In this episode of the Precision Farming Dealer podcast, Jim Steinke, Ag Express Electronics’ vice president of sales and marketing, talks about the company's expansion plans, the barriers and gaps the company is working to fill, including addressing industry-wide supply chain shortages, and much more.

Talking to industry people about their thoughts on customer training, one response was that customer events are a “necessary evil;” that customers expect it, so we do it. Another said, “We do them, but we don’t feel like we get anything in return from them.” And another said, “Our customers don’t remember anything that we teach them so why do them — what’s the point?”

Staff training was part of nearly every discussion at the 2018 Precision Farming Dealer Summit in Louisville. Precision is where things are moving fastest, and the expectations of farmers and the dealership itself (both equally unrealistic at times) and the firefighting at planting and harvest require highly structured processes and duties.

Ivy Tech Community College Terre Haute offers two fields of study for individuals seeking high paying careers in the agriculture industry.

The 2017 Precision Farming Dealer Summit succession planning roundtable in St. Louis “played” to a packed room. Moderated by Tim Norris, former CEO, Ag Info Tech (2016 Most Valuable Dealership), Mount Vernon, Ohio, the participants included family-owned precision dealerships with a handful to employees all the way to businesses with hundreds of employees.

Standardizing pricing for precision service and cross-training employees on precision can help keep precision farming employees productive all year.

Managing precision workflow can also be described as the shouldering of the burden across multiple departments. It's no small matter in a world of pressure, burnout and round-the-clock on-call service during peak times of the year.