Indianapolis Landscape Association Newsleaf Winter 2022

NOTHING LESS THAN TOUGH

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BOBCAT OF INDY 2935 Bluff Road Indianapolis, IN 46225 317-787-2201

BOBCAT OF ELLETTSVILLE 700 East Temperance Ellettsville, IN 47429 812-287-8042

BOBCAT OF ANDERSON 2075 East County Road 67 Anderson, IN 46017 765-643-4222

BOBCAT OF HOWARD COUNTY 613 W Main Street Greentown, IN 46936 765-628-2800

BOBCAT OF COLUMBUS 890 N National Rd Columbus, IN 47201 812-775-1470

BOBCAT OF INDY NORTH 4489 S Indianapolis Road Whitestown, IN 46075 317-769-4946

2023 Indianapolis Landscape Association

Officers and Board of Directors

Officers

President.........Wesley Addington Wesley’s Landscape and Lawncare Phone (317) 867-1796

Vice President..Chris Geryak Greendell Landscape Solutions Phone (317) 996-2826

Secretary..........Ryan Coyle

Vive Exterior Design Phone (317) 773-9933

Treasurer........Matthew Kelly

Start to Finish Landscaping Phone (317) 769-2211

Board of Directors

Term Expires 2023: Todd Engledow - Engledow Group Phone (317) 575-1100

Travis Tetrault - Haulstr Landscape Group Phone (317) 413-9874

Term Expires 2024: Dan WeingartGreenImage Landscape Phone (317) 288-2921

Dennis Linner - Heath Outdoor Phone (317) 420-4636

Term Expires 2025: Alex Grafe - Reed + Everett Design Phone (812) 455-8191

Scott Levy - Sundown Gardens Phone (317) 846-0620

Honorary

Director..........Joshua Brown

Tiffany Lawn & Garden Supply, Inc. Phone (317) 228-4900

Executive Financial Officer:

David Todd - Phone (317) 691-1752

4000 West 106th Street, Suite 125 Carmel, IN 46032

Wesley Addington, ILA President

What an amazing year 2022 was for the ILA! For the most part, the weather was nice thru all of the seasons, and everyone I’ve talked to had a really fantastic year. If you didn’t have a great year, don’t hesitate to contact an ILA board member to see how we can help. As we all take a deep breath going into this winter season and hopefully get some downtime to put your thoughts and plan around the upcoming year, I know we are all thankful for last season. As we are coming out of the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons and into the New Year, I encourage all of you to be really intentional about gratitude; we all have so many blessings in our lives, from our teams that we work with every day to our clients as well as equipment and peers in the industry. Often, so much gets overlooked daily unless you’re intentional about positive thinking and gratitude for others and what we do have.

That said, I’m very Thankful for the ILA and all it has done for my company and me. It was 13 years ago that I joined the board, and haven’t looked back. I’m grateful for all the past board members and Presidents I’ve got to serve with and all the monthly meetings where I get to talk to others about the ILA Board meetings, our industry, business ideas, and practices. I Love the dialog and things that come from all the board meetings and events.

I am particularly appreciative of the board this year for all they’ve done to work on the E.P.I.C campaign as the new initiatives that

have spun and launched this year. We all are committed to helping all the members in one way or another. If you didn’t make this year’s Holiday Party, you missed an Epic event that was new this year. Great job Ryan Coyle for trying something totally out of the box and hitting it out of the park. I’m very much looking forward to next year and all the new ideas we plan to continue helping the industry as a whole. I hope you count your blessings this time and that you had a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

2022 Holiday party and annual meeting

Indianapolis Landscape Association

2022 has now come and gone, but not without an EPIC end of the year annual meeting and holiday party where we welcomed all members of the ILA to join in the fun and festivities and ended up having 120 attendees and over 20 different companies represented! The evening got started with amazing food and appetizers for the one and only Chefski, as well as fantastic live music from Jeff Day.

We then moved into the annual meeting, which included committee reports to keep everyone up to speed on what was happening within the ILA. We also welcomed quite a few new members to the organization, and those would include the following:

Allied Members: Wicker Works/RG Decor

Leffler Industrial Tire Oaks Landscape Products Plant Landscape Studio

Alliance Gator

Stafford Works

Regular Members: Franklin Brothers Landscape Precision Outdoors

R.A.S.K. Scapes Ladd Scape GreenCycle of Indiana Seacat Landscaping Landscape Illumination

All Terrain Landscape and Snow Management Green Image Landscape and Design

Membership to Date: Regular (70), Allied (33), Educational (2), Honorary (9)

Joshua Brown, the honorary director, then announced the slate of the officers and board members, which are as follows:

President: Wesley Addington, Wesley’s Landscape and Lawncare Vive President: Chris Geryak, Musselman Landscape Solutions Secretary: Ryan Coyle, Vive Exterior Design Treasurer: Matthew Kelly, Start To Finish

BOARD:

Todd Engledow: Engledow Group

Alex Grafe: Reed Everett Designs

Travis Tetrault: Haulstr Scott Levy: Sundown Gardens Dan Weingart: GreenImage Landscape & Design Dennis Linner: Heath Outdoor

Once the annual meeting was complete, we were all ready to enjoy the laughs and tears brought on by funny man Scott Long, a local comedian who poked a little fun at our industry, individuals throughout the venue, and how people’s crazy buying habits and decision-making processes have changed so much in the wake of Covid. Scott was a breath of fresh air; we all needed to escape and enjoy each other’s company. It was a great evening.

As committee chair of the Annual Meeting and Holiday Party, I want to thank all who could make it out. I look forward to another great year ahead and hope to see ALL members and employees join us for another great time.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the entire Indianapolis Landscape Association board.

Sincerely, Ryan Coyle

Star Leafed Tribute

Alexander Hamilton, American Patriot, Statesman and the first Secretary of the Treasury, commissioned the design and building of a grand country summer home, on thirty-two acres, in upper Manhattan. He completed the home in 1802, and called it The Grange, after his grandfather’s estate in Scotland.

As part of the development he worked to improve the property by planting a rose garden which legend says he surrounded with thirteen sweetgum trees; one to represent each of the original thirteen states. An early account says the trees were a gift from, none other than his friend

The Grange, Image (2) Trees in the Early 1900, mostly dead.

George Washington, and that Hamilton brought them back from a visit to Mt. Vernon in his own carriage.

In explanation of the garden he wrote in a letter to General C. C. Pinckney Grange (New-York), December 29, 1802.

My dear Sir, — A garden, you know, is a very usual refuge of a disappointed politician. Accordingly, I have purchased a few acres about nine miles from town, have built a house, and am cultivating a garden.[1]

The Grange, Image (1) Trees inside fenced area

The Grange, Image (3) The Grange Today.

The trees survived for many years while the house, nicknamed The House with Legs was moved twice. Finally succumbing to old age, the trees had to be removed in the early 1900’s.

of 1772 (Google eBook), The Macmillan Company, 1903 - 277 pages Photo reference- Courtesy of the National Park Service, Hamilton Grange National Memorial

[1] Reference: A few of Hamilton’s letters: including his description of the great West Indian hurricane

Jud Scott Consulting Arborist (317) 815-8733 Treeconsultant@aol.com www.judscottconsultingarborist.com

About the Author: Jud Scott has earned the designation of Registered Consulting Arborist #392 (RCA) with the American Society of Consulting Arborists. As an RCA Jud advises Attorneys, Landscape Companies, Park Departments, Developers, Architects, Insurance Companies, as well as homeowners concerning their trees and landscapes. Jud can be reached at 317-815-8733 or by email at Treeconsultant@ aol.com. Website www. arboristexpert.com

REPORT

Additional 65,000 Visas for 2023

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Office of Public Affairs

DHS to Supplement H-2B Cap with Nearly 65,000 Additional Visas for Fiscal Year 2023

Increase Will Help Address the Need for Seasonal Workers and Reduce Irregular Migration

WASHINGTON—Today the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in consultation with the Department of Labor (DOL), announced that it will be issuing a regulation that will make available to employers an additional 64,716 H-2B temporary nonagricultural worker visas for fiscal year (FY) 2023, on top of the 66,000 H-2B visas that are normally available each fiscal year. By making these supplemental visas available at the outset of the fiscal year, which began on October 1, 2022, DHS is acting swiftly to address employers’ needs for additional seasonal workers. At the same time, DHS and DOL are working together to institute robust protections for U.S. and foreign workers alike, including by ensuring that employers first seek out and recruit American workers for the jobs to be filled, as the visa program requires, and that foreign workers hired are not exploited by unscrupulous employers. To strengthen these efforts, DHS and DOL also announced the creation of a new White House-convened Worker Protection Taskforce, as described below.

“The Department of Homeland Security is moving with unprecedented speed to meet the needs of American businesses,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas. “At a time of record job growth, this full year allocation at the very outset of the fiscal year will ensure that businesses can plan for their peak season labor needs. We also will bolster worker protections to safeguard the integrity of the program from unscrupulous employers who would seek to exploit the workers by paying substandard wages and maintaining unsafe work conditions.”

The H-2B supplemental includes an allocation of 20,000 visas to workers from Haiti and the Central American countries of Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador. This advances the Biden Administration’s pledge, under the Los Angeles Declaration for Migration and Protection, to expand legal pathways as an alternative to irregular migration. This is also consistent with the joint commitment President Biden and President López Obrador of Mexico made in July to work together to broaden opportunities for seasonal and circular labor and ensure that migration is a choice and not a necessity. This is one of many ways that the United States and Mexico are partnering to manage migration and fuel economic growth, as discussed in the bilateral working group on labor mobility.

American businesses in industries as varied as hospitality and tourism, landscaping, seafood processing, and more depend on seasonal workers to meet demand from consumers. The supplemental visa allocation will address the need for seasonal workers in areas where too few U.S. workers are available, helping contribute to the American economy.

In addition to the 20,000 visas reserved for nationals of Haiti and the Northern Central American countries, the remaining 44,716 supplemental visas will be available to returning workers who received an H-2B visa, or were

otherwise granted H-2B status, during one of the last three fiscal years. The regulation will allocate these remaining supplemental visas for returning workers between the first half and second half of the fiscal year to account for the need for additional seasonal workers over the course of the year, with a portion of the second half allocation reserved to meet the demand for workers during the peak summer season.

The H-2B program permits employers to temporarily hire noncitizens to perform nonagricultural labor or services in the United States. The employment must be of a temporary nature, such as a one-time occurrence, seasonal need, or intermittent need. Employers seeking H-2B workers must take a series of steps to test the U.S. labor market. They must also certify in their petitions that there are not enough U.S. workers who are able, willing, qualified, and available to perform the temporary work for which they seek a prospective foreign worker. In addition, employers must certify that employing H-2B workers will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers.

DHS and DOL acknowledge that H-2B workers face structural disincentives to reporting or leaving abusive conditions, and often lack power to exercise their rights in the face of exploitative employment situations. The departments emphasize the importance of protecting all H-2B workers from exploitation and abuse, and of ensuring, consistent with law, that employers do not refuse to hire or appropriately recruit U.S. workers who are able, willing, qualified, and available to perform the temporary work. The forthcoming temporary final rule implementing this allocation will feature several provisions to protect both U.S. and H-2B workers. For example, DHS will subject employers that have committed certain labor law violations in the H-2B program to additional scrutiny in the supplemental cap petition process. This additional scrutiny is aimed at ensuring compliance with H-2B program requirements and obligations.

To address these issues more broadly, the departments announce the creation of the H-2B Worker Protection Taskforce (“Taskforce”). Convened by the White House, the Taskforce will focus on (1) threats to H-2B program integrity, (2) H-2B workers’ fundamental vulnerabilities, including their limited ability to leave abusive employment without jeopardizing their immigration status, and (3) the impermissible use of the program to avoid hiring U.S. workers. The departments will assess a variety of policy options to address these issues and will provide an opportunity for relevant stakeholders to offer input. The work of the Taskforce will build on ongoing efforts in both departments to reform the H-2 temporary visa programs. In the coming months, DHS also plans to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking relating to the H-2 programs, which will incorporate policies that strengthen protections for H-2 workers.

Additional details on H-2B program safeguards, as well as eligibility and filing requirements, will be available in the temporary final rule and the Cap Count for H-2B Nonimmigrants webpage.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security www.dhs.gov

2.) Nurture. A person of influence nurtures others. This does not mean needing people. It does mean being committed to people. Showing that you genuinely care for them, lifting them up to a higher level.

3.) Show Faith. A person of influence has faith in the people he/she leads. Assets make things possible; people make things happen. The greatest gift a leader gives another person is to express belief in that person, especially when that person is struggling to believe in himself.

“Becoming a Person of Influence”

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• Intro to DISC Personality Behavior

• Understanding your own personality style

• Identify other people personality

Whatever your vocation or aspiration, you can increase your impact on others by becoming a person of influence. The reason for this is simple; Influence is Leadership, and Leadership is Influence. The true meaning of leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less. And, when a true leader speaks, people listen. As you increase your influence, you will also increase your leadership abilities. The person with the most influence will be the leader. You, as that person, will be able to interact positively with others, as well as watch your own personal and organizational success go off the charts.

• Managers will see their employees respond with new enthusiasm

• Parents will connect with their children on a deeper level

• Coaches will see their team’s blossom • Speakers will reach more people

• Salespeople will break records

With more influence, you can achieve success at home, at work, and in every area of life.

10 ways you can increase your influence, and develop your leadership skills:

1.) Instill Integrity. Integrity is built on trust. You create trust by doing the right thing, and by doing what you say you will do. Trust is the glue that holds people together.

4.) Listen. Become a better listener by looking at the speaker. Ask questions, which shows interest and engagement. Do not interrupt or change the subject. Keep your emotions in check and listen to learn. Leaders who fail to listen will have followers that have nothing to say.

5.) Understand. Make it a point to understand the people you are influencing. Consider the viewpoints of others. Before you can be understood, you must make the effort to understand the other people’s points of view. “Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care.” John Maxwell.

6.) Encourage Growth. A person of influence invests in others. Through coaching and mentoring he/she spends time and energy lifting others to higher levels. A leader focuses on his/her people’s strengths by tapping into their passions.

7.) Be a Navigator. A person of influence helps others navigate towards their goals and dreams. He/she assists others in making sure they stay on course, while steering them away from distractions. A leader sees more and sees it before others do.

8.) Connect. Everyone communicates, but few connect. Influential people know that they must depend on others to achieve their dreams. It is for this reason, they initiate relationships, look for common ground, and learn how to motivate others around them.

9.) Empower. This does not mean delegating tasks just to give the person something to do. It means inspiring others, by sharing your influence, power, experience, and

Review of our last online seminars: Chris Geryak Education Chair

Happy New Year!

Wishing you the BEST in 2023! It is our goal to help you make it E.P.I.C!

If you would like to become more active with your membership and help the ILA in any way, please reach out to ANY of the current board members. We would love your input or help!

advice with the goal of maximizing the potential of that person. You become better by empowering others.

10.) Reproduce. Leaders continually mentor and equip others to become people of influence.

By implementing these 10 ways to increase your influence, you will increase your leadership level and bring value to those you lead.

“Selling in a Soft Market”

Softening of the market can make us feel like the world is caving in on us. We can feel stressed, uncertain, and confused about what we’re going to do next.

Believe me, I know that feeling.

But after 36 years of sales experience businesses there are a few things I’ve learned.

Here are some ways you can make more money during a softening of the market:

1. Change your mindset. This is crucial if you’re going to make a plan to turn your financial situation around. You can’t take action if your mindset tells you you’re doomed and can’t progress through the recession.

2. Evaluate your goals. Where do you want to be financially? And I’m not talking about what you believe is logical at this time. Ask yourself where you’d want to be whether we were in a recession or not.

3. Invest in your skillset. The best way to make more money during a recession is to maintain a steady flow of clientele. To do that, invest in your skillset so you can be the best you can be, provide the most value, and your customers keep coming back for more!

4. Make time for income-producing activity. What can you do right now that produces the most income for your business? Typically that means getting on the phone and finding more clients. Or it means delivering your

products and services to your current clients at the highest level. If you aren’t a business owner, ask your boss how you can add more value to the company you work at. Pitch income-generating ideas and negotiate for a bonus or a raise.

5. Get better at articulating your value. Whether you own your own business or not, if you want more clients, if you want a raise, or if you want to generate more income in any way, you need to get good at articulating your value. Only then will people recognize what you’re worth, and say “yes” to you.

Remember, if you can communicate what you’re good at, then you don’t need to worry about the economy.

You can view archives of the ILA webinars if you visit www.IndyLandscape.com and login to your member account!

4000 West 106th Street Suite 125 Carmel, IN 46032