We’ve seen a lot of headlines and news articles lately about trends and changes in the workforce. From the “quiet quitting” trend to tightening labor markets in nearly every industry to the transition back to the office after the COVID-19 pandemic, it is a new day in how we approach and work with our teams.
I’ve had the honor to work with dairy farmers across the country facilitating workshops, delivering keynotes and emceeing the annual business conference with Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin (PDPW) over the past few years. It has been an incredible experience to see firsthand your dedication to families, farms and teams. I’ve been impressed with the dairy industry’s ability to constantly learn about and adopt new technologies and ways to care for your cows and land. I believe now is the time to up your skillset on the people side of your business, too.
In a time of constant change and disruption, you have to build the people side of your farm as purposefully and with as much planning as every other aspect of the business. Team building, leadership development and communications are more important than ever before.
When facing tight budgets and market uncertainties, it can be easy to skimp on training and education for yourself and your teams. However, those cuts represent short-term thinking in an industry and an age where you have to always keep one foot in the present and one foot in the future. In a fast-changing industry like dairy, it’s a constant learning process to find new ideas to maximize production, stay abreast of what is happening and be mindful of what could be coming down the pike.
Create a culture of learning
Whether intentional or not, every workplace has a culture. When you’re a leader, your number one job is growing the people on your team, and that starts with creating a culture in which – no matter their role – each person feels like they have the opportunity to grow and learn. Whether someone is caring for calves, managing the financials or leading a parlor shift, each person on your farm should believe this statement, “I am not just good at what I do; I have grown from working here.”
A strong culture of learning also helps reduce turnover. We all know the tremendous cost of hiring, onboarding and training new team members, especially in jobs that require physical or technical skills. Starting on day one, your focus should be on helping employees see their role as something bigger than just their day-to-day job and to ensure they feel invested in the success of the entire operation.
How can you challenge each person to learn and grow? Perhaps it is cross training on other jobs on the farm, finding ways to expand their skills and learn how everything across the operation is connected. Start with a conversation with team members about their goals and discuss what training and experience is needed to get there.
Take a look at the big picture of your farm and what you’re trying to accomplish. For each role on the farm, ask yourself, “If I had the best professional for that role and an unlimited budget for training them, what would I do?” What are the skills and experiences each person needs to perform their absolute best and truly believe they are contributing to the team’s success?
With those answers, build a template for each role and determine what resources are available to equip them. You’ll never have that unlimited budget, but you may be surprised at what you find when you start looking.
Take advantage of your community
A culture of learning also means tapping into knowledge and experiences beyond your own farm or business. Tapping into the expertise of those who are willing to share and connect can bring new ideas and new inspiration. What unique connections can we make in the dairy industry? How can we learn from others to take better care of our people, our animals and our land?
Programs through PDPW are specifically designed to not only teach new skills or practices but to bring like-minded people together to learn from each other. Yes, everyone’s plates are full and budgets are limited, but learning has to be a priority. With growing availability of simultaneous translation services, more meetings and opportunities are open to Spanish-speaking team members, as well.
As you build the expectations and skills required for each role on your dairy, put systems and processes into place to ensure people are constantly learning. Are you consistently looking for ways to cross train employees on different roles? Are you seeking out workshops, trainings or courses that can improve skills? Accomplishing the goal for all team members to be lifelong learners means we have to be encouraging others and opening the right doors for them.
Encourage out-of-the-box thinking
Many of the best ideas come when we step out of our traditional thinking and approach problems from a new perspective. Look for ways to empower your team to bring new ideas and energy to the table.
I saw this firsthand when a consultant friend of mine told me he was attending a heart transplant convention to better serve a long-time client who was a leader in the plumbing supply business. Heart transplants? Plumbing? I struggled with the connection until he pointed out that both industries are challenged to come up with new and innovative ways to efficiently and safely move liquids in contained spaces.
What other industries can your team learn from? How can you challenge your team to look at problems from new angles? We are in a world that will need to encourage out-of-the-box thinking. When it comes to continuous learning, truly be open, then watch what happens.
Michael Hoffman presents at the 2022 PDPW Business Conference. Photo courtesy of Professional Dairy Producers.
Michael Hoffman is president of Igniting Performance, a Dallas-based training and consulting firm that specializes in the areas of sales, leadership and building customer loyalty. He has facilitated a number of trainings and programs for dairy producers, including serving as emcee for PDPW’s business conference in 2022 and the upcoming conference on March 15-16, 2023.
