Point of practice assistance
Need/issues:
Sourcing the people and skills the industry needs to grow is a key issue. Economies of scale have not impacted dairy like the pig and poultry industries. As a broad generalization for 25 years we have had approximately one FTE to service each 100 milking cows. Little has changed. Implications include:
- Human resources: As herd numbers expand beyond 2-3 FTE’s (the family unit) the rapidly increasing need to source and appropriately manage the human resource that is dedicated to our enterprise
- The need to create an environment in which dairy is recognised as a preferred employer/wealth creator provides, particularly for those most likely to place energy into growth (25-40), a value proposition and opportunity
- A need to complement the workforce with technology that assists/adds to human capability in the way we make on-farm decisions
- A need to understand the dairy workplace so that investment is targeted and appropriate, and our value proposition can be displayed to people in other industries (mining, trades etc)
- The need to continue to build capability at individual levels, we need trained and educated people in all areas to ensure our technological offerings are best utilised.
Program objectives:
- Provide the information, support, tools and opportunity for farmers and industry to implement best practice around their human resource.
- Attract, retain and deploy our people in a way that the industry grows productively, the costs of turnover are reduced and we are seen as an industry of first choice for prospective investment of time, human capital and finance.
- To ensure that the capability is built to allow the effective integration and use of leading edge technologies with the farming system.
Projects: