When Systems and Heart Grow Together

For years, companies have tried to fix performance issues by adding more data, more tools, and more process. They build dashboards, automate workflows, and chase efficiency. Then they look up and realize something is still missing.

Emotional intelligence sits in that gap. It is the difference between a system that looks great on paper and a culture where people actually want to stay, grow, and give their best. It shows up in how leaders listen, how they make decisions, and how they hold ambition and humanity at the same time.

On The Bliss Business Podcast, we sat down with Jennifer Lemcke, CEO of Weed Man, one of North America’s largest lawn care franchise systems with more than 700 locations across Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Jennifer grew up inside the business, working alongside her father, husband, and now her daughter, and has helped turn a small local franchise into a global brand. Her story is a masterclass in how systems and heart can grow together.

Emotional Intelligence Is the Core, Not the Extra

When Jennifer looks at Weed Man’s success, she does not start with the usual list of reasons. She acknowledges the importance of systems and processes, yet she is clear that emotional intelligence sits at the core of the story. In her view, you can copy and paste a business model into new markets, but you cannot copy and paste genuine care for people. That has to be intentional.

She watched this mindset from the beginning. Her father was an engineer by training who decided to run his single territory as if it were already a large organization. He built plans, systems, and training from day one. At the same time, he was intentional about people: onboarding them well, investing in their success, and modeling the work ethic he expected.

Jennifer carried that forward. Emotional intelligence for her is not about being nice. It is about being willing to roll up her sleeves, work harder than anyone else, and still center the success of the people around her. Her franchisees and employees know that if they call, she will pick up, whether it is a good day or a hard one. That consistency of presence is what builds trust over time.

Systems That Let You Hire for Attitude

One of the pivotal moments in her journey came from dissecting a classic business book, The E Myth Revisited. The insight was simple and practical: build systems so strong that you can hire anyone with a great attitude and teach them the technical skills.

Weed Man applied that idea across operations and franchising. As their own franchise grew from one million to thirty million in revenue, they had to build out systems for everything:

• How to onboard and train new employees

• How to replicate quality from territory to territory

• How to support franchisees as they scaled beyond what they had ever imagined

Those systems eventually became the backbone for acquiring the master rights to the United States and then the worldwide rights to the brand. Yet Jennifer is quick to point out that systems alone are not the differentiator. The differentiator is the way those systems are used.

They are designed to free leaders to hire for attitude, culture fit, and values. They allow the organization to bring in people who may not have lawn care experience but are willing to learn, care about customers, and share the company’s standards. Emotional intelligence and systems are not at odds. The systems make it possible to prioritize people.

Data and Empathy Can Coexist

We live in a business world that is obsessed with data, and Weed Man is no exception. Jennifer talks about tracking nearly everything: closing rates, inbound and outbound performance, marketing campaigns, and operational metrics. Dashboards and scoreboards are a regular part of the conversation.

The difference is the lens. Data is not a weapon. It is a foundation for empathetic coaching.

When she sits down with a franchisee, they are not seeing numbers for the first time. They have already built a business plan together, with the franchisee’s own goals and vision front and center. Data then becomes a way to revisit that vision and ask honest questions:

Are we still on track for what you said you wanted for your life and business?
What changed since we last talked?
How can we adjust together so the numbers match the future you care about?

This is where emotional intelligence becomes practical. Jennifer uses data to stir honest conversations, create healthy competition, and hold people accountable, but she does it with empathy and respect. Franchisees know she is on their side, not just policing performance.

The lesson is simple. Data and empathy are not competing priorities. Data tells you where to look. Empathy tells you how to show up.

Purpose Beyond a Revenue Target

Weed Man has a bold vision: to become a billion dollar company, a milestone they are well on their way to reaching. But Jennifer is clear that the number itself is not what gets her out of bed in the morning.

The real purpose lives underneath the revenue goal. For her, growth is about creating opportunities:

• Employees buying their first homes and cars

• Franchisees building wealth that changes their family’s future

• Next generation leaders stepping into roles that did not exist a decade ago

She talks openly about the joy of watching long time team members, some with thirty year careers in the business, build lives they are proud of. Growth is the mechanism that keeps those opportunities coming. A company that is not growing, she says, is a company that is quietly shrinking.

The purpose is also deeply human. Weed Man is in the business of beautifying the world. The work may look simple from the outside, but they understand that a well cared for yard can change how people feel at home, how they gather with family, and how they experience their environment. Purpose turns everyday tasks into something more meaningful than a checklist.

Growing a Business and a Family at the Same Time

Jennifer’s leadership story is also a family story. She started in the business as a teenager when her father bought his first franchise. She worked her way through operations, helped build one of the largest franchise operations in the network, and eventually stepped into ownership of the brand itself. Along the way, she raised three children, welcomed her daughter into the company, and now has grandchildren.

When asked about balance, she is refreshingly honest. In her experience, balance in the strict sense does not really exist. Some days the family needs to come first. Other days the business must. Sometimes she needs to prioritize her role as a wife, sometimes as a CEO.

Rather than chasing a perfect equilibrium, she focuses on doing the right thing for people in front of her in each season. Emotional intelligence shows up as knowing which role needs her full presence in a given moment, and giving herself grace when the lines blur. That same grace extends to her team and franchisees, many of whom are juggling similar tensions.

Love, Grace, and the Real Scoreboard

Late in the conversation, the topic turns to love. It is a word many business leaders avoid. Jennifer does not.

She talks about loving her employees and franchisees, even when some are more challenging than others. Love shows up as trust, loyalty, and grace. It shows up as staying on the phone late at night to work through a crisis. It shows up at their annual conference, where she hands out awards with a box of tissues beside her because she knows she will get emotional celebrating other people’s success.

The real scoreboard, in her eyes, is not just revenue or unit count. It is standing in a room of hundreds of franchisees and knowing that you would pick up the phone for any of them, and that they would do the same for you. It is building a culture where people can compete, strive, and grow without losing their humanity.

In that light, emotional intelligence and love are not soft ideas. They are the structural beams that hold up the entire franchise system.

Key Takeaways

• Emotional intelligence is the core of sustainable growth, not a bonus skill. It shapes how leaders listen, decide, and build trust at scale.

• Strong systems allow you to hire for attitude, not just technical skill. When processes are clear, you can focus on culture, fit, and values.

• Data and empathy can coexist. Numbers should be the starting point for supportive coaching, not one sided judgment.

• Purpose gives growth meaning. Ambitious revenue goals matter, but the deeper purpose is often about opportunity, dignity, and impact on everyday lives.

• Real balance is seasonal. Emotional intelligence helps leaders decide when family, business, or personal health needs to be the priority for that day.

• Love and grace belong in leadership. Caring deeply about people, celebrating their wins, and staying present during hard moments creates a culture that both performs and endures.

Final Thoughts

Emotional intelligence in business is not a slogan. It is a daily practice that shapes how leaders build systems, use data, set goals, and show up for the people who trust them.

Jennifer Lemcke’s story is a reminder that you can grow a large, data driven, franchise organization and still lead with heart. In fact, the more complex the system becomes, the more essential that heart is.

Check out our full conversation with Jennifer Lemcke on The Bliss Business Podcast.