09Jul 2020 by Stephen Dummett
Benchmarking Evolution

Benchmarking Evolution

Articles & Publications, Opinion Pieces
By Phil Holmes Farm business benchmarking first appeared in Australia over 40 years ago, starting with the cropping industry. The livestock industry soon followed with the Victorian DPI Monitor Farm Study being, arguably, the first serious attempt in the early 70's. It is still there today. By today's standards those early versions were rather simplistic, but you have to start somewhere. Increased knowledge and experience have made significant contributions to the process over time. I have been very fortunate to have had three great mentors in the early years of my career and I would not have had the career fulfilment that I have enjoyed without them. One of them was a Cooma NSW based entrepreneurial accountant, Mick Boyce who was always looking for ways to add value to client relationships. Mick…
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05Nov 2019 by Ian Mclean No Comments
Avoid Magic, opt for Science

Avoid Magic, opt for Science

Articles & Publications, Opinion Pieces
Contributed by Dr Phil Holmes and Ian McLean Unfortunately, and to its detriment, broadacre agriculture is not always an evidence-based industry at producer level. Yes, there are areas where evidence drives what is done, but it is far from universal. Too much attention is placed on fads and searches for silver bullets. By way of contrast, consider engineering. If it was not based on hard evidence, planes would fall out of the sky, buildings would collapse and bridges would cave in. It is the ultimate discipline in everyday life. But back to broadacre agriculture, specifically livestock. Fads go past the front gate of the property every day. Some of them are relatively benign and some seriously detrimental to business. There have been heaps of them. The whole Soft Rolling Skins…
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