By Brenda Duckworth Boot Camp was a Great Learning Opportunity If you weren’t in St. Louis at Union Station January 20th, then you definitely missed out! That’s where Farm Futures magazine, along with the Farm Financial Standards Council, hosted the 3rd Ag Finance Boot Camp. Nearly 150 attendees, literally from

Understanding Apps, cloud and all those other things By Scott Sartor Are you interested in modern computer technology? If you are, then you surely know the difference between the “cloud” and a “desktop application” If you aren’t very tech savvy, it might interest you to learn what these terms mean,

By Alan Miller Do you remember when checkbook accounting programs like Quicken® first became available? I liked them immediately compared to the farm account books many of my clients used for one simple reason — these programs made it easy to reconcile the cash receipts and expenditures recorded in the

By Brenda Duckworth If you were in Kennewick, WA July 29-31 for the Farm Financial Standards Council yearly conference, then I probably don’t need to tell you about the fun we had. The group continues to grow, yet remains small enough to ensure comradery and open discussion. As co-chair with

By Brenda Duckworth The first two parts of this series offered ideas on moving from cash-based to accrual-based accounting. If you stayed hooked to read Part III, you likely are interested in moving toward management accounting as the primary source of reports versus accounting only for income tax or lender-required

By Brenda Duckworth So, you understand the importance of accrual financial statements where you are showing the true profitability of the business. In doing so, you have reported expenses only when income is earned, regardless of when cash changes hands. How did you handle “warehousing” the expenses associated with unfinished

By Brenda Duckworth What financial information is most valuable for your farming operation? That question should be answered with another question: What decisions are you trying to make? Too often, farm managers gather tons of data, yet neglect to convert that data to useful information. This is not an oversight

By Jim Casler Benchmark – Yardstick – Standard – Target – Scale – Rank. Whichever word you want to use, there is value in knowing how you stack up and rate in comparison to yourself and industry peers. Benchmarks are typically used to help you understand and improve your operational

By Brenda Duckworth So, you want to buy that spanking new tractor? You know, the one with icy-cold air conditioning, a comfy seat, and that fancy GPS! And of course, you really do need it because your old pile of junk is always in need of repair. Certainly, you would