CLEVELAND – In what he is calling one of the most exciting times in the green industry, Jason Cupp, former business owner and now growth consultant, gave a number of tips on how companies can capitalize on the positive activity. Cupp was the guest speaker at an Ohio Landscape Association meeting Thursday night, and cited Lawn & Landscape magazine research that showed increased backlog for contractors in 2014, and referenced his own experiences with contractors while travelling the country.
While he did touch on the financial steps owners can take to make sure they are running a profitable company, he laid out simple steps contractors can take to make their company more appealing to current and potential employees. And with the recent shutdown of the H-2B program, some companies will have to look for other avenues to hire workers for this season.
Some of those steps included:
Have a deep bench. Cupp said owners plan on all aspects of their businesses to be operating 100 percent, but with workers calling in sick, weather and holidays, that’s just not realistic, which is why you have to look for good employees all the time. “You always have to have an ad out there and have to be looking at resumes,” he said. If the process works and you realize you have too many employees, that’s when you have to let go of the weakest employees.
Leave a message. When you run an ad, leave a Google Voice number in it, and ask people to call it and talk about why they want the job and why they are qualified. The service is free and Cupp says laborers are more likely to call a number leave a voicemail basically laying out their resume, instead of putting one together and mailing or emailing it to you. In addition, you can get a better feel for their enthusiasm and attitude via a voicemail, compared to a piece of paper. “You can tell a lot by the voice and what they say,” Cupp said.
Fill their bellies. One client of Cupp’s kept a full fridge in the office full of Gatorade, water and frozen meals. While the liquids come in handy during work days, employees could take the frozen meals as their funds got lower closer to pay day.
Show appreciation. Instant gratitude can go a long way with motivating an employee, but Cupp said sending hand written notes to the homes of employees can be even better. The actual action of sending it home instead of giving it to them at work allows someone from the worker’s family to open it, creating a sense of pride in the home. “It’s something that gets displayed on the refrigerator,” Cupp said. “I used to spend a lot of time writing these cards when I had my business, and my guys loved it.”
Other tips Cupp stressed to create a better company included having a handbook in place to protect yourself again lawsuits, providing or improving medical benefits and 401K plans, and doing reviews with employees once a year.