Ag businesses compete to hire skilled farm managers

A shortage of experienced farm managers has left businesses trying to outbid each other in order to attract the best staff.

Agricultural recruitment consultancy De Lacy Executive has noticed a shift, with top-tier managers becoming increasingly scarce and employers having to be proactive in order to secure the best staff.

Grace Nugent, managing director at De Lacy Executive, said the farming sector had faced ongoing employment gaps, particularly for workers in their 40s, and businesses needed to look at appropriate succession planning.

See also: Farm recruitment challenge – how structure and clarity can help

She added that there was a lot more that’s demanded of farm managers nowadays, with the role being much more strategic and often covering both financial and people management.

Ms Nugent noted that farm managers with an all rounded skill set tended to stand out, but roles were increasingly tailored and rarely one size fits all.

She suggested that focusing on individual strengths can help employers to get the best out of everyone, which can often be more efficient for businesses and more enjoyable for staff.

Housing provision 

Accommodation is often seen as prerequisite in farm manager roles, with Ms Nugent estimating that roughly 85-90% of positions now come with some sort of housing provision.

She said: “It’s not just a nine-to-five job, it’s a lifestyle choice, and with that, there has to be those extra pulls to be able to accommodate people for that.

“If you’re not offering accommodation, you’re massively closing down those potential people that could look at the role.

“So, you get the risk of employing someone that’s local rather than the right person.”

De Lacy Executive’s annual Farm Management Recruitment Market Report found salary expectations for farm managers typically ranged from £40,000 to £70,000.

Meanwhile, assistant managers required a minimum of £30,000, with experienced assistants often earning in excess of £40,000.

New entrants

Trainee salaries usually start at about £30,000.

Ms Nugent cautioned that some graduates were slightly out of touch in terms of salary expectations for new entrant positions.

“Sometimes you do have to start at the bottom and work your way up. You can’t expect to go directly into that sort of management type position,” she added.