Human – We cultivate people to serve people.
Relationships are at the heart of everything we do — with clients, team members and the communities we serve.
Exceptional – Our best efforts energize everything we do.
We go beyond the basics to deliver quality that stands out and service that lasts.
Accountable – We own our outcomes.
We take pride in our work, follow through on commitments and stand behind our results.
Respectful – We live by the Golden Rule.
We treat people with dignity, act with humility and create spaces where everyone feels valued.
Trusted – Clients count on us to deliver with integrity.
We build confidence by being reliable, transparent and honest in every interaction.
At HeartLand, growth isn’t just about scale — it’s about mindset. We believe in developing leaders at every level, empowering local teams and creating meaningful opportunities for everyone in our organization. Our values don’t just hang on the wall — they show up in how we work, how we lead and how we grow together.
Our Team of Teams approach brings together local expertise with national scale. Directors, regional leaders and operating company executives work side by side to ensure every team has the tools, support and autonomy needed to thrive.
HeartLand’s Operating Partners lead day-to-day performance across their regions, working closely with local leadership to drive alignment, accountability and operational excellence.
© 2025 HeartLand. All Rights Reserved.
Edward Schatz, Jr. is a seasoned Green Industry entrepreneur with deep experience in private equity-backed landscape consolidation. As founder and CEO of HeartLand, he built the company on the belief that great companies are made by great people — and that strong relationships drive exceptional service. Under Edward’s leadership, HeartLand has grown into one of the nation’s largest commercial landscaping organizations, uniting top-performing local companies around shared values and a long-term vision for growth.
Bill Dellecker is HeartLand’s Chief Leadership Officer and a founding member of its leadership team. Since joining in 2017, he has played a key role in guiding the company’s growth from two operating companies to a $600M enterprise. He leads HeartLand’s people-first approach by overseeing HR, safety, training and sales enablement across the organization. Bill is also the author of Leadership Worthy, reflecting his commitment to building strong leaders through service, clarity and action. His guiding philosophy—People First. Purpose Second. Details Always.—continues to shape HeartLand’s culture and long-term vision.
Peter Welch is HeartLand’s Chief Financial Officer, overseeing financial planning, reporting and internal controls to guide strategic growth and operational excellence. Since joining HeartLand, he has led the implementation of enterprise resource planning (ERP) and production systems that connect financial and operational data across all operating companies. Peter champions the use of integrated information systems as both performance tools and platforms for empowerment—helping field leaders make informed, agile business decisions that create lasting value.
Rob McDonnell is a seasoned growth strategist and dealmaker who has spent his career building, transforming, and scaling businesses through strategic acquisitions and disciplined execution. At HeartLand, he has led the charge in creating a best-in-class M&A platform — assembling a talented team, forging strong relationships, and integrating top-performing companies into a unified, thriving organization. Under Rob’s leadership, HeartLand has expanded from $85 million to $600 million in revenue, fueled by a vision that growth is not just about numbers, but about people, culture, and shared success. Rob’s work is defined by his passion for long-term value creation and his belief that the best partnerships are built on trust, transparency, and a shared vision for the future.
Alex Buck is a seasoned operations leader with broad experience driving performance, growth and transformation across diverse industries. As Chief Operating Officer of HeartLand, she leads enterprise-wide execution across the company’s national platform — overseeing service delivery, client success, and the ongoing evolution of systems and infrastructure to ensure best-in-class performance. Guided by HeartLand’s belief that great companies are built by great people, Alex focuses on empowering teams, strengthening client relationships and delivering consistent, exceptional results.
As Regional Operating Partner for HeartLand, M.J. leads multi-state operations across numerous Operating Companies, ensuring service excellence, sustainable profitability and strategic growth. With 37+ years in the Green Industry, M.J. combines deep horticultural expertise with strong business and financial acumen to help drive operational performance and client satisfaction. Committed to servant leadership, he partners with local leaders to develop high-performing teams, foster a culture of accountability and deliver scalable solutions that strengthen HeartLand’s market position and create lasting value.
Tanner Spross is a Green Industry executive with deep entrepreneurial roots, having led his landscaping company through rapid growth before joining HeartLand. As Operating Partner for the Southwest Region, he works alongside local leaders to create vision, drive execution and elevate the customer experience. Tanner believes the landscaping business is built from the ground up — and that supporting frontline teams is the most important thing we can do. He’s passionate about developing people, scaling businesses and building high-performing teams that set the standard in every market we serve.
Adrian drives HeartLand’s HR strategy, safety culture and risk mitigation efforts. His team supports recruiting, compliance, team member experience and field safety programs across the network. Adrian plays a vital role in maintaining a people-first culture while ensuring a safe, compliant and scalable workforce.
Alex Cato is HeartLand’s Vice President of Business Systems, leveraging his background in finance and mergers & acquisitions to design scalable, efficient systems that drive sustainable growth. He began his career in the landscape industry in 2014 and has since focused on aligning operations and strategy to strengthen performance across the organization. Alex holds a degree in Economics and an MBA from the University of Florida, where he was also a member of the UF Marching Band. A proud Gator fan, he brings the same discipline and energy from the field to advancing HeartLand’s vision and long-term success.
Don Kelley is HeartLand’s Vice President of Fleet Operations, leading strategy and execution for more than 10,000 assets across the HeartLand companies. Since joining in 2024, he has developed a unified, data-driven national fleet strategy focused on telematics, efficiency and lifecycle optimization. A veteran of over 40 years in transportation and asset management, Don has founded and led several of the nation’s top fleet maintenance organizations and held senior roles with Ryder Transportation and Amerit. His career reflects a commitment to operational excellence, innovation and measurable results. Outside of work, Don is an avid golfer and proudly recalls his hole-in-one on Pebble Beach’s iconic 7th hole.
Natalie Shaw leads HeartLand’s Business Intelligence department, driving data strategy through scalable architecture, impactful dashboards, GIS innovations, automations and the SmartReach platform. Since joining in 2020, she has delivered real-time insights that connect operations and analytics, enabling faster decisions, greater accountability and improved business outcomes. She holds an M.S. in Environmental and Urban Geosciences, along with certifications in GIS and Data Analytics.
With a 15-year background in the energy industry, where she led finance teams through growth and transformation, Rhonda Coover brings deep experience and a passion for both numbers and people. Over the past five years at HeartLand, she has supported the company’s growth by helping to build and scale its finance organization and by overseeing the back-office side of M&A integration. Rhonda blends financial expertise with people-first leadership, always focused on strong relationships and sustainable results.
Andrew Barklage is HeartLand’s Director of Risk Management, bringing a lifelong connection to the Green Industry and nearly two decades of expertise in safety and risk. He launched his own lawn and landscape business at 14, growing it to over 50 clients before heading to college. Andrew then spent 18 years with Lockton in Kansas City, specializing in loss prevention, claims mitigation and data-driven risk strategies. His proactive, hands-on approach blends entrepreneurial roots with corporate insight to strengthen safety and risk practices across the organization. Outside of work, he’s an avid outdoorsman who enjoys fly fishing the spring-fed streams of southern Missouri and exploring waters across the U.S.
Dan Kelly is a seasoned leader with over 15 years of experience in the field services industry. As the head of HeartLand’s regional accounting team, Dan oversees financial reporting across the company’s diverse portfolio of operating companies. He believes in guiding his direct reports to answers by asking the right questions, helping them formulate viable, well-considered solutions. His leadership style emphasizes empowerment, critical thinking and accountability, ensuring accurate, timely and strategic financial insights that support HeartLand’s continued growth and operational excellence. Outside of work, Dan is an avid golfer and a passionate fan of Philadelphia sports.
With over two decades of corporate financial analysis experience, Eric Glassman serves as HeartLand’s Director of Financial Planning & Analysis, where he combines strategic insight with a passion for helping teams make confident, informed decisions. Known for his collaborative approach, Eric partners with leaders across the company to turn complex financial data into clear, actionable strategies that drive growth and efficiency. Outside the office, you’ll often find him on the golf course or enjoying the outdoors with family and friends—always appreciating the balance between focus and fun.
As Head of Enterprise AI, Jeff leads HeartLand’s company-wide AI strategy, advancing the transition from early experimentation to scalable adoption across all operating companies. Jeff brings more than 15 years of experience helping organizations apply technology to improve performance, streamline workflows, and enhance decision-making. His background spans marketing, analytics, and AI strategy, with a focus on translating complex capabilities into practical, high-impact solutions. He earned his MBA from the University of Notre Dame and his bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Colorado Boulder.
Luke Strahm is HeartLand’s Director of Accounting, leading financial reporting, month-end close and process improvement initiatives for the corporate finance team. Since joining in 2020, he has advanced through key leadership roles, including Accounting Manager, before being promoted to Director in 2025. A Kansas State University graduate with a B.S. in Financial Services, Luke brings more than 15 years of accounting expertise and a passion for automation, efficiency and transparency in financial operations.
Sherri leads HeartLand’s compensation strategy, designing equitable, competitive pay structures that align with performance, retention, and company values. She blends data-driven decisions with a commitment to fairness and a culture where employees feel valued, supported, and empowered to thrive.
Rob McDonnell is appointed Chief Development Officer, overseeing mergers, acquisitions and strategic growth.
