GROWINGYOURBUSINESS
From owner to observer How to build a company that runs without you
BY RYAN MARKEWICH WHEN I STARTED Creative Roots Landscaping over 30 years ago, my vision wasn’t fully formed. Like many entrepreneurs, I was driven by the common desire to pay my bills, but I also had a strong desire to build something meaningful that I could be proud of. It wasn’t until much later that I realized the true product of my business wasn’t just beautiful landscapes — it was the company itself. That realization laid the groundwork for my eventual exit from Creative Roots' day-to-day operations. Today, the company thrives under the ownership of some of the employees who helped build it, along with the rest of the team who continue to drive its success. But getting here was far from easy. It took years of personal growth, plenty of self-inflicted hard lessons and a shift in mindset, especially around the role of people in driving success. A journey of personal growth and introspection Let’s be clear: setting up an effective succession plan isn’t a one-time event or a simple transaction. It’s an ongoing process that ensures the company’s legacy extends well beyond the current leadership. Over the years, I had to ask myself tough questions: What was I really building? Why would anyone want to own a piece, and what would my company look like without me in the driver’s seat? And, more importantly, how could we create a company that didn’t rely on any one person, but instead had a system in place to thrive under the stewardship of future generations of employees? The answers didn’t come overnight. In fact, much of my thinking shifted when I embraced The Great Game of Business (GGOB), an open-book management system designed to teach employees to think and act like owners. It was 18 years ago when
The employee partners of Creative Roots (L-R), Colette Kinderdyk, Jacob Markewich, Ryan Markewich (founder), Matt Northey, Rick VanEspen and Zach Neufeld.
we first implemented this game-changing methodology. The idea that “The Company is the Product” resonated deeply with me. This meant our focus shouldn’t just be on creating outstanding landscapes; it should be on building an exceptional company that could sustain itself and thrive beyond any one person — especially me. Trust: The cornerstone of success Adopting and then adapting GGOB was not a simple task. It required a significant mindset shift from traditional top-down management to a collaborative, transparent process where everyone was involved. The philosophy hinges on teaching people to understand the financials and strategic goals of the business, including every aspect of our operations, from revenue to profits to challenges. We had to trust that our employees could not only understand the numbers but also make decisions based on them. The level of trust and the quality of engagement that continues to emerge from
our employees has been remarkable. This goes beyond just their day-to-day tasks. Employees are now actively contributing to the development of our career path passport, providing valuable input on sales strategies, financial planning and regularly reporting on key metrics. By involving them in these higher-level decisions, it became clear that we had been sitting on a gold mine of intellectual capital. In the past, we’d missed out on leveraging these insights simply because we weren’t giving staff the opportunity to contribute. But once we started teaching and including them in management decisions, it was 100 per cent evident that their involvement brought new energy and ideas to the table. Relieving the burden of ownership One of the most surprising benefits of transitioning to this new way of operating was the relief I felt as a business owner. For years, I carried the weight of decision making — it felt like the company’s whole
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