February 4, 2020
Jacki HartThe Landscape Ontario Peer to Peer Network feature event at Congress 2020 had over 60 business owners and managers roll up their sleeves and take a deep dive into developing their own Leadership 2.0 plan for 2020. There was an awesome buzz and energy in the room that left me feeling honoured and grateful to have the trust and attention of so many looking to improve their management skills.

I was equally excited at the engagement and collaboration among the active members of this awesome group.

Each year, members of the Peer to Peer Network have six face-to-face workshops they can choose to attend, including the Congress event and our two-day Muskoka Summit in September. In between, three one-day workshops are held while there’s still snow on the ground and time (for most) to work on their own professional development and business improvement initiatives.

At our Congress event, members worked together to learn new tools, practice them in break-out sessions, and mentor each other with ideas and challenges. At the event, the group also sets the priorities for workshops ahead, and it’s my job to then deliver what they ask for.

For some fun this year, everyone was given $10,000 in play money to then allocate to items on a top ten “needs work on improving in 2020” list. Here’s the topics and how the group collectively spent their money as a way to direct the priorities for our 2020 program:
$94,500 - Hiring practices, job clarity flow (Discussed Jan. 30 in Ajax)
$89,250 - Exit strategies, succession planning (September Summit topic)
$73,750 - Team culture/working together (Feb. 11 in Ottawa at Green Trade Expo)
$73,250 - Sales skills development (March 11 in Kitchener)
$59,250 - Industry specific grants, programs, scholarships (Discussed Jan. 30 in Ajax)
$52,250 - Profession show and tell. This fun, new idea is a peer member networking showcase of technology, software, tools and equipment — a true testimony to the trust and collaborative nature of the group. (September Summit topic)
$40,000 - Managing operational efficiency to achieve customer WOW. (September Summit)

The feedback from everyone who attended the Congress event was excellent. Group members feel there is relevant and enlightening content and lots of networking and collaborative learning throughout the day.

Be sure to visit HortTrades.com/p2p for full details and registration links to our events throughout the remainder of 2020, including: Feb. 11 in Ottawa, March 11 in Kitchener-Waterloo, and Sept. 24-25 in Muskoka.

Continue the conversation online as a member of Landscape Ontario’s Peer to Peer Network. Owners and managers can join for free. Email signup.peer2peer@landscapeontario.com.
Jacki Hart CLM
Prosperity Partners Program Manager
info.peertopeer@landscapeontario.com