By Clay Mathis, Ph.D.
KRIRM Director and Robert J. Kleberg, Jr. and Helen C. Kleberg Endowed Chair
View and download the Spring 2021 Newsletter here.
It seems so simple on the surface…a ranch should have clear goals toward which the team works to achieve success for ownership. But, we also know goals vary from one ranch to the next. This is partially driven by the many reasons for owning a ranch, including long-term investment strategy, short-term profits, a passion for cattle, horses, or wildlife conservation, and possibly the most important, family legacy. All are valid reasons that lend to a different set of goals or vision of success. Ideally, and intuitively, when ownership hires a ranch manager, the goals of ownership are clearly communicated to the new employee. In addition, the goals of ownership are clearly understood by all employees and all of ownership. In reality, this clarity and communication is often insufficient, and ownership could be more devoted to determining and communicating what they really want from the ranch and employees.
There is also another side to this common disconnection between owners and employees. There are times when communication of ownership’s goals and expectations is crystal clear, and a hired manager understands but does not philosophically align with the goals of ownership. Sometimes a hired ranch manager even believes they have a better set of goals and simply can’t help but strive to achieve their own goals for the ranch…even with honorable intentions. Regardless of the whether ownership or employee is the primary source of disconnect, these situations have been the avoidable downfall of many relationships between ranch ownership and ranch management.
Considerations for Ranch Owners
Ownership goals are much more easily established and theoretically more easily communicated when the ranch has a single owner. However, when there are multiple owners, whether joint ownership by family members or another business structure, goal priorities of all owners often are not the same. Envision a situation where a family of four siblings with equal ownership have different passions and differing priorities for the ranch. One loves cattle most, another wildlife, another horses, and another just wants money. Owners must first come together in situations like this and develop a unified and prioritized set of goals for the ranch. This can be exceedingly difficult…but ownership owes this to employees, otherwise ownership has created an employee trap. No employee can consistently aim and hit multiple targets simultaneously. Along the same vein, owners must deliberately maintain a reward system that incentivizes work toward the achievement of the unified ranch ownership goals.
Considerations for Hired Ranch Managers
Ranch employees must seek to understand what ownership wants and avoid the tendency to impose their own values and passions on ownership, leading to disconnect as well. Before accepting a ranch job, an employee should fully understand ownership goals. Professional goal number one for ranch managers should be to help ownership achieve their goals for the ranch. The incorrect assumption of ownership goals can lead to discontentment among employees and owners, and lead to a failed owner-employee relationship.
A Shared Commitment to Success
Disconnect between owners and hired managers, unfortunately, happens all too often on ranches. However, it is more likely avoided when there is a mutual devotion to consider the alternate perspective. Ranch owners, your employees at all levels want unified and clearly communicated ranch ownership goals and an incentive structure that effectively rewards them for achieving those goals. Ranch managers, if you find the goals of the ranch are not clear or not unified across multiple owners of the ranch, then you must respectfully request greater clarity. Your success will depend first on knowing the goals or targets set forth, and then on your capacity to achieve those goals. Communication and understanding of both parties is key, but it takes deliberate commitment to align all of ranch ownership and management toward a vision of success.
View and download the Spring 2021 Newsletter here.