Underpaying employees will result in less productivity, but simply paying people more doesn’t motivate employees as much as you might think, says Tom Wall, the Dairy Coach.
Plenty of farms struggle with finding and retaining good people, but Wall says that’s at least partially to do with not having a people plan. We have production plans, cattle plans, but no people plans, he says.
Wall says that any good people plan comes down to four things: Clarity, communication, connection and recognition.
Respect and recognition for the effort people put in is valued, as is actually taking action on things that staff bring up as needing attention. If your staff want something fixed, fix it, he says — it shows you hear them and that you care.
Good people want to know they matter, and recognizing special days or involving their family can go far in building a community and loyalty.
While those with only a handful of employees may think they don’t really need a people plan, Wall says to put the value of each employee’s responsibilities in context. “If you have one employee looking after all 200 cows at any time, that’s one person looking after 100 per cent of your herd,” he says. That’s too important not to take the time and spend the energy building a better people plan.
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