Jill Odom, Author at The Edge from the National Association of Landscape Professionals - Page 150 of 197

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Author: Jill Odom

Jill Odom is the senior content manager for the National Association of Landscape Professionals.

Tis the Season: Landscape Companies Give Back to Their Communities

Even though the months of November and December bring thankfulness and giving to the forefront of people’s minds, these landscape companies opt to give back to their communities year-round. Peter Novak, president of Serpico Landscaping, based in Hayward, California, says they have grown their company in the San Francisco Bay area for 32 plus years […]

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Best Practices for Increasing Your Sales Closure Rate

Just like a hitter with a lot of RBIs makes his team more likely to win baseball games, having a salesperson with a higher sales closure rate can help your company succeed. Increasing your sales closure rate requires you to take a look at your sales process and see where things are going awry. It’s […]

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Initiating Your Corporate Social Responsibility with D’Anna Wade Thompson: Season 2, Episode 26 of Growing in the Green Industry Podcast

In season 2, episode 26 of the Growing in the Green Industry Podcast, hosts Miles Kuperus III, system architect at Include Software, Neal Glatt, managing partner of GrowTheBench, Luke Melograno, production coordinator at Mariani Landscape, and Macey Robinson, branch manager with LandCare, talk with D’Anna Wade Thompson, CEO of StandOut Communications. Thompson has spent more […]

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Faces of the Industry: Jesse Cardoza

Jesse Cardoza started helping his father in his lawn service business when he was eight years old. In the beginning, he had to find properties through a Mapsco book and used payphones for directions. When he was 15, he would work his father’s lawn maintenance route so they could go on vacations with his younger […]

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On the Same Page: Why Open-Book Management Helps

Imagine you’re the quarterback for a football team, but for some reason, you’re the only one on your team who knows what the points are on the scoreboard. Some of your teammates are convinced they’re up against an unsurmountable lead and have given up while others think they are comfortably ahead and as a result […]

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In Memoriam: Dan Stearns

Dan Stearns, professor emeritus of landscape contracting at Penn State University, passed away on Nov. 6, 2021, at the age of 70. Stearns was an NALP Trailblazer and received NALP’s Educator of the Year award in 2019. Stearns earned his bachelor’s degree from Penn State and his master’s degree at North Carolina State University. Before […]

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Landscapes of the Month: Transforming a Tired Lakefront Property Into a Jewel

On Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, a homeowner purchased a dilapidated cottage and run-down property with the intent of converting it into a summer home where their large family could gather. When they heard of how Landmark Landscapes, Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin, had completed a project for a nearby neighbor that called for a lot of permitting, they […]

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Faces of the Industry: Luis Mata

Luis Mata, maintenance operations manager for Chalet Nursery, based in Wilmette, Illinois, was introduced to the industry at a young age as he started working with his father on a landscape crew throughout high school. ā€œAt one point I did not want to be involved in the industry,ā€ Mata says. ā€œI wanted to find something […]

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Business Smarts: The Art of Raising Your Rates

U.S. inflation hit a 30-year high in October, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Couple this with the need to raise employees’ wages to stay competitive and your gross profit margins have probably been shrinking for a while now. While talking to customers about your increased rates may be daunting, it is an absolute […]

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How I Do It: Taking Advantage of the DoD SkillBridge Program

Each year nearly 200,000 members of the U.S. Armed Forces, stationed in over 140 military installations in the U.S. and overseas, will separate from active duty and re-enter the civilian workforce or pursue higher education. For the past two years, Environmental Management Inc. (EMI) based in Plain City, Ohio, has been able to tap into […]

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