Ruppert Landscape announced the addition of Michele Lewis and Victor Smith as estimators and Kellie Mason as a branch administrator in its Virginia Landscape Construction branch.

Ruppert Landscape announces three key hires

Ruppert Landscape announced the addition of Michele Lewis and Victor Smith as estimators and Kellie Mason as a branch administrator in its Virginia Landscape Construction branch. These hires were made to accommodate growth in the branch.


Lewis, a resident of Gainsville, Va., has a background in finance and a passion for the green industry, which led her back to school where she studied Landscape Contracting at Penn State University. “Michele is a great match for our organization because she brings with her a cautious confidence that comes from her foundation in finance as well as a penchant for learning and team building,” said Ken Thompson, branch manager. “She’ll be a great asset to our team as she continues to grow into this position.”


Smith, a resident of Ashburn, Va., has a bachelor of science in geology from West Virginia University and brings with him a diverse construction background that includes both landscape and environment industries. “Victor’s experience with environmental sitework and years of solid estimating experience made him an ideal fit for our expanding team. In fact, at the time of both Michele and Victor’s hire, we had only intended to bring on one estimator. But their enthusiasm, varied experience levels and diverse backgrounds made it impossiblefor us to choose just one. With our continued anticipated growth in the next few years, we made the decision to hire them both.”


In their estimating positions, both Lewis and Smith will be responsible for accurately estimating direct costs for landscape installation bids and change orders based on plans, specifications and site inspections. This includes verifying all material costs, qualifying subcontractor quotations, calculating labor hours, capturing miscellaneous expenses and assigning preliminary margins.


Mason, a resident of Gainesville, Va., has been in the construction industry for over six years and brings with her knowledge of the construction industry, payroll and billing. “In a recent past position, Kellie was a field office coordinator for large construction firm,” said Thompson. “This experience and related industry field knowledge made her a perfect match for our branch administrator position and we are looking forward to many good things from her.”


As a branch administrator, Mason will be responsible for maintaining and organizing all communication in and out of the office, weekly payroll, accounts payable and receivable processing as well as generating/maintaining financial reports and other general office duties.


Ruppert Landscape provides commercial landscape construction and management in Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Georgia and North Carolina from 15 branch offices.