Off-season means retiring equipment, shaving hours of the schedule, trimming the workforce and, for some, plowing through snow. But when winter kicks in, so should strategic planning – the year’s end sparks reflection on progress and is an ideal time for owners to consider their goals.
So, why not say “bon voyage” for the sake of business? After all, a new environment sparks fresh ideas for many. Drake Snodgrass, president, Drake’s 7 Dees Landscaping, Portland, Ore., took off to the Oregon coast during his planning session and found a peaceful place to dream about his company’s future.
“For me, I work on things indirectly in the back of my head until a light comes on, and then when that light comes on I go, ‘Okay, I think I can do this,’” he described, noting that the time away from the office helped him organize his thoughts. “You need to be mentally prepared to [plan.] If you do it when things are crazy, you are probably not going to succeed.”
Snodgrass doesn’t necessarily turn to solace for strategic planning, however. In fact, he said trade shows are a motivating atmosphere to cull creative thinking. At this year’s Green Industry Expo in Nashville, Tenn., he arranged his own “breakfast of champions” with the four other employees that attended the show with him. Modeled after the morning roundtable discussions, Snodgrass hoped the informal conversation would allow the group to tap into what they learned at the show.
“I took a little sign and wrote ‘Table One’ on it, and put it in the middle of the table,” Snodgrass said, laughing. “It was super. I said, ‘Let’s not try to set the world on fire, let’s just debrief.’”
This type of brainstorming offers owners valuable employee insight, and collecting thoughts from those outside of management paints a true picture of the company.
Mark Clark, president, Clark Landscape Group, Monroe, N.C., said travel offers new perspective. While holding planning sessions out of the office offers obvious benefits, soliciting advice from others outside the company is helpful as well. “You look and you learn, you obtain information and knowledge on the way other companies are structured, their marketing, their images,” he pointed out, adding that building relationships with owners in various regions provides an impromptu sounding board when planning questions surface.
“Have some key people in other parts of the country who you trust – it is an indirect board,” Clark suggested. “You share information with them, and they share information with you. You need a support group of other owners in other markets – that really helps out.”
Instead of the boardroom, try:
1. Tradeshow
2. Local hotel
3. Bed & breakfast
4. A manager’s home
5. Lunch or dinner at a restaurant
6. A park setting
The author is a Contributing Editor to Lawn & Landscape magazine and can be reached at khampshire@lawnandlandscape.com.