Farm Equipment magazine has announced the agenda and presentation lineup for the 2013 Dealership Minds Summit, a first-ever, 1-day conference and networking event for dealer-principals, top-level management and executives from farm equipment dealerships of all colors.

Ultimate Software, a leading cloud provider of people management solutions, announced that RDO Equipment Co., a company that provides innovative solutions for John Deere agriculture and construction, Vermeer, and Topcon customers in more than 60 locations across the U.S., is leveraging the UltiPro human capital management (HCM) solution for increased employee engagement, HR operational effectiveness, and strategic workforce analytics and reporting.

The role of precision farming dealers will be to service and support technology.

During a recent trip through Illinois — to include a couple of farm equipment dealer visits — one precision farming specialist offered a candid prediction about how intertwined technology and machinery will become in the near future.

As precision farming technology rapidly evolves, equipment dealerships continue to develop or grow their precision specialist departments to meet customer need. But keeping pace with growers’ thirst for precision technology is an ongoing challenge.

How would you rate, on a scale of 1-10, (1 being excellent, 10 being poor), your precision ag suppliers (major line and any independent precision ag suppliers) on their training and support of you as a precision ag specialist?

Precision Agriculture Professor Terry Brase has always loved gadgets. After creating a few maps, Brase — who Precision Farming Dealer caught up with recently at the International Precision Ag Conference in Indianapolis — says he came to a logical conclusion about where the technology would prove particularly useful.

With new and often pricey precision farming technology being introduced at a rapid rate, the used equipment market is an appealing option for dealers to attract thrifty buyers and establish lasting business relationships.

During the last few weeks, I had the pleasure of getting to know some of the international players in the precision farming industry.

Uniformity and input savings have driven Nathan Lykins’ investment in precision technology. He started with just a yield monitor, built to boom shutoffs on their sprayer and now uses row clutches and hydraulic drives on their planter and variable rate fertilizer application.