Promoting employees from within can greatly strengthen your company, but this can only occur if you are building out your team members’ leadership skills.
This is what prompted LandCare, headquartered in Frederick, Maryland, to launch their Accelerated Leadership Development Program in October 2024.
“Sustainable growth requires a strong bench of leaders who are ready to step into larger roles over time,” says Jennifer Burnett, Chief People Officer for LandCare.
Burnett says they take a long-term view of the business and want the company to be a place where people can build meaningful, long-term careers.
“The Accelerated Leadership Development Program was created to help accelerate that development while introducing participants to the leadership expectations, business philosophies, and principles that shape how LandCare operates and what makes our company unique,” Burnett says.
This program is offered company-wide, and employees can apply to the program through a written application and a reference from their leader.
“From there, we review applicants based on performance, leadership potential, and readiness for greater responsibility,” Burnett says. “Many participants are still relatively early in their careers, so we are looking for individuals who have demonstrated strong results, curiosity, and a commitment to continuing their professional development.”
LandCare selects around 20 employees per cohort as this allows for deeper discussions, stronger relationships among participants and more individualized development.
After being selected, these employees travel to the Chesapeake Bay for one immersive week together.
“Bringing people from different markets together creates an environment where they can learn from one another’s experiences while building relationships with peers across the organization,” Burnett says.
During the one-week program, employees focus fully on leadership development, reflection and learning from their peers.
“It is a meaningful time investment, but we believe that concentrated time away from the business is valuable when the goal is to accelerate development and broaden perspective,” Burnett says.
The curriculum for the ALDP covers leadership fundamentals such as how to build strong teams, develop people, as well as strengthening financial acumen, making sound business decisions, managing priorities effectively, and understanding the behaviors and habits strong leaders consistently demonstrate. Burnett says they selected these topics as they are the real challenges their leaders face every day.
The program is structured with a mix of classroom-style sessions, interactive activities, and daily debriefs. These sessions are led by senior leaders who share their insights and perspectives, exposing participants to the thinking and expectations of leaders guiding the company.
“The classroom sessions are delivered in shorter blocks to maintain energy and attention while allowing participants to engage with the material,” Burnett says. “The activities are designed to stretch participants in meaningful ways — through leading and following, building connections, stepping outside their comfort zones, and being exposed to new experiences and perspectives.”
Meanwhile, the debriefs help participants reflect on their experiences and take them back into their daily work. At the end of the program, LandCare seeks feedback from each cohort to refine and improve how they facilitate the program.
Burnett says the program does not feature any tests. Instead, employees demonstrate their learning through discussion, reflection and practical application in their roles. By exposing participants to leadership concepts, the ALDP helps them understand what they don’t know yet and where they should continue developing.
“Our goal is not for participants to leave the program believing they have mastered leadership,” Burnett says. “Instead, we hope they leave with a clearer understanding of what great leadership requires, where their own development opportunities are, and how to continue building those capabilities over time. The program is meant to spark a deeper commitment to professional growth.”
While the program is still relatively new, LandCare has seen promising early indicators with participants demonstrating readiness for additional responsibilities.
“Because we prioritize developing and promoting from within, ALDP helps us accelerate the growth of high-potential team members so they can be more effective in their current roles and better prepared for the next stage of leadership as the company continues to grow,” Burnett says.
For other landscape companies looking to develop their own leadership training program, Burnett encourages taking a long-term perspective and developing people from within.
“The goal shouldn’t be to create a program that ‘finishes’ leadership development, but one that ignites it,” she says. “The strongest programs help people become more effective in their current roles while building the mindset and habits of continuous learning that strong leaders carry throughout their careers.”
