From Where I Stand — This month, in lieu of a typical column from ILCA Executive Director Scott Grams, we are pleased to report he was named one of the five recipients of Lawn & Landscape magazine’s 2018 Leadership Awards. Every year, Lawn & Landscape recognizes individuals who have demonstrated strong leadership skills within the industry. The nominees are given awards at a ceremony held during GIE+EXPO in Louisville, Kentucky. Past recipients with ILCA ties include current ILCA Board member Mark Utendorf, Past Woman of the Year Christy Webber, Turf Committee member Harold Enger, Scott Jamieson, and Past President and Man of the Year Frank Mariani, among others. Since most ILCA members will not be present to see Scott receive this prestigious award, we felt it would be fun to share his prepared remarks in lieu of his traditional column. As always, Scott brings his personal brand of insight, humor, and humility as he accepts the award for his over 10 years of service to ILCA and the Illinois and national green industries. Grams was nominated by the 2017-2018 ILCA Board of Directors, specifically, Mike Schmechtig, Lisa Fiore, Tom Lupfer, and Mark Utendorf. Grams was introduced at the gala by past recipient of the Leadership Award Mark Utendorf. For those who want to read the article written about Grams entitled “Consensus builder” it may be found online at: http://magazine.lawnandlandscape.com/article/october-2018/consensusbuilder.aspx Congratulations Scott on this well-deserved honor.
cuts and hard decisions. We scraped and we clawed. We cut excess, but never quality. I learned to cut budgets in half and breakfast muffins into eighths. I think we eked out a $15,000 profit my first year. It felt like millions. As a reward for pulling the ILCA out of a financial tailspin, the Board offered me a $10,000 bonus. I turned them down saying it would not be fiscally prudent. My Dad, who’s in the association management biz commended me for doing what was best for my organization. My wife, who doesn’t work in the association management biz, called me nuts. They were probably both right. I am absolutely humbled to be sharing this stage tonight with Jason, Nada, Bruce, and Zech. I know most of my fellow leadership classmates personally or by reputation. They are true leaders who share a dynamic vision, relentless work ethic, and inspire others to follow. I did not start my own company. Instead, I inherited a tremendous organization that was in financial disrepair and ideologically lost. The puzzle pieces were all there, they were just mixed up in the box. They were looking for someone to patiently lay them all out and get to work. I am a leader who leads from the rear most of the time. My vision is shaped by our hundreds of members and the needs of thousands of Illinois landscape professionals. There were many days during the great recession that I was more cheerleader than leader. I was more psychologist than CFO. More grief counselor than chief executive. Mark did a wonderful job chronicling some of my successes. I am not going to give you a recap of every decision, program, event, or initiative that I am proud of. Besides, nothing in a successful organization is created in a vacuum, so I am merely the figurehead for many of these accomplishments. With time and wisdom, I have realized that as the Executive Director of the ILCA my job involves more than ensuring the future success of our trade association. I am playing for bigger stakes than that. I am the caretaker of a philosophy. The green industry, like no other profession, has a tremendous gift for sharing and giving. In the landscape industry, two contractors could walk the same client’s property one hour apart. That night, one of them would find out they didn’t get the job as a direct result of the other guy. Then, 2 days later, those same two contractors are sitting next to each other at an ILCA event or talking shop at the bar. That spirit of collaboration is unique to all that you do. That is not normal, but that is beautiful. Never take that for granted. That is the philosophy I work so hard to maintain. That is why I love what I do and I love who I do it for. If the green industry ever loses that spirit, all of this goes away. We will become isolated, lonely, and bitter as the light fades around us. I am sure that most of you are involved in your state or national organizations. Thank you for that. Maybe it’s because only last week my family got a new puppy that I failed to come up with a better metaphor for what I do. Association management professionals are like puppies. I am sure many of my association colleagues around the room are thinking, “Great, now we are being compared to animals.” For two weeks I’ve scooted around the house watching my puppy
The National Spotlight
Rick Reuland Editor - The Landscape Contractor Thank you Mark, Lawn & Landscape magazine, and distinguished guests. As an association management professional, I feel a lot more comfortable writing speeches than giving them. I feel a lot more comfortable handing out plaques than receiving them. In fact, I’ ve had to fight against my natural instincts not to jump to the other side of the registration desk tonight or ask the banquet captain how we are doing on the appetizer counts. It’s nice to have a night off. I was hired by the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association in June of 2008. It was the heart of the busy season and I was pretty sure I just stumbled across the easiest association job on the planet. I just sat at my desk in silence. I kept picking up my phone to verify there was a dial tone. Then, I think on my second day, the Dow Jones dropped 5,000 points plunging the landscape industry into a crushing 7-year recession. What a difference a day makes. I also had hair. A thick, luscious head of hair that made me look like John from the television show C.H.I.P.s. During that first year, I remember asking my Board on more than one occasion, “Are you guys sure this industry makes any money?” I was beginning to worry that it was them, not the ILCA who were the actual non-profits. Yet, in that crucial and difficult first year, we learned to trust each other. Together we made hard
The Landscape Contractor November 2018
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