By: Justin Waggoner, Ph.D., Beef Systems Specialist
One the more common questions I receive regarding analytical testing of forages and other feedstuffs is “I have the sample, now what do I test for or what analysis package should I select?” Continue reading “Forage Analysis: What Numbers do I Need?”
By: Justin Waggoner, Ph.D., Beef Systems Specialist
“Be a Better Coach in the Workplace”
Being a manager and managing people isn’t easy, especially when an employee or group of employee’s performance needs improvement. The goal of coaching is to improve the quality of the work of the employee or group and is not necessarily part of a disciplinary action (although it is often associated with it). Coaching in the workplace can be an effective way to address issues that limit performance. Below are a few tips from www.thebalancecareers.com on coaching in the workplace.
For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu.
By: Justin Waggoner, Ph.D., Beef Systems Specialist
Many producers are weaning and will be marketing calves in the coming weeks and months. Margins in the cattle industry and agriculture in general are often unfortunately narrow. Maximizing calf revenue is important for cow/calf producers every year. Calf revenue from my academic perspective is driven by three factors, 1) the number of calves sold, 2) sale weight of calves and 3) price received.
Cow/calf producers to some extent have control over the number of calves sold and sale weight. The number of calves sold is essentially a function of stocking rate, cow fertility and/or reproduction on an operation. The sale weight of calves is more complex but is a multi‐factorial combination of genetics, calving distribution, calf age, nutrition, management and technology use (implants). Price received is likely the most influential of the three factors that drive calf revenue and is the factor that cow/calf producers often believe they have the least ability to control. Once a set of calves enters the sale ring or appears on the video screen their value is determined by what two prospective buyers are willing to pay. Although it is impossible for producers to directly influence what buyers are willing to pay, I would argue that they are not completely helpless. Cow/calf producers directly control what they will sell (weaned calves, value‐ added calves or feeders) and determine when they will sell. These are difficult, complex decisions, that shouldn’t necessarily be made based upon weekly cattle sale reports or the thoughts of your favorite livestock market commentator. I am not saying that keeping informed about current market conditions isn’t important. However, that information, when used with resources like Beef Basis (www.beefbasis.com) that use data to evaluate different market scenarios, from selling six weight calves the first week of December to seven weights in February, helps producers make the best decision for their operations.
Producers also control what information or data they pass along to the new owner. Data has value in today’s world. I compare marketing calves to selling a beautifully restored pickup. If you were selling a pickup, you would share with a prospective buyer every bit of information you had and the details of the process, from the atmospheric conditions when the truck was painted to the actual sales invoice from 1972. Why should selling a set of calves be any different? Value‐added programs and certified sales provide potential buyers with some degree of assurance that cattle were managed within the guidelines of the program. If you don’t participate in a defined program, providing the auctioneer or sales representative with as much information as possible about your cattle only helps them do their job better, which is to get the best price for your cattle.
For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu.
By: Justin Waggoner, Ph.D., Beef Systems Specialist
“What’s Your Talent Management Strategy?”
Good help is truly hard to find and sometimes the best employee or leader is the one you already have. This is essentially the concept of “Talent Management” which is the strategy which an organization or business uses to hire, manage, retain, and develop employees for leadership roles. Many businesses lose exceptionally talented employees because their strengths and talents were not recognized. Additionally, an effective talent management strategy is a mechanism to groom and develop future leaders and managers. Managers play a key role in an organization’s talent management strategy, as they must identify talented, exceptional employees. Managers also serve as mentors, providing coaching and feedback to develop employees. Research conducted by the American Society for Training and Development documented that those organizations with the most successful talent management systems also asked managers to discuss the talents and skills of their most talented employees with other managers and leaders. Discussing the organizations most talented employees creates an internal talent pool that various departments can draw from to fill current positions. Do you have exceptional employees in your organization? What is your talent management strategy? Are you at risk of losing your best employees?
For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu.
By: Justin Waggoner, Ph.D., Beef Systems Specialist
“How to Be a Better Coach in the Workplace”
Being a manager and managing people aren’t easy, especially when an employee or group of employees’ performance needs improvement. The goal of coaching is to improve the quality of the work of the employee or group and is not necessarily part of a disciplinary action (although it is often associated with it). Coaching in the workplace can be an effective way to address issues that limit performance. Below are a few tips from www.thebalancecareers.com on coaching in the workplace.
For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu.
By: Justin Waggoner, Ph.D., Beef Systems Specialist
“Silage Harvest: Think Safety”
One of the busiest, most fast paced operations that occur this time of year is silage harvest. Cutters and choppers in the fields, trucks racing from the field to the pile or bunker, multiple tractors pushing and packing silage. The speed at which we can harvest silage today is amazing, but we should never allow the speed at which we can accomplish a task to compromise safety. In the infamous words of Dr. Keith Bolsen “Every silage accident could have been prevented.” Listed below are a few things to consider during this year’s silage harvest.
For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu.
By Justin Waggoner, Ph.D., Beef Systems Specialist
“Customer Service…More Important than Ever”
Good customer service is essential to any business or organization. It does not matter if it is a restaurant or a tow truck service, having staff members that leave customers or anyone that encounters your business with that “wow that was great” feeling directly influences the bottom line. Customer service has become more important than ever as more consumers are purchasing goods and services without ever crossing the threshold of a traditional storefront. So how do we generate those feelings with someone on the phone or in a chat box. Let us start with the basics. What is customer service? Customer service is simply defined as the assistance provided by a company to those that purchase the goods or services it provides. Now on to the tough part, how do we as a business or an organization provide that assistance?
Susan Ward (www.thebalancesmb.com) offers a few simple things that business can do to improve its customer service experiences. First, answer the phone. Potential customers want to talk to a person and don’t want to leave a message. Second, don’t make promises you can’t keep. As the old saying goes “say what you are going to do and do what you said you were going to”. Third, listen. Simply listening to what a potential customer needs is important, there is nothing worse than listening to a sales pitch for something you don’t want. Fourth, be helpful even if you don’t make the sale, today. The service provided today has the potential to turn into something much larger in the future. Fifth, train your staff to go the extra mile by providing additional information about the product or other items commonly purchased with said goods. Lastly, empower your staff to offer something extra without asking permission, especially in those circumstances where the “customer is always right.”
For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu.
By Justin Waggoner, Ph.D., Beef Systems Specialist
“Let’s Talk About Water”
Most cattle producers fully understand the importance of water. After all, providing an adequate supply of clean, fresh water is the cornerstone of animal husbandry and there are very few things that compare to the feeling of finding thirsty cows grouped around a dry tank on a hot day. Water is important, and in situations where the water supply is limited, or we are forced to haul water, one of the first questions we find ourselves asking is “how much water do those cows need?” The old rule of thumb is that cattle should consume 1‐2 gallons of water per 100 lbs of bodyweight. Accurately determining the amount of water cows will voluntarily consume is difficult and is influenced by several factors (ambient temperature, moisture and salt content of the diet, body weight, lactation, etc.) Water consumption increases linearly as ambient temperature increases above 40° Fahrenheit such that cows require an additional gallon of water for every 10 degree increase in temperature. Additionally, lactation also directly increases the amount of water required by beef cows. The table below summarizes the daily water requirements of beef cows of several different body weights, milk production levels. and ambient temperatures (Adapted from Spencer, 2016).
Water is important. The daily water requirements of beef cows in this
consumption varies greatly during the summer months when the temperatures exceed 90° Fahrenheit. Therefore, these recommendations are minimum guidelines. There are a number of excellent resources available on the web regarding livestock water requirements and water site development.
For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu.
“Got Water…But How Much Do Those Cows Need?”
Justin Waggoner, Ph.D., Beef Systems Specialist
Most cattle producers fully understand the importance of water. After all, providing an adequate supply of clean, fresh water is the cornerstone of animal husbandry and there are very few things that compare to the feeling of finding thirsty cows grouped around a dry tank on a hot day. Water is important, and in situations where the water supply is limited or we are forced to haul water, one of the first questions we find ourselves asking is “how much water do those cows need?” The old rule of thumb is that cattle should consume 1‐2 gallons of water per 100 lbs of bodyweight. Accurately determining the amount of water cows will voluntarily consume is difficult and is influenced by several factors (ambient temperature, moisture and salt content of the diet, body weight, lactation, etc.). Water consumption increases linearly as ambient temperature increases above 40 Fahrenheit such that cows require an additional gallon of water for every 10 degree increase in temperature. Additionally, lactation also directly increases the amount of water required by beef cows. The table below summarizes the daily water requirements of beef cows of several different body weights, milk production levels, and ambient temperatures.
The daily water requirements of beef cows represented are estimates and water consumption varies greatly during the summer months when temperatures exceed 90° Fahrenheit. Therefore, these recommendations should be regarded as minimum guidelines.
For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu.
“Think Safety this Summer, Agriculture is a High-Risk Occupation”
By: Justin Waggoner, Ph.D., Beef Systems Specialist
Most of you reading this are likely involved in agriculture in some capacity. Do you think being a farmer or rancher is a high‐risk occupation?
The reality is that farming and ranching is a high‐risk occupation. A 2019 report from the U. S. Department of Labor contains some staggering statistics and emphasizes the need for safety. There were 5,333 fatal work‐related injuries in 2019. Farmers, ranchers, and agriculture managers were the second greatest civilian occupation with regard to fatal work‐related injuries; with 291 reported fatalities in 2019. Nearly 1 out of every 5 fatally injured worker was employed as a driver/sales worker or truck driver. The leading cause of injuries was transportation incidents (2,122). These statistics are sobering. Agriculture is a dangerous occupation, and many times our daily activities put us on the road hauling commodities, equipment and livestock. Summer is “go time” for those of us involved in agriculture. However, the need for safety is real. Don’t be complacent about your safety and the safety of those around you.
The full report from the U.S. Department of Labor may be accessed at:
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cfoi.pdf
For more information, contact Justin Waggoner at jwaggon@ksu.edu.
