by Joshua Palmer

Mike Noll founded his landscaping company in 1992 and has earned seven Super Service Awards from Angie's List. "The philosophy has always been to provide the best product we can to the client,” Noll says.

After graduating from Purdue University with a landscape architecture degree, Mike Noll landed a succession of lucrative jobs with engineering firms, but quickly realized an office environment didn't suit him.

"I like designing things and seeing them finished, but I'm not a coat-and-tie guy; I like being outdoors," he says.

He started the first iteration of his company in 1990, but a founding partner left the venture two years later, leaving Noll as the sole proprietor.

Twenty years later, what started as a seven-employee firm with Noll's home as its headquarters, has blossomed into company with more than 20 full-time employees and its own 6-acre grounds. Noll credits his long-term success to an unwavering approach to each client: "One thing I learned years ago is to treat every job with the same quality, regardless of the size," he says.

For customers, most of whom retain Noll Landscape's services for landscape redesigns and installations, that treatment includes the company's forthright advice.

"Our biggest thing is we educate people on what makes sense," Noll says. "If it doesn't make sense, we tell them don't put money into it."

Sapna Joshi of Carmel says input from Noll Landscape employees sealed the deal for her front yard landscaping redesign.

"They gave me much-needed feedback about the project. They answered my questions and showed me pictures of various plants and shrubs," she says.

"Every employee that I dealt with was excellent," says David Driggers, who hired the company to completely re-imagine his Anderson home's yard. "I am very picky when I hire, but they worked very hard."

Noll credits his company's consistently positive outcomes to an experienced crew with a strong work ethic. "We don't have a lot of turnover; most of my guys have been here at least 10 years, and they work their rear ends off," he says.