Talking with precision farming managers, I’ve found many have a method for minimizing the madness of recruiting or retaining employees.

Dealers understand the value of playing to the strengths of a salesperson or service tech, and not trying to expect too much, too soon. This puts not only the department, but the whole organization at risk with the potential of company-wide unrest.

Precision people are going to leave and it’s an inevitable part of the business. But there are ways to lower those odds. One general manager of an independent precision farming dealership helped develop and implement an incentive program for full-time employees that offers an employee travel bonus for staff when they reach 5, 10, 15 and 20 year work anniversaries.

Since the program launched in mid-2017, 2 employees have qualified for the incentive and in both cases, took their families to Disneyworld. Says the general manager, “It allowed those employees to take trips they might now have been able to otherwise take. It’s a program we’ve seen really drive and reinforce our company culture and has been a useful retention tool.”

The dealership has stipulations on when the vacation can be taken (not during spring planting or harvest) and the money can only be used for travel, not taken as a payout.

“We like to make a big deal about it and present a certificate to the employee at our annual meeting as a gesture so everyone gets to see it,” the general manager says.