Most family businesses – farms, local agribusinesses, restaurants, etc. – are started by an individual owner. As they grow, the businesses (farms) often transition to multiple owners. The new owners (partners) are often, but not always, family members. This change, like all business transitions, is crucial to farm business success. The decision to enter into a partnership should be made with great care and planning. The implementation of the change should involve strategic and tactical planning to ensure the partnership succeeds. The goal of the partnership should be financial, business and personal synergy (one plus one is much greater than two).

Compared with the general business world, our dairy farm businesses are small, even referred to as micro businesses. The business definition of a small business is often one with less than 500 employees; a micro business one with less than 30 employees.