Ranch Stewards Podcast

Most ranch families know they need to have financial conversations. Far fewer actually sit down and have them. In the Season 3 finale of the Ranch Stewards Podcast, host Haylie Shipp sits down with financial advisor Ty McDonald for an honest discussion about the topics many agricultural families tend to put off: paying kids through the ranch operation, retirement planning, succession conversations...

Looking for practical conversations about the future of agriculture, ranch labor, and the people who keep working lands working? The Ranch Workforce Project Podcast Series brings together ranch managers, educators, consultants, and agricultural leaders to tackle real-world workforce challenges facing the industry today. Created through a collaboration between the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance and...

What can the beef industry learn from the rise and decline of the sheep industry? In this final episode of the Rural Resilience webinar series, we are bringing you a replay of a live conversation with Brent Roeder, Montana State University Extension sheep specialist. Brent has spent his career in the sheep business, and in this talk he shares hard-earned lessons from decades of change, including g...

⚠️ Heads up: this is a dense, information-rich episode pulled directly from a live webinar. If able, you will want to watch the full video replay on YouTube: https://youtu.be/gzL3MsevnOY?si=nPpL5mv1pDfQAfkm If audio is what you’ve got capacity for, you’re in the right place. This session explores Ranch Water: Low-Tech, High-Impact Restoration with Paul Jones of Tomichi Creek Ecosystem Services. Lo...

Not long ago, virtual fencing felt like a “maybe someday” idea. Today, ranchers are using it in some of the toughest country out there. Virtual fencing isn’t exactly a new conversation anymore, but how and where it’s being used continues to evolve. In this episode, we head off the prairie and into a forest allotment in western Montana. With rugged terrain, wildlife pressure, and little to no tradi...

What should ranch workers really be paid, and why is nobody talking about it? Wages in agriculture can feel like a taboo subject, but avoiding the conversation is not helping anyone. In this episode of the Ranch Workforce Project, host Haylie Shipp sits down with Dr. Rachel Frost and McKenzie Rojas of Arrow M Cattle Company to break down what compensation actually looks like in today’s ranching wo...

If you’ve ever helped work cattle and thought, “I hope I’m doing this right,” this episode is for you. This episode is an audio replay of a recorded webinar from the Rural Resilience series. As you listen, you may hear references to visual demonstrations and slides. If you’d like to follow along or watch the full webinar, you can view the video replay here:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEVQMh...

Burnout in agriculture is often overlooked, but it carries real consequences for people, productivity, and profitability. In this episode of the Ranch Workforce Project, host Haylie Shipp and co-host Dr. Rachel Frost (Dan Scott Ranch Management Program at Montana State University) sit down with JD Hill of Padlock Ranch and Caroline Wild of Wild Ranch Solutions to explore burnout through both emplo...

You hired well. You trained well. Everything seemed right. Then they left. If that sounds familiar, you are not alone. Employee turnover is one of the biggest challenges in agriculture today, and every time someone leaves, it costs time, energy, and momentum. In this episode of The Ranch Workforce Project, Haylie Shipp and Rachel Frost ( Dan Scott Ranch Management Program at Montana State Universi...

What happens when ranchers, conservation partners, and local communities all pull in the same direction? In this episode of the Ranch Stewards Podcast , we pull back the curtain on the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance’s Conservation Committee. Host Haylie Shipp is joined by Martin Townsend, Conservation Director for the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance , and Leo Barthelmess, rancher and RSA Board Member...

Hiring the right person is only the beginning. The way a new employee is introduced to a ranch operation can shape their success, confidence, and long-term future in agriculture. In this episode, Haylie Shipp and Rachel Frost are joined by Aaron Paulson of Switchback Ranch to discuss why intentional onboarding is one of the most important and often overlooked parts of managing people in agricultur...

What makes a great ranch employee, and how do you actually find and hire them? Cracking the Code to the Ideal Ranch Employee Finding and hiring the right people can be one of the most frustrating, and most rewarding, parts of ranch management. In this episode of the Ranch Workforce Project, host Haylie Shipp of the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance and co-host Rachel Frost of the Dan Scott Ranch Manag...

What can a drone actually do on a working ranch, and is it worth the cost? In this episode, Haylie Shipp sits down with rancher Kari Koss, The Nature Conservancy’s Jason Hanlon, and Ranchers Stewardship Alliance Mapping Specialist Maida Knapton to talk about the real world uses of drones in agriculture. From checking water and locating cattle to mapping prairie dog towns and monitoring vegetation,...

Labor continues to be one of the biggest pressure points in agriculture. But when you are not hiring a full-time, long-term employee, the real question becomes: What kind of help do you actually need? In this episode of the Ranch Workforce Project, host Haylie Shipp and co-host Rachel Frost sit down with Taylre Sitz Zempel of Sitz Angus Ranch and Dan Leahy of the Foundation for Ranch Management to...

Every working ranch tells two stories, the one behind us, and the one we are still trying to write. This episode marks the beginning of a 10 episode limited series collaboration between Ranchers Stewardship Alliance and the Dan Scott Ranch Management Program . Together, the series focuses on one of the most pressing challenges facing agriculture today, labor. In Episode 1, host Haylie Shipp is joi...

This episode of the Ranch Stewards Podcast features the audio-only version of a Rural Resilience webinar, created for listeners who prefer to learn on the go. The full video presentation is available for those who would like to see visuals and demonstrations. In this episode, ranchers share real-world examples of how technology is changing land and livestock management while supporting long-term s...

The Ranch Workforce Project is a limited series podcast collaboration between the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance and Montana State University’s Dan Scott Ranch Management Program . While the series is rooted in ranching, the conversations are relevant across all of agriculture, including farming, orchards, specialty crop operations, and diversified agricultural businesses facing workforce challenge...

Who wouldn’t want a deep massage? Turns out, your soil might be overdue for one. In this episode, host Haylie Shipp talks with Montana ranchers Todd Barkley (near Baker) and Casey Buffington (Chester) about bale grazing , a winter-feeding strategy that can build soil health, redistribute nutrients, reduce daily feeding chores, and add flexibility to ranch life. They also discuss how the “new sexy...

In this special, off-script episode of the Ranch Stewards Podcast, host Haylie Shipp flips the mic and interviews Megan Torgerson, founder and host of Reframing Rural , an award-winning documentary podcast that centers the voices and lived experiences of rural people and places. Now in its fourth season, Reframing Rural is focused on succession planning, an issue deeply important to ranching famil...

In this episode of the Ranch Stewards Podcast , we dig into the growing world of agritourism and how creative ideas can bring new opportunities to working lands. From educational offerings to niche on-the-ground experiences, agritourism is becoming an increasingly valuable way for farms and ranches to diversify and connect with visitors in meaningful ways. Guests Shannon Arnold and Tamara Robertso...

In this personal and heartfelt episode, host Haylie Shipp shares how a major health crisis in her family in 2024 changed the way she views wellness on the ranch. Ranchers plan for drought, markets, and succession, but rarely for themselves. Preventative healthcare is another kind of ranch insurance. It protects the most important asset on any operation: the people who keep it running. Haylie visit...

In this episode, Haylie Shipp sits down with eco-nutritionist Sara Keough and rancher Craig French to explore the surprising ways soil health and human health are connected. Sara shares what it means to look at people as ecosystems. Craig tells the story of meeting Sara at the Soil Health Symposium and the big changes he has seen since working with her, including weight loss, better sleep, and mor...

Today’s episode of the Ranch Stewards Podcast takes us underground, as we bring you a replay from our 2025 Rural Resilience webinar series all about vermicast. Vermicast is a soil additive produced by earthworms that can improve soil biology, boost plant health, and strengthen ranching systems. You will hear from: Kendall Morgan, Land Health Specialist with Winnett ACES Adele Stenson, rancher and...

Winter grazing might sound like a risky gamble, but for Montana ranchers Cooper Hibbard and Leo Barthelmess , it’s a key part of building a more resilient—and affordable—grazing system. In this episode, we dig into how they manage livestock in the cold months, monitor forage quality and cow condition, and adjust plans in real time. From financial realities to grazing mistakes, they share what’s wo...

We’ve said why the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance exists. But what do we actually do ? In this season-opening episode of the Ranch Stewards Podcast , host Haylie Shipp sits down with RSA Executive Director Angel DeVries, Conservation Director Martin Townsend, and Board President Conni French to break down the mission of this rancher-led nonprofit—and the real-world impact it’s having across the Nor...