What would you do if you saw a raccoon with a broken leg in the middle of the road? Some see raccoons as vicious creatures who rummage, gnaw, or attack anything. On one busy day, no one has the luxury of time to pull over on the side of the road, call the authorities, and find ways to save that raccoon. However, Andrew “Andy” Eickman did otherwise. For Minnesotan locals, raccoons are most commonly seen in urban areas, such as the metro area. They are considered pests and one of Abra Kadabra’s most commonly encountered pests.
Abra Kadabra has received several calls and complaints about dealing with these nuisance pests, which can be considered a health and safety hazard. Andy is familiar with and is primarily an expert when dealing with pests. I found it amusing how Andy took the time to find a way to save the injured raccoon in the middle of the road. It was a fair, typical day for anyone in the office at Abra Kadabra. Andy was driving to the office early as usual when he came to see that poor raccoon. He’s scheduled to have three on-site inspections and a leadership meeting with his brother, Phil, and co-workers Max and Andrea.
Andy as a Lead Wildlife Inspector
The leadership meeting will allow the company to assess its overall numbers, projections, and issues. Andy works mainly on the wildlife side of things–and it gave me a clearer picture of who Andy might be. Ironically, he was greatly concerned about a Raccoon that’s supposed to be a pest he’s been looking out for in homes and properties he’s worked with. Fair enough, cause I thought Raccoons in the wild aren’t harmful. They are supposed to cohabit with us humans, and Abra Kadabra’s job is to put them back in their place in the wild. This is more of Andy’s scope regarding his role in Abra Kadabra.
He started working with Abra Kadabra when it was just a small pest control company. He joined his brother and now CEO, Matt, in 2017 to work on mosquito control. A few months later, he dabbled into being a structural pest control technician doing quarterly services and pest treatments for residential clients. Quickly after, when Matt took over Abra Kadabra and added wildlife services to its roster, Andy dealt with work for Raccoon and Squirells, specifically sealing their entry points in properties.
In the last four years, Andy has been fully working as a full-time Wildlife Inspector. He is a Master Certified Pest Control Technician and is also certified for Mosquito Services in Minnesota. Additionally, he also has certifications for Bat Control and Wildlife Services for the National Wildlife Control Operators Association, a certification in Zootonic Diseases, Bird Control, and Rodent Control. He’s been in the lead inspector role for about three years.
Interesting Facts About Andy
Taking it back to Andy’s younger years, he finished a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management with a Minor in Spanish. He’s worked in sales most of his life and then transitioned into automotive service sales for two years after graduating from college and moving back to Minneapolis.
Working primarily in the field can be exhausting. But that doesn’t stop Andy from taking time outside work to enjoy his hobbies. Recently, Andy just acquired a food smoker, and he’s been having a marvelous time cooking meat and other types of food. It’s one of his favorite pastimes during the weekend. Other than that, he’s also been into competitive shooting and hunting.
Additional Fun Facts About Andy
- Andy calls himself a gearhead. He used to work on cars and expressed how much he loves cars. He used to tinker with vehicles and fix them for some of his relatives and friends.
- Andy is into real-time strategy video gaming.
- He’s the oldest of six kids.
- He has full-sleeve tattoos on his arms.
- He used to work at a Maserati Bentley dealership when he was 19 years old and on a detail shop.
- He was able to drive lots of cars when he was just 19
- He went to College in South Dakota
Behind Abra Kadabra’s Hero
Andy is married to his wife of four years; they’ve been together for ten years in total. For someone who works mostly outside the field, Andy takes that experience to enjoy his love for social interaction and talking to new people. “I enjoy that part of my job, meeting new people and solving their issues. They have a problem there, and I give them a solution to their issue that’s causing them stress, so it’s not hard for me to enjoy my job. So it doesn’t drain me as much,” Andy said. He makes sure that he’s at his 100% and is prepared for the day, so he brings sunscreen and a cooler packed with fluids when it’s hot outside since he goes in and out of attics throughout the day, which can be on a hundred degrees. Andy brings his rain gear on rainy days to ensure he stays dry.
“Being in the field means being prepared for what the outside weather is going to do to you or expose you to and making sure that you can still do your job comfortably and safely.”
Andy doesn’t want to put himself in an unsafe situation where he can’t solve the client’s problem because the equipment needed is missing. Loving his job helps him a lot to not notice the struggles and hardships that come with it. He wakes up every morning with a passionate heart to serve the people who’ve been dealing with pest and wildlife issues.
In this part, most of you can clearly see who Andy is. He is towering at six foot two and is currently at a hundred and eighty pounds. He used to weigh at three-hundred pounds and lost a lot of weight in the past year. Picturing his physical features, he’s built to get his hands dirty and do a lot of work involving his body. Andy reminds me of a superhero – someone who saves the day. Someone who saves a lot of people from the stress of dealing with pest and wildlife-related issues.
Working With The “Abra Kadabros”
Being a hero comes with a lot of responsibility. However, for Andy, it isn’t a journey he is facing alone. His two brothers are working alongside him with two distinct superhero powers. The rhythm of working with his siblings was acquired with long years of trial and error to figure out how they could operate as a team – filling up each one’s weaknesses with each other’s strengths and learning from each other. The brothers knew that it was always a pretext that families who work together, ended up not talking to each other.
However, the brothers were conscious and mindful of each other’s personal triggers and created a fine line between personal relationships and work. It wasn’t a challenge for them since they were already tight-knit as brothers. Andy said that working for his younger brother Matt, the company’s CEO, was weird at first, but they’ve both found ways to create communication patterns that worked well with both of them.
They both know they’re on the same team, and their goals are aligned – becoming the best pest control and wildlife company. Andy describes his brother Matt as an approachable, outgoing, and forward personality.
On the other hand, Phil is analytical. He was very candid about instances where their ideas would clash. But at the end of the day, they’ve found a way to meet in the middle and work through the struggles, and that mostly made them much stronger.
That structure they’ve built as brothers has echoed and passed down through many employees of Abra Kadabra. Everyone shines in their distinctive way, which significantly impacts how the company sets a standard to become a well-acclaimed business. They’ve built a community around their employees and clients.
Community Involvement
In fact, one of the things that Andy enjoys the most is interacting with the community within the cities that Abra Kadabra works for. He prides Abra Kadabra’s initiatives to support communities and organizations for better causes. For him, it’s the company’s way to give back after all the support that they’ve given.
Andy also mentioned how he’s supported small businesses in setting up skate parks so kids can play around and skate safely. Additionally, he’s worked with these small businesses to overcome operational limitations and structure programs and events to attract more clients.
In Conclusion
Behind a man with a tough personality is someone who never forgets to tap into his childlike wonder and radiate that energy to everyone around him. Andy is indeed a strong man with a soft heart. He’s one of the many valued employees at Abra Kadabra, and he uses his heart to touch the lives of many.
This article is the second part of our employee spotlight series, where we get candid with Abra Kadabra’s personalities and uncover their stories. Stay tuned for more.
If you have any pest and wildlife-related concerns, feel free to call us at 763 – 363 – 4375 or schedule an appointment.
We appreciate your support for Abra Kadabra Environmental Services. We won Gold Minnesota’s Best under the Pest Control Category.
