Reading Time: 10 minutes Land is up. Inputs are up. Commodities are volatile. And that’s just a start. Climate change is getting real. Interest rates are too. And the international scene is chaos. Does it all add up to good news for your farm in 2024? Bad news? And what can you do to keep your farm on the […] Read more
Summer Series: Opportunities ahead
[Change Management] What’s in store for Canada’s farms in 2024? The news is good, mostly
Summer Series: 7 trends in agriculture for 2024
[Change Management] The long term is clear. The world will need Canadian farmers to feed a global population expected to reach 9.8 billion by 2050. But what about the short term, like next summer?
Reading Time: 6 minutes High interest rates, skyrocketing input costs, labour shortages, climate change … the exact mix varies from country to country but farmers around the world are facing threats to their ability to grow more food, which means farmers everywhere are looking for opportunities to improve production, preserve profits and protect the environment. What does it all […] Read more
Summer Series: Podcast with Olivia Riddoch
Reading Time: < 1 minute In the latest Country Guide podcast episode we spoke with Olivia Riddoch of Fairwind Farms. She shared her story about the career change that brought her back to the family farm where she now manages crop protection on over 4,000 acres. Tune in at country-guide.ca/ and don’t forget to subscribe to the Country Guide Podcast […] Read more
Summer Series: Develop leaders, not labourers
[Leadership] Allowing people to safely struggle is good. Let them know you are there for support, but they’re expected to figure it out and get it done
Reading Time: 3 minutes A leadership expert offers his advice to help answer the question “What’s at risk if I don’t help others on my farm develop their leadership skills?” – April Stewart, CG Associate Editor Part of having an executive mindset on the farm is developing others. Developing others might seem like a basic function of management, which it […] Read more
Summer Series: Only farmers know real risk
[Leadership] In a world that crashes from crisis to crisis, Ontario farmer Amy Cronin went on a global search for farmers who excel at risk management. Here’s what she learned
Reading Time: 5 minutes In a world that crashes from crisis to crisis, Ontario farmer and Nuffield scholar, Amy Cronin, went on a global search for farmers who excel at risk management. Here’s what she learned. – April Stewart, CG Associate Editor If it’s a new and even more volatile world for farmers (which it is) and if success […] Read more
Summer Series: If you build it on HR…
[Leadership] This Alberta hay outfit is people first, business second, and boss Barry Schmitt says that’s why they post great numbers. So could their approach work for you?
Reading Time: 7 minutes If you build it, they will come, right? Dedicated and hard-working employees will if you follow the advice Barr-Ag has to offer about the “people factor”.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor If you want something done, ask a busy person. We all sometimes say this, and there’s a good reason why. As generalizations go, this […] Read more
Summer Series: Grow your farm manager
[Leadership] Leaders are made, not born. That much is clear. But how exactly do you make such a concept pay off on your farm?
Reading Time: 3 minutes There’s only so much time in a busy farm owner’s day. Here’s how can you help your farm manager develop their leadership skills, so you can focus on the big stuff.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor Dr. Stephen Brown says: “You are not a leader until you have produced a leader who can produce another […] Read more
Summer Series: What is a legal trust?
[Leadership] A trust may be the right solution for your toughest succession and legacy issues, but proceed with care
Reading Time: 4 minutes There’s only so much time in a busy farm owner’s day. Here’s how can you help your farm manager develop their leadership skills, so you can focus on the big stuff.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor The easiest way to think of a trust is as a legal relationship between parties — a settlor, trustee […] Read more
Summer Series: Characteristics of highly effective leaders
[Leadership] Part two in a series on leadership
Reading Time: 4 minutes “Solutions to the greatest challenges and opportunities are not found in strategy or quick fixes, they are found within the people who have problems.” These are the 12 characteristics effective leaders learn and practice to influence their farm’s ROI.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor In my last article I described six characteristics of highly effective […] Read more
Summer Series: Farm CEO: Women farm executives
[Leadership] “Women are showing up in business, and what they are doing is working. It should be seen as a model for all of us.”
Reading Time: 3 minutes Studies show that women have a lot to offer in terms of executive decision-makers on the farm – and there are plenty of lessons agriculture can learn from them.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor Women make great farm CEOs. Did you hear that, Dad? Studies are showing that women have a lot to offer as […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
