The Edge March/April/May 2026

LETTER FROM THE CEO

Evolution Versus Revolution AN ASSOCIATION CAN EASILY BECOME COMPLACENT IF IT only lives in the day-to-day. Thankfully, the NALP board of directors decided to take the time to conduct strategic planning and think about where we want the association to be in the next three to five years.

rather than trying to brute force everything yourself. For me, this means turning to the ever-talented Amee Patel from our team to assist me with organization and allow me to serve our membership at a higher level. Additionally, this is the last column I will write on my own. NALP has an amazingly talented writer in Jill Odom, and my stub bornness has prevented me from collaborating with her on this column, but that all ends today. Moving forward, this column will be co-authored and will get ex ponentially better with Jill’s help. For all you hard-charging lead ers out there, take a tip from me: What worked in the past will not always work today. Make some changes and ask for some help. It’s okay, and it will make you a better leader in the long run.

down on our efforts to attract more workers to join our industry. Part of this will hopefully be addressed through advocacy and finding better solutions for the H-2B issue. Beyond that, we are looking to help you grow your teams by equipping you with ma terials to help you persuade new workers that this industry is the industry for them. Further, we are going to commit more resources to improving our relationships with education entities through out the country. This will be felt most at our National Collegiate Landscape Competition, which we plan to grow by 25% or more over the next three years. We know this industry needs more talented people, in all roles, if we are to continue to grow. And we are committed to making a difference. Now, none of these pillars are revolutionary ideas, but they are evolutionary, as we have found what we need to focus on, and we will only improve from there. LEADERSHIP LESSON The last thing I want to leave you with is a lesson I recently learned personally. And that is the importance of leaning on the talented staff surrounding you,

Part of this process included gathering feedback from you, our members. With this insight into what matters to the industry, we have crafted a path forward for the organization, and in essence, for the industry. This plan will focus the association on three key areas. First, we will get even better at advocating on the industry’s behalf. In my six years at NALP, we have doubled the size and the budget of our government rela tions team, and they have done amazing work on behalf of the industry. To continue to be able to advocate relentlessly for the industry, we will be working to nearly double that budget again. With these additional resources, the government relations team will be able to provide the indus try with better representation in Washington, D.C. and the state capitals. Second, NALP will become your first stop for information on the industry, how to improve your business, and ways to make your life easier as a landscape or lawn care company. This may come in the form of new events, new studies, new surveys and much more. Third, we are going to double

Britt Wood

6 The Edge // March/April/May 2026