Business wasn’t going too well at Washington Green Hydroseeding in Pasco, WA, before Lance Hobson came on board four years ago. Hobson had been in the construction industry for 30 years—and still holds a general contractor’s license—so he brought with him the knowledge of contractors’ expectations. Essentially, construction contractors “want to be number one,” points out Hobson. “They need you to cater to their demands, and rightfully so. They’re under contractual agreements for time frames, and you want to make sure you provide your services when they need them and you need to do your job correctly.”
Hobson manages the business for the company’s two owners. The company provides hydroseeding and drill seeding services throughout the Pacific Northwest with a focus on the state of Washington. The company also has contracts in Oregon, and is making inroads into Idaho. Two trucks and one pull-behind trailer are used for the work, which is 15% residential and 85% commercial; Hobson has worked to target the latter for its higher revenues. The company has two employees, and more are brought on board when needed. The company also has a blower truck to accommodate increased requests by municipalities wanting to apply compost from their solid waste facilities on their own projects. Washington Green typically applies native seed and custom seed, with most of the seed mix already specified. While some may regard Washington as the evergreen state—and that’s applicable to the western part of the state—wind erosion is the biggest concern in the eastern part, with its very high desert.
“It’s sand, sagebrush, and wind,” says Hobson. “When they build homes for development, they’re required to use dust control services to stabilize the soil from wind erosion.” As of late, mild winters and a steady stream of construction projects are ramping up the work orders.
What He Does Day to Day
Hobson spends most of his time estimating. He endeavors to get out into the field and meet with contractors on commercial projects. On residential projects, he speaks with property owners over the phone, although sometimes he’ll go onsite at their request.
What Led Him to This Line of Work
Since his time as an Academic All-American wrestler at Northern Montana College—now Montana State University, Northern—Hobson has always been one to welcome a challenge. After years of working in construction and seeking another opportunity, Hobson applied to Washington Green Hydroseeding. Upon meeting one of the owners, who was wearing a baseball hat and a flannel shirt, he concluded the place was a good fit for him. He was intrigued by the challenge of turning the company around. In 2012, the company did 12 municipal jobs; last year, it had 54 prevailing wage jobs out of 300 or more bids. “Now we’ve got to keep growing it,” says Hobson.
What He Likes Most About His Work
Hobson likes that his job is a combination of desk and fieldwork. He is a father of two, and the flexibility of the job is the reason he accepted the position and continues to work in it. “I volunteer,” he says. “I’m the president of the Chamber of Commerce here in Pasco. I coach soccer, softball, and baseball. My kids play competitive tournament sports. I could make more money as a project manager, but I would have to give up all of those freedoms, and you can’t put a dollar amount on the time spent with your kids.”
His Biggest Challenge
“Last year, it was having enough time to do all of the jobs we had,” notes Hobson. He’s now aiming to increase the percentage of successful bids. “You want to be competitive, but you also don’t want to be the lowest-cost company,” he says. He’s working on engendering the confidence of contractors with whom his company works, “making sure they understand that we need to be competitive in our bidding, but that’s not our goal. Our goal is they’re going to call us because we’re professional. My guys do the job they’re supposed to do in the time frame they’re supposed to do it. Dealing with us is preferable to dealing with our competitors.”
