Keys to Great Company Culture

by | Feb 4, 2019 | Business Strategy | 0 comments

Keys to Great Company Culture

Written by Eric Petersen, CIC

Google.

Zappos.

T-Mobile.

We’ve all heard about giant companies having great company culture, right? But what about your tree service? How can you create the best culture for your team that keeps your top performers engaged while still attracting new talent?

Creating the proper culture doesn’t happen overnight, however, focusing on these four key areas will help you accomplish this important aspect of your business.

Your Why – Employees want to be a part of something bigger than just work. They want their employer to stand for more than just the services they provide. So, ask yourself: why do you do what you do? Write it down and share it with everyone in your company. Ask your employees for their input and have them help define who you are. If you are struggling trying to define your why, check out an article that I wrote last year here (What is your Why?).

Delivering Happiness, a book written by Zappos’ founder Tony Hsieh, states that his company’s culture was simply based around living a life of passion and purpose. This translated into treating his employees like they were family and empowering them to be able to do whatever they could to help their customers have a great experience with their company, aka deliver happiness to their customers. I strongly recommend reading this book for ideas on how to improve your company culture.

Structure = Direction & Communication – With your “why” firmly in place, you must provide the proper direction and communication to your team so everyone knows where you are headed and how you are going to get there. This structure to your organization is vital to keep everyone on task and engaged during the grind of production season. Providing clear expectations of what you expect each employee to do is critical. Everyone wants to know what they are responsible for and how that fits into the overall success of the company.

Collaboration. Not Competition – Teamwork, teamwork, teamwork. To build a great culture, you need to have everyone working together for the common goal. Take an honest look at your company to see if you have unintentionally pitted one crew against another or have fostered a competitive environment between employees. Friendly sales competitions may work for some companies, however, the vast majority of your employees want to be successful together. Make sure to include a member of each department on your safety committee, as well as conducting strategic planning sessions so that every employee feels that they are part of the team and building something great.

Have Fun – Some owners mistake “company culture” as only about having fun at work. While enjoying what you do and the people you do it with is very important, it really is only a piece of a comprehensive company culture. Take time to plan team events to get everyone together to relax and socialize, whether it be at a cookout at 2pm on a Friday or an evening trip to a local Escape Room. Ask for input from your team to hear what they would like to do. Create a “Social Committee” and give the members a certain dollar amount to spend on fun activities each month.

Having an exciting culture is something that all employees want and will help attract quality workers to your business. Think about these four areas within your company and how you can focus on building the best culture possible.

5 Levels of Leadership

by | Jan 29, 2019 | Business Strategy | 0 comments

5 Levels of Leadership

Written by Eric Petersen, CIC

Have you ever found yourself asking “Am I really doing a good enough job as the leader of my company?” In the spirit of Crew Leader Month as declared by the TCIA, I want to give you some insight into the five levels of leadership to help you determine where you can improve.

At the 2018 TCIExpo, Todd Kramer gave a great presentation on leadership and talked about what it takes to be an effective leader. He used John Maxwell’s 5 Levels of Leadership to explain the different stages of development that leaders go through. So, where do you rank yourself as a leader?

Position – This is the lowest level of leadership and one where the leader has subordinates, not team members. The leader was given the position to lead without much qualification. They have authority to direct others based on the rules of the organization. All leaders start off in this capacity, however, to be truly effective, they must desire to grow beyond this level.

Permission – Leaders at this level have begun to understand how to use influence to have their team perform the work. The leader focuses on the relationship with the individual team members and gets them to want to do the work versus just complying with orders. The leader helps foster trust between everyone on the crew thereby truly instituting a team first attitude.

Production – Good leaders get results. This becomes the difference between Permission and Production leaders. The Production leader has a strong sense of self-discipline and work ethic to be productive, while at the same time continuing to understand how their influence on their team affects the results. Without achieving the desired goals, a leader does not reach this level.

People Development – At this level of leadership, leaders invest their time and energy into helping their team members grow and develop as individuals. Their focus is not on direct production as much as it is on developing the potential in each team member. This can be difficult for highly productive leaders, but makes a dramatic impact on the company. The more well developed all team members are, the stronger the company.

Pinnacle – The highest leadership level, unfortunately is rare in the tree care world. Here the leader has been so successful at all of the four prior levels that they have created a legacy of leadership in their organization. They have been able to develop other level 4 leaders inside their company and are viewed as mentors to those within the industry. Pinnacle leaders are ones that strive to make the entire tree care industry better.

Great leaders are not simply born great. They have developed their skills over time and worked their way up level by level. Don’t forget to continually invest in your own skills as a leader of your company. Attend leadership courses and talk to others about their challenges as a leader to hone your skills.

If you are interested in growing you leadership skills by connecting with similar sized tree care companies in the Thrive Peer to Peer group contact ArboRisk today.

Is Your Safety Program Working?

by | Dec 5, 2018 | Risk Management | 0 comments

Is Your Safety Program Working?

As a risk manager for the tree care industry, I am often asked, “how does a tree service make sure their safety program is working?” Because of this common question, I want to share three simple ways that you can internally audit your safety program to ensure you are doing all you can to get every employee home safe at night.

Are your employees able to explain what to do?

An effective safety program will teach your team members exactly what to do in case of an injury. Simply ask employees from all departments to describe the steps to take. They should know who to call, which clinic they need to go to depending on location, and what forms to fill out as soon as the injury happens. Of course, if they cannot explain what to do during a non-emergency situation, they won’t know during a panic-filled time of injury. Make this the topic at your next safety meeting to train everyone on the procedure for an injury. Have your procedure written down, and kept at all locations and in each vehicle for an emergency.

Can you prove your program is being implemented?

Documentation is a key component of an effective safety program. Whether it is for OSHA or to obtain a lower insurance rates, being able to prove that that your safety program actually exists is the goal. You should have employees sign that they acknowledge and understand the safety program and employee handbook, as well as attendance sheets for the weekly or bi-weekly safety meetings. Be sure to note the topics on the attendance sheets as well. This also helps you recognize if an employee is not being properly trained on a piece of equipment or operational service that you provide.

Numbers Talk!

Have a safety committee member be in charge of monitoring your data. A simple Excel document is a great way to track important statistics like; number of incidents, number of different employees injured, number of missed work days, etc. These numbers should be reviewed monthly or quarterly at the very least. Make note to monitor both positive and negative trends as you’ll want to reward a strong safety environment while addressing any obvious issues.

Remember, even TCIA Accredited companies have serious injuries and fatalities that could have been prevented. Don’t let your safety culture get stale and ineffective. Use these three ideas to monitor the strength of your program so you know when and how to improve it.

Written by: Malcolm Jeffris, CTSP

Make it Your Best Year Yet

by | Nov 28, 2018 | Business Strategy | 0 comments

Make It Your Best Year Yet

Raise your hand if you dread creating an annual business plan! Well you’re not alone.
We’ve all heard the famous quote from Benjamin Franklin, “failing to plan is planning to fail”, yet how often do you hear people say “I don’t have time to do an annual business plan”.

Taking time to do an annual plan saves time and increases productivity. This article is designed to give you a simple framework of how to perform an annual business planning session. The key is to set aside uninterrupted time for it, preferably on a couple different days so you can have some time to think about it in between sessions.

1. Start With Why – The Cheshire Cat of Alice in Wonderland said it simply, “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there.” If you have not clearly defined the why you do what you do, now is the time to do so. Your Why is your Mission Statement and serves as the north star for your business. Your annual business plan defines how and what you need to do to advance the company and its mission. In addition, review your vision statement, the what you do, and your core values, how you do it. Combined, these three elements create a culture for your business.

2. SWOT Analysis – Next have a clear understanding of where your business is today. Review the goals and your performance from the prior year. Where did you do well and be brutally honest about where you did not meet your goals. The SWOT Analysis is one of the most common ways to start planning for your company. List out all of your current company’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Gather input from team members in all areas of your business so your plan can be as robust as possible. Compare these findings with your successes and failures from the prior year. Tony Robbins sums it up like this: “Success leaves clues. Go figure out what someone who was successful did and model it. Improve it, but learn their steps. They have knowledge” It is pretty remarkable what happens when you include your team in this part of the annual planning. We do this in our agency using Survey Monkey so each team member has a chance to respond anonymously.

3. Big Picture Goals – In my opinion, it is best for companies to have no more than 3 big picture goals for the year. When setting goals use the acronym S.M.A.R.T. to help guide you. S.M.A.R.T. stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time. Each goal must be specific enough that your team members can understand what the desired outcome is. That means the goal must have something measurable assigned to it. Whether that is a total amount of new customers, an increase of the number of five star reviews on Google or a decrease in the number of injuries for the year, make sure you can track it. The goal also should be attainable and realistic given the current state of your organization. Stretch goals are great if they are accomplished, however, stating a large stretch goal can have a negative consequence on employee morale if the year does not go as planned. Lastly, each goal needs to have a time element to it. When do you want the goal to be achieved? A goal without an end date is not a goal that your team members can rally behind. Give your organization a chance at accomplishing the goals you set by making them S.M.A.R.T.

4. Objectives for Each Goal – When you have your three big picture goals written down, take a look at each one of them and break them up into smaller objectives. Assign these objectives or tasks to individuals who have the ability and responsibility to accomplish them. Make sure each team a member understands their role and is willing to do what it takes to complete their part. Go back to the SWOT analysis and align objectives with the people on your team with the strengths in the area needed to accomplish the objectives. If there is an area of weakness, incorporate training needs to bolster your team’s resources and effectiveness.

5. Check-in and Make Adjustments – Because each goal has an end date, create a timeline of when to check-in on the progress of the goal. Paying attention to the status of the goal throughout the year will allow you and your team an opportunity to make any adjustments necessary to achieve the goal. In addition to setting up a series of small check-in points, schedule a semi-annual review. Here is an article devoted specifically to your mid-year review.

To learn more about how strategic planning can enhance your organization, take a look at our Thrive Risk Management Strategic Planning Package. In just 4 short weeks we can help you identify who you are as a company, what you want to become, and what strategic milestones will be needed to achieve your goals.

Written by: Jim Skiera

Top Tree Holidays to Market Your Business Around

by | Nov 21, 2018 | Marketing | 0 comments

Top Tree Holidays to Market Your Business Around

In today’s social media driven universe, there is a day for everything: National Coffee Day, National Dog Day, National Ice Cube Tray Day. (Okay, that last one I made up, but you get the point.) While the world is full of superfluous holidays, there are some that hold significant meaning for the tree care industry! Here are a few of the great holidays centered around trees that you can use in your marketing.

 

Arbor Day: Seems like a no brainer, right? A holiday dedicated solely to planting trees is DEFINITELY a holiday that your business should be promoting. Pro Tip: Bump up your marketing game on this holiday by holding a tree planting event in partnership with a local park or elementary school. Not only do you get to plant a tree, you have the ability to promote Certified Arborists and gain exposure for your business to potential customers at the same time.

 

Earth Day: A clean Earth is a happy Earth! Earth Day Every Day. A good planet is hard to find. These are just a couple of examples of the many slogans available for you to utilize on Earth Day. A day entirely dedicated to the preservation of our planet is absolutely a day that you should be using to promote proper tree care. What on Earth will you be doing for Earth Day this year? (See what I did there?)

 

National Tree Day: Did you even know this day existed? Full disclosure: I had no idea this day existed until I started researching holidays for this article. If I didn’t know this day existed, and maybe some of you didn’t either, how many of your customers are aware of this day? This is a perfect opportunity to promote the care of trees while also introducing potential customers to a new holiday. Take this chance to develop a fun challenge for customers on this day, such as having them identify different types of trees, or promote your business by offering discounts on tree work for this day only. While Arbor Day is a little more established, this is your opportunity to be creative and make this day unique to your business.

 

NeighborWoods Month: #MayTheForestBeWithYou NeighborWoods Month is an annual campaign begun by the Arbor Day Foundation. For the month of October, the Foundation promotes the planting and care of trees within communities. This is a great month to host giveaways, sponsor a community tree planting event, promote plant healthcare, and connect with customers on what your company can offer them. Plus, this month-long event gives you a reason to continually engage with customers and them a reason to frequently check back in and see what you have going on.

 

Christmas: Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree! Promote the care of trees around Christmas by providing tips for nourishment for evergreens. Have your employees take photos of their Christmas trees and promote them on social media by having clients select which tree belongs to which employee – and award the winner with a prize! Spoiler Alert: Holiday Ads drive results. According to Social Media Today, 88% of marketers that ran a holiday ad campaign last year marked it as successful. #TistheSeason

 

Written by: Katie Petersen