Darrel Nail takes care of the details. "He's a systems guy and thrives on staying abreast of what's the newest and the best," Gary LaScalea,
the founder/owner of GroGreen Lawn Care, says of his vice president. "We're opposites in many respects, and I'm convinced
that's why we've been successful." Nail shares what he learned from LaScalea to help him run a successful operation.
What led you into a career in lawn care? While I was in high school in Mississippi, I was a member of the FFA and worked for a local hay farmer. I worked for the Smith
family for three years and really liked the farming. After graduating, I moved back to Tucson, AZ, and attended school. I
moved to Dallas in 1982 and worked in fast food management, working 60 to 70 hours a week for not very much pay. In the spring
of 1984, I applied for and got a job as a lawn care specialist with ChemLawn. I enjoyed being outside, seeing the results
of treatments, talking with customers and educating them about turf care. I fell in love with the industry.
How and when did you join up with GroGreen and its owner, Gary LaScalea? In 1986, Gary LaScalea transferred to our ChemLawn branch as branch manager. As the company began to change, Gary took me
under his wing, and I worked various management positions supporting his role as branch and regional manager. Even though
we both went in different directions for a short while, Gary and I stayed in touch. Jumping forward to October 1996, Gary,
who had started GroGreen, his own company, a year earlier, asked me to help him implement his new software and computer system.
That winter, we converted his customer base to the new software. In January 1997, he asked if I wanted to come and work with
him. I sold my small mowing business and went back into lawn care.
Describe how your relationship with the company has changed. Throughout my career with GroGreen, Gary and I have been very involved with the operation of the business. The first couple
of years we spent most of our time out spraying lawns and returning to the office, usually to find a bunch of curled up faxes
that had fallen to the floor. As the company grew, our roles matured — more employees, more trucks, more training. Today,
I oversee all company operations, training, customer service, employee relations and employee motivation. I also keep pushing
for continuous improvement. What do you like most about your job? What do you find most challenging? I get great satisfaction watching employees grow in their positions. I enjoy being part of a fast-paced, growing company,
and helping it grow. The most challenging aspect of my job is staffing, especially the job of making decisions that affect
employees and their families. That can be difficult.
In light of the economy, what kind of a spring is GroGreen having? We are having a good spring. The weather has been nice and we're doing better than last year. Last spring it warmed up; then
got cold, and it took a long time for the grass to green up. I have a theory on lawn care and the economy: When the economy
is depressed, people still want lawn care because it isn't a very big expense compared to other things they do to keep their
properties looking nice.
