Grand Rapids, Michigan
I grew up in an entrepreneurial family. My grandfather, Morton Harwood, Sr., was the founder of Harwood’s Printing & Advertising Service, based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. My father, Morton Harwood, Jr., along with my Uncle, Randy Harwood, led the firm into the 21st century. From a young age, I worked at “the office” in various capacities, earning spending money and learning what it takes to be an honest, hardworking, successful business owner. This legacy continues to inspire me.
I also saw first-hand the strategic choices that business owners were faced with and the implications of making those tough choices.
I attended Grand Rapids Creston High School. My greatest contribution during this time was as a member of the varsity ice hockey team. In my senior year, I was named captain and selected as co-MVP. I have many, many great memories from high school and remain connected to my inner circle of buddies, self-named the ”Creston Men’s Athletic Society.”
Michigan State University
At the age of 17, I packed my car and headed off to East Lansing, Michigan to attend Michigan State University, as an undergraduate business major. During my freshman year, I joined Alpha Kappa Psi professional business fraternity. In my junior year, I was honored to serve as the chapter’s president. I graduated after 4 years with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Marketing.
While I had plenty of fun in college, I also worked hard. With four children in college at the same time, my siblings and I were expected to pay for much of our college expenses and/or take out student loans. I worked 15-20 hours a week for an on-campus printing department, where I met my future wife, Cindy. We our life members of the MSU Alumni Association. We are also supporters of both academic and athletic programs at Michigan State University.
Frank’s Nursery & Crafts
After graduation, the job market was bleak, as the nation was in a serious recession. I took an entry level management trainee position with Frank’s Nursery & Crafts, a retailer specializing in lawn & garden products, tropical plants, nursery stock, crafts, and home decor. Over the next ten years, I held positions of increasing responsibility, including store manager, district manager, and business manager in several Midwest markets.
In the 1980’s, Frank’s had much success, growing to over 300 stores throughout the eastern portion of the U.S. and to over $500 million in annual revenue. However, increased competition led to an internal divide in the company between the lawn & garden side of the business and the home decor side. Without a cohesive strategy, the company could not sustain itself and is no longer in business.
Seeing first-hand the devastation from a lack of vision and strategy was an incredible learning experience.
Torre & Bruglio Landscaping
As Frank’s began to implode, I made a strategic career move into the commercial landscape and snow contracting business, joining the management team of Torre & Bruglio, Michigan’s largest landscape and snow contracting firm at the time.
T&B was the market leader in SE Michigan, servicing large office complexes, major shopping malls, airports, and Chrysler’s world headquarters complex. During the summer I was a Project Manager, wearing both an operations manager hat and an account manager hat. During the winter I was the lead snow dispatcher, with responsibility over hundreds of pieces of equipment and operators, site captains, and sidewalk crews.
During this time, I learned that personal relationships in a service industry are what matter most. Reputation, trust, and relationships are what drive business success, not flashy marketing, low-ball pricing, or gimmicks.
Professional Grounds Services
In the fall of 1999, I was offered a unique opportunity to be a part of a start-up firm specializing in landscape and snow management. As the vice president of operations and partner in the firm, I accepted responsibility for field operations, branch offices, subcontractors, human resources, safety, and asset management programs. Since its inception, Professional Grounds Services has grown rapidly, attracting some of the industry’s top professionals and largest property management firms as clients.
With the rapid growth of PGS, I became interested in further education. With the support of my partners, I was privileged to head back to Michigan State University to obtain a Master of Business Administration degree. I graduated in the top 10% of my class and was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma, a business honors society.
The success of PGS may be attributed to many things. However, clear strategic thinking and planning is at the top of my list. Before we hired our first employee, we had a vision for the future and a strategic plan for the first five years. With this plan in plan, we simply needed to execute the plan. And we did, growing from zero in 1999 to over $10 million in annual revenues less than 10 years later.
Pro-Motion Consulting / Pro-Motion Marketing
In 2008, I left my position with PGS on good terms with my partners and very proud of what I had been a part of for the last 8 and a half years. I had been called to do something different with the rest of my career and was determined to answer the call.
After spending the first 20+ years of my career managing people and creating healthy, profitable, and sustainable businesses, I realized that I had aquired valuable skills and knowledge in these areas. My calling is to help others achieve similar success in their businesses. I am also called to serve small businesses, as they have unique needs. I would define a small business as being less than 500 employees, although most small businesses have no employees or just a handful.
My firms, Pro-Motion Consulting and Pro-Motion Marketing, exist to help create healthy, profitable, and sustainable businesses.
Our typical client is a business owner or president who is concerned about competition, customer loyalty, or standing out in the crowd. They are worried about profit margins, sales growth, or return on investment. They are upset with employee performance, alignment, or commitment. Or they simply want more control over their organization, their future, and their life.
I believe that many business owners and presidents find themselves thinking these thoughts quite often. In fact, I would argue that this is very normal. Success brings challenges and working harder isn’t the answer. These leaders need help.
My firms can help. We are part of the team. What is it costing you not to have us on your team?
I have associations with many other organizations, as a member, volunteer, committee member, board member, speaker, and contributing writer. A list of these organizations is provided below, as are links to their websites.
I thank God for the many opportunities that I have and for leading me to where I am today. I also thank God for the challenges that lie ahead.
Professional Experience
Pro-Motion Consulting / Pro-Motion Marketing- founder, owner, president & CEO.
Professional Grounds Services- partner, vice president.
Torre & Bruglio- branch manager, project manager.
Frank’s Nursery & Crafts- business manager, district manager, store manager.
Professional Designations
Trailblazer – Professional Landcare Network (PLANET).
Certified Landscape Professional (CLP) – Professional Landcare Network (PLANET).
Certified Snow Professional (CSP) – Snow & Ice Management Association (SIMA).
Michigan Certified Nurseryman (MCN) – Michigan Nursery & Landscape Association (SIMA).
Master Gardener – Purdue University Agricultural Extension.
Affiliations/Organizations
Alpha Kappa Psi Professional Business Fraternity- life member, past president of Gamma Mu chapter at Michigan State University.
Beta Gamma Sigma Business Honor Society- life member.
Michigan State University Eli Broad Graduate School of Management Weekend MBA Alumni Association- director, golf committee chair.
Landscape Ontario- contributing writer for Landscape Trades.
Michigan Green Industry Assoc- supplier member, contributing writer for Landsculptor.
Michigan State University Alumni Association- life member.
Professional Landcare Network- supplier member, landscape management specialty committee, legislative affairs liaison, industry certification council liaison, contributing writer for PLANET News.
Snow & Ice Management Association- ‘Build a Bid’ program co-creator and presenter, Certified Snow Professional (CSP) DVD training series presenter, communications committee chair, editorial advisory board member and contributing writer for Snow Business magazine.
Ward Evangelical Presbyterian Church- member, prayer leader, pre-marital counselor (currently obtaining training and credentials).
Questex Media Group- contributing writer for Landscape Management & Snow Business magazines.
Education
Masters of Business Administration - Integrative Management, Eli Broad Graduate School of Management, Michigan State University.
Bachelor of Arts – Marketing, Eli Broad College of Business, Michigan State University.
Certificate, School of Turfgrass Management, Michigan State University.
Personal
Married Cindy Matteson August, 1985. Cindy is a graduate of MSU and is a managing partner of Pro-Motion Marketing and Pro-Motion Consulting.
We have two adult children. Ashley is a graduate of NMU and is an editor. Mike is attending GVSU, majoring in biology.
We reside in Farmington Hills, Michigan USA.
