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When Colin and Chris Richardson started their company, Skyline Landscape Services Pty Ltd., in Terry Hills, NSW, Australia, little did they know that their decision would also be their tickets to America. Skyline had been maintaining properties in and around Sydney for eight years when the two brothers decided to make some drastic changes. Because the market was starting to favor larger companies, their two-man operation was no longer competitive. They knew it was time to develop the skills and knowledge they needed to create a larger company that would still deliver a high level of service. After a newly retained business advisor did not meet expectations, the Skyline owners jumped on a plane to the States. Says Colin, “Instead of reinventing the wheel, we wanted to set up a business model that other contractors found to be successful, and America was the place to go.”

It was two years ago that the Richardsons visited four U.S. companies. They found the exchange of information so valuable that they made a return visit two weeks later to attend an ALCA conference. At that time, Skyline also became an ALCA member. All told, the brothers have visited this country five times over the last two years, each time bringing home an idea or two that they could expand on in their operation.

“Our goal when we visit a company or attend a meeting is to walk away with at least one idea that we can implement at home,” Colin explains. “After two years, those ideas have added up. We have laid a new foundation and completely reinvented our company to the point that we are now setting industry standards for quality workmanship and professional service in Australia.”

He continues, “Boosting employee morale and retention was one of the first challenges we tackled after returning from our first visit.  We learned that by investing in our team members, they, in return, would deliver the quality of service that our clients expected. We now have a fantastic team that works together to improve our company and the services that we provide.

“Before visiting America, we never fully understood how to enhance employee morale. Now we offer incentives such as ‘Team Member of the Month,’ monthly barbecues, birthday gifts, social clubs, and spontaneously buying lunch and drinks for employees. We have also learned how important it is to truly listen to our employees and make everyone feel important.”
 
Since returning from that first trip across the Pacific, Skyline has experienced rather rapid growth. Today, the company employs between 50 and 60 people and provides maintenance and design/build services to more than 100 commercial accounts.

“Running a landscape contracting company in Australia is not the same as running one in the States,” Colin reemphasizes. “Our companies still have a tendency to be much smaller, which makes it difficult to create career paths for employees. However, as with so many things, Australia is slowly starting to follow the trends set in the States, and we are starting to see companies slowly expanding to meet market demand.”

Companies in Australia operate differently, too, he adds. “In the States, you probably would never see employees take company equipment home in the evening and report directly to a site the next day. Most of our crews do this and report only once a week to the office. On some of our larger properties, we store equipment on-site and our employees report directly to the property, again without having to come to the office. Both approaches significantly reduce costs associated with travel, and travel around Sydney can be difficult.”

When asked what his most difficult challenge is today, Colin laughs, “In this business there are number of different challenges, and to pinpoint one would be unfair to the others. Still, one of our goals at the moment is to return value to our clients. We are also making them more aware of their landscaping return on investment. Down the road, Chris and I want to continue to develop and grow our company and look for innovative and better methods of servicing our customers.”

Colin understands that growth will be necessary to create more career opportunities for employees. “We have been lucky enough to attract some fantastic people, and we would love to give them the opportunity to grow within our organization. Improving is something all companies work at if they expect to be the best they can be.”

However, one thing will not change — Skyline will to continue to support airline companies. “A side benefit of visiting America and joining ALCA has been the friendships we have made,” says Colin, noting, too, that airline passage has also proven to be their ticket to success. 
      
10/04

By Rod Dickens, ALCA Contributing Writer