Celebrating our Top 100 companies

Our Top 100 education is in the books, but the 2025 Lawn & Landscape Technology Conference is just getting started. Keep up with all we're doing out in Las Vegas!

Overheard Wednesday

“Our recruiter is very much embedded in the organization. Recruiting is customer service and selling. We’re selling a career rather than a product or service.”

The first Top 100 Panel, titled Recruit and Retain the Best Employees, touched on all aspects of growing your workforce and keeping those standout employees around for a long time.

That's why Shauntel Deshuatelles, chief people officer at LMC Landscape Partners, says recruitment is such a key element of a successful business. Echoing her statements were fellow panelists Doretha Bailey, vice president of people success with Turf Masters Brands; Phil Steinhauer, CEO with Designscapes Colorado; and Mark Stuhlsatz, vice president of innovation with Ryan Lawn & Tree.

© Jimmy Miller | Lawn & Landscape
Panelists tell Top 100 attendees how they've recruited and retained their best employees.

“We’re about building careers not jobs. We’ve promoted people who’ve been in the organization less than 30 days for some roles. It’s all about where you want to go.”

Bailey, and other panelists, say culture and ambition play a more significant role in career advancement than seniority, though having a defined career ladder is also good for recruitment and retention.  

“We spend every day removing obstacles that would prevent your team from being successful that day."

During the Day in the Life of a Branch Manager panel, Jimmy Milligan, a branch manager with Focal Pointe, shared this wisdom.

He and three other branch managers including Aaron Dostie, with Senske Services / Turf Doctor; Corey Petersen, with Pacific Landscape Management; and Spencer Sullivan, with Harvest Landscape; discussed the ins and outs of being a branch manager along with what executives should remember about the role. 

“I’ve always wanted to spend time with my employees and see what makes their clocks tick — there’s a running joke that I should have a couch in my office."

All the branch managers admit being in the role is a little like being a therapist for their teams and building trust among all ranks of the business.

Things like an open-door policy and regular check ins help with this. 

"You're not going to necessarily destroy the culture of the company you just acquired, but you are going to change it."

During the "Dive into Today's Market" panel discussion, Darren McDonnough from Ethoscapes told attendees that it takes roughly 18 months to integrate a new company and build it into its new parent company.

All four panelists, which also included Jeff Sebert from Sebert Landscape, Scott Roberts from Southern Shade Tree Co. and Brian Helgoe from Monarch Landscape Companies, say M&A is something that'll factor into their business strategy for the foreseeable future. Roberts started six new markets in five years completely organically but now they want to increase their amount of maintenance accounts.

"We're going to slow play it," Roberts says, "and we're going to pick the right partners at the right time."

Overheard Tuesday

Ever realize that there are millions of musicians but very few true rock stars?

This year’s Lawn & Landscape Top 100 Executive Summit and Awards Keynote Speaker, Mark Kamp, got the room rocking in Las Vegas with his advice on how to amp up your business.

“What rhythm are you playing in your organization?” Kamp asked Top 100 attendees. “How will you remain relevant? Remain consistent? And turn it up every single day to stay heard among the industry noise?”

© Jimmy Miller | Lawn & Landscape

To do so Kamp shared his 4 Chords of a Rock Star Mindset:

“Every popular song is made up of some variation of the exact same four chords,” he says.

• D Chord — DREAMS — “Dreams, core values, vision, we’ve all been told we’ve had to have them. The thing about rockstars is the have big, unreasonable dreams,” Kamp says. Kamp encouraged attendees to find their big, unreasonable dream (or B.U.D.) and steer the business toward that. He adds that most people think that their past determines their present but it’s in fact the future — so working toward a common goal is key to success.
• C Chord — CHANGE — “Rockstars always drive change to achieve their B.U.D.,” Kamp says. “Rockstars change intentionally it doesn’t happen by accident it’s orchestrated evolution.”

  Kamp gave the examples of Borders, Blockbuster and other businesses who refused to change and ended up in the corporate graveyard. “If you don’t create and control your own surroundings they will create and control you,” he says.

• B Chord — BAND — “You’re going to have to surround yourself with the right people and create the right culture so everybody works nicely together,” Kamp says. Kamp talks about how bass players are more often the unsung heroes of the bands. While they may not be up front on the stage in flashy costumes or make-up they are just as important to the music. “Some of you make your bands famous while others make it work on a day-to-day basis, but everyone plays an important part and everyone should be honored for their contributions,” he adds. Kamp has a few suggestions to fine-tune the band. He says to put the band first, honor unique abilities and check your ego at the door.
• A Chord — ACTION — Taking daily, massive action is the only things to get you to your B.U.D.,” Kamp says. While most focus on time management, Kamp adds that in today’s day and age with all the constant texts, emails and social media notifications it’s about distraction management. He also suggests making daily and weekly Top 10 lists and then “auditioning” the items to create one or two items to focus on.

Check back with Lawn & Landscape for more Top 100 coverage. And don't forget to catch up with the 2025 Top 100 list!