What Really Happens in a Peer Group

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 (Ag Leader Reviews) Digging into the archives from an article in 2017 - You’ve seen the Ag Leader slogan,

“So simple even Dad can teach you,” and that is so true for leaving a listener review of the podcast. Just so you

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 And maybe you paused to question if it was really that simple. You aren’t alone, and with your farm the word

‘data’ is loaded with all kinds of possible definitions that may cause more questions and concerns than answers.

Just remember AG Leader, they have a solution for every season. Their products seamlessly connect your

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Commercial - BW Fusion – Focused on bringing innovative Fertility, Nutritional and Technology to the Ag

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provide growers the tools necessary to address limiting factors in real time.

General topic – Understanding Peer Groups

Shay Foulk grew up in NE Iowa, working on a row crop and livestock operation with his father, uncles, and

grandfathers. He attended Iowa State University where he majored in Agronomy. After graduating, Shay

enlisted in the United States Army, and served with the 75th Ranger Regiment. Shay now farms and runs

Monier Seed with his father-in-law near Sparland, IL, and also works as a consultant with Chris Barron at Ag

View Solutions. Today, Shay works with farm operations locally and globally to improve profitability and

efficiency, manage risk in many forms, and develop farm businesses through coaching and consulting.

 What is a peer group?

 Why join a peer group?

o By utilizing a peer advisory group, a farmer has a unique opportunity to listen to the advice and opinions

of peers who might see something they are missing. There are multiple ways

that peer advisory groups might help in setting priorities and identifying blind spots.

 Avoid feeling like you’re on an island

 Gets you away from neighbors

 Sharpen personal and business skills

 Work on the business, not just in the business

 Focus on efficiency, Cost effectiveness, Increased production

 Accountability

 VisionBank uses a peer group. Compare ratios, indicators, margins, staffing & wages,

territory, etc…

 What would someone expect to get from a peer group?

• Discovering new and innovative ideas

• Giving and receiving feedback on current business practices

• Hearing about business practices in other operations

• Engaging in collective problem solving… avoid “reinventing the wheel”

• Improving leadership and management skills

• Sustaining an action oriented focus

• Staying ahead of a rapidly changing industry

• Develop/sharpen leadership skills

• Goal setting/Accountability/Discipline

• Best practices/ideas exchange

• Clarity/Focus/Execution

 What would someone expect to put into a peer group?

o Attend Regular Meetings, Provide Input, a Financial investment, to Share personal and financial

information

 What types of topics get talked about at the meetings?

o • Developing Standard Operating Procedures

• Business Succession/Transition

• People management (job descriptions/performance evaluations/employee handbooks)

• Technology

• Data Management

• Benchmarking

• Leadership, legacy, life, business plans

• Self-improvement

• Grain marketing

• Stewardship/Conservation/Cover crops

• Crop Production

 What is a typical size peer group?

o Why does that size seem to work well?

 Can a peer group function well without all the details?

o Just friends from social media and random questions….

 Do you need someone to lead the peer group?

o What are the benefits of working with someone like you?

 Do you have any success stories you can tell us?

o Do you have any groups that failed?

 And explain why they failed?

 Anything else you’d like to share with the listeners?

 What do the most successful farmers have in common?

 Summary – Challenge - Submit questions and topic suggestions - Like, Rate, Review, Share

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