Reading Time: 3 minutes We wrap up The Succession Advantage with a final article about “The Finish Line.” At this point in the series, our succession plan is fairly well built. Along the way, we created family communication by aligning individual goals and visions; dove deep into farm financials and affordability; mapped the farm’s future through strategic business planning; […] Read more
The Succession Advantage: Planning for the finish line
It's important to plan early and engage with a professional team
The Succession Advantage – Finding fairness during farm transition
Reading Time: 4 minutes Our Succession Advantage series continues by examining advantages you can achieve during the transition process of succession planning. To date, we have covered the benefits of establishing proper communication for maintaining family harmony, clarifying the financial expectations to develop a sustainable plan, and dedicating time to strategic business planning. For the December issue of Country […] Read more
The Succession Advantage — Balancing the farm’s financials
Reading Time: 4 minutes Welcome back to our series, The Succession Advantage. Last time we examined the importance of using the correct tools to improve your family’s communication — a critical step to position your farm for continuity. This article addresses a stickier side — the financial aspects of succession. There’s the difference between what the farm is worth […] Read more
Transitioning the farm beyond the family
Maybe keeping the farm in the family isn’t an option for you. Or maybe you’ve seen the statistics and you believe Canada simply doesn’t have enough young farmers, so today’s farmers must open the door to more new entrants. Well, it’s never going to be easy, but check out these creative ways to have your cake and eat it too
Reading Time: 10 minutes Non-family farm transitions are certainly different than traditional family succession plans, and they definitely have their difficulties. But it turns out they aren’t impossible. In fact, non-family transitions are becoming much more common and much more successful. But they do require new strategies, and new ways of thinking. How common are they? “A significant number […] Read more
Preparing the next generation to take over the farm
How can you be sure they’re ready for the responsibility of running the operation?
Reading Time: 5 minutes Transferring the farm to the next generation is a complicated affair that involves finances, tax implications, legal strategies and good communication among all those affected. With all those balls in the air, the one element that Mom and Dad often think about, but somehow don’t actually get serious about, is whether the next generation is […] 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.”
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: 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
On offer
Two new transition services show how the advisory sector is evolving. How do your advisors compare?
Reading Time: 6 minutes When the words “transition process” come up, they often provoke a sigh or maybe even a shudder. Nor should anyone pretend that transitioning your farm business will be anything but a lengthy process, or that it won’t involve difficult conversations and decisions. But as always, if you’re equipped with the right tools and methods, the […] Read more
Better steps for farm transition
Canadian agriculture is suffering a shortage of family farm advisers with the training and skills to help our farms through succession and transition
Reading Time: 6 minutes It’s expected that three in four Canadian farms will change hands in the next 10 years, many of them from one generation of the family to the next. But where will these farms find help they can trust to navigate their increasingly complex transitions? There aren’t enough trained and experienced farm advisers to go around […] Read more
A professional approach to agriculture pays off
Continuous improvement is important in today’s farming community
Reading Time: 5 minutes We all know we are speaking to (and about) a different generation in today’s farming community. It’s a group that is rapidly growing in education, in financial knowledge and in their eagerness to do more, do it better and leave their legacy in the ag world. The idea at the centre of all of it […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
