Business Advice & Stories Archives - Page 5 of 109 - The Edge from the National Association of Landscape Professionals

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Business Advice & Stories

How I Do It: Creating a Foreman Fast Track Program

If you want to attract leaders to your organization, outlining a viable career path for them from the start is one key to success. This is one of the benefits Weller Brothers Landscape Professionals, based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, has reaped through their Foreman Fast Track program. The FFT program provides clear growth opportunities […]

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Cash Confusion: How Landscape Companies Can Misread Their Financials

Do you encounter times when your company has strong profits on paper, but you’re still struggling with cash shortages? Frequently, the cause of this is how you record and interpret your financial data. While cash flow problems aren’t caused by accounting, using the wrong method and distorted numbers can hide warning signs until it is […]

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Creating a PTO Policy That Works: How to Balance Flexibility and Accountability

There is no universal formula for offering PTO. What works for your salaried employees may fall flat with hourly field employees, and a policy that feels generous on paper can become difficult to manage if accruals, rollovers and payouts are not clearly defined. Here are several PTO policy decisions to think through, and how other […]

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The Business Case for Better PTO Policies

When you’re competing for top talent, having a strong PTO policy is table stakes.   Andy Blanchford, CEO of Blanchford Landscape Group, based in Bozeman, Montana, says their PTO offering is part of their multipronged approach to being an employer of choice in the local labor market in addition to their 4-day work weeks, top of […]

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Are You Fostering Employee Independence in Your Organization?

If you are frequently frustrated by having to constantly answer questions that your team members should be able to address on their own, you could be dealing with the pitfall of inadvertently teaching employees to be passive, rather than proactive. ā€œTime is money, and employees who can’t or won’t proceed because they are waiting for […]

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Streamlining Six Common Design/Build Bottlenecks

There are numerous roadblocks that can slow down or cause headaches during the design/build process. Instead of merely tolerating them, taking the time to streamline these pain points can result in improved efficiency in your operations and a better overall experience for your clients. While the weather will remain out of your control, other common […]

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Stop Guessing: How to Run the Numbers and Make Smarter Equipment Decisions

When it comes to making an expensive equipment purchase, how often are you trusting your gut versus going by solid numbers that back your decision? Sometimes you may opt not to purchase a machine, assuming it will be underutilized and not make enough money to justify the monthly payments. However, it’s impossible to know this […]

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Business Smarts: Creating Processes that Scale with Your Company

When you’re on the smaller side, many of the processes you create work when you only have five or 10 employees. Yet as your team grows, cracks can begin to appear as bottlenecks and inconsistencies cause issues. ā€œStrong processes allow us to grow while maintaining quality, performance, and accountability across all branches,ā€ says Loren McIrvin, […]

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Financial Blind Spots: The Money Misconceptions That Hurt Landscape Companies

It’s hard to make sound decisions when your financials are either structured in a way that buries the relevant information or certain aspects, such as your labor burden, are misinterpreted. ā€œDon’t assume your data is accurate, reliable, relevant and comprehensive without a thorough investigation,ā€ says John Joestgen, principal of JJ Landscape Consulting. ā€œIf you want […]

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Mindset Shifts Industry Titans Have Made Over the Years

How often have you changed your mind about a belief you’ve held? Sometimes, an outlook that may have gotten you to where you are today no longer serves you or could even be holding you back. Below are some of the thought processes that industry leaders admit they’ve had to outgrow as they’ve scaled their […]

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