Founded in 2008. The Landscape Juice Network (LJN) is the largest and fastest growing professional landscaping and horticultural association in the United Kingdom.
LJN's professional business forum is unrivalled and open to anyone within within the UK landscape industry
LJN's Business Objectives Group (BOG) is for any Pro serious about building their business.
For the researching visitor there's a wealth of landscaping ideas, garden design ideas, lawn advice tips and advice about garden maintenance.
Replies
Unless you can get a recommendation from somebody you trust it's trial and error. Much of the onus is upon you to state what you actualy want rather than using vague expressions such as reliable. It also depends hugely upon what you mean by such expressions and how you word your job advert to make it attractive to a "reliable" - your term - person.
Using Job Centre speak for what I tell them I need I'd say it averages one in four "temporary signings" to find somebody who fits my own criteria.
Michael, I'm not taking the P, simply expressing the way it is.
Then express "someone who turns up when they are expected to and perform tasks to a standard that you set" and not "reliable". And if as well as that you expect a level of experience or qualifications say so. Or if you are willing to train somebody who shows willing say so.
Communications are a two way process. You are running a business. The people you are hoping to employ do not. You are expected by your customers and by your potential employees to be articulate. If you grunt at people instead of saying what you mean how on earth do you expect your new appointments to do more than grunt? If you can't do it, and there's nothing wrong with can't when honestly expressed, find somebody who can to do it for you.
It is hard finding someone with the right personality and that is actually fit enough to do the work at a reasonable standard. You have to look high and low to find an acceptable employee.
Find someone you already know perhaps socially who has the correct positive attitude then approach them to work with you - any skills can be taught but trust and attitude are either in a person or not. People get so hung up on skill sets that they forget that the right attitude is the bedrock of any effective employee.
The only way, I feel, to get a decent employee is to advertise in as many locales as possible, be specific in what you are looking for and interview carefully. I have advertised in local papers, job centres, uni campus's, shop notice boards and "put the word out" via friends and associates. None have ever produced what I would consider the ideal employee straight away. Set your criteria for a reliable employee before the interview stage and interview based on the star principle; Situation, Task, Action, Result. Ask for examples of how a potential employee will fulfil your criteria, get references and then ask if the potential employee is prepared to demonstrate their work ethic/knowledge/experience by working with you on a paid trial period for say a week. If they fulfil/indicate that they may be what you're looking for take them on for a month on contract and review it regularly. At the end of that month then either part company or take them on permanently/seasonally.
IMHO you are lucky to find the ideal individual immediately and the first you speak too. It's almost as hard to find an ideal candidate as it is to find the ideal customer!
Often there are people on LJN looking for work, keep an eye on the posts on forums. There is a job seekers section on the Pitchcare website too if that's any help, there are quite a few grounds maintenance people searching on there.
http://www.pitchcare.com/jobfinder/
Otherwise a lot of people seem to use word of mouth by the looks of it!
Acacia Groundcare Equipment Rental
01273 494939 | www.acaciarental.com