ORM has recently completed a Summer/Autumn series of technical and business management events, many delivered on behalf of GRDC and some for our clients both at individual client meetings and groups.
Attendance at production related events has been strong, while events with a business management focus had lower attendance. Why are growers less inclined to attend forums on business management? As an industry we’ve made great advances in productivity and are continually fine tuning, however the challenges associated with managing seasonal volatility, rising costs per hectare, increased compliance requirements of employees and adoption of new technology to improve efficiency, all have significant impact on our business and yet do not seem to get the same level of attention.
ORM clients who do annual reviews can tick the box knowing they are addressing the business management aspects of their business. However, ORM’s goal is to also assist the grains and livestock industries to become more sustainable both from a financial, resource and people perspective. If you have ideas on ways to assist our industry address the business management challenge, or ideas to assist you or others to advance the sustainability of your business we’re ready to listen.
What’s hot:
- Checking employee contracts and pay rates to ensure compliance.
- The increased net worth of farming businesses due to growth in scale combined with rising land values, is changing the attitude of ‘off-farm’ children regarding their expectations to future entitlements.
- Banks are still lending but need stronger evidence of serviceability and including principal repayments.
- Carryover of grain and hay from the low prices of 2016/17 to the current high prices has been a good decision and resulted in strong equity growth.