GROW Host Interview Series: Taylor Milliken of Milosi
Description
In this interview, Marty Grunder is joined by Taylor Milliken to talk about changes that come when you grow a company and the journey from being a high-schooler striping lawns to now being an impressive, professional operation serving Nashville's growing market.
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Episode Chapters:
00:00 - Start
01:01 - A Heartfelt Thank You
01:50 - Meet Taylor Milliken
02:31 - Taylor’s Background and Early Days
05:13 - Building the Business
07:13 - Challenges and Lessons Learned
15:19 - Focus on Customer Service
18:22 - Balancing Innovation and Focus
19:49 - Embracing Peer Groups and Industry Advocacy
21:17 - Balancing Ideas and Implementation
23:32 - The Importance of Vision and Core Values
24:26 - Write This Down!
26:03 - Leadership and Empathy in Business
29:34 - Streamlining Technology for Efficiency
34:39 - The Power of Continuous Learning
36:41 - Future Outlook and Closing Remarks
Resources:
Virtual Sales Bootcamp
Grunder Landscaping Field Trips
The Grow Group
Show Notes:
The Strategic Reset: Going Backwards to Go Forward
The Problem (2023-2024): Revenue dropped from $14M to $13M
- Got so focused on chasing sales that they forgot about current customers
- Forward-thinking about next projects meant neglecting current ones
The Solution: "Sales needs to be a product of customer service"
- Refocused on client experience first
- CEO acronym: Clients, Employees, Owners (in that order)
- Result: Record sales year (up 30%), biggest backlog ever for 2026
Hard Lessons That Stuck
The Property Line Disaster
First pool project - installed pool with property line running through middle of it, completely off client's property.
What Changed:
- Never do projects without surveys (23 years, no repeat)
- "If you don't know, you've gotta ask"
- Led to checklist-based approach
- Humility matters - admit when doing something first time
The Learning: "Professionalism is about being prepared for your client"
The Idea Filter: Stop Chasing Squirrels
Used to implement 50 things in 30 days after conferences. Nothing stuck.
Now runs every idea through:
- Does this align with our 10-year and 3-year goals?
- Does it align with core purpose and values?
- Plus, minus, or neutral impact on clients and employees?
Key Quote: "Too many businesses optimize things that shouldn't even exist in our company" - The Science of Scaling
New Rule: Pick 3 priorities maximum. Master them before adding more.
Game-Changing Communication System
The 5-10 Rule
- Email/call after 5pm → return by 10am next day
- After 10am → return by 5pm same day
- Even if you don't have answer, acknowledge receipt
The Friday Email (100% Eliminated Weekend Complaints)
Before leaving Friday, project manager emails client:
- What we accomplished this week
- What we're doing next week
- Small tasks client can help with
Why it works: Customers spend weekends looking at work and developing questions. Proactive communication eliminates reactive complaints.
Accountability: All emails CC'd to management, part of PM evaluation
The Team That Challenges You
30-day controller Sherry: "Taylor, you have the team focused on too many things. We need to focus on just being great landscapers."
Response: Within 24 hours, brought to team, deprioritized immediately.
Leadership Principle: If your team can't tell you when you're off base, you either have wrong people or need to add someone who can.
Daily Standards
Trucks washed every day before going out
- 92-foot wash bay, 8 minutes per truck
- "If you wanna know how a contractor's gonna take care of your backyard, look inside their truck"
Client meetings: Both decision makers must visit office for initial appointment
- "If I spent $200,000 in my backyard without my wife knowing, I'd be in counseling"
Strategic Reading Approach
Minimum 4 books/year for all leadership and middle management
- Quarterly company-wide book
- 3x/year department books
- Book clubs for discussion
Taylor's Method: Read books aligned with when you'll need those skills
- February: S
United States
