Your time will come...

Applause erupts from the crowd at farm meetings around the country when leaders who've held their role for decades are called to the stage. They're handed a plaque. Cameras flash. Instrumental music plays while a slideshow depicts the honorees' early years.

These folks have dedicated countless hours and traveled thousands of miles for the sake of the organization's mission. Their personal schedules have revolved around the group's calendar for as long as anyone can remember.

"There are merits to this longevity, but there are some problems as well," says Steve Isaacs, 69, University of Kentucky Extension professor. The concepts he's used for succession planning at the farm and family level are important for organizations too, he says.

In a room of farmers at a recent conference, Isaacs shared this case study: Farmer Harold has served as county Farm Bureau president for 46 years. Although he no longer drives, and his vision is failing, Harold, now in his 80s, has his eye on the state's longevity record of 49 years. He's held several other leadership positions in his community for decades as well. Since the time his children were young, he's never paid for a vacation because his travel to conferences around the country has been covered.

"In 46 years, Harold has kept at least two other people from being president," Isaacs says. "He probably did his best work in the first 10 years of his tenure there."

"This case study of a president that goes into office and holds it for a lifetime and the county being proud that they have never had any turnover is a legit problem that we have," confirms North Carolina farmer Malarie Thompson, 34.

The agriculture industry has a culture of rewarding tenure over effectiveness, Isaacs says. It's time for some organizational succession planning. Everyone has a role to play.

For Experienced Leaders:

Examine Your Motivation

"If you're trying to set a longevity record, get out of the way," Isaacs says.

You may not be an effective leader if you're serving because nobody else will or out of a sense of guilt. If you're serving just to live up to someone else's expectations, think again.

"If you're just serving to get free vacations, goodness gracious, that's a lousy reason to be in a leadership position," says Isaacs.

Remember the Law of Diminishing Returns

As Janet Jackson sang, "What have you done for me lately?" Are you still accomplishing new things for the organization?

The law of diminishing returns states that benefits gained from something will represent a proportionally smaller gain as more money or time is invested.

"Leaders do their best work in the first five years or so," says Isaacs, an economist. "We get diminishing returns after that. Sometimes there's a stage three — negative returns,
where you've gone downhill."

At 69 years old, Isaacs acknowledges, "I have to ask myself the same kind of questions. Am I still adding value? Do I know how to transition things and move on?"

Seek feedback from your board or membership to understand your effectiveness on a regular basis.

Engage Your Team

Instead of ordering or mandating a solution, a leader asks good questions to help the group arrive at a decision.

"Think about when you were 20 years old: Did you want someone to tell you what to do or how to think? I would guess not," past National FFA officer Miriam Hoffman, 22, says, addressing a farm shop full of industry executives last
September. "But how many of you are here on this farm today because someone older believed in you, listened to you, and helped you discover where you needed to go?"

Years ago, Ohio farmer Jane Marshall, 60, rallied rural residents to prevent the expansion of a local landfill. "As a leader, Ihave to know what the ultimate goal is. If I know how I'm going to do it, why do I need anybody else? We knew we wanted
to stop it," Marshall says of the landfill change. "I didn't have a clue how to do that by myself. That's why you bring more heads in. We got that group together and came up with a plan.

"As a leader, it's not my job to say, the plan is A, B, C. I think that's what a lot of leaders, and politicians, want to do. But, you need to take people along with you," Marshall adds. "If they're not coming along, you're not leading well. A leader cannot micromanage. Leadership isn't being a boss. It's being a servant."

Start Mentoring

As Isaacs presents around the country, he gets feedback from experienced leaders who believe their group would "fall all to pieces" if they weren't leading. If you're concerned about the future of an organization without you, the best way to serve may look different than you think, he advises.

Like founders of companies or farms, people who've been around since the earliest days of an organization may find it especially difficult to step back. Founder's syndrome is real, Isaacs says. If you recognize it in yourself, acknowledge it
to the group and work toward a plan that allows the organization to mature while maintaining the healthy level of involvement you desire.

"One of the primary roles of a leader is to raise up new leaders. If a leader is doing a good job, they have been trying to bring somebody along," says Isaacs.

If your board regularly develops a strategic plan, goals for developing new leaders should be discussed, he adds.

For Young Farmers:

Pursue Leadership Development

"Leaders are not born, they're made," Isaacs declares.

If you have an opportunity to engage in specific, targeted leadership development activities, do it. The professor encourages young farmers to seek out their state's ag leadership program.

Forty-one states have programs that belong to the International Association of Programs for Agricultural Leadership (IAPAL). Most IAPAL member programs have a two-year curriculum designed for up to 30 key leaders selected through application processes.

"There are other leadership development programs out there that are sponsored by states or cities or county chambers of commerce, sometimes by Extension," says Isaacs.

Start Small

Your organization doesn't have to be huge to make a difference. "We're not changing the world. We're changing our own little part of the world," says Marshall of one of her organizations.

Show Up

"I am convinced that leadership, particularly at the local level, is done by those folks who show up," says Isaacs. "I don't care if you're not on the board. Go to the meetings. Ask questions. Volunteer for things. Help them set up and tear down. Even if you don't have a title, get there."

Marshall has served everywhere from local government to national agriculture organizations. "Leadership takes showing up, in all senses," she says. Be prepared with mental, physical, and emotional energy.

Simply attending a meeting is what kicked off 36-year-old Oregon farmer Jon Iverson's Farm Bureau leadership career. At his first meeting out of college, Iverson was elected to the county board. Over the past 10 years, he's grown to hold state and national roles.

Say 'Yes'

Iverson says when he first returned to his family's diversified farm he didn't think of himself as a leader. "I wasn't the one who was going to stand up. I was the one looking left and right wondering, 'Who is going to stand up? Someone should say something.' "I think there's so many of us in agriculture who think, 'There's someone better than me,' and that limits us. We need to be thinking, 'I could be the one doing that,'" he says.

Follow Chesterton's Fence

Chesterton's fence is the idea that changes should not be made until the reasoning behind the status quo is understood. Hoffman, who served as Eastern Region vice president for FFA in 2021, cautions, "As young people, we are so excited about change and progress and innovation that we can quickly become enamored with tearing the fence down before we're stopped to ask why the fence was there to begin with."

Respect the progress of previous generations. They're not going to support your idea if it feels like you're unraveling their work.

Find Mentors

"Most of the time when we make changes as a result of overlooking something important, it's because we've simply never had someone take us seriously enough to help us see what we're missing," Hoffman says.

Find somebody to learn from. Initiate a relationship.

"I have found very few formalized mentoring programs that work," says Isaacs. "I have found very few informal mentoring programs that didn't work. The ones that worked well are the ones that the mentee, not the mentor, was driving."

A good mentor likely won't give you all the right answers. They'll ask good questions, so you can discover the answer yourself, says Hoffman.

For Organizations:

Look At Your Life Cycle

In the first stage of an organization's life cycle, a bunch of people will come together to get something done. They don't have any money, but they do have a lot of passion, Marshall explains.

If the group accomplishes the goal and decides to stay in existence, what do the members do? "Your core values should never change, but maybe the mission gets broader. Here you have a little more money, you have bylaws, and you've elected officers," Marshall says.

In the third and final stage, people camp out, she says. "This is where the organization exists, not for any mission but to keep the people in jobs. This is where you see bureaucracy," she adds.

Embrace Change

"In agriculture, we embrace change when it has technology or new paint. We're all over that. We'll trade in the old to get the new one. But when it comes to institutional change, we tend to be very conservative. I think that has hindered institutional development," says Isaacs.

The "but we've never done it that way before" mind-set is a tremendous impediment to all kinds of organizations, he says.

"If you don't have anyone under 55 in the room, you need an overhaul," says Isaacs.

Engage Young Leaders

"Once folks get through these leadership development programs, we need to find a way to get them engaged," says Isaacs.

Although it's not explicitly stated, after people age out of groups such as Farm Bureau's Young Farmers & Ranchers at 35, many groups seem to have the attitude, "OK, go off for about 20 years and come back. We'll have something for you," Isaacs says.

Kentucky Farm Bureau has developed a program called Generation Bridge for 36- to 49-year-olds. The state organization's bylaws were amended so a member of Generation Bridge has a seat on the board.

Study Your Structure

Officer rotations or term limits are usually a function of a group's bylaws.

"Some local organizations have given the chair or their board appointment authority for two positions on the board rather than having everything elected," Isaacs says. "We know in local elections name recognition counts for everything, so people are going to vote for folks they know. If the person with appointment authority sees someone that has potential that might not win an election, they can be appointed."

Try Leadership Evaluations

Although it's rare in farm organizations, Isaacs suggests leadership evaluations could be a helpful standard practice.

During this designated exercise, the board can determine if the leaders are still effective, Isaacs suggests. He acknowledges this can be tough in local organizations where members are neighbors and have to live with each other.

Strive for Diversity

"We tend to think of diversity as ethnicity or gender, but its age as well. We need that," says Isaacs. Cognitive diversity is also key. "It has nothing to do with how smart you are. It has to do with how you approach decision-making," he adds.

Depending on the organization, you may want people from different types of operations. Livestock people, row crop growers, and specialty producers may all see the same situation very differently.

Start Now

"Transition is inevitable, so start now," says Isaacs.