"This targeted development of women in sheep and beef farming partnerships is designed to increase profitability and strengthen the farming partnership, giving farmers more control over their futures," AWDT founder and executive director Lindy Nelson of Alfredton said.
"By taking a greater role in decision making, and applying new business, communication and change-making skills, these women are creating opportunities to lift farm performance in a challenging farming landscape."
Graduate Elle Joblin and her husband Simon farm in an equity partnership on an 1100ha intensive sheep and beef property, Greenhill Station, in the Waitahora Valley east of Dannevirke, with their children, Sophie, 9, James, 7, and Harry, 2. The two eldest children attend nearby Weber School.
"I decided to take part in this course to build on my knowledge about our farming business operation," Elle told the Dannevirke News.
"I felt the more confidence and understanding of our farming business I had, the more supportive I could be to Simon and the team here at Greenhill Station. Because I am very involved in the governance and administration side of the business I was interested to learn any additional information to help improve my role and help support the other members of our team."
Elle said there were many aspects of the programme she found useful.
"One of the most useful and powerful parts of the programme was being in a room filled with very talented, like-minded women who have so much to give to the farming sector.
"The accounting module was very interesting and helped me clarify some of the accounting terms and better understand the financial statements. I was very surprised someone could make the subject of tax incredibly exciting."
Business planning aspects of the programme gave Elle the chance to take the time to look at the couple's business as a whole and reflect on their goals and where they want to end up in the future.
"It created some good conversations with Simon and confirmed we are making the right decisions to achieve our end goal," she said.
"Since finishing the course I have implemented some changes such as better business planning, more reporting and communication which has added great value to our business. It has given me the motivation and confidence to know my contribution is crucial to the success of your business. Sometimes this confidence or ability to believe in yourself can be lost especially when you have been busy looking after little children and not doing the day-to-day physical work on the farm."
The Understanding Your Farming Business course is aimed at bringing this confidence back, allowing partners to become more engaged, supportive and knowledgeable about their farming business.
Independent research by UMR Research released last month strongly correlated the business contribution of the female farming partner with the characteristics of high-performing farms.
Undertaken for the RMPP, the research involved more than 1000 sheep and beef farmers throughout New Zealand. It defined five farmer types according to openness and resistance to change and found that in all but one type, women were key to initiating and supporting on-farm change.
"There's no doubt women play a key role in farming businesses across New Zealand," Michael Smith, general manager, Red Meat Profit Partnership, said. "However, we believe with the right practical support and learning, they can play an even greater role and ultimately improve the productivity and profitability of the red meat sector.
"We're working to develop and grow the business skills of both men and women within the farming partnership " and attract the next generation of top talent.
By the end of this year more than 450 sheep and beef farming women throughout New Zealand will have completed the programme.
