Finding That Next Superstar Employee
June 9, 2021 – Episode 20
Join Frank in the studio this week as he discusses how to find that superstar employee.
Frank identifies what he calls “boots on the ground” recruiting along with other traits you should look for or that you could become in that next superstar employee.
Lawn Care Frank:
You’re not sure how to find your next star employee? I’m going to show you a technique that no one is talking about.
Announcer:
Welcome to the Lawn Care Frank Podcast! Where we help lawn care professionals, like yourself, start and grow their business. By tackling obstacles such as finding customers, hiring talented people, spreading brand awareness, and much much more. And now your host…Lawn Care Frank.
Frank:
Anytime we’re looking for employees we can all always put ads out. That’s a typical way of doing that you know. We could put ads out in Indeed, you know Jobseeker, or we can ask friends and family members for recommendations of, you know, if they know anyone that fits the criteria of what we’re looking for right? So, what we’re gonna talk about today is a different technique and we can call this technique boots on the ground. I’m gonna show you how to find this person that is going to be reliable, dependable, and you’re really gonna interview them over time. So let’s get started!
Interviewer:
So Frank, you touched upon traditional ways of finding employees. Go over those one more time. Typically, what people do when they are trying to find a new hire.
Frank:
So typically, we are going to be placing ads on job sites like Indeed, Jobseeker. We might even talk to family members, friends, maybe somebody who already works for you, “hey do you know anybody that’s looking for a job?” So those are kind of the typical ways of finding that next employee.
Interviewer:
And you have a technique for finding a future star employee called boots on the ground. Explain what that is.
Frank:
So, boots on the ground is something that I like doing. And let me talk to you about that a little bit, ok? So basically, you know we all shop or dine, or you know get coffee somewhere, right? So, what I like to do is really take a look at the employees that are working at different places. For example, I go to QuikTrip all the time. I get coffee 2-3 times a day so when I’m in there I’m looking at the star employees and they’re really not interviewing so it’s a good opportunity for me to see what they’re like in real life, right? So, they’re not going to be in front of me where I have to ask them several questions when, you know, we’re talking about a traditional interview. They’re running around doing all the good things and some of them are running around doing all the bad things right? So I’m looking for that star employee and that’s the beginning of , you know, how to ,you know, look for that star employee with the boots on the ground.
Interviewer:
So when you’re looking for that star employee, what are some of the characteristics that you might look for in that person?
Frank:
Of course, you know, when you’re looking for that star employee just like with any other employee, you’re looking for someone that is reliable, hardworking, they’re kind to their customers. Those are some of the characteristics that I’m looking for when I’m looking for that next star employee. And the most important thing is, having all those characteristics over a period of time. So, when somebody comes in and does an interview with you, you really don’t get the opportunity to see what they’re made out of, right? So if somebody asks you a question in the interview obviously you’re going to tell them, you know, I’m the greatest. Right? We’re all the greatest when we’re interviewing. So, the thing with boots on the ground is when I am looking at the potential star, I can see how they are over time. Right? If I go to that QuikTrip and get coffee on Monday, are they acting the same on Friday? Are they acting the same on Tuesday? So that’s some of the things that I’m looking for and I think it’s really important to home in on what those characteristics are.
Interviewer:
And I know one characteristic that stands out for you is when an employee has down time but they’re still busy, right?
Frank:
That’s correct. So, we can go into let’s say, you know, a restaurant or a Starbucks or QuikTrip or wherever it may be and they’re going to have some down time, right? So, there are times where the business is not busy at all. So that’s an important part of, you know, boots on the ground. When you walk in is that employee doing nothing or are they taking initiative to make sure that they’re doing something. They are being proactive. They’re being active and really part of that business, right? It’s almost like they’re the owner, right? Sometimes I’ll walk in and I’ll see some of these superstars and I’m like man I know it’s Quick Trip but do you like own part of this? Because you’re such an active part of making sure that things are moving and moving in the right direction. Even when it’s slow. That’s one of the things I look for.
Interviewer:
So if you see someone maybe for the first time that you think that wow this person could be a star employee. How many times would you have to go back or how many times would you have to see that person before you realize they’ve got what it takes?
Frank:
You know that’s really up to you. But I like to, you know, really gauge it over time. Whatever that might be maybe. It’s gonna be different for you. But it might be a period of 2 weeks,3 weeks. Even a month. Right? I’m always looking and I’m looking when I’m not looking for an employee, right? So I’m constantly looking for these stars when I’m not even looking to add someone to my staff right? So I’m always looking and I think it’s important to gauge that person over time. Because again when you’re doing an interview face to face you just have that 1,2 or 3 interviews. You know, depending on whether you call them back to come in for that 2nd or 3rd interview. But still they can really mask who they are about right? So if they come in on time on on the interview that doesn’t mean they are going to come in on time when it comes to work. But now if I’m looking at that star employee at Quick Trip or wherever i may be then I can really see are they always on time? Are they happy? Are they you know there to move the business forward. I can really gauge that over time.
Interviewer:
And so now the important question is how do you engage that person. How do you get them talking about if they’re looking for another opportunity?
Frank:
You see, for me that’s one of the easiest things because I like talking and knowing about other people’s livelihood, right? I love seeing people really progress in their journey in life, right? So, for me it’s really easy and it’s just a matter of having normal conversation. So, you’re not going to go in and talk to these people and say hey by the way are you happy here? That’s not the first conversation. That’s not probably any part of the conversation. Maybe until the very end, right? So, what I do is just have normal conversations. Hey, how’s it going? You doing alright? You know we build that rapport; they see you over time. So now, you know, they can open up to you more and more. And again, that’s another opportunity to see what they’re really about, right? Are they really putting on a mask for the customer or are they, you know, they might not be happy, right? At that job. So, but if they’re not happy and they are doing a good job masking it and they come to work that kind of thing. Then that’s again an opportunity to really get to know that person and see where they’re passion is and whether or not they’re looking for another opportunity or maybe they know somebody that is looking for another opportunity.
Interviewer:
If they’re not interested in the next opportunity, would you go ahead and ask them if they knew someone that’s got similar characteristics if they would be interested?
Frank:
You know once you’ve built that rapport then I think you know you can ask them at some point. You know, if they’re content or happy where they’re at and you know for example if they work at QuikTrip and that’s what they’ve known, and they know the advancement opportunity they love the company and most importantly in my business they’re not interested maybe in working outside, right? Or maybe they’re not interested in working in the office, right, and it’s an office position. Maybe they like what they’re doing, they love what they’re doing so yeah after a certain period in time when you’ve built that rapport you can always ask them “hey do you know anybody that’s a super star just like you? I know I’ve been watching you. You’ve been doing such a great job. Do you know anybody that’s like you?” Somebody that loves what they’re doing but you know, currently they don’t have a position in a company somewhere, right? Maybe they’re looking for something. So, yeah that’s a great opportunity.
Interviewer:
And since we’re in the field of lawn care service would you ever observe or go talk to someone maybe of another lawn care company?
Frank:
You know that’s one of the things I am not a proponent of doing because, you know, when it comes to going to my normal places, you know, like the QuikTrip, Starbucks, Target, Walmart, Chili’s. So those are some of the places that you’re able to go in; they see you, you see them. It’s easy to be able to get engaged, right? Now with lawn care companies I don’t just drive around following lawn care companies and see how well someone is doing because first of all I would have to drive around a lot, right? Maybe like 10 lawns. I’m not gonna do that for sure and another reason that I don’t like to look at lawn care companies is because, you know, when I see that person working on one lawn. How am I going to see that person working on that same lawn or another lawn a week from now? Two weeks from now? A month from now? How do I know he’s going to show up for work the next day and the day after? Again, with the businesses that are the QuikTrips, those kinds of businesses I can really see if they showed up on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. How they act throughout the day. Every other day and throughout the week, right? I can’t have that opportunity to look at that when it comes to the lawn care business. So that’s one of the reasons that I avoid that. Another reason is when it comes to taking on another lawn care company a lot of the times when you look at employees like that, they are only looking for an opportunity to make $.25 cents more, right? So, they might leave that company for just 4.25 cents more and that’s really not the kind of person I am looking for. I am looking for somebody that is looking for a career, right? And that’s one of the opportunities when I am, you know, looking for that star and, you know, the restaurant business and that kind of thing. I can really ask them “hey I know you’re doing a great job, you’re a waiter here, do you enjoy working inside?” well you know they might tell you “Hey you know this is just a temporary gig for me. I really like working outside but I got laid off and this is the only job that I can find”. So that’s an opportunity for you to really engage with them where you can’t really do that when it comes to, you know, lawn care provider that’s out in the field.
Interviewer:
It’s really not a good business practice to go and poach someone’s employee for yourself, right? What goes around comes around, right?
Frank:
You know I agree with that 100%. Poaching is not really what this is all about, right? So again, this is not about hey I’m gonna grab somebody for another $.25 cents, right? Cause what comes around goes around just like you said. So, if I pick them up for $.25 cents more somebody else can do the same to me. And that’s not what I’m interested in. I’m not interested in affecting other lawn care business providers or lawn care business owners as well, right? I’m not trying to take that away from them. Now it’s a little bit different when it’s like the restaurant industry or like a QuikTrip or a Starbucks. Because really, you’re engaging with them and trying to figure out if that’s where, you know, that’s where they should be, right? Where they landed is that where they should be? Because with this economy right now a lot of people lost their jobs or when they were in certain industries and as they’re coming back maybe they didn’t land where they needed to be, right? So, it gives me an opportunity to kinda pick their brains. So, I’m not necessarily looking to take employees from other companies, I just want to engage and see where they’re at as far as their journey goes. And if they’re not in the right spot that’s when the window of opportunities opens up. I’m not just looking to add bodies to my staff. I’m looking for that star. So, if somebody is looking at Starbucks and that’s not where they belong because they really enjoy being outdoors, they’re not happy with, you know, with that company’s offering or whatever then at some point, you know, we have that conversation as far as giving them the opportunity to go ahead and interview.
Interviewer:
So Frank in closing some final thoughts in addition to using the traditional ways of finding employees. This boots on the ground technique that you use is really a good technique to use for finding that star employee, right?
Frank:
Absolutely. So, I do encourage you to use all methods like Indeed, Jobseeker, and maybe even, like your local college to see if you can get some employees or friends and family that can recommend some people. But I encourage this method as a way to constantly be recruiting, right? So, you’re always out and about looking for that next star and in order for you to come across that next star you really have to engage with your community. And that’s what I like to do. Thank you for listening and I look forward to engaging with you in the next podcast. See you next time lawn care pros!
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