Next generation have skills to lead the South East in the future

Thanks to the South East Agricultural Leadership Program, eighteen young leaders now have the skills and capacity to ensure the future of agriculture and communities in the South East, and they have also formed a strong network of Mentors to continue to foster their potential.
MacKillop Farm Management Group’s (MFMG) Krysteen McElroy says the program was made possible by funding through the Federal Department of Agriculture’s Community Landcare Grants and the support of MFMG, SENMRB Southern and Northern Groups, Agricultural Bureau of SA, Coorong Tatiara LAP, Grain and Graze 2 and PIRSA.

Each of the six sessions was conducted over a full day and concluded each evening with a dinner, where established leaders in the region were invited to share their experiences.

“The SE agricultural industry consists of vibrant and resilient communities with bright futures – and so it will need strong voices to continue to lead it in the future,” Krysteen said.

“The aim of the program was to develop local agricultural leaders throughout the South East, across different industries and organisations. Most leadership programs are run in cities and for blocks of days at a time, making it difficult for people to attend. We wanted to run training locally and as one‐day sessions to make it more manageable for attendees and their families.”
The program involved two streams – one for leaders and another for mentors.  Topics for the leadership program included:

• Leadership styles and personality typing to improve communication and team building.
• Corporate governance and responsibilities of board members.
• Presentation skills, communication and public speaking.
• Networking and building effective relationships.
• Finding and/or becoming a mentor.
• Dealing with the media and developing a social media strategy.
• Understanding the process of change and how to lead it in a community.

A group of twelve experienced leaders also took part in a Mentor training program.

The aim was to provide a network of skilled and experienced people who the Leaders could align themselves with and to be able to call on in the future.

“A mentor is not an expert, but someone who has walked a certain path in life that others can learn from – this was an important learning for all involved in the program. The support was outstanding and highlighted the many ways to be involved in your community and industry” Krysteen said.  “Running a program like this provides benefits to the entire community, not just now but in years to come”

The Leaders prepare to give their final presentations to a large crowd at the Naracoorte Town Hall on 25th August which included guest speaker, Katrina Webb OAM.