Most entrepreneurs dream about building a business that lasts. Few ever build one capable of attracting multiple private equity partners, completing more than 20 acquisitions, and creating life-changing wealth for employees.

In this episode of The Deal Factory, Jeff Harkness sits down with Jerry Shill, Founder & CEO of Schill Landscape Collective, to unpack the 35-year journey from a local landscaping company to one of North America's fastest-growing commercial landscape platforms.

Jerry shares the pivotal decisions that changed everything—from splitting the family business and focusing exclusively on recurring maintenance revenue to designing a scalable "business in a box" operating model that ultimately attracted institutional capital. The conversation dives deep into acquisitions, integration, leadership development, value creation, data-driven operations, and what it really takes to build a billion-dollar vision.

Whether you're considering private equity, actively acquiring businesses, or simply trying to scale your company, this episode delivers a masterclass from someone who's lived every stage of the journey.

Key Discussion Points

• Building a maintenance-first business model that scales

• Why recurring revenue beats chasing construction projects

• Designing a "Business in a Box" operating system

• Preparing a company for institutional capital

• Lessons from partnering with Argon Capital and TruArc Partners

• Scaling from $2M to nearly $31M EBITDA

• What Jerry learned completing 21 acquisitions

• Why integration—not the deal—is the real challenge

• Centralized vs. decentralized leadership models

• Data, KPIs and forecasting at scale

• Creating wealth through management equity

• AI, robotics and the future of commercial landscaping

• Why customer issue resolution is a competitive advantage

• Building businesses that are designed to sell

What does it really take to build a category-leading company?

In this episode of The Deal Factory, Jeff Harkness sits down with Brian Dumont, Founder & CEO of YARDNIQUE, one of the fastest-growing commercial landscape companies in the Southeast.

Brian shares the unfiltered story behind building the business—from nearly losing everything after two major customers failed to pay, navigating divorce, rebuilding his leadership team, partnering with private equity, and scaling from approximately $25 million in revenue to more than $220 million through disciplined execution, acquisitions, and an unwavering commitment to people-first leadership.

This isn't a conversation about overnight success.

It's a masterclass on resilience, leadership, culture, acquisitions, private equity partnerships, and becoming the leader your company needs at every stage of growth.

Whether you're building toward your first $10 million or scaling beyond $100 million, this episode offers practical lessons every founder should hear.

In This Episode

• Why Brian almost walked away from the business

• The turning point that changed YARDNIQUE forever

• Lessons learned from divorce, business setbacks, and leadership failures

• Why recurring revenue transformed the company

• What founders misunderstand about private equity

• How to choose the right PE partner

• Building an executive team capable of scaling

• 16 acquisitions: successes, failures, and lessons learned

• The importance of culture during rapid growth

• Why customer service, not landscaping, is the real business

• AI, sales, and the future of commercial landscaping

• Brian's daily leadership habits, faith, journaling, and intentionality

Chapters:

00:00 – Intro

03:45 – Starting a business after working for a terrible boss

08:00 – Discovering recurring revenue

09:20 – Losing two major customers and rebuilding

13:00 – Deciding whether to sell

15:15 – Walking away from a sale

17:20 – COVID changes everything

19:10 – Choosing private equity over selling outright

22:40 – Building with Plexus Capital

25:30 – Life after private equity

29:30 – Building an executive team

31:15 – Lessons from 16 acquisitions

37:00 – Hiring leaders who can scale

42:30 – The four pillars of growth

45:30 – Building a world-class sales organization

47:50 – AI and the future of landscaping

50:30 – Faith, leadership and daily habits

59:15 – Final leadership lessons

In this episode of The Deal Factory, Jeff Harkness sits down with executive recruiter and talent advisor Rachel VanderPol to discuss what really drives employee retention, leadership, recruiting, and company growth. Rachel shares lessons from years of recruiting top talent across finance, legal, construction, SaaS, and professional services industries, while providing a behind-the-scenes look at how great companies attract and keep high performers.

From culture fit and leadership alignment to compensation, flexibility, and hiring mistakes, this conversation is packed with practical insights for business owners who want to build stronger teams and scale successfully.

Whether you're hiring your next executive, building a leadership team, or trying to understand why great employees leave, this episode provides a blueprint for recruiting and retaining exceptional talent.

Key Discussion Points

• Why employees leave companies even when compensation is competitive

• The importance of culture fit over technical qualifications

• How top recruiters identify great candidates

• The role leadership plays in employee retention

• Why compensation alone cannot solve hiring problems

• Work-from-home, flexibility, and today's workforce expectations

• Common hiring mistakes business owners make

• How to evaluate candidates beyond the résumé

• Lessons from elite athletes and high-performance environments

• Building teams that scale with your company

Chapters:

0:00 Intro

0:20 Meet Rachel VanderPol

2:01 Athlete to Executive Recruiter

4:41 Growing Up Around Hall of Fame Excellence

8:10 Why Employees Really Leave

11:24 Culture Fit vs Skill Set

15:00 Why Employer Branding Matters

16:10 How Recruiters Vet Candidates

19:10 Recruiting Across Multiple Industries

22:35 Hiring for Potential vs Perfection

23:35 How to Spot Candidate Red Flags

26:25 Compensation and Retention

30:25 Work-Life Balance vs Flexibility

35:05 Learning From Hiring Mistakes

37:10 Mentorship and High Achievement

39:10 Building a Business While Raising a Family

42:45 Parenting, Sports, and Leadership Lessons

45:05 Rachel's Recruiting Philosophy

47:00 AI vs Human Recruiting

48:15 Final Thoughts