<font color=red>ON THE ROAD</font> Lessons in Management

Two companies at the top of the Columbus landscaping industry invited other industry professionals to their headquarters Wednesday to share techniques that have helped launch them to be a couple of the largest lawn care companies in the area.

Environmental Management and The Brickman Group hosted a half dozen busloads of Professional Landcare Network members as part of the Landscape Management facility tour that PLANET organized.

Environmental Management

The first stop on the tour was Environmental Management, a 14-year-old company owned by Mark Wehinger, Gary Clark and Ron Dingess that is expecting $14 million in revenue this year. The company offers commercial maintenance, installation, irrigation and snow removal from its headquarters in Dublin, Ohio and its satellite branch in Plain City, Ohio.

The three levels of command at EMI consist of the management staff, the field service manager and the crew leader. All management focuses on safety with the employees, rewarding them for accident-free years.

There are seven to nine landscaping crews operating at a time, with two to three employees on a crew. Each crew is categorized under the truck it rides on a production board.

Central Ohio sees its share of snow, and that’s when business heats up for EMI. The company has 95 snow trucks in its fleet to service its 350 residential customers. Employees are on call 24 hours a day during snow events, and they make sure they don’t miss out on business because they have an answering service. All phone messages requesting service go to on-call employees, and it is then determined who will respond, said Mike Baker, head of snow operations.

Those familiar with EMI know that being an avid hunter helps them get in good with the boss. This is illustrated by the 115 stuffed mounts and six full body mounts found in the offices. Wehinger contributes greatly to the collection after his trips to Africa and a recent trip to Russia.

The Brickman Group

The second stop on the tour was to the home of the Northern Ohio Division headquarters of the Brickman Group in Columbus. The company focuses on leading the landscape industry in service nationwide.

Part of the service strategy is investing in the equipment the company uses to serve clients. This is why it focuses its investment in equipment rather than the buildings where it stores the equipment. The company usually chooses to lease.

The maintenance department at the Columbus headquarters serves two Brickman branches, and all the company’s branches perform regular equipment checks. Safety is important to the company, and it chooses its equipment accordingly.

The company also feels strongly about a consistent image and brand. It aims to separate itself from other companies with a tan trailer that includes a brown Brickman logo.

Brickman aims to build its service base by educating customers, explained Construction Branch Manager Cory Foltz. This education includes the encouragement of Certified Landscape Technician programs and annual retreats for training. In addition, new supervisors are taken under an experienced employee’s wing to learn the ropes.

Other tips for running an efficient business include figuring out exactly how many hours an employee will work each week and budgeting for that time, as well as keeping supervisors off riding mowers while on site so they are more aware of the details of the crew’s work.