How our industry association benefits our clients (and can benefit yours, too)

Updated Nov 30, 2022
landscape america
Landscape America believes that industry involvement in the NALP is a key to success.
Landscape America

Every professional needs a good network to do their job at the highest level possible. We believe that the same goes for landscape professionals. That’s why our group of managerial staff is certified by the Massachusetts Association of Landscape Professionals as MCLPs.

But that’s just for our state. On a national level, Landscape America is also part of the National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP), which is something that we believe also benefits our clients. We believe that when landscaping companies get involved in their state associations, as well as the  NALP, it benefits our industry as a whole.

Some of our reasons for membership in the NALP include access to the most popular landscape industry events, peer learning and mentorship opportunities, and legislation resources. Getting involved is important.

Here’s a little bit more about what we’ve gained from being part of the NALP.

Peer learning & mentorship: sharp crews and motivated leaders

One of the most important aspects of our Landscape America’s NALP membership is the learning we’ve had access to through our peers — and the mentorship they’ve offered us over the years. By learning from experts in the field, our leadership team and crews have kept their skills sharp and adapted to challenges as they’ve come along, keeping your property stunning and safe along the way.

On a personal level, a great example of this mentorship is from 2009 when I was able to participate in the Trailblazer Program, which is still running today. The program gave me the opportunity to spend one day with a select industry veteran (a “trailblazer”) to view their facility, meet their team, and ultimately learn how they’ve grown.

It was an awesome experience. My brother and co-owner Andy and I were lucky enough to visit ND Landscapes in Georgetown, MA. We spent the day with ND’s owner, Nick DiBenedetto, and he opened his company to us with an amazing transparency. His focus was on helping us learn how to grow our company.

It was a truly formative experience and one of the most important days in the life of our young company. To this day Nick and I are great friends and continue to act as thought partners to grow and improve our businesses.

This program is just one example of peer support and mentorship that NALP provides for landscape companies around the country.

Networking & resources: Insider knowledge & the ability to respond to challenges

There’s a reason Landscape America has reached the capacity and professionalism to serve our clients. Networking with landscape professionals has made our business better and stronger, allowing us to grow each year by attending a variety of conferences and industry events.

One of my personal favorites is the Landscapes Conference held every October in Louisville, Kentucky. I’ve met some really good friends through it — people who have helped us guide our business through challenges, stay open-minded to new opportunities and challenge us to improve our culture and technology so we can be leaders in the industry.

Other highlights from these events include on-the-floor education for landscape and lawn care professionals as well as learning from top industry experts with insider knowledge. Connecting with CEOs, owners and managers dealing with the same issues that we are is incredibly helpful.

All of this combined means meticulous workmanship from our crews and a job well done time and time again. It’s also influenced our commitment to rigorous training and running an open-book management company.

Staying up to date on legislation, especially during COVID-19

When the COVID-19 pandemic began, businesses across the country were scrambling to come up with plans for a wildly different world.

Fortunately, NALP was instrumental in shaping our COVID-19 response and making sure we were up to date on legislation and resources. First, NALP advocated for landscape professionals throughout the US, ensuring we were deemed essential and able to continue working.

Their communication with us was excellent. They even set up a Facebook group where we could go for advice from our peers and their management team — that was particularly helpful.

Continuing to improve

We believe that our involvement in the NALP has helped us to continue to improve as a company and as individuals, too. There are many reasons to get involved on the state and national level, including the highlights that I’ve mentioned here. As an industry, I believe we can continue to improve by remaining active in the NALP as well as our state level associations.

 doug mcduff

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