Deal With What You Aren’t Hearing From Your Farm Employees

An employee gives notice. You talk about the last day, the final paycheck, maybe where they’re headed next. Before the conversation ends, ask one more question: What’s happening on this farm that you think I don’t know about? You might not enjoy the answer.

One of the trickiest parts of managing people is learning about problems before they become big problems. Personally, I hate being surprised by something I should have known about months ago.

And the larger your operation becomes, the harder that gets. You increasingly see the farm through a filter of managers and paperwork. That makes the people willing to complain surprisingly valuable.

Now, I’m not suggesting you believe every complaint you hear. Listening to a complaint and endorsing it are two very different things.

Sometimes the employee is absolutely right. Sometimes there’s a legitimate problem buried beneath a highly skewed version of events. Sometimes a rumor has taken hold. And, yes, sometimes the complainer is the problem.

But all of those possibilities give you useful information.

A complaint may point you toward a system that needs a tune-up, a supervisor who needs coaching or an employee who might thrive in a different role. Even a complaint based on something that isn’t true tells you something. If enough people believe it, you may have a communication problem worth addressing.

Then ask what they would do about it. Moving from what’s wrong to what could make it better can change the conversation — and occasionally uncover a solution you hadn’t considered.

There’s a danger in relying only on the loudest voices, though. Some employees will tell you exactly what they think. Others keep their heads down. Give those people opportunities to talk, too. Exit interviews are one. Simply asking questions is another.

Which brings me to Joel Viereck, our 2026 Grower Achievement Award winner.

When Viereck became President of the Vegetable Growers Association of New Jersey, he essentially went on a complaint tour. He sought out growers who were unhappy with the association and asked them what wasn’t working.

He didn’t have to agree with every complaint. He needed to understand why growers were dissatisfied before he could help fix it.

That principle works just as well on a farm.

Every once in a while, seek out the person who may tell you something you don’t want to hear. Then ask: What’s happening here that I should know about?