GIE Today: PLCAA Hosts Networking Breakfast

The Professional Lawn Care Association of America (PLCAA) hosted the first of its annual networking breakfasts Nov. 4 in the Charlotte Convention Center.

The event was sponsored by Weed Man. Lawn care professionals joined their industry peers for breakfast and discussed key industry issues in a roundtable format. An industry expert was appointed at each table to facilitate the discussions. Topics range from marketing to building a new office and shop facility.

One of the morning round-tables addressed budgeting. Facilitator Fredric Haskett of U.S. Lawns, Orlando, Fla., led the discussion with Susan Fagler of Lou Penning Landscapes, Napa, Calif.; Sharon Unquhart of Green Unlimited, Ottawa, Ontario; Sue Clark of Spring-Green, Frisco, Texas; P.D. Weavetz, Lawn Scape Services, Germantown, Tenn.; and Wes Smoot, Smoot’s Lawn Care, Indianapolis, Ind. Here are some highlights:

SF: Our biggest challenge has been managing overhead. With overhead in our budget, it always seems like it’s so high. We can never seem to get it right because it includes so many aspects of the business.  

FH: When bills come in, try coding them according to the type of work. The person who is spending the money should be looking and it to make sure it is accurate.

SU: When we first started, our biggest mistake was not being well informed. We had an accountant who turned out to be a crook and had been fudging things here and there. It set us back. But now, I am not shy about asking questions and know that this is my business and my money.

SC: When we started out, it was hard to track our expenses. Now, we use one time sheet per truck to track our labor hours.

SU: We’ve also had success taking QuickBooks seminars. They have training seminars in different cities.

FH: No matter what, it’s important to always be setting goals and to remember that the employee’s capacity (for productivity) will never be the same as the owner.

It has to be smaller. You can burn out a lot of good people if you don’t remember that.

The author is a contributing editor of GIE Today.