Institute for Food and Agri-Business Management

Farm Business Management Update, June 2000

By Eluned Jones

Consumer driven markets Consumer behavior Managing resources globally Organization and institution behavior Domestic and global regulation Supply chain management Information management Team/individual decision-making

Institute for Food and Agri-Business Management Starts September 17, 2000, and includes on-line sessions. A program offered in partnership between the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Pamplin College of Business, the College of Human Resources and Education, and industry. Limited to 30 participants from across the agri-food supply chain (farm to retail), the Institute will include one-week in residence at the Hotel Roanoke, six two-hour on-line sessions during October and November, and a final one-day program at the Barboursville Vineyards. The Institute was born from an increasingly dynamic business environment, and the response from industry focus group participants who indicated that managing change and transition were the biggest constraints to sustained profitability and competitiveness. The Institute will provide a proactive arena where facilitators and participants share tools for managing the adaptation to change. Skill development is transferred to the participants through the use of highly interactive learning techniques which span a 3-month period for maximum effectiveness and application. In the old economy, food and agricultural products and services yielded profits to each distinctive sector in the supply chain. In the new economy, where external and internal processes are continually optimized, the source of value is more difficult to determine. Adding value may involve new knowledge, information accessibility, delivery mechanisms, alliances/partnering, solution 'bundles,' and brand experience. Furthermore, trust, reliability, and speed are as important as price, quality, and efficiency. Across the food and agri-business industry, clearly, a supply chain systems approach to issues such as waste management, biotechnology, and food safety has the potential for a more sustainable and competitive solution.

Do you know producers, farmers or other participants in the agri-food supply chain who would answer "yes" to the following questions?

Are you a manager or decision-maker in the food and agri-business value chain?

Are you challenged by how to adjust your operations to this dynamically changing environment?

Are you interested in affecting organizational change?

Does your organization still need a better understanding of the paradigm shift from supply to consumer-driven markets?

If so, please contact Eluned Jones (eluned@vt.edu) (540) 231-4252 or Dixie Reaves (Dixie@vt.edu) (540) 231-6153, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, so that we can contact them directly. For more information or copies of the program brochure please contact Eluned Jones, or Sharon Scott, Director of Management and Professional Development Programs, Pamplin College of Business, (scottsg@vt.edu) (540) 231-5566.

Contact the author at eluned@vt.edu .

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