[2006 Leadership Profiles] Jeffrey A. Weier

In the past, when questioned on a career choice, many boys would answer a fireman, an astronaut or in the case of Jeffrey a. Weier, a doctor. The 25-year industry veteran remembers becoming interested in science as a junior high school student in Chicago, after his family moved from Detroit.

"Biology was always my first love, and I took all the science courses I could in high school," he says. That path led him to Loyola University, with the intent of moving on to medical school. But an honors project he conducted changed his career path. "The project involved biological clocks in Cuban burrowing cockroaches," Weier remembers, "and how their life cycles affected them."

The professor, Dr. Bob Hamilton, worked for Bob Dold of Rose Pest Solutions during the summers, and introduced Weier to the veteran PCO. Between Weier’s junior and senior year in college, he began working at Rose.

Weier continued on to graduate school at Northwestern University, also teaching a comparative anatomy course. "I was looking to continue my studies in biological clocks," Weier says, "but I ended up in the olfactory and physiology lab working with fruit flies." Yet another turn in his career path led him to another field of study – pheromones and their
associated physiological effects.

Throughout his graduate school experience, Weier continued to work summers at Rose, eventually taking on a full-time management position. His strongest attribute, according to Dold, was his love for bugs. "[That’s] why he is so strong at the technical and problem-solving aspect of the business," remarks Dold, who adds, "During his time with us, Jeff really elevated the technical areas of our business quite a bit."

GO WEST YOUNG MAN

In 1983, Weier’s wife Jill was asked by her employer, the U.S. Public Health Service, to transfer to Seattle to become a quarantine inspector at the Seattle-Tacoma Airport. At this point, the Weiers had been married five years and had a two-year-old son named Chris.

Since he thought it would be easier for him to find another job in the pest control industry than his wife to change professions, they moved to Seattle. Weier worked for six months at Kemi-Kil, a distributor, but missed being in the field. He did, however, appreciate learning about another segment of the pest control industry.

While working at Kemi-Kil, Weier met Larry and Alfie Treleven, co-owners of Sprague Pest Solutions. Larry offered a service technician position to Weier in Tacoma. Weier accepted with the understanding that he would be moved into a technical position within a few years. Both Larry and Alfie agree that Weier’s deep knowledge of the sciences, particularly entomology, was a great asset. "I love hiring smart people," Alfie says. "He’s been a valuable addition to the company."

Within a few years, Weier’s service technician routes had been pared and he transitioned into the director of technical services position. At that time, Sprague was split evenly between residential and commercial accounts, but was looking at other options. "We were trying to differentiate ourselves from all of our other competitors," recalls Larry, "and our focus on commercial was one of the ways to do that."

Alfie says that without Weier’s innovative programs and teaching skills, the company might not have been as successful in making the transition. He helped the senior team embrace the decision by explaining the new programs, and trained the rest of the organization. With the new direction, branches that were opened offered only commercial pest control, and the existing branches started to de-emphasize residential work. Larry Treleven estimates that Sprague now services 96 percent commercial accounts. "In 2005 we grew the company by $1.2 million in revenue over 2004," he stresses. "A lot of that has to do with our focus on the commercial business," which Weier played a key role in developing.

A MAN OF MANY TALENTS

The focus on commercial accounts plays into Weier’s strengths. His knowledge and quiet leadership appeal to prospects. "It’s funny," Alfie says, "at one point just about every sales call Jeff went on, the sales associate sold it. A number of times, a potential client looked at Jeff like an outside consultant instead of someone trying to sell them the business."

Weier sees his role during sales presentations as an expert analyst. Taking into account all the information, he can judge what Sprague can do to differentiate itself from the competition. In addition, he also handles insurance, human resources and oversees the company’s quality assurance department. As his responsibilities have grown at Sprague, Weier realizes that he’s spending less time in the field and more time performing management duties. Alfie admits there is a balancing act. "Our big battle is to make sure he does not get stuck with too many administrative duties, but to have him maintain leadership roles and have time every day to be creative," Alfie says. "If we take that time away for him to be creative, we have fumbled the ball on being most effective with how he can impact Sprague and the industry."

Weier understands that the Trelevens offer him a level of freedom that is uncommon among technical directors working in the pest management industry. "They give me a lot of responsibility in deciding what products we use and the techniques, methods and approaches we take," says Weier, "but I understand with that freedom comes accountability. Taking care of our customers’ pest problems is serious business."

Weier is such an integral part of the Sprague management team because of the advanced level of problem-solving he employs. "He has the ability to think through complex issues," Alfie says, "and come up with solutions that are different than whatever you read out of a book." Many times, he continues, Weier will read about a solution in another industry and try to adapt it to pest control.

"An inquisitive mind and the opportunity to try things in the field is the combination that excites him most," Alfie adds. "I think we have a senior team that likes to challenge him and I think he likes that."

GROWING MARKET REACH

While implementation of the company’s training programs has been passed on to colleague Bob Andrews, Weier still plays a critical role in developing Sprague’s educational curriculum and generating content for the company’s state-of-the-art computer-based training system.

Additionally, one of the important roles Weier performs now is industry speaking engagements. "[He] has helped take Sprague from a strong local company to a growing regional leader," says Jay Bruesch, technical director, Plunkett’s Pest Control, Fridley, Minn. "He’s on just about every industry training program I’ve run across lately, and [he] always has something important to say."

"Jeff is one of those individuals whose leadership style is not flashy," adds Alfie Treleven. "His leadership style is thoughtful, respectful and collaborative."

Weier believes that consistency of beliefs is paramount but that changing long-held opinions as new, cutting-edge information is introduced – a basic principle of science – is crucial to the advancement of the pest control industry. "Because of that, people tend to align with your thoughts and feel comfortable with what you as an individual do and say and think and believe," he explains.

"Our industry and Sprague are far better off because of his involvement," says Alfie. "I truly believe there are millions of people everyday who eat healthier food and live better lives because of what he contributed to Sprague and our industry."

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Commercial Focus Pays Dividends

When Sprague Pest Solutions decided to begin emphasizing commercial pest control services over residential, it did so for four reasons, according to Director of Technical Services Jeff Weier:

1. Workforce stability. In the Pacific Northwest, residential service work is typically slow from October to March, so it is difficult to retain quality employees. With commercial accounts, work is maintained throughout the year.

2. Technical leadership. Commercial accounts allow a pest control company to build an infrastructure of high-quality technical support (Weier’s realm), quality assurance and sales. This team can have a real impact on commercial accounts.

3. Economic stability. Commercial accounts are relatively recession-proof. Regardless of the economy, commercial accounts still need to purchase pest control services, while residential clients may choose to cut those services from their household budgets during an economic downturn.

4. Market focus. Residential accounts are time-consuming, possibly diverting a company’s attention away from the quality of work performed at their commercial accounts. While not impossible, Weier believes it is extremely difficult for companies to be good at both types of services.

The strategy appears to be working. Since focusing on its commercial business, Sprague Pest Solutions has grown dramatically, rising to number 40 in PCT magazine’s Top 100 list with $12.6 million in sales.