No. 1 Large-Sized Pest Control Company: Kilauea Pest Control

Equally important, hearing first-hand why Kilauea is a great place to show up energizes team members. (An internal app-based forum is often populated with high-fives along with admin communications.)

“He said he loved the management, felt like he was listened to and supported — leadership and teammates really cared about him as a colleague and a person,” said Taradee (TD) Thornton, HR manager.

This technician has been with the business about four years, and now he’s training others, a nod to a program service managers created to “train the trainers.”

Ashley Ortogero, general manager in charge of operations, added, “We just graduated our first class of trainers who are now passing this course so they can work with our new residential technicians who are coming on board.”

The program produces company ambassadors who become peer go-tos that technicians can consult with if they run into a roadblock, have questions about a service concern, or simply want more training in a specialty area.

The program is a testament to Kilauea’s development of leadership layers and accountability checkpoints, which drive employee satisfaction, growth and accolades.

Last year, Kilauea Pest Control made the PCT Top 100 list, ranking No. 93. “That was a real milestone,” said Speed of the first-time honor that caps other recognition the company has garnered from Hawaii organizations, including earning a position among 78 companies designated Hawaii’s Best Places to Work.

Kilauea Pest Control also is a 2024 Best of Honolulu in the pest control division and one of the Most Charitable Companies in Hawaii, giving $93,000 to nonprofits and charities last year, including supporting The Salvation Army, Child & Family Service, Girl Scouts of Hawaii, Boy Scouts of America Aloha Council and Latter-day Saint Charities.

Speed said, “Now that we are scaling, we’re focused on figuring out how we can still feel small.”

TEAMING UP.

Kilauea Pest Control covers a lot of ground. Crews serve all of Oahu, end to end and everywhere in between — specifically, 597 square miles. After all, estate on the island is at a premium.

“Other companies on the mainland might run different branches because once you grow up to $2 million in one location, you can open another branch,” Speed said. “But in Hawaii, the cost of property is so expensive. So we maintain one main headquarters and some satellites, and then we divide into different teams based on workflow for commercial, residential and termites.”

This team approach has helped address the grow-big-feel-small conundrum. “Our teams are operated separately and have their own P&Ls,” Speed said. “So, they run like mini-companies, and the teams help each other out. They get together to discuss high-level issues that affect everyone in the company, and our overall leadership oversees the team managers.”

There are teams within teams, and accountability across the board.

Breaking the business up into teams and pods has fostered a sense of family and ownership. Speed and leadership, including Thornton and Ortogero, say their interactions on the internal platform tell the story of camaraderie.

“We have shout-outs for work anniversaries, birthdays and a customer service representative may call out some positive reviews,” Ortogero said. “Recently, we’re seeing middle management really giving credit to team members in the field, so they’re hearing it from the top, middle and peers and getting that positive feedback.”

Maintaining an open door also promotes idea sharing and problem- solving — as do standing weekly small-group meetings, monthly technician meetings and one-on-ones. Speed said, “We run the business with a solutions-based mentality, not only for our customers but for our people. We encourage them, ‘Come to the table with your ideas, if you’re dealing with an issue, let’s go deep on that and figure out what the real issues are.’ We empower people to join these conversations.”

DEVELOPING PEOPLE FIRST.

Kilauea Pest Control enjoys the benefit of employee referrals that fulfill ever-growing “mini companies” under its umbrella. The real proof of a culture people appreciate is when a team member leaves to go elsewhere, usually another industry. This happens from time to time.

“We had a handful of employees during the last year who went to a carpenter’s union or another pest control company and they returned to us,” Ortogero said. “They say work-life balance is more important and this culture is a better fit.”

What does balance look like at Kilauea Pest Control? For one, the company’s teams are “heavily coveraged” to allow employees to take time off when needed. “We have flexible scheduling for field technicians and office employees so they aren’t missing their kids’ field trips and performances,” Thornton said.

She added, “We focus on being a team in the sense that we care about your health, we care about your profession in the company, and your career and personal growth.”

In fact, employees can take paid time to read a growth/technical/leadership book that will improve their knowledge in a subject area, life or business. Speed then sits down with the team member to discuss the book. “He encourages this,” Thornton said.

Aside from the train-the-trainer program and go-to company ambassadors new employees are assigned, there’s an onboarding welcome lunch and ongoing discussions during one-on-one meetings for all employees.

“We have a designated team of about eight individuals who have been here for longer than five years who can guide them and answer questions,” Thornton said.

She added, “We’ve all come from companies where you make a mistake, you get written-up; we focus on making you better,” Thornton said. “We want you to be better than we are today and than we were yesterday.”

Immediately upon hiring, employees are introduced to the core values: CRASH — communication, respect, authentic friendly service, accountability, safety and honesty. These tenants are included in the training program for those who deliver orientations.

While the company offers flexible hours, Kilauea Pest Control also carefully monitors overtime and undertime to be sure those who want to work get those hours. It’s a teeter-totter that works.

Now, the company is attracting employees from outside the industry. “We are in an upward spiral of having more people to do great work for our customers,” Speed said.

And now into the busy summer season, Speed said the company has been prepared and added a new pools division. “It feels like we are ready to do really great things for our people and the community.”

Kilauea Pest Control is firing on all cylinders.

But most of all, Speed said, “To watch the team grow as individuals, grow in their business acumen, grow in their work-life balance — this is the greatest reward.

The author is a frequent PCT contributor.