1. Employment Profile: What exactly does a n Owner/Operator/Producer do? |
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 What field is your job in?
Agriculture
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What is your job title?
Owner/Operator/Producer
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Please provide a brief description of the firm or organization that you currently work for
(size and general description of what type of organization it is)
Sole Proprietorship--I own my family grain farm. I am the only employee other than seasonal hired help. We grow wheat, barley, sunflowers, canola, and flax. I cover approx. 1500 acres.
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How long have you been employed in this position?
39 years (all my life)
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How many hours do you work a week on average?
During planting and harvest, 90 hours. Other times, 50-60
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Please provide a BRIEF description of your duties and responsibilities. (job description)
paperwork, bookkeeping, seed selection, equipment repair and maintenance, planting, spraying, harvesting, financing with banks, federal records and reporting, land preparation, labor management.
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What was your gross income last year? Please include any bonuses or incentives received.
negative $35,000 (we've had a loss for the last five years)
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What is your expected gross income for this year? Please include any bonuses or incentives you expect to receive.
0
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Please
list any benefits you have (Please include number of weeks vacation,
sick leave and type of health insurance, retirement plan 401k)
long hours, no medical, no retirement, no paid vacation or holidays. Get to be outside, get to be my own boss, less hours in the winter.
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Do you feel you are under/well/over compensated at your current position?
Under. But I pay myself.
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2. Work environment! |
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Does
your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this
something you like/dislike about your job? Explain
Yes. I interact with the farmers and landowners I do business with, seed reps, bankers, farm suppliers and my family.
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Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Yes
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Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes
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Describe
your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what
you like/dislike about working in it
Home and in the field. All of my business paperwork etc is done in a home office. Otherwise I am outside most of the time. I work in my shop, in the field, and in my truck.
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Please rank in order of importance from 1-8 (1- most important 8- least important) Assign each number once.
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6 Income
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3 Work Environment - co-workers
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5 Work Environment - supervisors
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7 Benefits
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4 Hours
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2 Level of responsibility
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1 The actual "work" you do at your job
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8 Job Title
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3. How should someone new to the workforce get a J-O-B like yours? |
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If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
Most people who farm came from a family who farms and work with their family. Not many start out fresh. If they were planning on starting out fresh, they would have to have experience working on a farm, then try to finance a land purchase, equipment purchase, and operating loans. They would have to know how to decide what to plant, how to plant, how much and when to spray, fertilize and harvest. Most importantly, they would have to love the work because they aren't going to get rich and they will have to work long hours with no benefits. Probably I would tell them to go work for another farmer first to see if it's really in their blood.
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What
skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a
position like yours? Please be specific and explain why (e.g., social
skills, organization skills, technical skills)
Extremely hard working, patience, optimistic attitude, organization, love of the vocation, and the best thing would be if they were independently wealthy and were doing it for fun, not for money.
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Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Absolutely need either on the job training, life-learned training, and schooling. Some younger farmers got an Ag degree.
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What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
Do your best to keep your head above water financially. If you don't need it, don't buy it. Work closely with your banker to keep a handle on your financing. Do your homework--if you aren't expecting to pay $30,000 for fertilizer, you will die of a heart attack when you get your bill.
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