An important key to maximizing the return from these investments is hiring and retaining skilled, engaged employees. An important and often overlooked ingredient for skilled and engaged employees is investing in their growth and development.

Those in charge of a business and its employees have a direct influence on the culture and ethics of the workplace. Leaders should pay close attention to the culture they create. 

In a breakout session presentation at the Pennsylvania Dairy Summit, held in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, last February, Sarah Moag discussed management transitions and employee management strategies that have worked for her business, Noblehurst Farms, in western New York.

Retaining employees is critical to the long-term health and success of a dairy operation. Therefore, failing to create the right environment to retain employees will affect the bottom line of the business and create organizational issues, such as worker insecurity, excess duties that workers must absorb and time invested in recruiting, hiring and training new employees.

When immersed in a new culture, language, location and lifestyle, accessing health resources can be infuriating and confusing. Routine tasks, like setting up a dentist appointment and attending doctor’s visits, can be daunting, if not impossible, under these circumstances.

The key to good training is to first determine what type of training each position requires. A herdsperson will not need the same type of training as a manager.

The life lessons of work ethic, respect for the animals, and care for employees Jared Duppengeisser learned growing up on a dairy in western N.Y. have translated into his focus on creating a positive farm culture as a manager.

What makes the difference between employees who are happy at work and those who are miserable? 

This long-standing support, stretching over 40 years with some customers, is a source of profound humility for the Bowers. Bower Chopping’s legacy is not just about harvesting crops – it’s about cultivating enduring relationships built on integrity and a shared passion for doing things the right way.

Employees are one of the largest expenses on a farm – second only to feed costs. The most startling part of this statistic is that staff care is frequently low priority and high risk.