[Bill Schwab]

Lawn Lad:

You have some great points in your post. If one cannot identify what need be changed, then it is not possible to see a change must be made.

What I have done is taken a steno pad and wrote titles of takes money, makes money on top. Tools and equipment to use in the field are under the makes money catagory, with an asterisk
next to frequently used vs collects dust most of the year. Anything that collected dust was sold off and we rent if needed.
Pick up trucks were definitley on the make money side.

On the takes money side, was seminar fees, computers ansd software, most tech items, and most anything that claimed to save time. The reason I did it this way is because there are thousands of software/tech companies who claim to revolutionize how you do business. This misleading sales pitches of how much time and money you will save are thrown arouind on a regular basis to gain sales. The reality of it all, in the size operation we ran at the time, and the size many cmpanies begin with, is scheduling and even QB software does not intially save you that time that is so frequently boasted. We got rid of our scheduling software and kept QB, and are going to upgrade to Contractor Edition and use a $20.00 white board to schedule work. It only fails when marker runs out of ink, it does not hold our company hostage as softwares can and will often do, and works so well I cannot say enough about it.

There will and is rapidly comming a time, when our operations will make sense to add more tech gizmos, and a person who will operate them so we can effectivley see numbers and schedule jobs efficiently.

Based on past experiences, I place adding a network low on my list of priorities, as this is defintily on the "takes money" side of my list. Equipment on the other hand that can and will reduce the one wild card we all have (labor) is most always worth the investment so long as that equipmwnt is fitted properly to your operation. You can also go crazy on equipment, and I catagorize this as "extension to manhood" items. Items you don'y really need all the time, but man, is it cool to let everyone see it sitting on your jobsite or trailer. I think one of the biggest mistakes lawn companies make is the ever increasing need to buy the biggest baddest Z rider ever made, when all they really need is a couple Standers, or walk behinds. Or that construction company, just starting who absolutely has to own thier own skid steer before they have a compactor or brick saw.

Every situation is different, but one thing is pretty standard. most companies began with a wheel barrow and a pick up truck. Weigh your new purchases very carefully. With only one job running at a time, there is no need for a network of technolgy, 4 programs for design, bookkeeping and scheduling, or alike. You can run just as efficiently using a .10 pen and .01 piece of paper and save the money for in field money making tools.