Tools for Managing Your Farm Business

The following is a list of articles written by Danny Klinefelter of The Executive Program for Agricultural Producers. We are providing them to you as a valuable resource for managing your family business. Click on the title to read the entire article.

• Alternative Farm Business Arrangements
  Those who want to see their farms continue as full-time businesses beyond the current generation must continue to explore new ways of doing business. The possibilities are limited only by imagination.
  
  
• Autopsies & Management Improvements
  We all make mistakes and they are necessary in order to grow and improve. The problem is when we don’t learn from them. We need to frequently remind ourselves that one definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over, and expecting different results.
  
  
• Being Prepared to Borrow
  These twelve questions lay out a framework for developing the documentation needed in a loan package or business plan. The first six should really be no brainers; but, it is amazing how superficially they are often addressed.
  
  
• Benchmark your Performance
  It is hard to get better if you don’t know what your strengths and weaknesses are. The function of a competitive market is to drive the economic return to the average producer to breakeven through supply and demand responses. Your job is to stay out of the back of the pack.
  
  
• Budget Monitoring & Analysis
  The most successful managers spend a great deal of time on monitoring and analyzing performance. By staying on top of things, they are much more likely to spot problems and opportunities before it’s too late.
  
  
• Causes of Farm & Ranch Failure
  There have been a number of studies that examine the characteristics of farmers who have failed or experienced financial trouble. This overview deals
  with the characteristics observed most frequently.
  
  
• Contingency Planning
  The real difference between the best and the rest of the herd doesn’t lie
  just in planning, but in contingency planning. Top managers spend more time
  thinking about “what if” scenarios and developing contingency plans.
  
  
• Evaluating Producers' Value Added Business Plans
  This article looks at just a few of the questions that need to be considered in analyzing producers’ value added business proposals.
  
  
• Paying Family Members
  A major source of friction in the family farm businesses focuses on compensation. There are a number of complex and often conflicting issues involved, ranging from tax considerations to parental concerns.
  
  
• Peer Advisory Groups
  Peer advisory groups can be a cost effective way to help farm managers address the need for continual exposure to different perspectives and new ideas, as well as providing a way to continue the never ending process of finding ways to become better managers.
  
  
• Staying in Front of the Pack
  As a business grows and becomes more complex, a primary competitive
  differentiator will be the commitment, involvement, and contributions from
  employees throughout the organization.
  
  
• Successful Development & Transition on Family Farms
  Successor development and management transition are parts of a larger whole. Neglecting any one of them can undermine everything you are trying to accomplish.
  
  
• Ten Best Management Practices
  This isn’t a top 10 list; but, they are things that any producer can do
  but that 95 percent of producers don’t. If you’re looking for an edge or ways to get better, these would be a good place to start.
  
  
• The 5 Percent Difference
  Some may question the ability to generate higher yields and at the same
  time have lower costs. However, it occurs frequently. The possibilities and the examples are endless; but, there are always ways to do better and it comes down to management and being willing to change..
  
  
• Thoughts & Observations on Succeeding in Agriculture
  This article includes some of the authors own observations as well as some of his favorite quotes from Peta Alexander, Jim Collins, Peter Drucker, Wayne Gretsky, Tom Peters, Mark Twain, and Jack Welch. You will find them insightful as well as thought provoking.
  
  
• Twenty Five Attributes of the 21st Century Farm Executive
  It’s clear that being a top producer, focusing on controlling costs, keeping good records and having a sound marketing program are all essential to being a good manager; but, these characteristics alone aren’t sufficient to describe those who are setting the standard for those who want to remain competitive and successful in the future. This article discusses twenty five
  attributes which set the top managers apart.
  
  
• Victimism Can Be a Crippling Disease
  The future of agriculture lies with those producers who overcome bad weather, bad prices and bad luck largely by being better managers.
  
  
• Where is Farming Headed?
  Over the next 20 years, the Food and Drug Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Homeland Security Agency will have more impact on how we farm than will the USDA.
  
  
• Working Together
  Good communication and interpersonal relationships are imperative to
  overall business performance and sustainability. Most managers understand
  the need to improve various facets of their business management practices.