The Heartbeat of a Tree Care Company
Tree care companies are going to vary greatly with their size, purpose, talent, technology, profitability and other measurables. However, lets focus on GOOD tree care companies. What is the key to making a good company even better? Most companies “think” they provide great quality tree care better than their competitors. Guess again. I have worked for two of the largest national tree care companies, and their quality was average at best. Based on their size and reputation, most clients assume quality is a guarantee. I have seen a direct correlation between the size of a company and the quality of their work. It seems that large companies focus more effort on safety, liabilities and of course, more growth. However, as a company grows certain things get lost of the shuffle. Quality of work should not be one of them.
These comments are not meant to be a rip specifically against larger companies. However, I can’t ignore the reality after seeing it for years. There are obviously good companies of all sizes. The majority of tree care companies that are providing poor quality work are actually smaller in size. But this has more to do with the employees themselves, not the size of the company. I feel that larger companies are more likely to send out less talented crews because the pressure to get work done (and to grow) is so intense. Smaller companies are much easier to control quality as long as systems are in place (and you have talented people in the first place).
The Big Oak Reality Check = While working for larger companies, I have been put into situations in which my crew was so untalented, untrained and unaware of the basics of tree care, I felt pressure to no longer even schedule any work. A Sales Arborist should not have to question the capability of their crew on a daily basis. I never felt this with a smaller company, because I would NEVER allow it.
5 Keys to Improvement
Existing companies need to take an internal look at their procedures, training, development and general leadership to make improvements. The Big Oak believes the core to improvement for any company is based in these 5 areas:
#1 Leadership and Management
Leadership and management are not the same thing. Good leaders can motivate and inspire employees to work towards the company vision. Good managers can take a plan and execute it well through delegation, organization and control of daily decisions. Take a good look at the leaders in your company. Remember, most employees leave leaders more than they leave companies.
#2 Company Culture
The idea of company culture is somewhat a nondescript notion, but everyone knows they want it to be good. Company culture will dictate how employees behave, interact, work and align towards the company’s values and goals. A poor company culture will lead to poor service, high employee turnover and potentially an unsafe work environment.
FOUR Core Elements to Improve Company Culture
Purpose
This is an absolute deal breaker. If your company does not have a purpose beyond profit that employees buy into, you’re done. Pack it up.
Effective 2-way Communication
Communication of the company vision and expectations must be known and must be visible. However, feedback from employees is just as important. Employees that are heard tend to stay in the fight much longer.
Focus on Employee Engagement
Engaged employees are the best way to take your company to another level. Everything from customer service, production, safety and recruiting will all be elevated.
Employee Growth & Development
Setting employees on a career path early on will pay huge dividends. Keeping employees focused on moving forward toward personal goals will help the company achieve its goals. Ironically, this is also a great way to remove employees that are not long-term. Nothing gets rid of lazy, under-achieving employees quicker than making them think about their future.
The BIG Oak says if you focus your effort on these 4 items, recruiting will take care of itself. There is nothing better for a company than employees wanting to come to work every day. Inspirational leadership with engaged employees will “sell” a company more than any other tools.
#3 Customer Service
The interaction between employees and clients will essentially dictate the level of customer service provided. Engaged employees will definitely operate at a higher level to maintain relationships with clients. Client Retention is probably the best indicator of a company’s customer service. If your clients are going elsewhere, take an internal look at how clients perceive your company. They will tell you how you are doing.
#4 Safety and Training
Consistent training and safety development has a major impact on decreasing injuries, lowering damages, improving productivity and leads to a general increased level of employee focus and engagement. Companies tend to make the same mistake with safety training. Many companies separate safety from training. This is a mistake. Safety is not something separate from what you are doing daily. There are only safe ways of doing everything. Every component of training has a safety element. Safety is not something to pick and choose at your convenience or to cover for 15 minutes every Wednesday morning.
#5 Employee Development
Good employees can make or break a company. Investing is good employees is perhaps the most valuable expense a company can provide. Notice, I said “good” employees. Good employees can constantly “sell” your company through their daily actions with clients and other employees. On the other hand, poor employees can destroy your company faster than good employees can build it up. It is becoming more difficult to find new employees, but bad employees need to be removed immediately. Removing them down the road will cost your company clients and employees.
