Landscape Management, November 2010

ACUTABOVE GREEN INDUSTRY MAINTENANCE LEADERS BY DAN JACOBS TOP TRENDS Contract renegotiations A lot of our customers have been long term Weve had to be proactive in going after them They cant pay their bills so weve had to come up with different programs other than what the contract states Service changes A lot of landscape installation companies have tried to become landscape maintenance companies It has gotten very competitive People are willing to do work just to pay their bills Employment shift It used to be employees Helping Landscapers save money no matter what they drive No matter what kind of vehicle you use for your business you could save with Progressive Insurance To learn more about Progressive and see why we are the 1 Truck Insurer in America please visit ProgressiveCommercial com 23 November 2010 LANDSCAPEMANAGEMENT NET Call for a Free Quote 1 888 375 7908 Find an Agent ProgressiveCommercial com United Financial Casualty Company and its affiliates Mayfield Village Ohio Available in most states No 1 truck from Highline Datas 2007 written premium data 09P00560 BA 12 09 drove our company We control our destiny again because of the unemployment rate Weve always been able to get employees They used to drive the wage level Now that no one is working theyre willing to work with us more We have gotten control back its a good feeling TOP OBSTACLES Lack of loyalty The customer that was so faithful to us for so many years if there was a problem theyd sit down and negotiate now the almighty dollar has changed the whole perception If they can save money because of the pressure theyre under they wont hesitate to terminate a contract Competition We have so many more people out there There are so many illegitimate companies Nobody governs them nobody checks them to see do they have insurance do they have workers compensation are they paying their taxes People will hire them if they can save money They dont care about the legalities Its hard to be competitive when people are willing to do work just to stay afloat not even to make a profit TOP OPPORTUNITIES Full service guarantee When we do a landscaping installation job thats the front door We can also do the irrigation landscape lighting hardscapes we can do everything they need done Any landscape job I do we warranty as long as we maintain the property I only do it if we provide the full scale service If Im doing all the services I should be accountable Weve had a lot of success on that Keith Carracher owner and president of Complete Property Maintenance is the perfect example of a company culture that encourages building from within Whether its passing out hats and candy on a Friday afternoon returning the company stores profits back to employees around the holidays or promoting from inside its about ensuring everyone is part of the company culture Carracher who started as an account manager 15 years ago became an example when he was later named general manager before being offered an ownership stake INSIDE INFO Company Complete Property Maintenance Founded 1977 Headquarters Coconut Creek FL Employees nearly 275 full time 40 part time 2009 revenue 14 million LM Top 150 ranking No 90 tie Key to being a maintenance leader You have to pay attention to your employee retention Its the No 1 thing my customers want They dont want to see a different crew they dont want to see a different foreman You have to respect your employees We involve all our supervisors we ask their advice