Thomas Henry Ford created a system wherein he paid five times the standard wage to attract the best of the best. The flip side of this policy was that if you didn’t meet his standards, you got fired. Under Jack Welch’s leadership in the ’90s, General Electric fired their bottom 10 percent of performers every year. It created a culture of “Whose head is on the platter this week?”

Dairy producers are reminded by lenders, consultants and possibly even themselves that it is important to know their cost of production (COP) and what their break-even (BE) is. Those reminders create a link between the operational and financial management of their operation. This can help them understand where the dairy has been, but more importantly, plan for the overall success of the future of the operation.

Family relationships are not easy. While there is nobody we’d rather spend relaxed evenings with, family members can be so irritated with each other that they sit on opposite sides of the funeral home, the church, and sadly, in some instances, opposite sides of the attorney’s office or courtroom.

The costs to produce milk continue to increase. Feed is the largest cost on the dairy, so it is important for dairy employees and individuals in industries that support dairies to have at least a basic understanding of nutritional terminology.