Recognition and recruitment

When you’re growing sales by nearly $1 million a year, you better have a steady supply of great employees and even better leaders.

For Pro Turf & Pro Pest Solutions, thinking outside the box has helped secure an ample amount of both.

“The biggest challenge is getting people to see the opportunities you can offer and how they can build a great career in this industry,” says Scott Doss, co-founder and president of Pro Turf & Pro Pest Solutions, which operates three branches in Kansas City, Mo., St. Louis and Omaha, Neb. “Having the ability to grow our company while helping our employees grow professionally is what continues to drive me every day.”

In hopes of improving its ability to recruit, retain and grow their employees, Pro Turf & Pro Pest has launched three new initiatives over the past couple of years. The results have surpassed expectations, which is welcome news given the torrid growth spurt the company has been on.

Pro Turf & Pro Pest has grown more than 40% since 2020. The company now employs roughly 75 people who help generate more than $11 million in annual revenue, two-thirds of which is on the turf side. Now, having recently been acquired by Senske Services, Pro Turf & Pro Pest is poised to add Midwest lawn and pest control markets.

“My wife, Staci, and I liked the idea of selling our company to private equity because it would provide the resources we needed to accelerate our growth,” Scott says, adding that Senske Services is backed by private equity firm GTCR. “We’ve been growing a lot in recent years but getting to the next level is difficult. We want to grow even faster because we have so many talented employees we want to create opportunities for.

"So we had a choice to make,” he adds. “We could continue doing what we’d been doing or find somebody to partner with who could help us grow organically and through acquisitions. That’s what we’ve done, and we’re really excited.”

Recruiting the best and making them even better.

Scott says several of his key managers have been with Pro Turf & Pro Pest for 15-plus years. Many started out as technicians or customer service reps. They all shared two key traits when Scott first hired them: drive and dependability. Scott says these are essential qualities a new hire must always possess, even in today’s difficult labor market.

One of the most surefire ways to ensure “drive and dependability” is to hire people who share a connection to your existing employees. Pro Turf & Pro Pest started a referral program a few years ago. Scott’s son, Jordan, has helped lead that effort.

“We’ve structured the program so an employee can earn up to $1,200 (paid out incrementally) after their referral has been with our company for six months,” says Jordan, who serves as a marketing and recruiting specialist at Pro Turf & Pro Pest. “This program has resulted in a lot of families and generations working here, which has also had a positive impact on retention.”

Jordan says some of the specifics of the employee referral program may be tweaked now that Pro Turf & Pro Pest is part of the Senske Services family of companies. Senske has a referral program, too, and Pro Turf & Pro Pest wants to make sure its program is in alignment.

Another program started over the past couple of years is the senior tech program. Some of the company’s more experienced technicians are responsible for four or five techs who aren’t so experienced. The senior techs are responsible for each technician’s initial training, as well as ongoing trainings and weekly meetings. In essence, it’s a mentoring program that helps ensure new hires are brought up the right way. There’s also a side benefit. “This program is proving to be an effective way of showing employees what it takes to be a manager and take on more responsibilities,” Scott says.

Rewards and recognition.

Another relatively new initiative is Pro Points. It’s a recognition and rewards program for all employees below the management and supervisory levels. There are three ways employees can earn Pro Points, and those points can then be cashed in for things like Amazon gift cards, tickets to sporting events and company swag.

The first way to earn Pro Points is to have your name mentioned in a five-star Google review. Since starting this program two years ago, Jordan says most of the company’s reviews now receive five stars. Prior to Pro Points, the company’s Google rating was a little over three. Jordan attributes the improvement to the fact that employees have been consistently encouraging customers to provide a review.

A second way to earn Pro Points is by being nominated by a coworker for going above and beyond the call of duty. “It doesn’t have to be a manager, either,” Jordan says. This element of the program is essential because it provides a better opportunity for office staff who aren’t in the field interfacing with customers. A group of four or five non-management employees is elected to go through the nominations each month and award points.

“Our people really like this aspect of the program because it’s more democratic and they feel like the non-management employees really control it,” Jordan says.

“And for those four or five individuals who are elected to the review board, this also gives them some additional responsibility and a sense of pride in the difference they’re making,” Scott adds.

One other way to earn Pro Points is through departmental competition. An obvious example is a sales contest within the sales department. But other contests are also developed in other areas of the company.

“We recently had a ‘cancel save contest’ where our customer service representatives competed to see who could prevent the most customers from cancelling their service,” Jordan says. “Effective tactics included adjusting the customer’s program or payment plan.”

“This program has resulted in a lot of families and generations working here, which has also had a positive impact on retention.”

Jordan Doss, marketing and recruiting specialist, Pro Turf & Pro Pest

It took a little while for the Pro Points program to gain traction with employees. “But once people caught on to how it would work and benefit them, it took off like wildfire,” says Staci Doss, co-founder and HR manager.

While the reward is definitely appreciated, it’s the recognition that employees seem to value the most — particularly the process of nominating fellow coworkers. “We’ve seen that lifting others up is even more important than getting nominated yourself,” Staci says. “From that perspective alone, the program has really been tremendous.”

Needless to say, this is one of those creative ideas that Scott, Staci and the rest of the management team plan to stick with. “We are continuing this program in 2024, though it may evolve in different ways,” Staci points out, adding that Senske Services offers some recognition programs as well.

“We’re already finding that out as we integrate with the Senske family of companies,” Scott adds. “The sharing of ideas is something I’m really looking forward to over the next four to six years. That kind of thing was very important to me and Staci as we determined the best way to go about selling our company. We wanted to find a partner that would recognize what we bring to the table.”

The author is a freelance writer based in Wisconsin.