THE ARBORISTS LEGENDS
ACTION RESEARCH INTENSIVE
A 12-Week Seasonal Mastermind for Arborist Owners Leading High-Responsibility Operations
Created for:
Advanced Equipment Operators
Arborists running advanced equipment including grapple saws, cranes, and multi-crew systems
Emergency Response Leaders
Arborists carrying responsibility for storm response and hazardous removals
Risk Management Experts
Arborists expertly managing insurance coordination, risk evaluation, and community safety
Built for Operators Already Leading High-Stakes Work
This program serves operators already leading high-stakes work in the field. The Intensive strengthens the systems that hold an operation together: pricing, workflow, documentation, technology, and seasonal planning. Every session connects real cases to real decisions and produces tools that improve command of the business.
The Arborist Legends Action Research Intensive brings top thinkers and top operators together to define and operationalize mastery through applied research and field-proven structure.
THE WORLD ARBORISTS ARE OPERATING IN
Tree care now moves through fast-changing weather patterns, dense urban forests, rising regulatory activity, and client expectations that grow sharper every season. Arborists respond to conditions that shift rapidly: wind events, drought cycles, heat spikes, and the accelerated movement of pests and decay organisms.
These pressures reshape operations, pricing, labor, and documentation in measurable ways.
Industry Data Confirms the Scale of These Conditions
$83.4B
Global Tree-Care Services 2025
With projections rising toward $120B by 2033
$5.7B
Residential Tree Services 2034
Expanding from $1.49B in 2025
$2B
Tree-Risk Assessment Segment
Due to liability, insurance scrutiny, and municipal enforcement
Critical Operational Pressures
Labor Crisis
Skilled labor shortages hold at 20–35% vacancy across key roles
Margin Discipline
Well-run companies maintain only 10–20% profit, making operational discipline essential
These numbers reveal the pressure points where companies either stabilize or start losing control of their margins.
Where Operations Break Down
Pricing Drift
Pricing drift weakens financial structure.
Weak Documentation
Weak documentation slows insurance response.
Irregular Crew Rhythms
Irregular crew rhythms introduce safety exposure.
Inconsistent Scheduling
Inconsistent scheduling produces backlogs and costly overtime.
Municipal Requirements
Municipal requirements add layers of verification and oversight that demand accuracy and consistency.
Failure to maximize client relationships and referral networks
What Rising Arborists Do Differently
Arborists rising in this environment run disciplined operations, documented workflows, trained crews, responsible communication, and seasonally aligned planning. The Intensive strengthens those exact capabilities, especially curated ideal clientele and nurturing existing heroic target markets.
Arborist Legends Intensive Mismatches
If clear documentation, structured pricing, or disciplined workflow is not part of a company's operating protocol, the Arborist Legends Intensive is a mismatch.
This Program Is Not For Everyone
Safety Alignment Optional
If safety alignment is treated as optional or inconsistent, the Arborist Legends Intensive is a mismatch.
Habit-Based Decisions
If decisions rely on habit or guesswork rather than actual numbers and cost data, the Arborist Legends Intensive is a mismatch.
Undeveloped Systems
If scheduling, communication, or job costing systems remain undeveloped or unused, the Arborist Legends Intensive is a mismatch.
Informal Crew Operations
If crews operate informally without defined expectations, training rhythms, or accountability structures, the Arborist Legends Intensive is a mismatch.
No Seasonal Planning
If operational planning does not account for seasonal demand, weather volatility, or regulatory requirements, the Arborist Legends Intensive is a mismatch.
Motivational Focus
If a business seeks motivational coaching rather than a research-based operational environment, the Arborist Legends Intensive is a mismatch.
Cultural Misalignment
If participation in a professional cohort of disciplined operators does not align with a company's culture, the Arborist Legends Intensive is a mismatch.
The program is designed for arborist owners who run their operations with seriousness, responsibility, and a commitment to strengthening the systems that support crews, equipment, and margins.
Arborist Legends Intensive Fit
The Arborist Legends Action Research Intensive builds operational command by aligning real data, disciplined systems, and seasonal requirements.
This Intensive Aligns With Companies That:
Consistent Positive Communication and Marketing Systems
Maintain consistent client communication and marketing presence through documented systems
Advanced Equipment
Run advanced equipment including grapple saws, cranes, aerial lifts, and multi-crew configurations
High-Risk Regions
Operate in storm-exposed, drought-affected, or highly regulated / fire prone regions
Emergency Management
Manage emergency removals, insurance interaction, and complex risk evaluation
Active Crew Development
Maintain active crews requiring clear expectations, structured training, and consistent supervision
Professional Documentation
Treat documentation, communication, and scheduling as essential elements of professionalism
Predictable Margins
Want predictable margins supported by disciplined pricing and accurate job costing
Data-Driven Decisions
Value data-driven decision making rather than reactive problem solving
Peer Standards
Seek a cohort of peers operating at a similar professional standard
Seasonal Planning
Commit to building stable operational rhythms across winter, spring, summer, and fall
Companies aligned with these characteristics tend to stabilize faster, build stronger crews, and create more reliable growth across seasonal cycles. The Intensive strengthens the operational structures that allow high-performing arborists to run safer, more profitable, and more resilient organizations.
The Guides
The Arborist Legends Action Research Intensive integrates two core vantage points: advanced field operations and applied research. This synthesis gives participants access to decision-making models grounded in actual removals, storm events, crew dynamics, and diagnostic work across high-risk service environments.
Andrew Bachman
Trout Brook Arborists
Bachman contributes operational intelligence shaped by decades in complex removals, crane operations, storm response, insurance coordination, and high-exposure residential and commercial work. He brings the field-tested judgment required to manage crews, equipment, and scheduling under real pressure. His perspective reflects the operational demands arborists face each season: weather volatility, liability, labor constraints, and the rising need for accurate assessment and documented process.
Donald Stojack
Chief Legacy Officer, LEGENDS Research
Stojack contributes analytical structure built on operational diagnostics, quarterly planning, and applied action research. He identifies patterns, exposes system drift, strengthens pricing logic, and establishes predictable operating rhythms. His approach supports margin stability and disciplined decision cycles across seasonal fluctuations.
Dr. Kimberly Bonniksen
Founder, LEGENDS Research
Dr. Bonniksen contributes research grounded in decision architecture, risk communication, and client-perception analysis. Her work clarifies how documentation, narrative precision, insurer expectations, and municipal communication shape operational outcomes. She strengthens the analytical side of field decisions by connecting evidence, communication, and liability impact.
Tyler Ellison
Chief Pathfinder, LEGENDS Research
Ellison contributes technical evaluation across CRM systems, dispatch, documentation architecture, automation, and data integrity. He supports arborists building digital infrastructure that improves scheduling accuracy, cash-flow visibility, and operational accountability.
Together, Bachman, Stojack, Dr. Bonniksen, and Ellison create a structured environment where owner-operators analyze real cases, interrogate their data, expose operational weak points, and build systems that withstand storms, drought cycles, regulatory shifts, and the demands of high-value clients. This multi-disciplinary framework strengthens relationships across sectors, within the arboriculture field, decision quality, operational stability, and the structural integrity of the business.
Program Structure
The Arborist Legends Action Research Intensive follows a quarterly cycle that mirrors the operational rhythm of arboriculture. Each quarter spans twelve weeks and anchors the work to the conditions that shape winter, spring, summer, or fall operations. The structure supports owners who manage crews, equipment, and risk under real seasonal pressures. The program delivers two sessions each week. Both sessions address the same research focus but apply it to different cases to provide broader pattern visibility.
Weekly Session Structure
Technical Research Seminar
45 minutes of method-focused instruction grounded in pricing logic, scheduling structures, risk evaluation, documentation design, technology adoption, or seasonal forecasting. Each seminar introduces a research method or operational model supported by current industry data.
Field Case Lab
45 minutes of applied analysis using a real job from Bachman's archive or a case contributed by the cohort. Participants examine decision sequencing, equipment selection, hazard evaluation, insurer expectations, margin outcomes, and communication patterns. The Case Lab converts theory into operational visibility.
Optional Q&A Period
30 minutes reserved for direct operational analysis. Owners bring current work, documentation challenges, or system questions. This segment exists to apply the week's material to live operational conditions.
Participants may attend one or both weekly sessions based on workload, weather, or crew demands. Both sessions contribute to the research cycle and advance the quarterly operating plan.
What Participants Build Across Twelve Weeks
Job-costing and margin maps
Lead-to-payment workflow systems
Crew scorecards and meeting rhythms
Structured risk-assessment and documentation frameworks
Technology-readiness evaluations
Quarterly financial and operational dashboards
Communication frameworks for homeowner, commercial, and municipal clients
Seasonal operational plans aligned with actual weather and regulatory cycles
The structure produces repeatable operational methods that stabilize margins, reduce scheduling volatility, strengthen crew alignment, and increase documentation accuracy across seasonal conditions.
Outcomes and Value
The Arborist Legends Action Research Intensive produces measurable operational improvement because arboriculture follows identifiable patterns across weather, labor, liability, and regulatory cycles. Companies that evaluate their own data and apply structured methods strengthen margin control, workflow stability, and decision accuracy.
Measurable Operational Improvements
Margin Retention
Participants establish pricing and job-costing models calibrated to labor, equipment, and regional conditions. Research shows disciplined costing increases margin retention to the 10–25% range.
Cash-Flow Stability
Clear lead-to-payment workflows and quarterly forecasts reduce revenue volatility. Structured forecasting models reduce cash-flow swings by 15–30% during storm cycles and seasonal demand shifts.
Labor Utilization and Safety Alignment
Defined crew expectations, safety rhythms, and supervisory patterns lower incident exposure. Industry tracking recorded 243 tree-care accidents in 2023; companies with structured communication show materially lower incident rates. Clear advancement paths improve retention by 15–25% in a market with 20–35% vacancy in key roles.
Operational Efficiency
Accurate documentation, consistent CRM use, and disciplined scheduling reduce administrative drift. The arborist software sector reached $2.58B in 2024 and is projected to exceed $6.18B by 2035, reflecting the industry's movement toward data-driven operations. Companies applying structured workflows report higher conversion and fewer scheduling gaps.
Insurance and Risk-Assessment Performance
Risk assessment now represents a $2B segment. Participants strengthen documentation, hazard evaluation, and communication with adjusters. These improvements shorten payment cycles and reduce dispute frequency.
Crew Stability and Culture
Operational consistency—meeting rhythms, scorecards, training standards—produces steadier crews and reduces turnover. Companies with defined systems report 15–25% stronger retention and improved alignment during high-pressure weather events.
Peer Accountability and Research Discipline
Cross-industry analyses show action-research cohorts complete 95% of stated goals and grow 1.5–2.2× faster than firms without structured accountability. Regular review of data, decisions, and systems significantly accelerates operational maturity.
The Intensive consolidates these gains into a quarterly structure that strengthens margin control, increases operational precision, and stabilizes performance across variable environmental and regulatory conditions.
Investment and Enrollment
The Arborist Legends Action Research Intensive operates on a quarterly schedule that follows the seasonal rhythm of the industry.
Quarterly Investment
$15,000
(Per Business)
Enrollment is $15,000 per quarter for Founders, which includes:
- 24 interactive sessions
- Marketing collateral, operational templates, dashboards, and documentation systems
- Original research attributable to each member of the cohort released quarterly
- Seasonal forecasting tools
- Access to field-case archives
- Quarterly research summaries
- Dedicated question and response periods with Bachman and Stojack
- Entry into the private Arborist Legends cohort
Limited Quarterly Cohort
Cohort size remains limited to ensure focused analysis and meaningful peer interaction.
Renewal for Active Participants
Current members may renew their place in future quarters as long as participation remains consistent and cohort standards stay aligned.
Final Invitation
Arboriculture now moves through weather volatility, rising liability, regulatory expansion, and increasing expectations from residential, commercial, and municipal clients. Companies that outperform these conditions do so through disciplined systems, accurate data, trained crews, and consistent decision architecture.
The Arborist Legends Action Research Intensive exists for owners who operate inside these realities and want a stronger command of their margins, crews, and seasonal performance. The program brings together advanced field operators, applied researchers, and technology specialists to strengthen the structural elements that sustain a professional tree-care company.
Enrollment Process
Step 1
Complete the application form on this page
Step 2
Schedule a vetting conversation with Donald Stojack
Step 3
Receive enrollment confirmation
Step 4
Complete a brief operational intake
Step 5
Begin the twelve-week quarter with the cohort
If the next season requires greater stability, clearer systems, and stronger operational control, you are invited to apply for the upcoming quarter. The cohort admits a limited number of owners each season to preserve depth of analysis and the quality of peer review.The application form is available below.Once submitted, you will be invited to schedule a vetting conversation with Donald Stojack.If accepted, you will enter the twelve-week Intensive with a clear operating mandate and the tools required to strengthen your business for the season ahead.
Each season rewards operators with disciplined systems and penalizes those without them. Join when strengthening those systems becomes a priority.