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In this interactive session, participants will explore strategies to create the farm culture needed to effectively hire and retain the right employees for your farm. Together, we will:
- Consider the role that clearly articulated farm values play in identifying the practical management systems needed to meet your farm's labor force.
- Discuss the use of tools such as organizational charts, position descriptions, and ways to communicate your farm culture in your recruiting materials and interviewing process.
- Introduce some online resources that can help you develop job descriptions and shape your interview process.
- Hear from farmers who have found successful staffing solutions in today’s challenging labor market.
This session will assign some reading and listening to be done in advance so that we can make the most of our time together. Together, the pre-work and live session will leave participants with:
- An understanding of the farm culture they wish to create;
- An understanding of what energizes and depletes them managing people;
- Ability to generate roles and responsibilities that clearly articulate the farm’s needs to prospective employees;
- Techniques to interview people to get the employees that match their management style;
- Tools to train employees in diverse ways to meet their needs; and,
- Perspectives from other farmers on what works for them.
Facilitators: Jesse Wright and Seth Wilner, University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension. Thanks to grant support, the workshop is offered free of charge to participants.