In this episode of the Progressive Dairy Podcast, host Kimmi Devaney visits with Kansas dairy producer Lee Holtmeier from Linn Willow Creek Dairy about their employee culture, what they do to mentor and empower employees, and how they keep employee turnover low. 

“The only thing worse than training your employees and having them leave is not training them and having them stay.” Since this quote is from Henry Ford, it is approximately a century old. If this was true for his assembly line workers, it certainly is even more true today.

“The process of ensuring the new employee has a great start, becomes engaged and stays is called onboarding.” Onboarding is more than just the orientation and training that have traditionally been our focus for new employees.

“When we talk about raising a dairy replacement heifer, it’s going to ultimately make a milk cow,” said John Robison, a consultant at JDR Livestock Consulting Management Services, during a session of the 2023 Dairy Calf and Heifer Association annual meeting.

Studies have also determined that some 50% of feedyard workers are Latino. Combining the inherent risks of a feedyard with a language barrier that significantly hampers communication can set the stage for serious incidents and injuries.

The secret to this dairy’s success lies in their communication with one another.

Beyond being a standard of business, providing a safe work environment has a trickle-down effect that impacts all other facets of BQA implementation. Human safety is the backbone of an effective, thriving cattle operation.

Yes, employees do need training, accountability and incentives to stay on track. However, I generally find the core of most employee problems to be a lack of clear, intentional leadership.

Moving from one herd management software to another is a significant step. Your herd management software is the most important, yet least recognized, part of your business.