Q: What is your role at KCARD?
I am the Senior Business Development Specialist at KCARD. My primary role is to provide business advisory services, such as business planning, financial analysis and projections, and management consultationsI have led feasibility studies on a variety of business ideas, including grain elevators, meat processing, canola processing, and fresh-cut produce operations. Finally, this year I have taken on a mentorship role for KCARD staff by coordinating professional development activities and mentoring/reviewing other KCARD staff activity in its business development efforts.
Q: You’ve seen a lot of businesses come into KCARD’s doors since your start at KCARD. What are a few memorable moments you’ve had?
I have been blessed to work at KCARD for over 14 years, and make numerous great memories. Without a doubt the most memorable part of working for KCARD (and the best part) has been meeting and working with the numerous clients and KCARD staff, who I feel privileged to know and consider friends. The moments that I treasure and find most memorable are the kitchen table meetings with farm families about their dreams or struggles; the onsite meetings with business owners where they proudly show off their business, we discuss plans to address current issues, and joke around with each other like old friends; and lunches and traveling with KCARD staff where we share about our families, tell stories, and laugh. I know that many of my clients and co-workers have had a very positive impact on my life, and I hope that I have made a small positive difference in their lives.
Q: You are known for your expertise in cooperative development and meat processing. How did that come about?
My knowledge base for cooperative development has built over time from different work experiences. Before I worked at KCARD, I had over three years of experience managing a cooperative, and after I began working at KCARD I have attended numerous trainings on cooperative development. I have played a role in the development of numerous cooperatives and assisted several existing cooperatives with business planning, financial analysis, board training, and management consultations. Since 2018, I have been teaching a class at the University of Kentucky on agricultural cooperatives. Finally, during my first 6.5 years I had the privilege of working for Larry Snell, who had over 30 years of cooperative management experience.
My meat processing knowledge base has increased (and continues to do so) due to the custom meat processors in Kentucky that I have had the privilege to call clients over the last 14 years. During this time, I have had 17 meat processor clients who I have helped plan their launch or expansion, analyze their financial performance, and develop marketing strategies. Leading a feasibility study on a custom meat processor in Henry County in 2013, which led to the development of Trackside Butcher Shoppe, is the work experience that significantly increased my knowledge base of small meat processors.
Q: What are three pieces of advice you would leave for incoming or current clients of KCARD?
This is a difficult one for me because I am not one for doling out blanket advice or coming up with general sayings, but here it goes:
Define your goals and pursue them relentlessly and blindly: It is critical that you identify specific goals to pursue and that you do not get distracted by things that do not help you achieve those goals.
Know your costs: It is critical that any farm or business understand how much it costs them to produce their product so they can make informed marketing decisions. Farms and businesses need to have recordkeeping systems in place to know these costs.
Identify key performance measures and track these measures on a regular basis: Famers and business owners/managers need to have a dashboard of measures that they are constantly monitoring to gauge the performance of the business and identify any potential issues.
Q: Which local product do you like better—Ale 8 or Ski?
As the great Dick Vitale would say, that is a “M & Mer” (major mismatch). Without a doubt, the answer is Ski. I grew up drinking Ski, and it is still one of my favorite drinks. Unfortunately, you can’t always find Ski, but I know that my Mama will always have a cold Ski waiting for me whenever I stop by to visit.