Farmer Focus: Striving to reward and keep good staff
© Tim Scrivener One of the huge challenges facing our business, and agriculture more widely, is labour.
We need good people to help us progress. The reality is, if we don’t continue to improve we won’t generate the additional revenue that will be needed when further borrowing is required to continue with our succession plan.
See also: 10 ways to attract and retain staff in pig industry
About the author
I’ve learned an awful lot about people in the six-and-a-half years I have been responsible for managing staff. My approach to managing people is summed up by the acronym Sport – support, profile, opportunity, reward and tools.
Support comes by the way of my door always being open. My phone is on 24 hours a day, whether staff have a question, or there is a problem on the farm or at home. Our staff, along with our animals, are always the priority.
Profile is something that is underestimated in my mind. By profile I mean: what are staff members’ strengths and weaknesses, what makes them tick, what are their interests outside of work and, most importantly, how do they fit into the team?
When I recruit, I get candidates to complete the Belbin team roles questionnaire.
Opportunity can be anything from different roles within the business to additional responsibilities and further training courses.
Reward is all about how we recognise the work people are doing within the business – pay, holiday, flexibility, accommodating different situations and more.
In terms of tools we have to considerer whether we are giving our staff the right tools to make the job as enjoyable and easy as possible.
That covers everything from purchasing a new shovel when required, to the facilities our staff have for relaxation during break times.
The latter is something I have wanted us to invest in for a long time and I am pleased to say our new staff area will be ready in the next few weeks. Our previous staffroom was small, tired and just dull.
The new facility is more than double the size. Improvements include more windows, better insulation, a laundry room, a new kitchen with breakfast bar and quicker wi-fi.
There will also be a multimedia screen in the room, which we can use to analyse performance and undertake training during work time, and for staff to watch TV at break times.