Leadership

Through the Storm

BUSINESS LEADERS OFFER ADVICE ON FACING AND
OVERCOMING CHALLENGES
Ask an agriculture industry professional about
surviving tough times, and youre sure to get a good
story. Or two or three. In a climate as challenging as
the one were experiencing these days, just about
everyone can describe a rough patch they not only
endured, but conquered. We asked leaders inside and
outside of agriculture for thoughts on how to manage
best when things seem most chaotic.
 HAT I LEARNED FROM INTERNATIONAL
W
BUSINESSPEOPLE: INNOVATION, DETERMINATION,
GRATITUDE
John Mendesh, Vice President, R&D, General Mills, and
Cofounder, Partners in Food Solutions

Ive been at General Mills for 32 years, and Im

currently responsible for long-term research and
development. Im also one of the cofounders of
Partners in Food Solutions. Its a nonprofit that shares
the expertise of corporate volunteers with small and

growing food processing businesses in Africa. Our

volunteers come from General Mills, Cargill, Royal DSM
and Bhler. Collectively, weve given more than 60,000
volunteer hours to more than 500 food companies in
Kenya, Zambia, Tanzania, Malawi and Ethiopia.
When I face a challenge in my daily work, I often
think about those business owners in Africa, who have
the odds stacked against them much more severely
than any of us in the United States do. Success doesnt
come to them without setbacks, and sometimes they
are forced to take one step forward and five steps
back, but they do prevail. When theyre faced with
adversity, they get more innovative, become more
determined, and continue to express gratitude for what
they do have. The great lesson Ive taken away from
my work with Partners in Food Solutions is that there
will always be challenges, some much greater than
others, but the important measure is how you choose
to react to them.
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A good plan, well-executed, is better than a great plan that

comes too late.

Bob Ness, The Mosaic Company

My dad always said, Take on big problems like eating an

elephant one bite at a time. David Lee, The Mosaic Company

(Continued story)

DONT FORGET TO HAVE FUN

Troy Hobbs, Director, Phosphate Product Management
The Mosaic Company

When youre faced with a tough time, its important to

focus on the things you can actually control. In agriculture
right now, there are a lot of things outside of our control.
But you can get some tools in your arsenal to make good
business decisions to help you make a profit and hopefully
have a little bit of fun along the way.
One key is to put a good marketing plan together,
one that looks for opportunities to lock in profit, and
then execute that plan. Keeping that focus on what you
can control means youll need to look at everything as an
opportunity to improve what fertilizer to apply, what seed
to put down, or how much youre paying for land rent.
Ive talked to a lot of farmers and ranchers, and I know
theyre concerned about how to remain profitable in this
environment. The agriculture lifestyle is very important to
many of them. Several years ago, a dairy farmer said to me,
Its a lot easier to have fun when youre making money than
when you arent. For him, fun was a component in doing
what he did for a living. He took genuine joy in his job an
office job would have killed him. Fun is important to help
survive tough times, and so is pride in what we do. Many of
us in agriculture feel that pride, because we make a material
difference in feeding the world and thats a mission worth
working for.
REACH OUT TO PARTNERS FOR THE WIN WIN
Cindy Haren, Chief Executive Officer, Western Dairy Association

I have lived on a farm and ranch for 25 years, so Ive

experienced everything that Mother Nature can throw at
me. In my current role, we faced a truly turbulent time in
2009, when dairy exports declined sharply. It created a huge

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problem for our dairy farm families, and we experienced an

epidemic of bankruptcies, foreclosures and business failures.
As the leader of a regional checkoff association, I knew
it was my job to help our families however I could. Right
away, we stepped up our communications with members,
making sure they had good tools for coping with stress.
We also began to consult with national fast food
restaurants about partnerships to increase the consumption
of dairy foods. The leaders at Dominos Pizza had heartfelt
concern for our dairy farm families, and they started
innovating with our national dairy research and development
(R&D) folks to come up with better-tasting and more
nutritious pizza. They even started printing stories of
dairy farm families on their pizza delivery boxes. Within
18 months, our partnerships resulted in increased domestic
usage of mozzarella cheese by 6 percent, thanks to partners
like Dominos and Pizza Hut.
My takeaway from that experience is that when times
are tough, you need to reach out to partners you trust, who
hold similar values, and be honest about whats happening.
In todays global economy, no one can survive alone, and
you need the best professional team you can put together,
including bankers, lenders, animal nutritionists, soil experts,
scientists and others. They all should be on your side to help
you work through whatever challenges youre facing.
LOOK TO A ROLE MODEL
Bob Ness, Director of Sales, Western North America,
The Mosaic Company

Ive been with The Mosaic Company and its predecessor

company for a combined 22 years now. When we were
first formed, we experienced low commodity prices and low
margins, and our debt was relatively high. Our leadership at
the time guided us through the tough times by staying true

LEADERSHIP
THROUGH
THE STORM

to our core values. We all worked hard and stayed focused

on doing the right things day to day, which helped us move
through and on to better markets.
Here at Mosaic, were doing our best to help our growers
and retailers navigate successfully in the current climate.
Everyone here is focused on increasing yields and doing it
profitably with products like MicroEssentials and Aspire.
The key right now is buckling down and making it through
the short term, because in the long term, there are good
reasons for optimism.
On a personal level, my role model for facing a challenge
with courage and grace is my daughter, who was diagnosed
with Type 1 diabetes when she was 3 years old. She was
always tough and never anything but positive. From the very
beginning, she insisted on checking her own blood sugar
and giving herself insulin shots. Im proud to say shes now
21 years old and a student at Boston College. With an
example like hers, I just cant let tough times get me down.
 UESTION EXPENSES, BUT WATCH OUT FOR
Q
OVERREACTIONS
Chuck Lee, Head of Corn, North America, Syngenta

Ive lived through a few of these downturns, and I find

that anytime theres a rapid, significant challenge, its often
met with a bit of overreaction. The temptation can be to cut
costs drastically and try to survive that way. But if you look
at the past, success came to farmers who calculated the
return on investment for every input decision that had to be
made. You still need to invest in the inputs that add value
and provide high returns. If you do that, youll stand the test
of time.
You can see adversity as an opportunity, or you can be
pessimistic. We know from previous downturns that some
folks actually prospered during those times. One thing

they learned was that in farming, technology usually pays.

Switching to the lower-cost product might not be a good
idea, and you have to question every expense. We encourage
our growers to ask themselves, As I choose a herbicide,
is it really less costly overall to use a more expensive onepass product than a cheaper two-pass one? During tough
times, the focus shouldnt be on cost cutting, it should be
on efficiency.
SURROUND YOURSELF WITH GREAT COLLEAGUES
David Lee, Senior Director, Supply Chain, The Mosaic Company

The interesting thing about tough times is that while

theyre all challenging, theyre also all just a little bit different.
So you may get wiser with each experience, but it doesnt
mean youve experienced everything life can throw at you.
One of my own tough times happened when I was the
manager responsible for a specific region of our business. We
had to come to a decision to divest the business, which was
struggling with economic deterioration in a complex political
situation. There were so many aspects to consider, especially
the impact on people and on our companys reputation.
Looking in from the outside, the decision might have seemed
obvious, but accepting it was certainly not easy.
What I learned from that particular tough time is if youre
a leader, dont feel you must carry all the weight by yourself.
Youre never alone if you surround yourself with great
colleagues, both personal and professional. With your own
clear thinking and their support, you will get through to the
other side, and those life lessons you learn will make you a
stronger person.

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