How to employ someone: is your landscaping business ready to take the leap?

Are you considering hiring your first employee? There are only so many hours in a day – if you're finding yourself swamped with work and unable to take on any new clients, it may be time to take the leap.

Professional landscaper Sam Jarockyj started his business in 2020, but now has a team of five (featured above, from left to right: Ed, Tom, Dail, Sam, Duncan, Simon) working for JayRock Grounds Maintenance Ltd.

We spoke to Sam to provide landscapers with real-world guidance on how to employ someone – and how to know if it's the right choice for your business.

As Sam is based in the UK, some of his advice may not apply to businesses in your country. Always check local employment law and requirements for country-specific advice when looking to hire.

How do you know you're ready to employ someone?

Every spring I was getting countless people calling and messaging me, asking me to do jobs, and every year I was saying no, I can't do it.

When I first started, I got contacted by a very established stately home with 20 acres of grounds – but I didn't have the machinery or the workforce to take it on. If you get the calls but you're not in a place to take the jobs it's pretty useless! I was rushed off my feet but turning away work.

Eventually, I reached a point where I was no longer working across multiple jobs and only part-time in the business, so could dedicate the focus needed to employ someone. I knew the spring rush would come again, and we had a little wiggle room in our budget where I could afford to bring someone on, not full-time, but for a few days a week. I hired a subcontractor and doubled-down on my marketing efforts to make sure the work would come.

We invested in various marketing channels – Facebook, Google ads, and even the local newspaper, which turned out to be surprisingly effective. That ad went out to 20,000 homes monthly, and we saw an immediate response. It was a lesson that when you’re ready to grow, you need to back it up with serious marketing.

Once we brought in a second person and became profitable with that setup, we reached our limit again and couldn’t take on more work. That was my cue to hire a third person. It’s been a system we can keep repeating: bring in someone new, fill up the calendar, and keep growing. But hiring an employee is a big expense – in the UK, you’ve got employer’s tax, a pension scheme, and everything else to cover, so you’ve got to make sure the work is there to support it.

What do you attribute to the fast growth of your business?

JayRock Grounds Maintenance has tripled in size over the past two years; Sam attributes this to putting time into the business, prioritising marketing, and securing the right contracts at the right times.

Having belief in our advertising and our business itself – when we brought in a new employee, I didn't just sit here and wait for people to call us, we increased our marketing. You have to put yourself out there.

There's an element of luck; we've landed some of the right contracts at a time that allowed us to bring in the right people to support that extra work. We've also moved into more of a commercial hard-standing premises, which allows us to be more efficient, with the storage and workshop capacity to continue to grow the business.

What to look for when hiring employees

When employing staff, the main thing I look for is someone driven – someone who wants to grow with the company and improve themselves. If they're interested in further training or qualifications, we’re happy to support that growth.

Reliability is the biggest factor. People can say they’re reliable in an interview, but you can tell quickly by how they act – showing up on time, responding to emails, and being prepared. Trust is key, and it’s hard to judge that from just an interview. Sometimes, investing in someone’s personality and potential works out better than just going by qualifications.

For us, the process starts by figuring out exactly what the business needs – things like handling machinery or having a driver’s license – and then advertising locally. Some people might try a recruitment agency, but we’ve had success hiring through local Facebook groups, targeting people in the areas where we work.

Any advice for the interview process?

Not being scared to veer away from the typical interview! We learned that being too rigid didn’t work well for us. At first, we had a structured approach with set questions and scenarios, but it felt too formal, and applicants could easily rehearse for it. It was also quite an intimidating setup!

We found that being open to a more informal, conversational setting – like walking around the workshop or chatting by the vans – allowed us to see the applicants' natural personalities.

When it comes to skills, we mostly rely on past experience. If someone has worked with bigger machines or managed large areas of land, that tells us they have the practical knowledge we need. But we’re open to training on the job and are willing to invest in people with relevant experience, even if it's not directly in our field, like mechanics or plant operators. For younger candidates or those just starting out, we focus more on personality and potential.

How do you choose between hiring a contractor and an employee?

The main difference between a contractor and an employee comes down to responsibilities and legal obligations. A contractor is more flexible for a business because you only pay them for the days they work – in the UK, this means no holiday pay, sick pay, or pension contributions. You do have to bear in mind, however, if they work a certain number of hours or rely on you for most of their income, legally, they need to be registered as an employee.

We started with a subcontractor working two to three days a week, which was a stepping stone for us before hiring an employee. But as the demand grew and we needed more hours, we hired our first full-time employee in April 2024. This means we handle all the employment responsibilities, like a workplace pension scheme, national insurance contributions, statutory sick pay, holiday pay, and compliance with employment law.

Hiring employees as well as subcontractors was important for us because we didn’t want to run a company where people feel burned out. We wanted to build a team that feels respected and well-compensated; the boost in morale and team cohesion makes it worth it in the long run.

How has hiring an employee improved your business?

I’ve found that when you spread yourself too thin, something eventually slips. I was missing client consultations, forgetting emails, or dropping the ball on ordering materials. It was getting a bit too much.

That’s when Ed, our second employee and first official full-time hire, came in. He had management experience from his previous job and a real drive to progress both himself and the company. I needed someone who could take on responsibility, not just another labourer; I was honest with him – he wasn’t going to be in a managerial role right away, but I needed to see that potential.

Since he joined, it’s been a game-changer. I can now step back one or two days a week to focus on the business side – handling quotes, office work, meeting clients, or dealing with suppliers – while Ed manages the team and keeps things running smoothly on-site. It’s like being in two places at once because I know the work’s getting done to a high standard, and I don’t have to worry. Having that trust in someone else to take the reins is huge for me.

How has hiring employees benefited your business and yourself?

Hiring employees has given me a much better balance between work and family. This year, for the first time since I was 14, I was able to take a proper holiday, and that’s largely due to having people in the company I trust and can rely on. As long as you treat your employees well, they’ll have your back. I give them flexibility when they need it, whether it's for appointments or personal matters, and in return, I know they’ll step up when I need time off.

It’s also crucial for my own well-being. Running a business can be exhausting, and if you burn yourself out, everything suffers. So, having a team that allows me to step away and recharge has been one of the most significant benefits.

Beyond that, hiring staff has allowed me to push the business forward. When your employees believe in the company’s vision, they take pride in their work and strive to do their best. It creates a snowball effect – in 10 years, I know the decisions I’ve made now, particularly around hiring the right people, will have a huge positive impact.

I couldn’t have grown the business as quickly as I have without the staff I’ve brought on. It’s been a rollercoaster, but if I were to credit anything, it would be the decision to bring the right people on board with the right personalities. Treat your staff right, and they’ll take care of you in return.

Any advice for someone considering hiring?

Yes, my advice would be to invest in the person, whether that’s through emotional support or providing them with the right equipment. We’ve had people come into the team who were used to just being given safety boots – we supply our staff with full work uniforms, equipment, and anything else they need to succeed. It shows we care and that we're investing in them as individuals.

Don’t just see an employee as a rank beneath you; treat them as equals on a human level. Everyone has personal issues, and it’s just as important to care about what’s happening in their lives as it is in your own. If you invest in your employees and treat them well, you’ll be rewarded with loyalty and hard work, as long as you’ve chosen the right person to begin with.

Quick guide on how to employ someone

Thanks to Sam's advice, you should now feel more confident in your decision. If you're ready to take the leap and hire, there are formal steps you will need to follow.

Employment law changes according to the country you're working in, so you should always confirm the exact steps you need to take to hire (here are some useful resources online in the UK, France, Germany and Italy). In Italy, for example, there is no standard minimum wage, while in France, Germany and the UK, there is a set national minimum wage.

To give you an idea of a typical recruitment process, these are the key steps you would take as a landscaper looking to hire an employee in the UK.

Key steps for hiring:

The steps to hire an employee are similar across Europe but will have some differences. In the UK, for example, you would have to do the following to hire an employee:

• Advertise the job and screen candidates.
• Check if they have the right to work in the UK.
• Provide an employment contract.
• Pay the National Minimum Wage/National Living Wage.
• Register with the government to pay tax (registering with HMRC to pay National Insurance).
• Get employer’s liability insurance.
• Set up a pension scheme if the employee is over 22 and below state pension age.

Is your business ready to take the leap?

Hiring an employee opens up opportunities to grow your business; an extra pair of hands could double the workload you can take on.