“I like cultivating people. I love to see people grow. And so when I can grow people who grow great plants, that to me is the cultivation secret right there.” – Jeff McManus

 

Jeff McManus grows things. As the Director of Landscape Services at the University of Mississippi, he grows plants....he grows people....he grows ideas. Taking his grounds staff, affectionately known as "weeders", and developing them into "leaders" has been a joyous challenge that reaped acres of rewards in the form of national recognition by the Princeton Review, PGMS, Newsweek and every faculty, staff, student and visitor who has walked onto the Ole Miss Campus. Building on that momentum, Jeff has designed a professional development plan for his Weeders called Landscape University - a replicable training program that promotes the individual's innate ability to GROW. Jeff holds a Bachelor of Science in Landscape and Ornamental Horticulture from Auburn University and is a PGMS Certified Grounds manager, and Certified Arborist. Jeff has spoken at Caterpillar Inc, the Biltmore Estates, Leadercast, SRAPPA, Trent Lott Leadership Institute as well as the SEC Ole Miss Athletics. He has also worked with Memphis University, the University of Tennessee, the University of Georgia and private firms in developing their own training programs.

 

Your Key Takeaways

Chief Cultivation Officer – Jeff’s journey to growing plants, people, and ideas From the Ground Up – How Jeff tackled the challenge of managing a multi-million dollar landscaping beautification implementation project.  The 4 Components to Leadership Turn Around At Ole Miss GROW-theory - a management and professional development approach

 

Resources

Website

Jeff on LinkedIn

Jeff on Twitter

Jeff’s Book, Growing Weeders into Leaders

 

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For more information on the Nature Advantage visit natureadvantageshow.com

 

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