Success factors for managing emerging, growing and large livestock farms

The project aims to improve the profitability and sustainability of animal farms by studying the management of farms and the management capabilities of entrepreneurs. In addition, the aim is to understand the factors that contribute to the success of farms and how entrepreneurs adopt innovative practices that support the competitiveness of farms, environmental sustainability and farmed animal welfare and strengthen the recovery capacity of farms when confronted with them a variety of challenges.

The basic hypothesis of the study is that more planned management improves the financial performance of the company. The project has three research questions:

1) How do farmers define their strategies and how have strategic choices been successfully leased into practice?

2) What objectives do farms and entrepreneurs at different stages of their life cycle and young agricultural professionals have to develop their skills, business activities and sustainability?

3) How do different management factors explain variation in companies' financial performance and success in achieving the goals set by the company?

Skilled management is of paramount importance in the livestock farm adapting to the operational environment challenges it faces. While many factors are beyond the control of entrepreneur, some farms perform better than others. The crucial difference is often how well a company has been run and how well the risks of the business are managed. The results of the project will help develop the capacity of businesses and entrepreneurs to manage the farm’s economy, finance, production and staff. The results of the project can be used support business and policy programmes for farm advisory, investment support and rural development.