BUILD A MANAGEMENT TEAM TO HELP KEEP YOUR FARM PROFITABLE By Lisa Graham-Peterson L ike most CEOs, Troy Randall starts his day early and never lets his smartphone stray far from his fi ngertips. Despite the constant connection with 21st century technology, he spends the fi rst few hours of the day decidedly old school on “management by walking around,” as they called it in the ’70s. Randall isn’t checking in with employees in cubicles; he’s walking pens on his feedlot operation at Dell Rapids, S.D. At any given time, he has 12 to 14 pens with more than 2,000 head of cattle to check on every morning. “Not everyone likes to do this, but I do,” Randall says of his morning routine. “I’m checking the water and seeing if they’re eating. This is the best way to keep track of their health.” His personal attention should be no surprise, since the occupants of those pens represent a signifi cant investment on behalf of Randall Enterprises. You could draw similarities here with Warren Buff ett checking the stock market each morning. Taking a page from Silicon Valley, Randall uses technology in his pocket to check in with various members of his management team while he’s walking pens. Those individuals — charged with business planning, fi nancing, inputs, operations and risk management — are spread across multiple offi ces in multiple locations, including Huron, S.D., and Luverne, Minn. This particular morning, before many of us have had our second cup of coff ee, Randall has already talked with his CFO about a potential acquisition. It sounds like he must have quite the management payroll for Randall Enterprises. Not at all. He has the cooperative system. “Troy touches a lot of bases > "I look to my CHS guys to keep me on track for the future." Troy Randall's team from CHS provides advice, products and services. “They’ve simplifi ed things so I have extra time for things beyond the farm,” he says, including serving on the local school board for nine years. Your CHS Connection 7