[CANUFNET] Tree work policies and procedures

[Meagan Hanna]

Hi Shawn,


This is a great question. Succession planning is a big issue in many work environments. More often than not, so many tasks are confided to one person and then if that person is absent, on vacation, retires or leaves, the whole crew is up the tree without a rope so to speak. I see this happen way too frequently and I'm sure many of us here have been there.


In Quebec, the horticulture industry has a tendency of lumping gardening, horticulture and arboriculture all together even though the training is clearly different. Many institutions, and even some cities, work similarly to what you're describing with the team horticulturist taking on mandates such as tree inventory, reports and responding to stakeholder requests.


I would say that policies depend on how your crew is set up. Are you a unionized environment and do you have to respect job descriptions and seniority when assigning work? Or do you have more latitude with regards to what staff members can and cannot do?


Once that is sorted out, before any overhaul starts, make a list of the key jobs that the head arborist performs. Make two distinctions - one being what are the tasks that field staff can perform easily, what tasks require coaching and prep and what tasks are things that only the head arborist can do. The other distinction is : what tasks should or must be performed quickly and what are things that can wait until the head arborist returns on the job.


Next step should be coaching and training, decide who the future is. In certain environments, the person with the next most seniority is the only choice, sometimes it's the person with the most initiative and potential and sometimes the younger and most tech-savvy generation can step up the most.


Follow that up by involving current staff members, make them part of the solution by holding a brainstorming meeting with an agenda or clear set of objectives set up at the beginning of the meeting. Identify what needs to be improved - ordering/procurement process? Data collection? Work organization? Chain of command? Etc.


One thing that helps facilitate the transfer of responsibility from one crew member to another is standardization. Say what you will but having a clear structure set in place can help any new person walk in, turn the key and get the job started. Simple things like developing a tree inspection report form with simple checkboxes and data fields to fill in can help field arborists take down the basics so that the lead arborist doesn't have to go back and check again. Simplicity is key, the less room for interpretation and confusion the better. Even better, is a report form that doubles as a work order containing all of the basic info such as tree location, size, species, condition, recommended work and equipment required can really take a load off. I have some examples of inspection/work order sheets used. Feel free to write me directly and I can send you what I have if you like.


If certain gardeners are uneasy with arborist tasks and there is no avoiding blending the two together in reasonable respects, maybe some on the job training is necessary. Where I come from, gardeners are responsible for tree planting and pruning young trees whereas tree workers and field arborists deal with larger trees that require ladders, ropes or lifts for ascension. My predecessor involved some of these employees in a structural pruning workshop to help them develop their skills in training young trees. See if your institution has a training budget to send someone in, even better if you can bring someone in with an emphasis on health and safety. Another option is checking in with your ISA chapter and seeing what they can offer in the ways of training.


Best of luck to you in your reorganization. It's never easy but with a positive attitude, some patience, involvement from the team and a clear plan, the results may arrive quicker than you think [?]


If you have follow up questions, you're welcome to write me directly.


All the best,

Meg


Meagan Hanna, MA.
meagan.hanna at mail.mcgill.ca
________________________________
From: CANUFNET <canufnet-bounces at list.web.net> on behalf of shawnriberdy at yahoo.ca <shawnriberdy at yahoo.ca>
Sent: July 4, 2016 11:50:39 AM
To: Canadian Urban Forest Network
Subject: [CANUFNET] Tree work policies and procedures

Hi all

I am an arborist working at UBC and am on a  committee currently working on policies and procedures while performing tree work. The way the shop is set up might be different then most of you are used to. The shop is set up with gardeners and some of us are gardeners as well as arborist. One arborist for each crew and one head arborist which is in charge of tree reports and inventory and such. We are currently working on what happens when the head arborist is absent. Moving on to the specific work being preformed by the field arborists. If anyone is willing to and can share there work policies or info on these subjects that would be a big help.

Thank you

Shawn Riberdy
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