Great Idea: What Happens at the End of the Day Matters, Too

When people come to tour Grunder Landscaping Co. on a Field Trip they always want to see the morning roll-out: the huddle, the stretches, the trucks pulling out for the day. I get it, it's definitely exciting, and there's a lot to be gathered from how we do it. But one reason we have such a smooth morning roll-out is that we set ourselves up for success the night before. 

Our crews spend time in the evening getting their ducks in a row for the next day before they clock out. Before they leave, three things happen:

1. Team Leaders check the next day's schedule. This only works if the schedule is locked in, which means our Group Leaders have to have it set before the crews get back. There's no "we'll sort it out in the morning."
2. They check the equipment allocated for the next day. If tomorrow's job needs something that isn't already on the truck we want to know that at 4:30 today not at 6:45 tomorrow with everyone standing around.
3. Trucks and mowers get refueled. This keeps us from having ten trucks lined up at the tanks first thing in the morning.

Now, I know some companies load their trucks fully at night and roll out ready to go. That's a good system and it works for them. We don't do it that way. Instead, our team loads job-specific materials in the morning. Neither approach is wrong, they're just different. What matters is that you've decided how you do it, everyone follows the same routine, and you're operating efficiently.

I harp on this because every minute a crew spends figuring things out in the morning is a minute they're not doing billable work. Getting our crews out the door even fifteen minutes faster is worth a lot of money when you add those minutes up over time. When the day ends on a prepared note the next morning is easier.  

This week, take stock of how these before and after moments are used (or not used) and jot down some ideas for how you can make them run better. 

Want to see how we do it? We still have a couple of Grunder Landscaping Co. Field Trips left this year and they're selling out quickly. You'll get to see our morning rollout and our evening return, and everything we do in between to operate effectively while we grow the business. Sign up soon or you'll have to wait until next year! 

There's also not much time left before GROW! Snow, the Snowfighters Institute event we're thrilled to be sponsoring. It's taking place right here in Dayton, OH, where attendees will get to learn from top experts in the snow and ice industry as well as tour the snow operations at Grunder Landscaping Co.

Hope to see you soon! 

Marty Grunder
Founder & CEO
The Grow Group & Grunder Landscaping Co.