1. Why is it important that PMPs consider implementing an electronic rodent monitoring program as part of their service protocol?

Electronic rodent monitoring provides significant benefits over the traditional “every trap, every time” service. With real-time capture alerts, PMPs will know immediately when they’ve caught a rodent instead of discovering it at their next service. This visibility enables the PMP to respond quickly, helping improve their customers’ compliance with health, safety and auditing schemes. Additionally, the data generated by the system can help identify and head-off potential issues early. If there is a better way to monitor, why not embrace it?

2. How can rodent monitoring technology benefit a PMP’s bottom line?

In the short term, they’ll realize efficiency savings. The labor that used to check mostly empty traps can now be redirected towards higher value activities at that account. In the long term, as electronically monitored accounts require less attention during stable periods, the technician can manage more accounts in a similar amount of time. Perhaps more importantly, PMPs can use the data and analytics generated to demonstrate the value in this service, potentially enabling them to charge more for it.

3. How will remote rodent monitoring affect the technician in the field?

For starters, they’ll spend less time on their knees checking traps! When technicians are freed from routine trap checking, they’re able to make more effective use of their time. They’re able to focus on the big picture, identify areas of concern and investigate root cause analysis. They can make more meaningful contributions to their customers’ food safety programs, transforming their role from mere trap-checkers to a more consultative food safety professional.

4. In field trials, how were end users (PMPs’ customers) able to use the benefits of this new technology?

In field trials, we saw that PMPs were able to help end users quickly glean insights from the system’s data. For example, in one food-processing facility, the system captured frequent movement of traps from their designated locations. This data helped the facility’s QA Managers identify trap movement hotspots. In collaboration with their PMP, they optimized the trap placement scheme. This resulted in a strengthened rodent control program.

5. Why is this system so well suited to sensitive commercial accounts?

Sensitive accounts, like food manufacturing, warehousing and retail facilities, are subject to stringent regulations and regular audits. These accounts have strict guidelines for integrated pest management and record-keeping requirements. The connectivity of electronic monitoring systems can help provide robust data, reduce errors attributed to manual data entry and can make these accounts more audit ready. It also helps maintain the integrity of the facility as traps located in hard-to-reach or sensitive areas do not need to be accessed unless there is a capture or maintenance is needed.

When Frank Goforth founded his namesake company, Go-Forth Pest Control in High Point, N.C., in 1959, the millennial generation was more than 20 years from being born.

Today, Goforth’s grandson, Chase Hazelwood and his wife, Leah, have redirected the company’s energies to attract millennial workers and customers alike.

“We have ‘millennial-ized’ our approach to hiring and training to attract and retain quality employees,” says Leah Hazelwood, chief administrative officer for Go-Forth. “Millennials approach their careers differently and we have adjusted our approach accordingly.”

Hazelwood says millennials want more control over their career destiny and to be more engaged in the process. At Go-Forth, every employee is responsible for identifying career and personal goals, and for providing a monthly update on their progress.

“We have created opportunities for the 60-plus employees to advance not only their professional career but their life outside of work,” Leah Hazelwood says. “Millennials are looking for more than a paycheck and want satisfaction in their work and personal lives, and we are aiming to deliver on both those needs.”

The company also has invested heavily in digital marketing — hiring two full-time staff members, a rare move for a company of Go-Forth’s size ($5.6 million), to introduce its brand to social-savvy consumers, as well as potential hires.

“We hope to not only engage and grow our customer base through our digital marketing efforts but we want to show potential employees that pest management can be a career field,” she adds. “We want them to feel they are joining a brand not just a company.”

The company serves residential and commercial clients in the Triad area of North Carolina (Greensboro, Winston-Salem and High Point) extending east to Wilmington, and west and south to Charlotte and into South Carolina. But they aren’t satisfied and are looking to grow.

“Our growth over the last several years has been fueled by having the right people in the right positions,” Leah Hazelwood says. “As we continue to expand the need for more skilled people we will grow and that is why we have made the commitment to change the way we approach hiring and retention.”

Hazelwood says transforming the business model also was done to chart a course for the company’s future and give the couple’s four children a chance to run the business one day if they so choose. — Jeff Fenner

On June 12-13, PCT will welcome Top 100 companies to Charleston, S.C., for the fifth PCT Top 100 Awards Ceremony and Executive Summit, hosted by Univar and Syngenta.

Keynote presentations and panel discussions will be held at the Francis Marion Hotel in historic downtown Charleston, while a reception honoring the Top 100 companies will take place at the Historic Rice Mill. Built in 1861, the Historic Rice Mill Building is one of downtown Charleston’s most spectacular waterfront venues and is the only of Charleston’s three original antebellum rice mills that still stands today.

Sessions and speakers include:

• Keynote Presentation: Employee Recruitment & Retention, Janine Driver, Body Language Institute
• The State of the Pest Control Industry Labor Market, Dan Moreland, PCT magazine
• Keynote Presentation: How To Market To Today’s Buyers — Successful Strategies for Customer Engagement, Shawna Suckow, The Buyer Inside
• Strategies for Managing Your Pest Business for Financial Success, Dan Gordon, PCO Bookkeepers
• Panel Discussions featuring Top 100 Companies — Leveraging Technology for a Competitive Advantage

Attendees also will enjoy a welcome reception, an optional tour of Charleston, a cocktail reception and dinner at the Historic Rice Mill, the Top 100 Awards Ceremony & Awards Presentation and plenty of networking opportunities. Qualifying companies have received invitations. To learn more about the event, call 800/ 456-0707.