Conferences
Elevating Farm Management: Insights from the Business IQ Assessment
Pauline Van Nurden and Garen Paulson
Summary
How do you measure a producer’s management ability? The Business IQ assessment, developed by Dr. Kohl, helps producers identify areas of strength and opportunities for growth, by rating a producer’s business acumen. This assessment rates a producer’s business intellect from ‘strong management and viability’ to ‘high risk and lack of long-term viability’. The Center for Farm Financial Management (CFFM) worked with Dr. Kohl to pilot this survey. The pilot aimed at learning if producers in farm management-type programs have a higher business IQ than the average producer. After the initial results, the survey was refined to assess the management differences of farm producers further.
This business IQ assessment is available publicly at https://AgBizIQ.org. Producers can quickly work through the Qualtrics survey by answering a series of questions about their management practices. At the conclusion of the survey, the producer receives a scorecard with a rating of their business IQ. The producer can then download or email their results for future discussion with family members, business team members, or other consultants.
This presentation will give an overview of the business skills being assessed in the Business IQ Survey. An example of the Business IQ assessment will be completed for the group. Then we will discuss how this tool can be used with producers to help coach them in improving their farm business management skills. Real examples and summary results will be shared to give attendees a sense of the impact the tool can have on a producer and their extension programming.
Details
| Conference | 2025 Extension Risk Management Education National Conference |
| Presentation Type | 30-minute Concurrent |