ValleyCrest Hires CEO from Within

Zino For the first time in the 60-year history of ValleyCrest Landscape Companies, the Sperber family has selected a non-family member to lead the company. But the new CEO, Roger Zino, is no stranger to the Calabasas company, which generated $850 million in revenue last year and is one of the nation’s largest landscapers. He has been part of the ValleyCrest family for a decade, serving as president of the company’s landscape maintenance division. In his new post, Zino says his goal is to continue the company’s legacy by providing exceptional service, customer relations and opportunities for its employees. That, he says, is what will lead to continued growth and new customers to the company. “I want to see a red (ValleyCrest) truck on every corner in every city we are operating in,” Zino said. Zino was promoted to CEO after Richard Sperber, who had been chief executive, took over the chairman role held by his father, Burt, who died in September. Attempts to reach Richard Sperber were not successful. In a press announcement of Zino’s appointment, released Jan. 19, Sperber said the management changes are smart ones because they put in solid underpinnings and structure to support long-term goals. “ValleyCrest is known for having the right people in place, and then giving them the right tools and resources to do the job in order to satisfy the landscape needs of our customers,” Sperber said. “I’m confident these changes will fuel and sustain ValleyCrest’s continued growth and position the company strongly for the future.” Burt Sperber started ValleyCrest in 1949 in North Hollywood with only two used lawnmowers and a pick-up truck. He grew the company into a powerhouse of seven divisions employing more than 10,000 workers installing and maintaining landscaping in residential communities, sports stadiums, upscale resorts, and corporate campuses. There are about 1,000 employees in Los Angeles County, many of them in the Valley region. In 2006, the Sperber family sold a majority share in the company to MSD Capital, L.P., the investment group of Michael S. Dell, the founder of Dell Computers. But even with an outside investor, the Sperbers managed the day-to-day operations of ValleyCrest and led the company’s direction. Bill Arman, a consultant in the landscape industry and a ValleyCrest employee for 30 years, said naming Zino as chief executive is the right move for the company. It also sends two signals to the larger industry – that a solid businessman is in charge and that recurring maintenance work brings in the most recurring revenues. “The message is maintenance is the most stable part of the business,” Arman said. “It is a tough business if you are building stuff.” Zino and Richard Sperber come from vastly different backgrounds. Sperber grew up in the landscape business and brings vision and a big-picture approach to the changes taking place. Zino started his career as an accountant at Arthur Andersen, where he says he learned the importance of customer service, communication with clients, and keeping track of data and making sure it matches up. “I do carry around some of the traits from that time period,” Zino said. Arman’s tenure at ValleyCrest coincided with Zino leadership role as the head of the maintenance division. He described Zino as “process and precision driven.” “There will be pressure on making profits,” Arman said. “He will make sure there are growth aspirations and profit aspirations.” Zino said the culture for delivering customer service and rewarding employees for a job well done is a main strength at ValleyCrest. Maintaining that reputation and culture, he says, is at the top of his agenda. For example, ValleyCrest surveys its customers to get feedback on the work done, and a perfect survey results in a letter to the account manager and extra recognition for the workers involved. One area Zino identified as needing improvement is workforce training. That is being addressed by developing online interactive lessons for the employees, Zino said. Technology is used, as well, to teach methods of better customer communications, he said. “We want to stay involved in modern information technology and do it in a way that (the employees) are not sitting in front of a computer the whole time,” Zino said. The management team Zino will work with includes Executive Vice President and CFO Richard Wolff, recently appointed Chief Operating Officer Andrew J. Brennan, and Andrew Mandell, chief executive of the landscape development division. Zino will continue to head up the landscape maintenance division, the largest in the company and responsible for about 50 percent of the business. He is bullish on the division’s future. Taking care of trees and grass is not cyclical and more businesses and residential communities are outsourcing their landscape maintenance to professional companies, Zino said, noting ValleyCrest can get some of that business through its reputation and experience and by offering cost-savings measures. “It’s rewarding when you can say this is how you can have a great landscape and how to save money,” he said.