In the heart of the busy season for landscaping, tree care, and lawn care businesses across North America, one crucial factor stands out as a determinant of success: backlog management. Whether it’s a blossoming April or the cusp of summer, understanding and controlling your backlog is essential.
Does Your Backlog Manage You, or Do You Manage Your Backlog?
That’s the question facing green industry professionals today. Unlike factories where a healthy backlog signifies steady demand, in the seasonally-sensitive and weather-dependent green service industry, the significance of backlog is more nuanced. It’s about finding the balance between being fully booked and maintaining the agility to accommodate unexpected requests from valuable clients.
You’re Not A Factory
Your operations are unique, driven by perishable products and sensitive to seasonal fluctuations. As your crews dig into the springtime soil, how do you determine the optimal amount of work to line up? Too little backlog and your staff stand idle, too much and you might overflow, missing opportunities to serve clients who require timely attention.
What Others Say
Our conversations with clients in the green industry reveal diverse backlog management strategies. Some plot their entire season across annual contracts, transforming their service provision into a complex sequence of backlog orders. Others operate on more flexible schedules, pulling work tickets on a daily or weekly basis.
To Benefit, First Understand It
To make your backlog an asset rather than an obstacle, first, understand its nature. Is your backlog comprised of project work or seasonal services? Analyze past seasons to gauge when your backlog was an asset and when it became problematic.
Then Benchmark, Target, and Manage It
Benchmark your backlog against current operations to define your unique ideal backlog level. Here are three questions to start evaluating your backlog management system:
- Do you track backlog variations over time?
- How actively do you manage your backlog?
- Do you have specific backlog goals, and how are they defined?
Managing Your Backlog: Key Process Points
With an understanding of your backlog, implement these strategies to enhance management:
- Clearly Define Each Job: Is it a project or maintenance? Determine who is responsible and set client-driven due dates.
- Schedule Regular Backlog Review Meetings: Keep your team aligned and informed.
- Set Precise Backlog Priorities: Based on client needs, the necessity of subcontractors/materials, equipment availability, and seasonal conditions.
- Use Backlog Management Tools: Implement tools like Gantt charts or scheduling software for better visibility.
- Avoid Overloading the Backlog: Know your clients and their priorities.
- Create a Project/Service Roadmap: Plan the journey for each project or service.
- Involve Your Team: Ensure everyone is part of the process and understands their role.
- Update Stakeholders & Be Transparent: Keep everyone in the loop to foster trust and accountability.
Conclusion: Make This Spring Count
Springtime in the green industry is a season of growth and potential. By managing your backlog effectively, you ensure that your business not only survives but thrives during this critical time. Embrace proactive project management and let the wisdom of Arnold Glasow guide you: “One of the true tests of leadership is the ability to recognize a problem before it becomes an emergency.” Let this spring be the season where you not only work harder but smarter, leveraging your backlog as a strategic advantage for your landscaping, tree care, or lawn care business.
Register for Our Upcoming Event
Join Fred Haskett for a transformative, 2-part workshop series, “Maximizing Operational Efficiency.” This workshop is meticulously crafted for landscaping, tree care, and lawn care business owners and managers, focusing on the crucial elements of operational efficiency and the reduction of non-billable hours.
When Is The Event?
This 2-part online workshop will be held on Tuesday, April 30th and Wednesday, May 1st from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. EST.
What You Will Learn:
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Identify and Eliminate Non-Billable Hours: Understand the full impact of unbillable time on your business’s profitability and learn strategies to minimize or eliminate it.
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Strategies for Operational Efficiency: Dive into techniques for improving morning dispatch, evening preparation, and ensuring the right tools for the job.
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Enhance Gross Margins: Discover how to use proper routing, job sequencing, and technology to improve your company’s financial health.
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Actionable Recommendations: Leave with practical tools and recommendations to immediately start improving your business outcomes.
This workshop is an essential opportunity for those committed to turning operational inefficiencies into profit-making strategies, ensuring a more organized, timely dispatch, and no more money lost to inefficiency. We look forward to seeing you there!
Be Well, Do Good Work, and Keep In Touch.
Fred Haskett
To Learn More Contact Fred at TrueWinds Consulting