Reading Time: 7 minutes We wrap up the Hunter family succession story with this final article in our five-part series. It has been a remarkable venture for our team to share with Country Guide readers the transition-planning journey undertaken by this family. The process took just over one year, from the start to the finish of the plan, and […] Read more
Family through succession: Putting the Hunter plan into operation
"The best thing you can do to protect your legacy is to be a part of planning what it will be.”
A farm advisory team that works — for you
Advisors can help take the emotion out of business decisions
Reading Time: 8 minutes A few years ago, Harvey Aberhart came to a family farm meeting looking stressed out. Like many farmers across the country, he wanted the family to find their way to a healthy, forward-looking succession plan, but the night before the meeting, he had been kept up all through the early hours by thoughts of a […] Read more
Family through succession: The Hunters create a future
The Hunter family is presented with three options for their farm transition
Reading Time: 6 minutes We continue our journey through succession with the Hunter Family as we focus on the transition and the details of what this phase of the process looks like for the family. Many of you have reached out to tell us you and your families are gaining a greater understanding since reading this series, which was […] Read more
Crafting a new human resources plan for your farm
Don’t wait any longer. An HR management plan to protect the long-term success of your farm business could be worth working on now. Here’s why
Reading Time: 10 minutes Agriculture is changing. Innovation abounds. More new technology and better automation arrive every year. So it’s worse than ironic that our biggest shortfall is people power. But there it is. Without the right people, can our farms even hope to adopt the technological marvels that are supposed to propel them into the future? Mechanization is […] Read more
Seven strategies of successful farmers
Here’s new evidence that business skills increase farm income, no matter what size the farm
Reading Time: 5 minutes With the harvest finally in the bin, farmers across the country are evaluating their farm management practices and they are making management decisions for the future. Business management skills are more important than ever as farmers face huge challenges, including unpredictable weather, volatile markets, labour shortages, succession, and much more. In this environment, a great […] Read more
Family through succession: Moving succession to a financial discussion
As we look into concrete financial options, a sense of excitement replaces the family’s initial worries
Reading Time: 7 minutes Many of you have been following our journey with the Hunter family. To recap, the Hunters are a fourth-generation farm family with a mixed crop and dairy farm in southwestern Ontario. Mary’s husband Jack passed away two years ago. She is 80 now and continues to live on the farm. Her only child, Bruce, works […] Read more
Your 2020 agricultural calendar of winter events
The first 90 days offer impressive opportunities for new insights, new technologies and new points of view
Reading Time: 6 minutes The one thing we can know for sure as we enter this new decade is that it will be vital to get a good start on 2020. So maybe it’s not so bad that popular culture sees New Year’s as a time for making resolutions and pledges. The seed and the fertilizer may be ordered […] Read more
The skills you’ll need as farms become more digital
Technology is transforming agriculture at a speed we hardly grasp. Will yours be among the farms that emerge stronger?
Reading Time: 5 minutes In October, Country Guide covered the report “Farmer 4.0: How the Coming Skills Revolution Can Transform Agriculture” published by RBC, with its emphasis on how the era of super-automation will change how we farm. “As Canadian farmers leave traditional tasks to smart machines, and focus on strategy and systems, they’ll be better positioned than ever […] Read more
Family Through Succession: Aligning the Hunter family vision
"In the end, we all want the same thing,” Bruce says. “I just don’t see how we can make everyone happy.”
Reading Time: 7 minutes Last month, our first article introduced the Hunter family and their journey through farm succession. The Hunters aren’t a real family; you won’t find them in a phone book. But they are real in that they’re based on our real-life experience consulting with farm families. You’ll find families like the Hunters across the country. Through […] Read more
Defining the culture for a successful female in agriculture (Part 2)
“By knowing my own value, I hold my own space.” These wise words from one interviewee can be a mantra for Canada’s farm women
Reading Time: 4 minutes In the last two columns, I have reported on my research into the lives of successful women professionals in farming and agricultural business. Their honest and engaging stories are varied, and they outline how we can create a culture of inclusion. An inclusive culture starts with parenting that offers boys and girls the same opportunities, […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
