Ask the Construction Expert, June 2011

Q: My company has had successful growth in the past, but lately it seems like we have reached a plateau. How do I overcome this and take my business to the next level?

A: In 1980, Dick Bare started his small turf maintenance company, Arbor-Nomics, Inc., with a single truck and a spray rig. During the day, he would spray fertilizer and insecticides on his customers' lawns. Between jobs, he would go door to door seeking new customers. After three long years of doing this by himself, he finally hired his first employee. This gave Bare more time to focus on customer service, sales and growing the business.

His drive and attention to customers helped his company grow over the next five years. He continually trained his small crew and made sure they provided excellent customer care. After 10 years in business, his company grew to five employees, five trucks and a sales volume of $750,000 per year.

Once Bare reached this level, his business growth came to a halt. He could not take on anymore customers because he already worked 15-hour days. He managed everything in the business including scheduling crews, ordering materials, invoicing, paying bills, handling customer issues, doing the banking and selling.

For the next 10 years, Bare kept his stressful business at this same level. He made just enough money to keep the business going. But the stress was almost too much for him to handle.

After 16 years in business, Bare decided to do something about his future. His passion had always been serving, marketing and selling to his customers. But his company became stuck when he had to spend most of his time taking care of all the other details involved with running a business.

The Big Decision

Successful business owners should only focus on what they do best and hire skilled people to manage other areas of the business. Hiring managers is a big decision but is necessary for growth, and Bare finally made this important decision.

When a competitor's general manager became available, Bare knew he needed to hire him. This person wanted double what Bare was willing to pay, plus a car and gas card. After many sleepless nights, Bare bit the bullet and hired his first general manager. It paid off.

The Result

Arbor-Nomics Turf, Inc. increased in sales by 33 percent within the next twelve months. Bare focused on finding customers, and his general manager focused on getting the work done professionally. The company continues to grow steadily at 12 to 20 percent every year and is now approaching $6 million in annual sales.

ly targets and goals for income, jobs, dollars per day per crew, average income per crew, production rates, referrals, leads and sales, which are all posted and tracked on a board for everyone to see and compare. Everyone must hit a minimum target.