75 Chestnut Hill, Route 190 

 Stafford Springs, CT 06076 



W.H. MILIKOWSKI, INC. 



Greenhouse Supplies & Equipment 



Plants Bulbs 



All Your Greenhouse Needs 



'Our Goal Is Your Success' 



Ron Hill 

 NH & Maine Representative 



CT 800-243-7170 

 Fax; 860-684-3022 



Homes • Barns • Livestock 



Machinery • Farmer's Liability 



Livestock Health & Mortality 



Workers Compensations • Auto 



Insure with New Hampshire's 

 largest independent agricultural agency. 



1-800-439^2451 



will put you in touch with an 

 agricultural insurance professional. 



PIONEER POINTERS 



Who Will Follow in Your Footsteps? 

 Your Management Succession Plan 



How much quality time do you dedicate to 

 spending with others — your spouse, the next 

 generation, or hired managers — involved in your 

 business? Do you feel that there is someone who 

 could manage your business in your absence? Sup- 

 pose you vkrere struck with an illness during your 

 busy season or decided to take that long-overdue and 

 well-deserved extended vacation? Who'd fill your 

 shoes and would (or could) step up to the plate? 

 These are all important questions to ask yourself 

 when creating a management succession plan for your 

 business. The following are some key points to ad- 

 dress when preparing and building your management 

 succession plan: 



• First and foremost, the farm business must be prof- 

 itable enough to allow for an ownership transfer. 



• The business must maintain a conservative debt 

 level or plenty of cash reserves (working capital). 

 This allows for the succeeding management team to 

 grow w^ithout overwhelming financial burden. 



• A mechanism for transfer must be in place. In 

 other words, is your business entity properly struc- 

 tured, i.e., as a partnership, a corporation, or limited 

 liability company? 



• The potential new management must currently be 

 sharing the responsibilities, especially to learn all 

 phases — from finances and production to equipment 

 maintenance and marketing. 



• A good communication system (both written and 

 verbal) must be in place. 



• The next manager(s) must be committed to the 

 business. 



• Financial management, especially the numbers, must 

 be shared with the succeeding manager(s). 



• A professional improvement (strategic planning) 

 plan for you and key employees must be established. 

 Be open to learning and change. 



Although you may feel you're still years away 

 from needing to get serious about your management 

 succession plan, don't fool yourself. This takes years 

 to plan properly. Everything you've worked so hard 

 for is definitely worth taking the time to preserve. 



First Pioneer Farm Credit is a premier provider of finan- 

 cial services to the Green Industry. These services include 

 credit, leasing, consulting, appraisal, tax preparation, 

 record-keeping, and payroll. For information, call the 

 Bedford, New Hampshire, office at 1-800-82^-32^2. (SW) 



AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 1999 



