Farming has seen many changes and advancements in technology that has allowed and even encouraged more daughters to think about returning to a business that was once thought of as a ‘man’s business.’
This spring has been more stressful than most. With what seemed like endless rain and critical planting decisions to be made with imperfect information, I don’t think there is a farmer in Ohio who didn’t experience more stress this spring than during an ordinary planting season.
It’s a great time to think about employee motivation. Dark, rainy, muddy days make for long work days around the farm.
If I’ve heard it once, I’ve heard it a hundred times — “kids today just don’t work like we did.” I heard that when I was the kid and I hear it today referring to a whole new generation of kids. Maybe it’s not the kids, maybe it’s the adults. As adults maybe we don’t [...]
With harvest completed for many and winding down for others, there seems to be more time this fall than in recent years to accomplish fall farm activities. Although the ‘to do list’ is never complete, now is the time to think about taking a management retreat. A two-day intensive management training program for business owners [...]
As the harvest season is well under way, it is a good time for a safety reminder. Whether the reminder comes from a co-worker, spouse, parent or child, it is important to make the effort to work safely. The few minutes you might save now by taking an unsafe shortcut, may end up costing you [...]
As farmers, we know the cows must be milked rain or shine, hot or cold, sick or not, but what do you do when the unexpected happens? Who milks the cows, makes sure the feeding and other work gets done when the person responsible for those chores is unexpectedly unable to fulfill their duties? There [...]
As I was trying to determine a topic for this week’s column, I began thinking as I drove through several different counties that — with all the farm work that seems to be taking place all at once — maybe stress would be a good topic to revisit. Seasonal stress The seasonal stress of trying [...]
After reading the Dairy Excel column in the March 25 issue about hiring teen workers and knowing the law, I began thinking, not only is it important to know the law, but also to understand this younger generation of workers. As a manager, you must realize that every generation has its own values and personal [...]
Have you thought about developing a public relations plan for your farm? As we look at the challenges facing agriculture, topping the list today is the Humane Society of the US (HSUS) and their attempt to place an issue on the November 2010 ballot. It will take the help of all farmers to help spread [...]
You may not be listed as the farm’s primary operator, but as a partner in the operation you may have to be the voice that begins the conversation about the future of the operation. Many times this is a difficult conversation, as it can involve topics such as financial viability, transition of management and control [...]
It’s never too early to start thinking about who will take over your farm’s management responsibilities.
It’s that busy time a year, when trying to get the crops planted and worrying about getting the first cutting of hay off is weighing heavily on every farmer’s mind. This seasonal stress is added to the already existing stress of keeping up with all the day-to-day activities. Along with these “normal seasonal” and “day-to-day” [...]
After you have gone through the recruitment and hiring process, how do you develop a working relationship that will encourage your employees to stay with your farm for the long term? This is a question that all businesses struggle with today, as the younger generations are projected to change careers six to seven times over [...]
With the new year upon us, now is a great time to make those yearly resolutions to get the farm financial records organized.
This is the time of year there never seems to be enough hours in the day to get all the work on a dairy farm accomplished.
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