If you are interested in making some changes in your farm operation, here is one affordable way of looking at different alternatives.

The process is very simple. First, I complete an assessment of where your business is financially and we discuss the kinds of options for improvement that may make sense for your family.

Together, we come up with a list of ideas that may be possible and are interesting to your family.

I complete an analysis of several alternatives, including maintaining the status quo. We discuss these alternatives for you to examine and make the best decision for your operation.

Often new projects need some interaction with your banker. I can help you to present your idea to lender.

To start this process and to get more information you can contact me.

Here is a little more formal description of the process:

Farm Financial Assessment

Every farm producer is eligible to access up to five days (35-40 hours) of a business advisors time. The consultant will meet with the farm business owners to complete a status quo assessment of the farm business. This assessment will analyze the financial, position of the business, but will also include an assessment of operations and management resources. The Farm Financial Assessment is provided to the farm business owners in a written report. The report includes a one year projection of income, cash flow, and debt service capacity and a summary of the farm business operations and management that can be used for presentation to lenders as well as internal use.

Action Plan

Once an assessment of the current situation is completed, the consultant and the farm business owners and/or managers work together to develop a list of suitable changes or alternatives that may improve the business. The selected alternatives are analyzed to determine which alternatives may be feasible for the farm family and an action plan is completed. These alternatives are narrowed to the alternatives that are deemed most appropriate for the particular situation. The Action Plan is compiled into a written report including two years of financial projections and analysis of the impact of the changes on the farm business.      

Follow-Up

The farm business is provided with one day of follow-up contact with the consultant consisting of one day to update the financial position of the farm business and to discuss how the plan has progressed and to determine why the plan has or has not gone as projected.