For many across the country, the landscape season is winding down and with it comes the prime opportunity to reflect on your team’s wins and losses.
As you shift gears to prepare for snow removal season or look to wrap things up before much of your staff takes a well-deserved break, it can be easy to focus on the next goal post without taking the time to truly reflect.
When you fail to evaluate your team’s performance after a season, it’s far more likely you’ll end up dealing with the same headaches next year as well. Your off-season not only gives you the breathing room to think strategically about the deeper causes of issues but also an outlet to find solutions.
ELEVATE, presented by NALP and powered by Cat, is one of those spaces where you can not only connect with industry peers who have gone through similar struggles but attend sessions that can address your challenges with tangible takeaways. This event takes place Nov. 2-5, 2025, in Phoenix, Arizona, and features various education tracks that are tailored to your needs.
As you consider where you struggled this season, below are some areas of the business to evaluate so you can better select sessions that will fit your needs.
Your Team
Some things to assess when it comes to your team include whether staffing was particularly challenging or if the team seemed to lack overall engagement. Discuss with your team what the the root cause of the struggles may have been. In some cases, you may have simply taken on more work than your team could support, or your culture may be struggling if employees are failing to buy in to your overall mission.
Also, reflect on whether repeated coaching was necessary or if there was a lack of team members stepping up in the moment when it comes to decision-making. This may indicate a need to adjust your training.
Creating Training, Mentoring and Empowerment for the Spanish-Speaking Workforce, Beyond the Basics: Fresh Approaches to Recruiting and Retaining Top Talent and Re-envisioning Wellness: Preventing Toxic Stress and Enhancing Daily Mental Health are just a handful of the human resources, recruitment and retention tracks offered during ELEVATE.
Your Processes
Another area that can always be optimized is your processes, especially as you grow. Analyze your operational efficiency and how safely your team operated over the season. Was quality or safety sacrificed in order to finish jobs on time?
Pay attention to whether your crews were consistently leaving the yard late, equipment was frequently misplaced or underused, and if there were frequent staging inefficiencies. These can all be areas for improvement.
You might not be certain when the right time is to implement telematics or dash cams in your fleet. These are topics that will be addressed during ELEVATE.
Your Growth
Growing your business doesn’t happen without intentionality. ELEVATE’s Grow Your Business education track has sessions designed with ambitious owners in mind.
Review your sales and marketing methods. Are you attracting the clients you want to work with long-term or simply saying yes to any lead that calls in? Consider how you are marketing yourself against your competitors, as well as how your enhancement sales are performing. These all play a factor in reaching your revenue goals and the next level in your business.
Equally important is your leadership team. Are you empowering the leaders within your organization to drive accountability and operational excellence? Additionally, are you providing your team with the skills that will allow them to scale with the business?
Your Future
Do you know where you want to be in the next five to 10 years? Chances are it will be much harder to reach your goal without staying on top of the latest innovations. ELEVATE’s Technology & Innovation education track explores opportunities to integrate emerging technologies into your business, including AI.
Explore with your team what aspects of the business would benefit the most from implementing new technologies next year.
Additionally, if you’re looking for ways to integrate more environmentally responsible practices into your operations, you won’t want to miss ELEVATE’s Sustainability education track, which includes topics such as Lawn Ecosystem Services and How to Improve Sustainability and Beyond Sustainability — Using Regenerative Principles and Materials to Construct & Maintain Climate Resilient Landscapes.
No matter what you identify as an area of improvement, going into ELEVATE with clarity will help you focus and find the insights you need.
You don’t want to miss ELEVATE in Phoenix, Arizona, on Nov. 2-5, 2025. Register by Sept. 30 and save!
