Landscape Management, November 2017

cover Story Its not impossible to run a business remotely but it comes down to systems and the people that implement them Luke Scott says You cant do it with just systems and you cant do it with just people It has to be equally strong on both sides the PeoPle Piece When it comes to family support Luke and Larkin Scott III recognize how lucky they are Their father Larkin Scott II who sold them the company and retired in 2008 stepped in He just jumped in and started helping out to make sure things that needed to get done got done Larkin Scott III says We were very fortunate Their younger brother Levi who has a career in a different field also helped as needed with equipment repair and other duties Their mom and office manager Dale Scott shouldered much of the We wanted to do our duty so we said lets figure this out LarkiN Scott iii burden while they were gone especially when the general manager they had promoted started dropping the ball on duties like overseeing the shop and equipment maintenance When he quit in January several months before either owner was slated to return from overseas Luke Scott got released early to come home to keep the business going I couldnt do it by myself Dale Scott says Im not very good with a tractor The family also got support during the deployment from the members of their Leaders Edge Peer Group operated by consultant Jeffrey Scott The peer group was like having a board of directors to help 0 FOR 60 MONTHS ON SELECT NEW CAT MODELS AND SKIP 4 PAYMENTS A YEAR Yep every year 38 LANDSCAPEMANAGEMENT NET November 2017 out Larkin Scott III says My mom was able to contact them for advice on things and they would take as much time as needed Despite all the support having both owners gone for the better part of a year created some people problems in the company With the owners gone the companys lack of systems and accountability came to light Dale Scott says We had in the back of our minds that we needed systems but because of the hustle and bustle of everyday business we never got around to it she says Because we had always been family owned and operated everything always revolved around the owners For example employees always had been trained in an apprenticeship type program on the job by an owner Luke Scott on the installation side and Larkin Scott III on the maintenance side They assumed their general manager would take over those duties while they were away but it didnt happen so new employees didnt have training to fall back on The lack of an onboarding system created problems for current employees too We wound up with a lot of turnover and turmoil for our employees that stayed with us the whole time we were gone Larkin Scott III says Since returning from deployment the owners quickly implemented a formal training program using manuals from the National Association of Landscape Professionals The company also created a program for internal certifications and testing To increase accountability which was another problem that arose when the owners were away they have implemented a five point incentive program that assesses employees 844 720 4CAT offers@ clevelandbrothers com PLUS YOULL GET AN EQUIPMENT PROTECTION PLAN AT NO COST Offer valid from October 1 2017 to December 31 2017 on all new models of machines manufactured by Caterpillar Inc Building Construction Products division Financing and published rate and skip payment terms are subject to credit approval through Cat Financial for customers who qualify No more than 4 skip payments can be obtained within a 12 month period The Powertrain Equipment Protection Plan EPP is provided through Cat Financial for use at participating Cat dealers Please see Cleveland Brothers Equipment Co Inc for details Campaign ID C 00001171