Country farm management and business management encompasses all aspects of managing an agricultural business successfully. It involves identifying consumer demands that the farm is able to meet and determining the best method to combine basic resources, like labor, land and capital to maximize returns. It also involves making choices that balance economic, environmental and social aspects in addition to dealing with Agritourism and regulatory challenges.
Making an original big idea and creating and practicing an “elevator pitch” are the initial steps to becoming an agricultural business leader. Next, develop a business plan to bring the idea become a reality. Determine and analyze the risks to your agribusiness that could affect your plan. Then, find the best financing solution that suits the requirements of your business.
Good farm managers continuously review new technologies and analyze the effectiveness of existing practices. They also prepare for the future. They must be able quickly to collect and interpret data. This could be inputs from other farmers, extension staff and private agribusiness firms researchers, research staff and other friends. They must also possess the ability to think imaginatively and conduct mini-experiments.
Budgets are a key tool in analyzing a farm’s business, but large variations in their frequency can hinder their reliability. Therefore, budgets must be complemented with probability distributions for weather events and prices. This will enable the manager to evaluate the risk and analyze the effects of the various options.