What will the precision dealer of the future look like? How different will their role be within a dealership? As new technologies mold business models, the responsibilities of precision staff are evolving as well, with more emphasis placed on service-centric revenue and data-driven decisions for customers. 

Dealerships will need to redefine the “why” and “how” of their precision teams, influenced by rapid advancements in ag tech and taking cues from industries outside agriculture to adapt and grow their businesses. Jim Henderson, executive partner with The Exemplary Group, a business consulting firm working with ag dealerships, is no stranger to the start-up experience and the notion that hardware company employees are “systems integrators” trained on multiple skillsets and abilities to serve customers. He sees the same model taking shape in agriculture, particularly within the precision farming business of dealerships. 

“The concept is rooted in being a value-added dealer or the value-added representative,” Henderson says. “Services will be more profitable, but regardless of their core business, the dealer of the future will be a systems integrator and bring solutions together. Those are the companies that will have a big advantage.” 

Henderson will draw on his professional experience advising businesses in and outside of agriculture on how to prepare and plan for the next wave of innovation that will redefine the way dealers sell and support equipment — and potentially establish a new precision service model.