A tree care office manager leads billing, the CSR team and the paperwork each tree job needs before a crew rolls. That means street tree permits, HOA approvals, access notes for gates and neighbors' yards, and insurance certificates for property managers and towns.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, landscaping and tree care companies · BLS, May 2025
The Office Manager will be a vital component within our Arborist / Tree Care team, ensuring the smooth running of administrative duties and daily office tasks. This individual will play a key role in maintaining our reputation for excellent customer service and efficient operations.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Oversee administrative duties, including scheduling, billing, and record-keeping.
Support the Operations Director in managing day-to-day office tasks.
Coordinate communication between different departments.
Implement and maintain administrative systems to enhance efficiency.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Manage customer inquiries and resolve any billing issues.
Coordinate with field teams to schedule and track jobs.
Process invoices and payments.
Compile and distribute internal reports.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Efficiency of administrative systems: >80%
Customer Satisfaction Rating: >4.8 stars
Accurate billing and record-keeping: 100%
Timely communication with departments: within 1 business day
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
High school diploma or equivalent.
Minimum of 3 years of experience in office administration.
Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite.
Excellent communication and organizational skills.
6. Preferred Experience
Prior experience in the Arborist / Tree Care industry or other home services.
Experience with accounting software such as QuickBooks.
7. Physical Requirements
Able to sit for extended periods.
Able to lift up to 15 pounds.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Typical work hours: Monday to Friday, 9AM - 5PM.
Occasional weekend work may be required during peak seasons.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Salary range: $40,000 - $50,000 annually, based on experience.
Health, Dental, and Vision insurance.
401k retirement plan.
Paid time off.
10. Company Culture and Overview
At [INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE], we are more than a team - we are a family. We believe in providing our employees with opportunities for growth and development, while maintaining a culture of respect and inclusivity. We are committed to delivering outstanding customer service and want our employees to share in our success and passion for the Arborist / Tree Care industry.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
What makes a tree care office manager job different
Many tree jobs can't start on the day they're sold. A town, an HOA, a neighbor or a property manager may have to say yes first, and the office collects each of those yeses.
The tree by the curb may be the town's
Trees between the curb and the sidewalk often belong to the town, and many towns want a permit first. In Allouez, Wisconsin, for example, the village requires one before any work on a tree in its right-of-way. The application must include a certificate of insurance naming the village as an additional insured, and pruning there must be done by an ISA Certified Arborist. Work has to happen inside the permit's window, or the office applies again. Check each town you serve. Source: Village of Allouez, Wisconsin (example): Right-of-way tree maintenance permit application.
An HOA letter goes in the file
Some homeowner associations want to approve a removal before it happens, and their boards may meet only once a month. The office asks at booking whether the home is in an HOA, sends the arborist's written estimate and photos with the request, and keeps the job off the schedule until a signed approval sits in the file.
Access gets planned before the truck arrives
A bucket truck or crane may need a neighbor's driveway, a side yard or a fence panel taken down. The office gets the neighbor's okay in writing and notes gate codes, dogs, septic tanks and soft lawns. It reminds the customer to clear cars from the driveway. Photos of the lawn and drive taken before work starts settle most rut and crack complaints later.
A certificate isn't coverage
Property managers and commercial owners often ask to be named as an additional insured and promised notice if your policy is canceled. Nebraska's insurance department, for one, says a certificate of insurance can't amend, extend or alter a policy, and a broker may not add notice promises the policy doesn't contain. So the office sends each request to your broker, files the policy endorsements, and sends new certificates before old ones expire. Source: Nebraska Department of Insurance (example): Issuance of certificates of insurance (IGD-D3, October 2022).
How much tree care office managers make
The closest BLS group for tree care office managers is First-Line supervisors of office and administrative support workers. First-Line supervisors of office and administrative support workers who work for landscaping companies earned a median of $31.40 an hour ($65,310 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s below the $69,500 median for First-Line supervisors of office and administrative support workers in all industries. About 3,800 of the 1,436,680 First-Line supervisors of office and administrative support workers in that survey work for landscaping and tree care companies.
The template's pay is a straight salary. An owner who wants a bonus can base it on office results, like invoices sent the day a job closes and crews never sent out without a needed permit or approval.
Landscaping and tree care companies
$65,310$65,310 median Middle half $54,890–$79,880 10th–90th $44,510–$101,020
All industries
$69,500$69,500 median Middle half $55,950–$85,090 10th–90th $45,610–$104,710
$25k$50k$75k$100k$125k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Landscaping and tree care companies
$44,510
$54,890
$65,310
$79,880
$101,020
All industries
$45,610
$55,950
$69,500
$85,090
$104,710
BLS doesn’t publish pay for tree care companies on their own. These figures cover landscaping services, which include them. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Keeps a list of pending permits and approvals and chases each to an answer
Splits storm-week callbacks among the CSRs and checks that none are missed
Writes access notes a crew can follow at 7 a.m.
Gets the invoice out the day the crew finishes, and calls about removal balances past due
Works easily with brokers, town offices and property managers
Teach these on the job
Each town's street tree permit steps
Your HOA approval request packet
Certificates, endorsements and property managers' vendor portals
Tree terms on estimates: crown reduction, removal, stump grinding, plant health care
Your tree care software and QuickBooks
Most tree offices build estimates, work orders and invoices in a tree care platform such as ArboStar, with QuickBooks for the books. Add town permit portals, the vendor portals where property managers collect certificates, and a shared calendar of pending approvals.
Tree care office manager interview questions
Two of the 6 questions we'd ask, and what a strong answer sounds like. Ask every candidate the same questions, and rate each answer on your own before you compare notes.
Situational · Locates before stump grinding
A stump grinding job is on tomorrow's schedule, but there's no 811 ticket on file. What do you do?
A strong answer: Holds the job, gets the locate request in, tells dispatch and the customer the new date, asks the customer about private lines like irrigation or lighting, and adds the ticket check to the job checklist.
Behavioral · Admin systems
Tell me about an office system you set up, such as permit tracking or billing by job phase, that fixed a recurring problem.
A strong answer: Names the problem, the system and how often the problem happened afterward.
Start from how the office runs today. Track jobs held for paperwork and billing errors for a season before you fix the targets.
Efficiency of administrative systems
Count jobs that slipped because paperwork wasn't ready: a permit, an HOA letter, a neighbor's okay or a certificate. Track it monthly, with the usual approval wait for each town.
Customer Satisfaction Rating
Monthly stars and written feedback where customers bring up the office: callbacks, clear estimates, correct bills. Sort complaints by cause each month and fix the most common one first.
Accurate billing and record-keeping
Invoices right the first time: deposit applied, correct tax code, work matching the work order. Count every credit and rebill as a miss, and keep permits and approvals filed with each job.
Timely communication with departments
Time from a crew leader's or arborist's question in the job notes to the office's reply. A crew stuck in a driveway without a gate code counts more than an email. Log those apart, and storm weeks too.
Who handles tree permits, the office or the arborist?
The arborist who quotes the job flags it. They note the tree's size and kind, whether it stands in the town's strip, and whether local rules protect it. The office takes it from there with the town: the form, the photos and the certificate the town wants. Once the town says yes, the permit number goes on the work order. Then the crew can show it if an inspector stops by.
How much does a tree care office manager make?
First-Line supervisors of office and administrative support workers who work for landscaping companies earned a median of $31.40 an hour ($65,310 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $54,890 and $79,880 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and overtime.
What do property managers usually ask for before tree work?
Expect a vendor packet: a W-9, a certificate of insurance, often an endorsement naming them as an additional insured, and sometimes proof of workers' comp or an ISA credential. Larger management companies collect them online. The office keeps one current set ready and notes each account's renewal date, so no invoice is held for missing paperwork.
The template mentions an Operations Director. Who is that at a tree company?
Of the roles a tree company like this has, the closest is the operations manager, who plans crews, machines and the week's jobs. The office manager backs that person up by keeping approvals, bills and customer calls moving. At a company with two yards, the office manager may also answer to the general manager for one market. Put the real reporting line in your ad.
How does the office help customers after a storm?
Homeowners filing insurance claims often need an itemized invoice and photos of the tree and the damage. The office sends those quickly and in one email. It also keeps the callback list, confirms each make-safe visit, and sends the bill when the job closes, so the customer isn't waiting on paperwork to file.
What does the office do when a customer reports lawn or driveway damage?
Pull the photos taken before the job, then ask the customer for pictures of the damage that day. Send both to the operations manager or the crew leader, and tell the customer who will call back and when. Ruts from a bucket truck or a loader can often be fixed with soil and seed; a cracked drive may need a contractor. Log every claim so repeat problems point to a crew or a machine.
