Did you find some great new people to add to your team? Those first hours with a new employee can set the tone for your entire working relationship, so read on for some tips on making the most of them. Time invested at this beginning point might not seem like a big deal to you, but can mean the world to a tentative new employee.

Many company owners and upper management have been at their company for many years or even started their own company. It can be easy over the years to forget the “new job jitters.” Here are few thoughts from a new employee to help supervisors make the transition go smoothly. 

I think the most critical piece of advice would be, “Don’t overwhelm new employees with meeting everyone all at once.” It can be difficult to process names and positions all in the first day, when everything from the location of the facilities and parking to the technology might be new. If you’re a small company with a handful of employees, meeting everyone might be possible, but anything over 7-10 people could be too much to remember, especially if all of those people are wearing masks.

Additionally, instead of having meetings with other employees, have them shadow your existing staff. This will help create their own bonds, allow them to learn your company from many perspectives and understand the nuances and company culture.

Make the paperwork seem less important than the new employee. The easiest place for a company to start with a new employee is to overwhelm (and bore) them with the paperwork. While the forms and handbooks are important, taking some time getting to know the employee and getting them acquainted with the position will make them feel like you see them as a person, not as a number.

Give them an idea about the rules you’re strict with and the ones you’re flexible on. Communicating the nuances of a company culture can be difficult to do in a handbook. Giving verbal examples, such as, “lunch is at noon and it is important for you to go on time” or “lunch is usually around noon, but if you’re caught up in a project, you can be flexible with your time” helps a new hire to understand your expectations of their behavior. Most new hires are eager to fit in and providing as much communication with them will help them quickly assimilate to your company.

Remember that in our cyclical industry, a new employee might feel new for a whole year. Continue to be patient with their inquiries and think of them as new until they have seen how the seasonality affects their job.

Spending some extra time with a new employee can help improve your turnover rate, which helps with your bottom line. A recent survey from BambooHR showed that as many as 31% of new employees leave in the first six months, citing the top reasons being poor onboarding experiences, a lack of clarity surrounding job duties and expectations, or a less than stellar boss.* Since interviewing, hiring and onboarding new employees can be costly and time consuming, improving on a new employee’s starting experience is an investment in your company and its future.

* https://blog.bonus.ly/10-surprising-employee-retention-statistics-you-need-to-know

It’s time to welcome you back to Christensen’s! We are happy to be back to normal operations, while still observing the safety protocols we introduced last season. Don't worry, the masks won't prevent you from recognizing your favorite salespeople and we can't wait to greet you in return. We have some new employees as well, and we look forward to even better turnaround times when you visit our Plant and Hardscape Centers.

We do have some improvements to share with you, number one being the redesign of our store, with a fresh layout and new products. You really need to stop by and see what we've done!

Several of our flatbed trailers got new decks put on them to better serve your delivery needs. Our fleet of equipment has been serviced and is ready to roll for you! But there is one thing that we could not prep for...

Trucking in the country right now is going crazy, and so are the freight rates. Beyond the trucking regulations in place on drivers for hours of service, the lack of available labor is also affecting the trucking industry. There are currently trucks sitting without drivers for them. Lots of empty trucks. The next issue that came up this late winter/early spring was the situation in Texas. When the winter snowstorm hit Texas, FEMA stepped in and sent aid to Texas. Unfortunately, there is now a backlog of material those trucks would have hauled in other industries coupled with trucks that are still stuck in Texas either due to weather or inability to get unloaded. At least our product was not grounded in the Suez canal.

Due to these issues, freight rates have spiked by up to 30% over what they were at the end of 2020. Or another way to put this into perspective, freight is up almost 50% over spring of 2020. Rest assured, Christensen’s has your back. We have worked tirelessly to make sure to keep our prices competitive, and that we will have supply in our yard to make sure that you have a successful year.

From the trees to the brick to the sod, Christensen’s Plant and Hardscape Center has what you need to complete your landscape projects. So here is to another successful year!!

Oh, did I forget to mention? It is our 90^th Anniversary year!!!! We are looking forward to taking care of you for another 90 years.

As those close to me know, I love all seasons. I cannot say that I enjoy one over the other, because I really don’t. It drives my wife a little nuts, as she loathes snow. But I really love the little things that every season brings to us.

But this year is a little different. As 2020 has been for its entire existence. This year I am looking forward to the break that the winter provides to those of us in the nursery industry. A time to re-coup and re-group. And I for one am looking forward to having the time to gather myself back up.

As we re-group, we must look forward and start planning for the future. And as I look forward, I have to bring up the storm warning that I wrote about a couple of months ago. The material forecast for the spring is incredibly tight. Plant material grew very well this year, but our industry consumed a great deal of it. To give an example, many of our green goods suppliers have told us this fall that they can fill our orders, but we will be pulling from the spring 2021 crop. So, we can have it now, or next year, but not both. Hardscape suppliers are still reeling from shutdown this spring. Many intend to continue production for most of the winter to try to prevent the same thing happening in the spring of 2021.

So, as you re-group and plan this winter, I implore you. Plan out your jobs. Order your material. Do not wait until the snow is melting to arrange material for your spring projects. As the snow is flying, that is the time to be looking forward to spring.

As we approach the end of the 2020 planting season, I feel that most of us in the Michigan Green Industry have been pleasantly surprised by the amount of business this year. Logistics, COVID-19 delays and shutdowns plus supply shortages due to the unexpected demand for exterior home improvement projects have been ongoing challenges this season. And keep in mind that statistically, during an election year consumers normally ease up on spending due to “fear of change in political leadership”. I don’t think we’ve seen that.

Mortgage rates are at record lows, and desirable properties are being scooped up within days of being listed. My wife and I are in the homebuyers market, and this trend has been impressive and frustrating to experience. The saying of “Here today, gone tomorrow” has never been truer in my experience. And as we curtail travel and cultivate our social-distancing lifestyle, vacations have been replaced by “staycations”. If one can’t get away for a weekend, why not create a pleasant space to enjoy at home?

This year’s surge in business was completely unexpected, but what about next year? Will this trend continue? What will the state of our economy be once (or I hate to say, “if”) the COVID-19 restrictions are lifted? Many businesses and individuals qualified for financial assistance at the beginning of the pandemic, but chances are that taxpayers will have to pay it back, whether it’s in one year or spread out over several, further stressing the economic machine.

If the unbelievable demand for material continues into next year that will be good news. But what if demand for landscape work takes a downward spiral? If your business is focused on only one specific area, there could be trouble. It may be time to consider expanding the services of your business. Here are a few examples to consider if landscape or hardscape installation isn’t as easy to achieve in 2021:

• Seasonal fertilization programs to assist in a landscape’s overall beauty and protection.
• Water feature installations, such as fountains and small ponds.
• Landscape lighting enhancements to improve the home’s appearance.
• Winter maintenance programs for year round income.
• Tree and shrub trimming schedules for your existing customers.
• Assist others with your ideas and knowledge in landscape designing for new contractors.
• Insect control programs to help customers enjoy their new outdoor “staycation” spaces.
• Irrigation installation for both new and pre-existing landscapes.

There are numerous directions to pursue and research. I guarantee you that there are dozens of other options to consider. Do whatever you can to keep your business alive and well through these challenging times.

As I write this, hurricane Laura is ashore in the gulf. In a matter of days, the remnants of this storm will most likely be bringing us some much-needed rain. (Hopefully only rain!)

This event coincides with the start of the last push for the landscape season here in Michigan. With this last push, I wanted to take a moment to remind all our contractors of the need to order all material as far in advance as possible to ensure a successful project.

All material has been moving very quickly this year. Projects are abundant, and we have been blessed with a prosperous economy. However, this has led to issues with availability across the board for landscape materials. This coupled with the coming push for the end of the landscape season is why I am issuing this storm warning.

• Place orders for EVERYTHING in advance!! Do not assume that we, or any other supplier, will “always have it in stock”. 

• Take nothing for granted. Plant material is starting to run thin, and growers are struggling with labor. (H2A/H2B program issues, etc.)

• Hardscape material is showing very long backlogs due to the early spring shutdowns. Many manufacturers have announced several products or lines that will no longer be made at all this year, and other products can have up to six-week lead times.

So please heed this storm warning. Place your orders early to make sure that your projects continue on smoothly for the rest of the year.

In all bad things, there is good.

COVID-19 has caused havoc in many industries. It has closed many businesses, some never to reopen. Covid has sickened people and some have died from the illness. This is the bad.

Here is the good for the Green Industry:

• People were forced to stay home so they improved their homes
• Money issues were mitigated by a $1200 stimulus payment
• Businesses utilized the Payroll Protection Plan to keep their employees working
• The unemployed received $600 weekly from the federal government
• State unemployment checks continued to be paid
• Many people planted a vegetable garden for the first time or the first time in years
• Less travel meant fewer expenses for fuel, auto insurance
• Vacations were postponed or cancelled so with time and money available home living conditions were improved
• Landscaping and gardening are not impacted by crowds or social distancing
• Landscapers are remarkably busy because of limited staffs, no immigrant workers
• There is pent up demand within the green industry to hire additional staff

So what does the future hold for the Green Industry?

Here’s my view thru a slightly cracked crystal ball:

• Working from home will stay with us into the future
• Zoom meetings will replace much business travel
• Education will transition from the classroom to ??????
• Plants will occupy more of people's time and attention
• Embrace the change - it is happening!

Welcome to summer! This time every year we find ourselves having the same conversation with lots of drivers picking up plant material.

This conversation revolves around putting a tarp over their load of plant material. There are two typical answers for this. “I forgot a tarp” or “I am only going a few miles.”

To be honest, we have a chuckle at both of these answers, and the reason for the chuckle is quite simple.

In the case of “I forgot”, we generally know what most of the nursery tarp inventory for most of our customers looks like as we see them often. This also means we know how many tarps the company owns. My favorite “I forgot” comes from a good friend of mine. I sold him a new tarp multiple times when he forgot. And every time he was mad as he knew there were about twenty tarps sitting unused at his shop.

The latter, “I am only going a few miles”, is not so funny. During summer temperatures, damage to the foliage while driving down the road at 50 mph (or more) happens in just a few miles. So really, any driving with the plant material un-tarped will damage the plant.

Here is the beg from Christensen’s. Please tarp everything when you leave our nursery. We will help you tarp your load!!

P.S. We will not accept anything as a return that left without a tarp on it.

I’m fairly active on LinkedIn with my Design/Build network of landscape contractors, landscape architects and developers. I’m always asking, "Hey, are you on LinkedIn so I can learn about your company?" A lot of the larger companies with marketing departments are there, but many of my landscape contractors say, “I don’t have the time” or “I tried it, and it didn’t work.” There are a few tricks to it, but it can be a very effective tool in your marketing toolbox if used correctly.

First, your current customers want to see you on there. Everyone likes to roll with a winner, and by putting your company out there is a great way to separate from your competition. New potential customers, ready to buy, are on there and are socially engaged enough to be looking for you on the platform. If you get referred by someone, social media will be the first place they will go to get a feel for your service. The point is: find your audience, present your company and raise brand awareness to all the new opportunities and customers that want to hear your story.

If there is one word that comes to mind with social media it’s consistency. Be consistent with your timing, your format, logo, colors, all of that, even your tone. When you develop a consistent look, it allows you to tell your story. Everyone wants to know your story. Stories have beginnings, middles and endings. So do landscape projects. Spring clean-ups with before and after pictures tell a customer what to expect if they hire your company, way more than a quote, card and brochure could ever do. A hardscape installation, patio, wall or outdoor kitchen has a story. The story is best told with pictures and the transformation that allows your customers to dream about their landscape project, and they begin to see you as the landscaper that can make it a reality.

So start slow, find your voice, and be consistent with your logo, banners and company colors. Your customers and potential customers will begin to engage with you, ask questions, and make comments that will ultimately lead to new business. Social media needs to be a priority. The consistency will come when the social media post becomes the priority. Mark it on the calendar, make it a priority, and get it done. If you can’t do it consistently, then delegate it to someone who will. Develop your style, your look, your message and you will be successful. Be authentic, no templates - talk about your people, new equipment, milestones you are reaching, almost anything, if it’s authentic about your company and tells a story you will be followed and appreciated.

Many of the companies I follow have an editorial calendar that they will lay out like a marketing calendar for the season. Try to get your whole team involved. Most employees have the ability to take pictures, and with some before and after commentary that can lead to a strong post with many views and comments. Some companies highlight individual personalities, some highlight after-hour or weekend company gatherings, safety - the possibilities are there for everyone to get to know you and your people.

Be consistent so whatever platform you select your style and posts will be recognizable. Be authentic and have fun with your posts - it won’t be a chore, and your following will look forward to your next post. When done correctly, social media will attract repeat customers and potential customers to your sales funnel and make the rest of the sales process more efficient. Have fun, tell your story and create brand awareness for your company.

I love comedy, especially old fashioned slapstick like Charlie Chaplin, the Three Stooges, and Laurel and Hardy. Fun and silly, light hearted and easy to watch. Watching a character step on a rake that hits him in the head only to back up into another rake that also beans him. Then there’s the guy with the super long pipe swinging it near another guy on a step ladder and you just know what is going to happen next. The timing and choreography it takes to pull off these stunts is a thing of beauty.

But in all seriousness, safety is no laughing matter. It can be hard to plan and implement. It’s usually the first thing to go when you’re in a hurry, and the last thing you want to explain to the boss and doctor when you wind up injured. Nothing ruins a nice summer weekend like a broken anything! I am not here to preach of the importance of safety, everyone knows it. But I would like to share some things that I have learned from other contractors and owners that can help you in your work day.

Knives, we all have them. Mine is as dull as a brick, while the nursery guys across the street could perform surgery with theirs. How many times have we been in a hurry, distracted or lulled by repetitive motion until whoops! Instead, use a multipurpose snip (Fiskars makes a nice one). They can cut almost anything, very hard to slice a leg or arm with, and easier to use for long periods of time. Fatigue can definitely cut you down.

Garbage, it's unsightly and a nuisance. It’s also a byproduct of the process. I have a contractor that has about a dozen 5 gallon buckets throughout the jobsite. He likes bright orange ones that are highly visible. Great for empty water bottles, pulled weeds and other miscellaneous construction materials, and easy to load out at the end of the day.

Speaking of tools, there is a company that paints all of their tools bright orange! No mistaking whose shovel that is or where that shovel is. Hammers, rakes, knee pads, I mean everything! How much time would be saved if you never have to search for, wait where was I going with this?

Ah - the right tool for the right job. Can’t find my hammer, but I can pound this 10” long spike with my shovel. That always works out great. After they’re done for the day, the foreman of one particular company checks the trucks to ensure all the necessary equipment is there. This ensures accountability of the company’s property and readiness for tomorrow’s endeavor.

Good communication is huge when it comes to safety. Make sure that everyone knows what is going on. Take the time to talk to not just your employees, but to your customer and your customer’s neighbors. I know a guy who talks to anybody within hearing range, especially if they have children. People are curious, and they are not always very smart about feeding that curiosity, especially kids and animals. Another company sends out a flier, and has had great success with new leads from this.

Like the Granger commercials say, “It’s always safety season”. Let’s leave the slapstick to the pros.

When I was a kid, my older brother taught me how to play chess. When you’re eight years old, it seems like such a simple, fun game to play: cool looking pieces, each piece goes in a bunch of different directions, and everyone loves to take out an opponent's piece, or better yet, beat your older brother.

My brother, being a good teacher, knew how to put me in my place when I got cocky. I’d smile and laugh and say stuff like “Oooooo I got you! Didn’t see that coming, did you?” And that is when I learned just how much strategy is involved with the game. Sure, I got his pawn or bishop, but he was planning his moves well in advance, predicting what move that I would make next. A few more moves, and he was saying "CHECKMATE", turning my cockiness to a mixture of frustration, shock, and awe. I would be thinking “How did he do that?”, “What did I do wrong?”, and the most popular... “What the $#@* happened?”

My brother and I played at least once a week, until he joined the Army right out of high school. I taught a few of my friends the game, but I haven’t played in a long time. I miss it! But consider this: all of us play chess, if you look at it as the strategy you employ every day. You are "playing chess" on both Personal and Business boards. Let me explain.

Some "Personal" chess board examples might be:

• “What to wear to work”: Your opponent on the board is Momma Nature, and today she’s deployed a pawn that represents a cold and rainy day. So you counter her move with your pawn that represents a sweatshirt, coat, jeans, hat, and rain gear. 
• "When to pay your bills”: If you aren't that guy who pays them the moment they hit your mailbox, you plan a week a month prior, depending on your pay periods, hence setting up your strategy well in advance to counter “Bill’s” move. 
• "Planning a family vacation": Booking a complete vacation takes more than a single day. You have to counter all kinds of pieces that can be played against you, like bills, medical occurrences, surprise auto repairs, cancelled flights, etc., while also saving up money to finance the trip. Bigger challenge, but winnable.

The “Business" chess board can be even more difficult because you need this board to help you win on your personal board. Daily pawn pieces on your average business day can be:

• Call-ins from employees
• A blown out tire on a truck
• Lawnmower down for the count
• Rain day washout, etc. 

Moves that require more strategy may be:

• Scheduling upcoming booked projects for the week or month
• Vehicle maintenance​
• Scheduled employee time off
• Paying the bills
• Monitoring monthly payroll
• Scheduling time for your own meetings, appointments, and so on. 

Oh, and keep in mind that you ALSO have to keep playing the daily pieces as well. Then there’s the long term strategy, which may include yearly profitability reports, seasonal tasks like fall cleanups and winter snow removal, future employee recruitment, business expansion, continual project bookings, and, well - you get the picture.

Yes, long term forecasting and figuring out strategies to compete can be overwhelming, but fortunately you have pieces on your board that are more than pawns. You may have the same pieces as your opponent, but it’ll depend on how you play them to take the advantage.

Let’s say a pawn is played on a current project that has a potential setback. In that sense, you play a rook or a bishop, maybe we’ll label them crew leaders, to deal with that pawn safely and effectively, and the project continues on without interruption. 

The queen piece could be classified as upper management, exceptional decision makers or problem solvers. This is considered to be the most dangerous piece to play, because it can do almost anything that it wants. It will be played against you, but you can play it back as well, just be smart.

As for the knight piece, it’s that wild card that you usually don’t see coming. It doesn’t move far, but can make an easy encounter more complicated. Every situation, company, or personal endeavor has a knight, so always be aware. Here’s an example: You stop to pick up material, and your credit card is mysteriously declined. So you call the bank to see what’s going on, and it turns out their server crashed the night prior, on a holiday weekend, and won’t be fixed until Monday. Yep, there’s the knight that was played against you! Fortunately, you have a second account from some other financial institution, but there’s not enough in checking. But, they have immediate online capability, so you push a few buttons, switch some funds around, and all is right in your world again. There’s your knight piece!

Always keep in mind that regardless of what board you are playing, your priority is to protect your king piece, which can represent your self, your business, or your family. It moves incredibly slowly, but it can be moved in any direction. And if your game is played VERY well, you’ll never have to move it because you have everything under control. But, if your king is ever taken out, your game is over. In business, maybe you’ll lose the first game, but most of the time you can start another. And, keep in mind, you’ll have more experience, so you’ll be better prepared for your next figurative opponent.

If anyone asks if you play chess, you can honestly reply “Yes, I play every day”, but it may not be the way that they’re thinking. And with that being said, you can look at that as already having an advantage before a game has begun.