This month we’re focusing on strategic planning. If you’ve been watching our social media at all, you know that I’ve been teaching about strategic planning at the Waterloo Chapter monthly meetings. These meetings are open to anyone, so I invite you to join us in December. For more information about the meetings, or to view the previous content that’s been presented, click HERE.

To begin our series, we’re going to focus on HR. This can feel a bit like navigating landmines, but by implementing some of the following tips and recommendations, you’ll be able to recruit and retain great employees.

1.  Implement effective recruitment and hiring practices

“Always be hiring” is advice we regularly give. Finding the right person is more important than just filling a position, so always be looking for great people. Then once you find them – or they find you – you’ll be more prepared to find a spot for them.

One of the best...

A lot has changed in a few years. But one thing that’s remained the same is the struggle with hiring. It doesn't matter who you talk to in the landscape world, everyone says the same thing: "there are not enough people". In this market, it can be tempting to hire anyone and everyone and not fire those who need to be fired. I want to caution you about this, as it is more costly than you may think.

An increasingly important part of hiring is staff onboarding and training. Long, long ago on my very first day in landscaping, I showed up and was put on a crew without any training. You simply cannot do that anymore - properly onboarding new staff has become crucial. New staff needs to be aware of how things are done at your company. Having all your staff trained for their position ensures that everyone knows what is expected of them, and their supervisors know what they’re required to teach. It streamlines the process, allowing new staff to feel prepared and supervisors to...

Onboarding is not finished once HR has all of the signatures they need. In fact, I would argue that it’s just the beginning. 

Onboarding, not a new but an often forgotten concept, should include things like values and vision of the company, and a training & employee development schedule. Staff should spend time with HR, owners, managers and crew leaders to get a well-rounded view of your company, how it runs and what will be expected of them. Training should be part of your onboarding process and should continue even after your employee has been assigned to a crew.

Continued training has been proven to improve efficiency, longevity, and safety. When you have an effective training program, employees learn how to efficiently and effectively do their job and they stay longer because they feel invested in the company and their role in it. On top of that, training helps avoid costly mistakes and often reduces the length of time it takes to complete tasks. So instead of...