But perhaps I’m getting ahead of myself. What exactly does being a farmer have to do with being a manager? Not all managers are “farmers,” but all the good ones are.

      Farmers grow plants that produce healthy, bountiful crops. Managers grow people who produce effective, efficient results. Just as a healthy plant is less likely to attract harmful insects, a “healthy” employee is less likely to attract harmful habits and need intensive attention.

      The goal of a good manager is to create an atmosphere that fosters growth and independence — an atmosphere that allows each employee to grow at his own speed, and encourages each employee to set challenging, yet attainable, goals.

      Farmers know that the strongest plants are those with good root structure. If you want a plant that can grow strong, sustain that growth, and set abundant fruit, you must encourage the roots to grow before you encourage the plant to flower. If you have two plants that appear the same, the one with the better root structure will outperform the other every time.

      Too often, managers throw employees into a task and expect instant results. They don’t cultivate the soil, lay down some fertilizer, and gently loosen the root ball first, as they should. Then they are surprised when those employees make mistakes, burn out, and leave the company just when they become useful. Managers who excel think regularly about their employees’ “roots.”

      But remember — taking care of the roots extends beyond the initial planting or training. A good farmer continually returns to his plants and cultivates the soil around them. Doing this not only disturbs, and hopefully destroys, weeds that steal nutrition from the plant, but it also loosens the soil around the plant, allowing additional growth.

      The same holds true for managers. Good managers continue to care for their employees over time. They ensure that harmful weeds are removed before they damage the employee. Weeds may be bad habits, lack of knowledge, or even deficient skills. As managers carefully remove the weeds, they also loosen the soil and create room for employees’ growth. Or, in management terms, they set new goals, suggest alternative choices, or send employees to an informative seminar.

      Farmers understand that to get abundant and tasty crops, they need to care for their plants from seed selection all the way to the end of that plant’s natural lifespan (only weeks for a tomato plant; many years for an apple tree).

      The manager as farmer realizes that caring for his staff starts at the point of hire and extends until that employee leaves, is promoted out of his sphere of influence, or retires.

      Are you ready to become a people farmer?

      Quick Tips to Grow Your People:

      •Think like a farmer: Manage your staff from hire through retire.

      •Prep both your staff and their environment for optimum growth.

      •Strengthen your employees’ roots by providing suitable, ongoing training.

      Farming is More than Planting and Harvesting

      Management Overview

      Ah, a farmer’s life — you get up early, plant your crops, and then a few months later, you come back and harvest the fruits of your labor. What could be better?

      If only that was all you had to do!

      Farmers have to wear many hats. They identify the best seed, and then organize acquisition of that seed. Once received, the seed is planted — and even that’s a task because each one germinates in its own environment. Some like to be planted deep, others perform better when they sit on the soil surface; some like to be kept warm, others prefer a cool environment. And so a farmer’s job continues through transplanting, plant maturation, and then preparation of the land for the next year.

      Farmers have many roles. They must be able not only to grow plants and identify ripe fruit, but also to run and maintain farm equipment. They must understand, and possibly become licensed in the use of, fertilizers and pesticides. Further, they need to know community regulations that govern farming. (Is a nursery license necessary?) As if that’s not enough, farmers must also become accomplished purchasing agents, tracking down the best sources for everything from seed to fertilizer to ladybugs to boxes or bags to package products.

      Like farmers, managers wear many hats. A successful manager is an accomplished intermediary, communicator, organizer, coach, and leader.

      As an intermediary, a manager interacts effectively with various populations. We’ll discuss this in depth in the next chapter. For now, just remember that you don’t operate in a vacuum. To get your job done, you will need strong professional relationships with many people.

      To support these relationships, you must be able to communicate clearly and concisely. You have many choices for communicating: in person, via e-mail, by phone, written letter, or memo, just to mention a few. Each method of communication has unique characteristics.

      One of the most effective ways to communicate is in person. When two or more individuals are together in one place, it’s easier to ensure the message has been received correctly. The person sending the message can get immediate feedback and can communicate using words, tone of voice, and body language. No other method of communication allows you to use all of these qualities.

      Phone conversations don’t permit you to see the other person. Not only does this make it more difficult to interpret voice tone, you also have no sure-fire way of knowing if the other person is rolling his eyes or listening intently.

      E-mail messages are a particularly dangerous way to communicate because written communication is based solely on words. Often, we want to keep the message brief, and we tend to be brusque in our language. If you add to this a bit of satire, such as “Yeah, I’d LOVE to spend the next five hours digging through old files looking for that record for you,” miscommunication is almost guaranteed.

      Managers are responsible for many diverse tasks. In order to keep everything running smoothly, they must be able to organize. Lack of effective organization can lead to unpleasant surprises. Any farmer can tell you that most baby tomato plants look very much alike. If they don’t carefully organize and label seedlings as red, cherry, and plum tomatoes, come picking time they’ll be hopping all over the field to gather each type of tomato.

      Similarly, managers need to organize work priorities and projects carefully to ensure timely completion. Managers have many tasks and deadlines, including paperwork, projects, supervising staff, daily responsibilities, and more. Each comes with different instructions and deadlines.

      Managers are also responsible for coordinating people or tasks or both to accomplish stated goals.

      If you are a manager, you can be sure that you will have to attend meetings that you or others initiate. Meetings consume a lot of time — preparation time before the meeting, time spent at the meeting, and time devoted to tasks as a result of the meeting.

      As a manager, you will likely have some responsibilities for hiring, training, and reviewing your staff. You may also have

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