Profitable Farmer

Over 15,000 kilometres of new fencing completed More than 16,000 kilometres of old fencing cleaned up or restored In excess of 11,000 farming families lifted from adversity Many thousands of communities deeply impacted The lives of so many completely transformed   It gives me great pleasure to introduce Kevin Butler to share his BlazeAid Story.   In the aftermath of the 2009 Black Saturday fires,...

Managing people, both family and in farming business, can undoubtedly be one of our greatest challenges. Not only do we have to navigate delicate working relationships with our brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, mothers and fathers – grandmothers and grandfathers for some too! But, equally, we have casual, full-time, part-time, contractor, client and supplier relationships to ‘wrangle’, navigate,...

For me, Farm Owners Academy is a strong example of good business practice, well-applied. We are seven years old and have enjoyed significant growth year on year. We are an expanding team, all well-aligned to a common goal and cause. We deliver results, adding real and lasting value to the lives of those we serve. I am immensely proud to be part of this team and community. I am also very pleased th...

It is rare to meet true game changers and genuine leaders of Commerce & Industry, let alone get to interview two! In this episode, we meet Gaethan Cutri and Salah Sukkarieh - both pioneers in their own right. Salah Sukkarieh is the Professor of Robotics and Intelligent Systems at the University of Sydney and CEO of  Agerris, a new Agtech startup company from the Australian Centre for Field Rob...

It gives me great pleasure to welcome Andrew Roberts ‘Robbo’ back to the Profitable Farmer podcast. Not only is Robbo one of the founders of Farm Owners Academy and the previous host of this Podcast, but he has also been my Business Coach and great friend for over 15 years. It is always compelling to catch up with Robbo and ‘shoot the breeze’. In this conversation, we explore the definition of a s...

Every six months, I like to check in with Terry Tran, our resident investment specialist and founder of the Freedom Trader, to get his insights into the global marketplace, our local economy and investing in the equity market and off-farm.   In this interview, we explore: the global economy given the ongoing pandemic; the impact that significant government intervention might have; what we might ex...

Our work ethic is legendary. No question.   Our ability to handle volatility, variability, risk, genuine adversity, constant change, and daily corrections is to be truly admired.   Equally, business ownership AND farming can be a lonely place.   Many of us have been here – playing full tilt, often without regular breaks for years.   It is no wonder so many of us, over time, become tired, stressed,...

I have heard it said in my travels that success leaves clues.   I have also heard it said that history often repeats itself.   In this podcast, we hear the story of a 95-year-old gentleman - also a great Australian businessman and entrepreneur.   This story is told through the eyes of his now 62-year-old son – also a great Australian businessman and entrepreneur. This is a story of initiative, pas...

So the saying goes…   The first generation starts a business. The second generation builds it up. The third generation ruins it.   I am sure we have all heard this bandied around over the years…   In my estimation, the Hutcheon & Pearce story, led by Arron Hutcheon, is a great rural and regional example of how to buck this trend, and thrive.   In this episode, I am fortunate to speak with Arro...

In our estimation, less than 5% of farming families have documented, accurate and meaningful family and business plans. In this episode, I speak with Farm Owners Academy (FOA), Farm Business Coach, David ‘Westy’ Westbrook about the importance of strategic planning and the method FOA recommend in making our farm business plans compelling, actionable and highly effective.   As Westy and his family e...

Are you open to explore a deeper meaning to life? In this episode, I let you in on a secret and introduce you to an important man in my life. Over the last 5 years, I have enrolled the support of Diego (Dig) Bortolin. Dig has been a great friend, confidant, mentor and spiritual guide to me. He has supported me to face my fears; explore my self-doubt; move through my anxieties, challenge my limitin...

I have heard it said that there is no such thing as a 'perfect family'. Who can relate to this? In business, and within our families, there are so many different personalities… so many complex people that we have to deal with, work with, and lead. For many, THIS can be our greatest challenge! In this podcast, and to complement my prior two episodes on Planning & Negotiation, I explore DiSC Per...

Negotiation is not what we think it is. Negotiation is a skill that all successful business minds and influencers in society learn, master and successfully apply. Yet at the same time, it is a crucial skill very few of us are ever taught. As a result, most of us battle through life and business… ‘winging it’, getting it wrong, damaging relationships, ‘settling for less’, missing out and often maki...

During my business and entrepreneurship journey, I have been lucky enough to study with and learn from some incredible minds. Through Marshall Thurber, and his ‘Money & You’ course, I have been introduced to the truly profound business thinkings of both W Edward Deming and Buckminster Fuller. In this episode, and as we collectively set down our plans and priorities for the new year, I share so...

2020, for a range of reasons, will be a year we’ll never forget.   Yet, at the same time, I feel it will also be a year many of us will cherish and be proud to remember. Adversity has been prominent. Families have come together. Communities have rallied. Hard work has been at the fore-front. The important things have been re-established. Simplicity has been remembered. Self-mastery a requirement....

A mate of mine described Brett Stevenson as ‘a legend in our industry’. In 1996, Brett founded Market Check, now Australia’s most highly respected and widely used independent grain marketing company for Australian farmers. Having navigated 3 years of very challenging seasons, like many farming families, Market Check is now a growing team of 15+ representatives supporting a client base of over 1,00...

Hi [First Name], 12 years ago, as I hung my shingle as the first business coach in regional Australia, Danny Russell, then a 28-year-old budding entrepreneur with a small cleaning company knocks on my door to tell me he is going to be my first client! …and the rest is history. A cracking entrepreneur and now emerging property developer, Danny & his wife Jill, have become life-long friends and...

Leadership according to one of the all-time greats… In this podcast, I share some of the most compelling business leadership training I have ever learned. Several years ago (and 7 times since!), I attended an incredible Entrepreneurial Training Program called ‘Money & You’. It was here that I was first introduced to W. Edward Deming.  Deming was once the revered global authority on driving eff...

Hello and welcome to our 60th episode! WOW! We are so proud to reach this milestone in the Profitable Farmer journey.    Over the past 3 years, the previous 59 Profitable Farmer episodes have been downloaded over 151,000 times and we have steadily built up a loyal fanbase and thousands of subscribers.  The topics we discuss each fortnight are even appealing to listeners outside of agriculture, whi...

In the second of this important two-part series, I interview another small group of Farm Owners Academy Platinum Mastermind Members. This time the wonderful Women of FOA.... Across our community there are some incredible transformations occurring, and some incredible results being achieved – be they financial, on-farm, in-family or individually. It truly is a unique, positive, supportive and compl...

In an important two-part series, I interview two small groups of Farm Owners Academy Platinum Mastermind Members.   Firstly, the Men of FOA, and then the Women of FOA.   Across our community there are some incredible transformations occurring, and some incredible results being achieved – be they financial, on-farm, in-family or individually.   It truly is a unique, positive, supportive and complet...

How important is your language as a farmer?   And how important are your words in enrolling your family & team to achieve all you hope & dream of in your life?   Have you ever really stopped to think about it?   In this episode, I interview another great mate of mine, James Kelly.  ‘JK’ is Managing Director of Alchimie – a global management consulting and leadership training organisation....

Out of 10, how do you rate your company’s culture, and what do you do in order to enhance & optimise it? Team and family culture is at the essence of how well our farming teams perform and achieve. Team and family culture can be the thing that truly sets you apart as a business in both your area and market. It’s ultimately an extension of you, and a legacy you can leave. At the same time, cult...

I used to think being a leader meant that I had to know it all, have all the answers, control every decision, and work the hardest. I used to think leadership was an ‘intellectual game’ and mindfulness had no place in business… or leadership… or success in most things for that matter. I certainly didn’t make any time for it…how wrong I was!   On my journey in business and leadership, I now underst...

We all have 2 or 3 people who truly inspire us, for me Ricky Dumigan is one of those people. An incredibly disciplined, dedicated, and resilient high-performance specialist; Ricky has trained elite military teams, the highest echelons of rugby and sport and some of the most significant executive leadership teams in our country. He is passionate about what it takes to nurture and create true cohesi...