Name: Tom Hofer
Title: President
Company: Spring-Green Lawn Care
Location: 11909 Spaulding School Drive, Plainfield
Company type: Lawn and tree care
Founded: 1977
Size: 100 franchises in 20 states
Web: www.spring-green.com
In 1989, the lawn care industry was beginning to deal with a changing marketplace because of the introduction of many do-it-yourself alternatives.
The industry was suffering, and to make matters worse, the management of our largest company-owned operation, located in our headquarters city of Plainfield, was in over its head.
I hired a new manager from a national competitor on the recommendation of his former boss. He was recognized as a turnaround specialist and he had an outstanding record. He joined our company after a thorough interview process.
During the ensuing three years I learned a difficult lesson. I didn’t realize how organizations in the same business and doing basically the same thing could be so different.
It took me three years to learn this individual was a bad fit for our company and to remove him. During that time, our operation’s volume dropped 25 percent and I lost quite a bit of credibility with our employees, who knew he was a bad fit.
Even though an individual might be a good performer in one setting, they might be a misfit in another. This particular person came from a company that was much larger than ours, where it didn’t seem there was much of an emphasis on relationship-building, either with customers or employees.
As a franchisor, our livelihood is built on relationships. Our relationship with our franchise owners is critical. When we sell a franchise, it begins a commitment that lasts for years and years.
This is not a short-term, one-time sale in which we can go our separate ways if things don’t work out. We’re linked together for a long time.
It took me less than a year to see signs that we had a bad fit. The problem wasn’t in the hiring. You’re never going to have a 100 percent success rate in hiring. Bad hires are going to happen.
The real issue was in my failure to remove this individual once I realized the situation instead of making excuses for inexcusable decisions.
Internally, I made a lot of excuses for actions that just weren’t acceptable in our culture. But you have to have confidence in the type of organization you have created, even if it means getting rid of those employees who don’t fulfill those ideals.
In the 10 years since this individual left, our business volume in Plainfield has almost tripled.
I have learned to value the culture aspect of companies much more than I did before. While this person wasn’t a good fit for our company, I don’t think we were a good fit for him, either.
At his previous employer, his boss wasn’t even in the same building. I was much more aware of details and issues than his previous boss. I am sure it was a culture shock for him, too.
While we had to go to extreme measures, I am certainly not advocating the notion that all hires have to strictly fit into the company cookie mold. That’s far from the truth.
Some employees might not be a perfect fit, but they add to an organization because they see things differently. That’s good. But when issues stretch too far out of bounds, it’s counterproductive for everyone.
That’s what happened with us. Fortunately, we’ve never again had to deal with such a situation. Our focus today is to promote from within whenever possible. But when you do look outside your organization, make sure you focus on more than just an individual’s background and qualifications.
Go beyond the obvious to best determine if they’ll fit within the culture of your organization.
