How do we Tie in and Grow the Buy in?
Referring to our previous blog post on creating employee buy-in, which is explaining the importance that relates to health, production, and nutrition and how that leads to profitable results. Training is the key factor to gaining buy-in with the employees, yet we must continue to build a culture of being part of a greater team at the farm level and at the industry level, we can do this through networking. This will allow employees from farms to follow best in class management tactics from other farms and from industry.
What do we mean by tie in? Tie-in means that we possess the scientific knowledge and we know the on farm protocols. Yet we must continue to grow the buy-in and there are a number of ways to foster growth and culture within our farms and industry. It is incumbent upon management to understand the importance of on farm training and protocols. But you may wonder how do we gain continuous improvement, once our employees know the science behind protocols? Recently we held our annual Herd Manager Retreat in the I29 corridor; we had many industry experts, herdsmen, and nutritionists to share ideas, gain buy-in, and grow. The environment allows employees to be part of a greater team, whether you are a farm worker, manger, or industry expert. During our meeting we enjoyed a fantastic discussion around reproduction, using some of our own GPS herds data; the presentation offered several innovative ideas but most importantly opened dialog for what other farms are trying, how they benefited, and how to implement them properly. The herdsman and managers were able to tie in their own farms current practices, and got everyone on board, understanding future improvements that could be implemented; this is a good example of how to use buy-in and continually tie it in.
As we continue to strive for employee buy-in, consider engaging employees by allowing them to attend network events. If we can tie this all in through shared ideas, new science, and networking, we can be part of a greater team, thus creating buy-in.
“Employers that are effectively linking their social missions to their employee’s daily work are differentiating themselves in the market and generating big returns. Taking the necessary steps to ensure every employee knows how they fulfill the mission, achieve the vision, and execute one or more company strategies through his or her daily job really pays off.” Tamar Elkeles, Ph.D. (Chief Talent Executive, Atlantic Bridge Capital, LLP, Former Chief Learning Officer, Qualcomm)