Tom LaSalle ’68 has built a career that focused on selling his ideas around property development, including planning, value engineering, construction, and financing. Much of this was conducted in economic times that were challenging and defeating for many in the industry. When asked what was the secret to his success, he responded simply that he had no great vision, “just a lot of hard work.”

Over the past four decades, LaSalle and his company, the LaSalle Group, have expanded their focus and found strategic ways to address the needs of the time, while selling concepts that were innovative for the time. He has worked on noteworthy projects, such as the impressive University of Minnesota McNamara Alumni Center and The Children’s Theater, giving him the chance to work with renowned architects such as Antoine Predock, Michael Graves, and Frank Geary.

With his diverse background, LaSalle has been an adjunct professor in the Architecture department at the U of M. Though he is not an architect, he teaches the property development process and how to market and speak about property projects at all phases.

But the focus for LaSalle Group and his other companies has been in an ever-evolving senior housing market. In the late 1970s, when the LaSalle Group was first established, it was heavily in the construction of subsidized housing and then later transitioned into market-rate housing. In the 1980s, LaSalle was involved in the construction of Edinborough in Edina, which is a mixed-use development, including Senior and family housing, office, hotel, and an enclosed city park. This project was challenging, not just for the construction, but for the financing, so he also structured a program of internal subsidies, especially benefiting the Edina residents purchasing the condos. Later, in the 1990s he found himself in more unfamiliar territory when a former colleague asked him to consult on the renovation of a former convent into senior housing. Because of that project, he also became involved in the construction of two monasteries and six convents. Most recently, a bulk of their work has been in assistive care facilities for seniors.

“If there is one common thread between all our work over the past 40 years, it is seniors,” said LaSalle. “From subsidized housing to senior coops and condos, to housing for the religious orders and now the assistant care model, LaSalle Group has been a leader in senior housing.”

Taking the Lead

Taking the lead is something that is important to LaSalle, in both his personal and professional life. In addition to his career, he has worked hard to give back to his community. LaSalle was a past Commodore of the Aquatennial and parade announcer for the Winter Carnival parade. He continues to serve on the Aquatennial Ambassador Organization Board and served on the St. Paul Heritage and Festival Board.

“These events are so important to our sense of community,” LaSalle explained. “It is not only fun, but it provides a safe place to go, lots to do, and a chance for people to belong.” He is a firm believer that there is tremendous importance of volunteerism because it benefits the giver as much as the cause.

His involvement on the civic level complements his philosophy of business as well. For instance, as part of the Aquatennial organization, his efforts were key to establishing a more focused woman’s leadership program approach to the Aquatennial queen contest. He has mentored the women in high-value skills such as public speaking and leadership.

He also enjoyed coaching when his kids were smaller and spent some time managing the local Park Board volunteer soccer program. During his time there, he worked with the coaches to establish a culture in which the paradigm shifted from whether the team won or lost the game to assessing the lowest skilled player and seeing what they learn.

Lessons of Leadership

LaSalle, the son of a traveling salesman and a part-time receptionist at Cretin, grew up in St. Paul and recalls valuable leadership lessons that he learned while at Cretin in the late 1960s.

One significant lesson for him occurred in the JROTC military program which was required in his day. His company had been through a couple of leaders and were not enthusiastic about being there. “At age 17, I was responsible for 150 fifteen-year-olds and some seniors,” he explained. “It was clear that the challenge was to win them over if we had any hope to succeed. I took another approach and basically asked them why they were making it so difficult for themselves and convinced them that it was easier to cooperate and get out of school on time.” LaSalle realized then that a good leader finds a way to engage those around him to make them want to follow — and to make each side feel good about the process somehow.”

He also points to the benefits he gained in his other activities in high school which included the Track team and Sports Editor for the newspaper. Such opportunities were important ways to gain critical prospective outside the classroom. “What we learn from those activities is significant,” LaSalle noted. “You learn to work with others, create a team and your success relates to your ability to get along — a lot like real life.”

LaSalle is married to Michele and they are the proud parents of five and grandparents to 12 grandchildren. He is currently supporting the Cretin Class of 1968 Reunion, with a focus on the creation of the Memory Book.

Tom LaSalle was instrumental in the formation of the University Gateway Corporation, a unique private and public partnership founded to serve and showcase the University of Minnesota. The McNamara Alumni Center, designed as a self-sustaining hub for alumni and visitors, opened in 2000, and features 220,000 square feet of office space, distinctive event space for University or private events such as weddings, and the Heritage Gallery, an intentional nod to the innovation and research history of the U of M.

The building is a profit center, allowing the University Gateway Corp. to further invest in several impressive spaces on campus: the Scholars Walk, Gateway Plaza, the Alumni Wall of Honor, and Discover Nexus (a 30,000 square foot innovation center).

LaSalle, who was involved in the project from the very beginning, from visioning, planning, and financing, and all the way through construction, continues to be proudly involved in operations and growth today.

This article and more are featured in the Summer, 2018 issue of the CDH Magazine, Traditions.