It can be overwhelming to figure out just how AI and automation can be implemented in your lawn and landscape business. For the landscape companies already implementing these tools, they see a lot of opportunity as their usage grows in the industry.
“I’m one of those believers that a high tide raises all ships as we all move up together, we’re all going to see the same gains,” says Adam Swank, director of technology for Ground Works Land Design, based in Cleveland, Ohio. “Really just lean on other companies you’ve seen be successful with it.”
Start Small
Think about the repetitive, mundane tasks that take up your team’s time, such as data entry, scheduling meetings or sending rote updates. Consider implementing automation in these areas.
“Can you have a report scheduled to send instead of manually running it?” says Dani Gowda, human resources manager with Dennis’ 7 Dees, based in Portland, Oregon. “Try out ChatGPT for an email you need to write. Then work up to more complex uses, like automating marketing campaigns.”
Adam Swank, director of technology for Ground Works Land Design, based in Cleveland, Ohio, says automation allows them to have more time to focus on creative, skill-based activities. He says automation can also help reduce errors.
“It’s creating a task and scheduling a calendar,” Swank says. “It’s moving information from point A to point B. It’s going to be consistent. If someone fills out a form requesting more information, automation allows us to respond to that person immediately. Out goes an email, ‘Book a call with us. We’ll talk to you right now.’”
Swank adds that you need to understand your desired outcome when implementing automation. Also, he says don’t fall into the trap of automating too much and creating a poor customer experience.
Skyler Westergard, learning and development specialist at LandCare, LLC, based in Frederick, Maryland, says the easiest way to get comfortable with using AI is to start playing with ChatGPT to see what it’s capable of.
“The prompts are very important in AI what you tell it, how you communicate with it,” Westergard says.
Build Your Processes
If you want to implement automation, Justin White, owner of K&D Landscaping, Inc., based in Watsonville, California, says you need to make your business as systemized as possible. Swank advises walking through your existing processes and seeing where things could be automated.
“It’s not one of those things that I would say it comes intuitively,” Swank says. “You’ve got to break down what does your process look like. Where can you automate things and is this the right thing to automate?”
White says depending on your company size, you need to designate someone in your company to be over your automation. If you’re at the $1 to $3 million size, this responsibility falls on you.
“Once you’re $5 million, you probably have 35 to 50 employees,” White says. “There’s probably someone in your company that is passionate about technology and does this for fun. Try to find that person and create a twice-a-month meeting one-on-one with them.”
Once you’re at $10 million in revenue, you’re in the realm of having someone who is in charge of implementing technology in your company. This is the person who should be in charge of your automation and keeping up with AI advancements.
White says owners and CEOs still need to be willing to jump in and do some research themselves because no one is going to care about taking the company to the next level more than themselves.
Set Your Policies
As you roll out AI in your company, it’s important to develop company policies regarding how it will and will not be used.
“I like to think of it like maybe a pair of draft horses, but they got to be reined in and have a bridle,” Westergard says. “They’re very powerful, but you can’t just let them go anywhere you want. So I think that’s the risk, not losing the personal human touch with people that we interact with.”
Keep in mind that AI can have biases and inaccuracies. While AI is incredibly powerful, just because it can do certain functions doesn’t make it ethical.
“I’m more concerned about the ethical and social impact of AI and ensuring it can’t be used to cause harm,” Gowda says.
Employee Buy-In
Integrating AI and automation can be challenging as teams are often resistant to change in general. Colin Bemus, president of Bemus Landscape Inc., based in San Clemente, California, says their older employees are less likely to adapt to technology but despite this, Bemus believes integrating automation is doable while others are saying it is not possible.
“I don’t subscribe to that,” Bemus says. “Nowadays just about everybody has a cell phone, everybody’s on Facebook. Everybody can do the basics. That’s something we as an industry need to remove from our thought process that these are not possible. I do believe that it’s possible to get people to adopt these.”
White says even for his team that has a desire for change, this transition has been difficult.
“This change is more difficult than others because there are so many options when it comes to implementing automation and AI,” White says. “It’s hard to know where to focus.”
Bemus says the proper rollout of AI and automation is key. Avoid major missteps as this can build distrust right away. He says these innovations often catch on once employees understand how beneficial it is for them.
White says there has been an 80% positive response. The 20% who are negative about it are those over 40 who are more sluggish in adopting technology.
“We’re trying to get ahead of the narrative and explain this is for the benefit of everybody,” White says. “Part of that is improving our wage. We’re trying to pay our employees more as we bring in more automation.”
Gowda says their team’s response has been very positive and they want to learn more on how it can make their jobs easier.
“I don’t think AI is going to replace people’s jobs,” Swank says. “I think it’s going to get to a point where it really enhances them and allows them to engage on what their job’s really about.”
