Leadership and the Board

LEADERSHIP and THE BOARD: A Story for board members and company owners:
By Steve Hoogenakker

There comes a point in time in every leaders time when he or she is tired of
spearheading every initiative and dragging and cajoling the other members to help.
At that point, they look to take their board or company to another level, either to create more energy, creativity or create more balance in their life, or possibly all of the above. When they find themselves in this situation, they must become a leader working “on” the business of managing a board instead of “in” it.
The first rule of a great board leader is that the team can never be completely dependent upon any one individual.
One of the more common mistakes made is that the president of the board fails to let go of certain activities and therefore stunts the growth of the team as a whole.
The next important point to remember is that as a leader, part of their job is to build a team of decision
makers. This can only be done by observing, directing and training them to be inter-dependent with each other. There are 3 stages of dependency;
1. Dependent: Unable to make decisions or to sustain a high level of accomplishments without prodding or constant oversight. It takes at least one additional competent individual to monitor this person. Using fuzzy math this equation would look like (1+1)= 1
2.Independent: Able to successfully perform complete projects required by the board in their entirety without oversight. Independents will often take over the entire task even if it was handed out to a subcommittee of 4 people. Independents like to think of themselves as the highest order of individual as I used to believe. Independents don’t require someone to watch over them, but they don’t add people to the process either. Fuzzy math might be 1=1 or a really good independent might be able to perform the work of 3 people or 1=3
3. Inter-dependent: This individual can complete the project on their own, but seek out ideas and input from others. They have good communication skills and are somewhat empathetic, (not sympathetic)!
When a project is given to an interdependent person, they PULL people into the project, creating synergy and energy. Because their very nature is to look at each issue as it affects all members, the fuzzy math might look like 1+4=30, with 1 being the interdependent person, 4 being the input and ideas brought in by other people and 30 being the number of residents who are on board because the group nailed the mission and tapped into the energy of the association.

In the Garth Brooks song, Standing Outside the Fire, people want to be “cool” and “strong” and face the problems alone, but the real answer is to be strong, but just “weak” enough to let others in and help create the future.

We call them cool
Those hearts that have no scars to show
The ones that never do let go
And risk it the tables being turned

We call them strong
Those who can face this world alone
Who seem to get by on their own
Those who will never take the fall

We call them weak
Who are unable to resist
The slightest chance (that) might exist
And for that forsake it all

They're so hell bent on giving, walking a wire
Convinced it's not living if you stand outside the fire

So what’s the plan?
As a leader you are responsible for the focus of your board and the needs of all residents. The clearer the vision of the leader, the more people will follow. When building your team, as the chief, you must lead by example.
Each board must have a Visionary and a Manager. A single person should not hold these positions. In many cases, one person tries to fill both roles. This is the classic case of a workaholic. This is the type of person who puts in 60 or 70 hours a week and has no balance in their life. You must let go of this attitude if you wish to achieve success in building a strong team and surround yourself with supporters. Surround yourself with people whom you can trust, and whom you know will get the job done. You must engage yourself with people who will follow your lead.
You are the quarterback of your team, and as such, you must have people around you (like Michael Oher in “The Blind Side”) who will protect you and block for you. Make sure that your association’s environment is enjoyable and satisfying. If this is not a satisfying, gratifying and enjoyable place, how can you expect your board to flourish?

With this in mind, make sure you avoid the temptation of micromanaging. While delegating is a critical part of your role as the Manager or Visionary, keeping too close an eye on your board makes them feel untrusted and hesitant. Let them know you expect them to make some mistakes, but that you trust them to excel at their work without you hounding them or watching their every move. You'll be grateful for a board member who isn't afraid to use their own initiative, and get some balance back in life while accomplishing more than ever before

10 Home Maintenance Tips

1. Clean and seal decks. Ideally, you'll need three consecutive warm, sunny days. On day one, dry out the deck. Apply
deck cleaner and scrub the deck on the second day and let it dry 24 hours. On the third day, apply deck sealer.
2. Hire a certified chimney sweep to inspect and clean chimneys. Doing this task now instead of the fall allows plenty
of time for repairs before the next heating season. It's also easier to schedule a sweep.
3. Wash the exterior of your house, using ordinary garden hose pressure and a mild detergent. Beware of the pressure
washers; they are powerful enough to force water under the siding where it may encourage mildew and rot. Power
washing is a job for a pro.
4. Caulk exterior joints around windows and doors. Caulking helps keep your house weather−tight and lowers heating
and cooling bills. It can also help keep insects and other "critters" out of your house. When you caulk before painting,
it eliminates edges where the paint may start to peel.
5. Clean lint from the entire clothes dryer vent system, from the dryer to the exterior vent cap. Because lint is
incredibly flammable it poses a fire risk. If a gas clothes dryer is not properly vented, it can force carbon monoxide
back into the home, and that can be deadly.
6. Check operation of attic fans and roof−mounted turbine vents. Attic fans run on little energy and can greatly reduce
summer cooling costs.
7. Clean Ice−Makers. Debris on or around the condenser coils prevents them from cooling, thereby making the
condenser work harder, wasting energy and shortening its life.
8. Burglarproof your House. Inspect the operation of automatic light timers and motion−detector systems, especially if
you're planning a vacation. Break−ins can be thwarted with security measures that prolong the burglar's time and
effort.
9. Repair cracks in concrete patios and driveways. For most cracks less than 1/4", apply concrete caulk; just clean the
crack out with a high−pressure hose nozzle, let it dry and then apply the caulk into the crack. For larger cracks,
substitute concrete patch for caulk.
10. Increase your pool maintenance. Pool parties and more frequent pool use make chlorine dissipate faster. That leads
to algae build up. Conditioners, frequent cleaning and lengthier filter runs are a must for summer

Steve Hoogenakker, Showcase Landscape, Delano Minnesota, Kirsten Hoogenakker, Teri Hoogenakker, Gerrit Hoogenakker, Paul Hoogenakker

Lawn/Landscape Minnesota

I can help, I've done acquisitions for lawn care/landscaping. If you want a BUSINESS VALUATION, below is a very real formula. If you want a REAL LIFE VALUATION, a lot of times it's two guys over coffee, going over customers and employees, then they agree on a percentage of revenue (20-100%) plus maybe buying out some equipment. Short Answer:I'd start out with a number of mows per client, so I'd offer to pay the previous owner the payments received for the first 2-3 mows. You can do it the week after you mow them, or if you wanna be a nice guy, you could pay them for 2-3 mows once they sign your contract. If that isn't good enough, below is very valuable information on larger business acquisitions:Answer that imparts wisdom for this and future transactions:A REAL VALUATION, which you should run at least once per year so you know what your business is worth goes like this:Technically, it's based on EBITDA, which is Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization. If you would like to know more about that, just reply and I'll give you a better explanation that should be useful. It's basically a "cash flow" formlula. You take your profits, depreciation, interest expense, and any of your pay that is "excessive" to what you do. So, if you're running a crew and making $80,000, you could put $40,000 back towards cash flow because a new owner would have to hire on a new foreman to run that crew:Formula works like thisProfit $20,000Depreciation $30,000 Interest Expense $8,000Excessive Owners Income $40,000 Total: $98,000. Then you use a multiplier on this EBIT or EBITDA formula. Something like 2.5 to 3.5, so the business would be valued at $250,000 to $350,000. In this sort of equation, the value of the equipment is negotiated. IT can be rolled into the price, or the net value can be added, or the buyer may ask that the equipment be paid off from the $350,000 and be free and clear. The way to keep this clear is to think from the buyers view is:I'm going to buy a business for $300,000. I expect to earn $98,000 per year or get 33% for my money which is a lot better than Wall Street!Other factors, it's based on:1. Size of company. I would rather buy companies over $750,000 because there has to be some management or systems in place, but a business broker friend of mine says he finds many many more buyers of businesses of around $200,000-$400,000. We think it's because it's easier for another contractor to add that much service to his present line. 2. Type of billing. Since we're in the Lawn Maintenance forum, I'll assume that we're talking about mowing. "recurring billing" is what brings in a bigger amount. When you have solid monthly billing, this is something that buyers can count on more than one time landscape sales. Commercial usually worth more than Single Family Residential. 3. Spread out customer base. A Customer base that doesn't consist of 3 clients that make up half of the billing is going to scare some people away. A base with 50 clients with no one client making up more than 25% is pretty solid. This is also something that banks financing your company, or financing a sale4. Growth. Most buyers prefer some decent, but not excessive growth. A 10 year company growing 15% every year sounds pretty solid to me with probably a solid customer base. 5. Gross Profit margins. Anyway, if you have other questions, let me know, Best of Luck!Steve Hoogenakker

Teri Hoogenakker wins Mother of the Year Award

Teri Hoogenakker, of Delano Minnesota, today was awarded the "Mother of the Year Award"
Voting was unusually heavy, and even more improbable, the voting was nearly unanimous, with 4 votes for Teri and 1 vote for Don Aluni. Even though Don Aluni isn't a mother, it is widely speculated that Duke voted for Don because of food bribery. The authorities will be called in to investigate this allegation.