Longtime industry consultant and LM columnist Jeffrey Scott found a winning combination for his 2024 Summer Growth Summit. He started with industry icon Larry Ryan, founder and president of Ryan Lawn & Tree, then added in a slate of talented speakers — Derek Wells of Wells Lawn Care; Will Seiler of Seiler’s Landscaping and John Caramanico Jr. of C. Caramanico and Sons, among others.
How Scott ordered up the fall-like temperatures in Kansas City in August, we’ll never know.
115 companies and 335 attendees all traveled to Kansas City — the Kansas side — for two-and-a-half days of presentations, networking and an in-person tour of Ryan Lawn & Tree. Attendees heard talks on topics like “Leadership and accountability of your team,” presented by Phil Fisher, COO of Ryan Lawn & Tree; “Courageous decisions: Walking the talk” by Wells; and “Nurturing talent: Transforming the industry through apprenticeships and leadership.”
Larry Ryan, dreamer of dreams
Larry Ryan told the room of attendees that he wants his clients to be proud that they are customers of Ryan Lawn & Tree. He said his company strives to be an example of a well-run business.
“My dream is to rescue our customers who were treated poorly by others. Our other dream is that our customers are proud to be our customers,” he said. “We also want to rescue the employees who have been poorly taken care of at their jobs. That’s a dream we want to achieve. I have a dream to make the business better.”
Ryan’s energy was contagious during the event. Though he’s into his 70s, he was often jogging to and from to keep the schedule on track. In one moment, while attendees patiently waited inside a presentation room, Ryan couldn’t stand the dead air and went off-script to give an additional lesson he learned.
He wrote the equation P = (T+R) E on the whiteboard and explained that P is profit, T is talent, R is relationship and E is expectations.
“The more you expect out of your people, the more you get,” Ryan told LM following the event. “If you’re trying to be a good organization — especially in an (employee stock ownership plan) like ours — there is nothing to lose and everything to gain by being an exceptional employee.”
Ryan joked with the room that he is a “C-student on a good day when the wind is blowing right,” but he learned a long time ago that his vision for an outstanding company would fail unless he hired talented employees.
“I was told that my vision was all fine and good, but when you hire a $5-an-hour person who doesn’t care, that’s when it all falls through,” Ryan said. “That’s why we started hiring college graduates. Until hiring great people becomes your No. 1 priority, you will never overcome this.”
Every problem has a solution
Mark Bradley, CEO and founder of LMN, took the stage in the afternoon and gave a rousing speech that dovetailed nicely with what Ryan was saying. Bradley’s message for the room was that the industry needs to embrace apprenticeships in order to compete with other trades, like the HVAC and plumbing industries.
“I feel like no industry gets together and learns from each other like landscapers,” Bradley said. “I think we have a pretty difficult problem as an industry ahead of us. But you have to look at it like it’s your problem — not the industry’s.”
Bradley told the audience that while their services are in high demand unless they systematically find a way to attract labor, the demand means nothing.
“The best young people looking for jobs choose a field that offers apprenticeships,” Bradley said. “We just hire someone who can lift 50 pounds all day and has a driver’s license. That method doesn’t attract the best people.”
Bradley, who built his own landscape and snow contracting business into a $50 million company before switching gears to create LMN and Greenius, talked to the room about how physically demanding the industry can be for people. He added that there are long-term health risks for people working as landscapers. But with the proper approach, the labor problem in the industry can be overcome.
“Every problem has a solution — we call them systems,” Bradley said. “This is the way to get people to see the same way you do … an apprenticeship is nothing more than a way to help people get more out of life. The objective is to get (employees) from day one to productive people as quickly as possible.”
The power of story
Host Jeffrey Scott played the dual role of speaker and emcee. Over the three days, Scott spoke on two different topics: “Finding your why, over and over again” and “The power of story.”
In “The Power of Story,” Scott gave attendees a look at his own personal story, which included college at Tulane followed by backpacking in Europe. He showed the room a photo of himself tearing down the Berlin Wall, with his young son in tow, in 1989. He talked about teaching English and later pursuing an advanced degree in international business before returning to the States.
Scott said story telling is a powerful thing with both clients and employees. Stories make companies memorable, they help present data and they also create a community. Scott said the story of Jesus was a great example, as it created the largest community there’s ever been.
“You can persuade your team with great stories,” Scott said. “Stories create a rallying point to bring the team together. What’s your story? Strong stories equals strong cultures.”
Attendee feedback
Jon Rick, owner of J. Rick Lawn and Tree in Colorado Springs, Colo., and Dakota OutdoorScapes in Bismarck, N.D., said the event was good for him to attend as a business owner. He enjoyed learning about the Great Game of Business and the leadership style of getting employees to think like owners.
“It’s a really good event — it’s given me a moment to think more about opportunities and getting my mind out of the daily operations and thinking more about growth potential… growth potential for employees and management,” Rick said.
“It’s a nice event to get together, collaborate and talk with like-minded people,” said Ryan Brant, general manager of Cardinal State, Chicago. “Everyone is so willing to share their experiences. The collaboration is amazing. It’s a nice opportunity to step away from the office and then be prepared to focus when we get back.”
“This is my second Jeffrey Scott event. I’m new to the industry — I spent most of my career in financial services,” said Graham Moyer, vice president of business operations at Hermes Landscaping, Lenexa, Kan. “It’s been really interesting to come to these events and learn a lot more about very industry-specific type things.”
