Local area producer and FCS Financial Board of Directors member, Jared Wareham, was recently selected to participate in the Excellence in Ag Leadership Program offered by the King Ranch® Institute for Ranch Management (KRIRM) in partnership with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA). Wareham, along with nine other ranching professionals and five KRIRM ranch management graduate students, began the program last week at the John B. Armstrong Lectureship on Systems Thinking in Kingsville, Texas.
The Excellence in Ag Leadership Program, a distance-education program designed to further develop the next generation of leaders in the ranching industry, began in 2014 with its inaugural class. The 2018 class marks the third cohort of the leadership program. Participants from seven states were selected as high-potential leaders by KRIRM and NCBA. The training started at the systems thinking lectureship August 13-16 where participants learned how to use the concept of systems thinking to discuss questions and issues facing the agricultural industry and their ranching operations. Along with 34 additional lectureship attendees, the leadership participants were able to network with a diverse group of ranchers.
Wareham and fellow participants will attend two more KRIRM lectureships that focus on strategic planning and managing farm and ranch employees. A 360-degree leadership assessment and extraordinary leadership workshop will also be conducted at the 2019 NCBA convention in New Orleans, La. Individuals will collect leadership perception feedback from direct reports, peers, and managers; by the end of the workshop, participants will understand how they are perceived as leaders and will have a clear understanding of how they can become a more effective leader.
Other components of the program will include individualized leadership coaching and attendance at the summer NCBA business meeting. This workshop will outline the next steps for the group to become involved in the cattle industry at the state and/or national level.
Guiding the group on their leadership journey is KRIRM Associate Instructor Kim McCuistion, PhD. Senior Director of Governance and Leadership Development Barb Wilkinson of NCBA also works closely with the group to help them develop their leadership skills, representing the commitment of both organizations to further develop these young leaders. McCuistion expressed her hope in the impact the leadership program will have on participant’s involvement in the industry.
“We believe that the development of great leaders is an important leverage point in the ranching industry,” said McCuistion. “It is our commitment to help this group develop their skills to be effective leaders in their organizations and the industry.”
For more information about the KRIRM leadership program and its participants, visit krirm.tamuk.edu/leadership-program.
