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What does a grounds/maintenance specialist do?

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read
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Grounds/maintenance specialist responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real grounds/maintenance specialist resumes:

  • Manage clients and run all landscape operations including groundskeeping, seasonal cleaning, and pressure washing
  • Seed, place grass sod, mow, irrigate, fertilize and maintain lawns.
  • Mow and landscape when need.
  • Golf course maintenance, mowing, trimming, landscape, bunkers, etc.
  • Learned the ways of specific techniques of raking bunkers, cutting grass, and working with precision tools.
  • Maintain airport grounds using commercial mowing and construction equipment.
  • Repair electrical equipment and control circuits; replace faulty electrical switches; repair refrigeration equipment.
  • Drive and use bucket, line/boom trucks, side loaders, backhoes, bobcat, and bulldozers.

Grounds/maintenance specialist skills and personality traits

We calculated that 39% of Grounds/Maintenance Specialists are proficient in GRASS, Snow Blowers, and Blowers. They’re also known for soft skills such as Physical stamina, Customer-service skills, and Dexterity.

We break down the percentage of Grounds/Maintenance Specialists that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • GRASS, 39%

    Mixed and sprayed fertilizers, herbicides and insecticides onto grass, shrubs, and trees utilizinghand or automatic sprayers and spreaders.

  • Snow Blowers, 22%

    Operated various types of lawn and grounds keeping machinery; tractors, bobcats, push mowers, snow blowers, etc.

  • Blowers, 10%

    Operated tractors w/20ft.Tri deck Bush Hog, riding and walk-behind lawn mowers, hedgers, weed eaters, edgers and blowers.

  • OSHA, 9%

    Ensured all activity and personnel complied with OSHA and DOT safety regulations.

  • Flower Beds, 5%

    Care for established lawns, weeding, grubbing, removing thatch, or trimming, or edging flower beds.

  • Mowers, 4%

    Operate heavy machinery including: Lawn mowers, wood chipper, and stump grinder.

"grass," "snow blowers," and "blowers" are among the most common skills that grounds/maintenance specialists use at work. You can find even more grounds/maintenance specialist responsibilities below, including:

Physical stamina. The most essential soft skill for a grounds/maintenance specialist to carry out their responsibilities is physical stamina. This skill is important for the role because "grounds maintenance workers must be able to do strenuous labor for long periods of time, occasionally in extreme heat or cold." Additionally, a grounds/maintenance specialist resume shows how their duties depend on physical stamina: "repair and maintain all mechanical, electrical, plumbing, carpentry and physical building. "

Dexterity. grounds/maintenance specialists are also known for dexterity, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to grounds/maintenance specialist responsibilities, because "grounds maintenance workers must have good eye, foot, and hand coordination when using dangerous or heavy equipment such as backhoes, mowers, and tractors." A grounds/maintenance specialist resume example shows how dexterity is used in the workplace: "skid loaders, aerial lifts, forklifts, snow removal equipment, etc. )"

Most common grounds/maintenance specialist skills

The three companies that hire the most grounds/maintenance specialists are:

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Compare different grounds/maintenance specialists

Grounds/maintenance specialist vs. Yard worker

A yard worker provides landscape maintenance services to homes and establishments. Their responsibilities typically include meeting with clients to identify their needs and landscape preferences, mowing lawns, growing plants and trees, applying pesticides and fertilizers, operating irrigation systems, and maintaining grounds clean and presentable. There are also instances when a yard worker may participate in installing fixtures such as ponds, topiaries, lighting, Christmas ornaments, and other decorations in adherence to the directives of clients or management.

The annual salary of yard workers is $876 higher than the average salary of grounds/maintenance specialists.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both grounds/maintenance specialist and yard worker positions are skilled in osha, flower beds, and mowers.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between grounds/maintenance specialists and yard worker. For instance, grounds/maintenance specialist responsibilities require skills such as "grass," "snow blowers," "blowers," and "grounds maintenance." Whereas a yard worker is skilled in "basic math," "strong customer service," "math," and "customer service." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Yard workers earn the highest salaries when working in the automotive industry, with an average yearly salary of $33,845. On the other hand, grounds/maintenance specialists are paid more in the hospitality industry with an average salary of $33,373.The education levels that yard workers earn slightly differ from grounds/maintenance specialists. In particular, yard workers are 1.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a grounds/maintenance specialist. Additionally, they're 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Grounds/maintenance specialist vs. Lawn care worker

A lawn care worker specializes in enhancing and maintaining the cleanliness of gardens and landscapes. Most of the responsibilities will require manual work and attention to detail, along with time management. The majority of the tasks will revolve around mowing and cleaning lawns, trimming trees and other plants, maintaining flower beds, and sometimes cleaning garden fixtures. A lawn care worker may also apply pesticides and other chemicals, install ponds or irrigation, recommend fertilizers, and operate different devices or equipment.

On average, lawn care workers earn a $2,085 lower salary than grounds/maintenance specialists a year.A few skills overlap for grounds/maintenance specialists and lawn care workers. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "grass," "snow blowers," and "blowers. "

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that grounds/maintenance specialist responsibilities requires skills like "osha," "grounds maintenance," "hand tools," and "building maintenance." But a lawn care worker might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "water lawns," "cpr," "program rules," and "incident reports."

Lawn care workers may earn a lower salary than grounds/maintenance specialists, but lawn care workers earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $32,844. On the other hand, grounds/maintenance specialists receive higher pay in the hospitality industry, where they earn an average salary of $33,373.lawn care workers earn similar levels of education than grounds/maintenance specialists in general. They're 0.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Grounds/maintenance specialist vs. Lawn technician

A storekeeper is responsible for managing all a store's operations and overseeing the care and maintenance of stocks, including inventory management. Your duties will include receiving, unloading, and shelving supplies, inspecting deliveries for discrepancies and damage, and managing all documentation. In addition, you will be responsible for maintaining inventory control and coordinating freight handling. You are also responsible for planning campaigns to promote new products, mediating any conflicts between clients and staff, maintaining a sales record, and purchasing new products.

On average, lawn technicians earn higher salaries than grounds/maintenance specialists, with a $608 difference per year.grounds/maintenance specialists and lawn technicians both have job responsibilities that require similar skill sets. These similarities include skills such as "snow blowers," "blowers," and "flower beds," but they differ when it comes to other required skills.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from grounds/maintenance specialist resumes include skills like "grass," "osha," "grounds maintenance," and "hand tools," whereas a lawn technician is more likely to list skills in "quality customer service," "fertilize lawns," "pest control," and "safety procedures. "

Lawn technicians earn the highest salary when working in the construction industry, where they receive an average salary of $33,766. Comparatively, grounds/maintenance specialists have the highest earning potential in the hospitality industry, with an average salary of $33,373.lawn technicians typically earn similar educational levels compared to grounds/maintenance specialists. Specifically, they're 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Grounds/maintenance specialist vs. Keeper

Keepers tend to earn a higher pay than grounds/maintenance specialists by an average of $1,854 per year.Each job also requires different skills to carry out their responsibilities. A grounds/maintenance specialist uses "grass," "snow blowers," "blowers," and "osha." Keepers are more likely to have duties that require skills in "guest rooms," "dependability," "excellent guest," and "animal husbandry. "The manufacturing industry tends to pay the highest salaries for keepers, with average annual pay of $38,817. Comparatively, the highest grounds/maintenance specialist annual salary comes from the hospitality industry.In general, keepers hold similar degree levels compared to grounds/maintenance specialists. Keepers are 1.4% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of grounds/maintenance specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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