As producers, we spend a remarkable amount of time thinking about how to improve pigs and production. We evaluate genetics, nutrition, health, housing and production practices in search of better performance. Continuous improvement has always been part of our industry.
Yet one of the greatest opportunities to improve an operation has little to do with facilities, equipment or production practices. Those innovations eventually become copied by everyone. What competitors can’t easily copy are your people, your culture and the way you develop leaders.
The best operations don’t just raise pigs better. They build teams that embrace learning, challenge each other to improve and are never settled with yesterday’s success.
Learning Beyond the Barn
One of the biggest changes I’ve seen throughout my career isn’t necessarily how production has evolved. It’s how people build relationships.
Years ago as the industry scaled, producers naturally developed strong peer networks through peer groups industry meetings, conferences and years of working alongside others across the industry. Those relationships became trusted sounding boards to challenge ideas, share experiences and learn lessons.
Today’s industry looks different. Production systems have grown larger and organizations have become more specialized. Many talented young leaders spend most of their careers working and being influenced almost exclusively within their own company. They never have the chance to get out of their own barns, and their own systems.
Production doesn’t stop, and neither do the daily responsibilities that come with caring for pigs. But stepping away from the farm every once in a while often provides the perspective we need to become better leaders.
Relationships Build Better Producers
Some of the most valuable ideas don’t come from a presentation; they come from conversations. They’re shared over coffee before the meeting begins, during a hallway discussion between sessions or on the drive home while talking through ideas with coworkers.
Sometimes hearing how another producer solved a challenge helps you look at your own operation differently. Sometimes a nutritionist, veterinarian or equipment supplier introduces a new perspective that changes the way you think.
That’s why opportunities to learn alongside others remain crucial. Programs such as our Carthage Emerging Leaders Program, educational meetings and other industry conferences aren’t purely about technical information. They’re opportunities to build relationships, exchange ideas and challenge one another to keep improving.
Creating the Next Generation of Leaders
Learning doesn’t stop after orientation, and leadership isn’t built during an annual performance review. It develops through consistent coaching, meaningful feedback and opportunities to grow.
Great leaders regularly ask employees which skills they want to develop, what responsibilities they’re ready to take on and how they can continue growing within the organization. It is up to both the leader and the employee to look for those opportunities to grow and dedicate the time.
Learning Should Be Accessible to Everyone
As our workforce continues to evolve, investing in people also means meeting employees where they are. A growing (perhaps even majority?) portion of our industry’s workforce speaks Spanish as their primary language. Creating bilingual learning opportunities helps ensure more employees can fully engage, ask questions and apply what they learn when they return to the farms. It’s about ensuring every employee has the opportunity to learn, contribute and lead.
Carthage Annual Swine Conference has embraced that philosophy by offering simultaneous Spanish translation and dedicated Spanish-language breakout sessions alongside technical and leadership programming. It’s one example of how our company can make education more accessible while strengthening the workforce who drive our operations every day.
Keep Growing
Technology will continue changing the way we produce pork, but technology alone won’t determine the future of our industry; our people do.
The operations that continue improving won’t be the ones with the newest equipment or the biggest facilities. They will be the ones that intentionally develop their teams, encourage curiosity and create opportunities for people to keep learning - because growing great pigs has always started with growing great people.
