Coaching Women Farmers and Ranchers

Woman to woman networks are powerful strategies for beginning farm and ranch women to learn how to build businesses that fit their needs and lifestyles. One of the reasons that networks are so powerful is that they employ more coaching techniques than education techniques. This recording from the 2019 Women in Ag Programs for 21st Century Farms and Ranches Virtual Conference explore several models that employ coaching strategies in different ways to attain business goals, learn skills, and take some calculated risks. Our panelists will share their experience in developing programs and curricula designed to meet women farmers and ranchers where they are and create dynamic learning networks to carry them forward. 

Presenters:  Maud Powell, Oregon State University Small Farms Program; Jean Eells, PhD, E Resources Group, LLC and Lisa Kivirist, Senior Fellow, Endowed Chair in Agricultural Systems, University of Minnesota, author of Soil Sisters:  A Toolkit for Women Farmers, co-owner of Inn Serendipity Bed & Breakfast in Monroe, WI

21st Century Education: Thinking Outside of the Box

What Do Women Want slide

Technology can be overwhelming at times but it also offers us new ways to expand our outreach to beginning farm and ranch women. New tools also allow us to reach a broader audience, build better collaborations and work more efficiently. This presentation from the 2019 Women in Ag Programs for 21st Century Farms and Ranches Virtual Conference, provides information about several models of education, technical assistance and coaching that are being employed successfully with women farmers and ranchers.  

Presenters: Margaret Viebrock, Washington State University Extension will provide an overview of an annual conference that covers 5 states, 36 counties, one day. What works, what has evolved over time, and what to consider if you’d like to try a similar model. Shannon Dill and Jennifer Rhodes, University of Maryland Extension will share their experience in developing a webinar series and a social media campaign to strengthen a network of women farmers in the mid-Atlantic region.

The Art of Negotiation-Educators’ Toolkit

Helping farmers get what they need

Negotiation is an essential business strategy –whether farm women are negotiating a sales contract, an employment opportunity or want to clarify who is cooking dinner—negotiation is part of every agricultural business owner’s toolkit. But women frequently feel unprepared and unskilled in this form of communication. Following are materials for educators interested in exploring the development of negotiation skills with women farmers and ranchers. Below you will find workshop materials, a recording of a training webinar, and a supplemental worksheet for participants.

In this training we explore what negotiation really is (and what it is not), how to prepare for, and execute, a successful negotiation, and how to preserve a relationship when the deal falls apart. This interactive workshop is designed to address negotiation from the perspective of women farmers and ranchers, and encourages participants to explore why they may be reluctant to ask for what they need and why walking away from an opportunity can be so unsettling.

Watch the “Art of Negotiation” Webinar Recording (2018)

For more information on the workshop or to explore other training opportunities contact Mary Peabody.