A common theme of our 2021 LM150 is getting companies to share how a strong culture helped them prosper in what was a strange year. As part of our 2021 LM150 coverage, we asked our Editorial Advisory Board:

How can landscape company owners ensure “culture” is more than a buzzword?

Landscape professionals

Richard Bare
Arbor-Nomics Turf
Norcross, Ga.
“You might preach honesty and integrity, but when you instruct your staff to tell clients that you are out when you are really there, all your preaching goes down the sliding board.”

Paul Fraynd
Sun Valley Landscaping
Omaha, Neb.
“Culture is a verb! You keep it alive with your daily actions, energy and how you handle the toughest decisions.”

Luke Henry
ProScape Lawn & Landscaping Services
Marion, Ohio
“To have a great company culture, core values and desired behaviors must be constantly discussed, from the top down.”

Jerry McKay
McKay Landscape Lighting
Omaha, Neb.
“Place someone in your office in charge of it and provide accountability. If left up to the owner, it may never get done.”

Bryan Stolz
Winterberry Landscape & Garden Center
Southington, Conn.
“Talking about your culture is one thing, but when you live it, people notice, and that’s what makes a culture real.”

Industry consultants

Marty Grunder
The Grow Group
Dayton, Ohio
“You ensure culture is more than a buzzword by using your core values as a compass that guides all decisions.”

Phil Harwood
Grow the Bench
Grand Rapids, Mich.
“Culture must be operationalized to become meaningful.”

Kevin Kehoe
3PG Consulting
Laguna, Calif.
“It starts with values in execution, not on some poster on the wall. It happens when those values are equally important to employees and customers.”