Grainswest - Winter 2024

Winter 2024 Grains West 28 FEATURE Sara Chambers loves to talk with farmers and her job managing the peer group program at Backswath Management in Winnipeg, MB, allows her to do just that. She connects the right mix of people for conversations that touch on the most pressing issues in agriculture. “I refer to it as mini advisory boards, that’s what peer groups are,” she said. “It’s really for them to be able to hear from other farmers, like how are they handling certain situations. Of course, you must be willing to share your own kind of knowledge and information as well.” Given that topics primarily relate more to business practices than seeding rates, a new group must build a level of trust. Chambers works with 90-plus farmers in active peer groups across the Prairies and has observed members of the most successful groups are overtly transparent. Once groups are assembled, sit- down sessions are run by a Backswath facilitator, but members dictate the direction and flow of meetings. These may feature a guest speaker or the group may tour an ag facility or member farm. Participants may also take part in a benchmarking exercise. “There’s not a preset curriculum, so our facilitators are truly there to facilitate the discussion,” said Chambers. “They’re not there to educate. They’re not there to do group consulting.” A big impetus to sign up is accountability. “If you brought up an issue at a previous meeting, we’re going to ask you about it at the next one to see what you’ve done to try and solve the problem,” she said. “You’re going to be put in a group of people that might not think the same way as you and they’re going to challenge you. That person also expects to be challenged. Wanting to better themselves, that’s the commonality.” These groups of men and women discuss their business activities with the kind of gravity today’s agriculture operations demand. “They have to be everything that a business owner in any other industry would be,” she said. Farmers increasingly need a strategic plan and HR policies and principles, even if they don’t have employees, she added. “The way they manage it has to be sophisticated if they want to be able to provide for future generations.” Recognizing the need for greater supports for new entrants to the industry, Backswath introduced a peer group for emerging farmers in 2020. Participants improve their grounding in HR, finance and strategy as they prepare to one day take over or manage a farm. And even though most come in looking to supercharge their business, they also find unexpected benefits, namely a support network. “Most people probably don’t join for that reason, but over time, they really begin to rely on it,” she said. “In our groups, we’ve seen some pretty sensitive things being discussed.” Chambers highlights how all farmers benefit by sharing and analyzing their experience. She is adamant the ripple effects to develop oneself as a business owner and leader can help regain time lost from inefficiencies and positively affect your farm business. HONEST, INFORMED OPINION A self-described academic from Rivers, MB, Ron Krahn is a numbers guy, which is perhaps why this engineer-turned- farmer is a proponent of such groups that share business and financial ideas. Ten years ago, he was asked to join a peer group created and facilitated by MNP. Eager to elevate his community banter to a higher level, Krahn accepted the invitation. Comprised of 10 farmers from well-spaced geographic areas of Manitoba, the group meets about six times annually. They discuss serious matters, but those concerned about leaks can refer to the members’ strict confidentiality agreement. “It’s really important I know what I share with a group is not going be talked about with friends of theirs,” said Krahn, 48. He also appreciates the perspectives of fellow farmers. These peers innately understand the nature of farming. The informed advice and hard-won insight they offer is borne of their own experience. Because nobody competes with one another on land renting or buying, Krahn feels everyone wants the best for one another. Though the cohort might cheer his choices, they may also let him know they would not take a similar action if the choice was theirs. Such honesty is huge for Krahn. “Sometimes it’s just confirming the decisions we made were “ You’re going to be put in a group of people that might not think the same way as you and they’re going to challenge you. That person also expects to be challenged. Wanting to better themselves, that’s the commonality.” – Sara Chambers