Reading Time: 6 minutes The words “leadership” and “management” are often used interchangeably, but there are important differences – and by focusing on leadership, you can ensure you’re putting your energy and resources in the right areas of your farm business.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor “Management is doing things right. Leadership is doing the right things.” It’s a […] Read more
Summer Series: Do you have the tools to be a better farm leader?
[Leadership] Becoming a more effective leader will position you to adapt to the challenges and opportunities coming your way
Summer Series: The difference maker: on-farm leadership
On-farm leadership is the X-factor that can be quantified and developed into competitive advantage
Reading Time: 4 minutes Can leadership skills impact your farm’s bottom line? Find out how this business x-factor can be developed to give your farm a competitive advantage.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor Leadership is the overlooked skill set that can explain why some farms move forward and grow, overcoming difficult periods to successfully transition from one generation to […] Read more
Summer Series: Leadership skills key to farm success
[Leadership] Two farm families share how they came to see getting stronger at farm leadership as the key to their growth
Reading Time: 6 minutes Being your own boss, making your own decisions, reaping the rewards of your hard work. Self-employment has its perks as a farmer. But as every farmer also knows, self-employment has its risks and its downsides too. You’re the one who’s accountable, you’re the one who has to keep yourself motivated, you’re the one who’s always […] Read more
Summer Series: How to get disruptive
[Best Advice] On the Charbonneau farm, the business strategy seemed clear. Go vertical. But how?
Reading Time: 7 minutes Here’s how one Quebec dairy farm decided to take the proverbial bull by the horns and make their farm a vertical integration success despite the constraints of the industry.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor Too often it seems we never hear the words “disruptor” and “Canadian agriculture” used in the same sentence. When we’re thinking […] Read more
Summer Series: Want a super farm business? Build your ‘superteam’
[Team Building] Top tips from the frontline on creating and optimizing a business management team for your farm
Reading Time: 6 minutes The words can be heard all across the country. “Our accountant, lawyer and bank manager are key players in decision-making on our farm,” says Luanne Lynn, who is currently past president of Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers Program (she and husband Philip were Outstanding Young Farmers in 2005). The Lynns have a cash crop operation in […] Read more
Summer Series: Bank on growth
[Better Advice] Ideas that performance-minded farmers can take to the bank
Reading Time: 5 minutes Even top-performing farmers need advice. In fact, when farmers fine-tune their operations to maximize yield and profitability, they can plan on needing more financial advice than ever before. This is for some very good reasons. Not only do risks grow with the scale and complexity of the operation, but so do the opportunities, and today’s […] Read more
Summer Series: Building a new farm
[Best Advice] There’s always good luck and bad. For the Friesens, though, building the farm is too important to stop
Reading Time: 9 minutes Forced to pivot as they were starting up their farm, the Friesens did what most farmers excel at: finding solutions, workarounds and innovative approaches. Read on to find out what the rest of us can learn from their story.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor It was the summer of 2015 and Christi and Kelly Friesen […] Read more
Summer Series: Do sweat the details
[Best Advice] Accounting advice to get more competitive
Reading Time: 5 minutes When it comes to farm accounting, it’s increasingly about the details and it’s the farmers who notice them who come out on top. Here are the top four tips to get more competitive.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor Blair Sanderson sees it time and again. “The difference between a good producer and a great one,” […] Read more
Summer Series: How to prepare for business meetings
[Best Advice] Getting serious about family meetings is helping this farm score current and future gains
Reading Time: 6 minutes During family farm meetings it’s important for everyone to take off their family hat and address each other in a professional manner. Follow these tried-and-true tips and tricks for successful family business meetings. – April Stewart, CG Associate Editor At one of their first business meetings on their farm, Betty Green served coffee and cake […] Read more
Is it time to get a farm management coach?
[The Rent Shake-Up: Leadership] If you've considered this question, Kelly Dobson says, “Congratulations, you’ve self-identified as a leader.”
Reading Time: 4 minutes Let’s say that you have a good sense of what success would look like for you and you’re pretty sure you’re made of the stuff it will take to achieve it, but it’s just not happening. Could a coach help? Kelly Dobson describes himself as a “professional capital ‘C’ Coach with a graduate degree.” Coaching, […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
