Tips for a Successful Panel Interview

Panel interviews are becoming increasingly common across the agriculture industry, especially for leadership, technical, and customer-facing positions. Rather than meeting with one hiring manager, candidates may interview with several team members at once—including supervisors, executives, HR professionals, and potential coworkers. While this format can seem intimidating, it also provides an excellent opportunity to demonstrate your… Read more »

Summer Hiring Challenges in Agriculture—and How to Solve Them

Summer is often one of the busiest seasons across the agricultural industry. While fieldwork may dominate the conversation, many agribusinesses face a different challenge during this time of year: finding and retaining qualified talent. From ag retailers and equipment manufacturers to grain companies, seed organizations, ag technology firms, and food production businesses, summer can create… Read more »

Job Searching While Employed: How to Do It Discreetly in a Small Industry

Knowing What to Pay Employees Is Key in Today's Climate Morris Bixby

Searching for a new opportunity while you are still employed can feel complicated in any field, but in agriculture and other close-knit industries, discretion matters even more. Relationships are long-lasting, reputations travel quickly, and word-of-mouth often moves faster than formal announcements. One casual conversation at a trade show, supplier meeting, or industry event can unexpectedly… Read more »

The Biggest Resume Mistakes Ag Candidates Make (And How to Fix Them to Land the Right Role)

Your resume is more than a work history—It’s a marketing tool. In today’s agriculture job market, competition is stronger than ever. Whether you’re pursuing a role in agronomy, seed sales, precision ag technology, operations management, livestock production, or executive leadership, your resume is often your first introduction to a hiring manager. And here’s the hard… Read more »

New Year, New Role: Is It Time for a Career Change?

There’s something about the start of a new year that naturally invites reflection. As the calendar resets, many professionals find themselves taking a closer look at their careers—asking hard questions they may have pushed aside during the busyness of the year. Am I still growing? Do I feel fulfilled? Is this role moving me closer… Read more »

Time-to-Hire vs. Quality-of-Hire

In today’s landscape, hiring leaders are asked to balance two competing priorities: speed and impact. On one hand, a fast time-to-hire is essential for keeping production moving, reducing downtime, and staying competitive. On the other hand, quality-of-hire is often the single biggest predictor of long-term productivity, retention, and cultural alignment. They’re connected—but not equal. Understanding… Read more »

Interview Etiquette That Actually Impresses Hiring Managers

In today’s competitive job market, technical skills and experience are only part of what hiring managers are evaluating. Once you’ve secured an interview, the real differentiator becomes how you show up. Interview etiquette—the way you prepare, communicate, behave, and interact with everyone involved in the process—can be the deciding factor between receiving an offer or… Read more »

How to Stand Out in a Competitive Job Market

In today’s job market, standing out has become both an art and a strategy. Across nearly every industry, competition is fierce – experienced professionals, recent graduates, and even career changers are all vying for the same limited number of openings. Online job boards overflow with hundreds of applicants within hours of a posting going live,… Read more »

The Hidden Market

When most job seekers think about finding new opportunities, they picture scrolling through online job boards, company career pages, or LinkedIn listings. While these resources are valuable, they only tell part of the story. In fact, many roles – especially in competitive or specialized industries – are never publicly advertised. Instead, they’re filled through referrals,… Read more »

How to Identify Core Competencies Needed for Your Open Role

When you have a role to fill, it’s tempting to move quickly and focus on surface-level requirements like years of experience or specific technical skills. While those factors matter, the real key to hiring someone who will succeed long term lies in identifying the core competencies needed for the position. These are the foundational skills,… Read more »