It recently came to my attention that employee retention is an issue in most businesses today, and we are an outlier in this area. Sourcing employees and employee retention is a common question we receive during tours and community presentations.

Increasing feed costs. Weather. Mastitis. Working with family. Sick calves. Changing contracts. Paperwork. Bad silage. Your brother-in-law. The list of stressors on a dairy farm is long. Unfortunately, most of them are also chronic. 

Ask most dairy producers what their biggest headache is right now, and you will likely hear this one word: Labor.

Dwight D. Eisenhower, supreme commander of Allied forces, once said,“In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” 

As business owners, managers and employees, our days are full of endless decisions and actions that affect the health, success and future of ourselves and our businesses.

In this episode of the Progressive Dairy Podcast, host Kimmi Devaney talks with Davon Cook about how peer groups and advisory boards can improve your farm by bringing additional perspective to your management decisions.

Year after year, agriculture continues to rank as one of the most dangerous occupations. Far too many farmers, farm family members and employees are injured or killed in farm accidents. What are you doing to change this in your farm and community?