Primary producers across Western Australia have the opportunity to expand their knowledge, free of charge, at a series of Rabo Client Council workshops designed to help provide the financial skills essential to managing an agricultural operation.
The communities of Wickepin, Tambellup and Carnamah will host the practical Financial Skills Workshops – providing farmers with an opportunity to both upskill and network – in mid-September.
The initiative has been spearheaded and funded by food and agribusiness banking specialist Rabobank's Rabo Client Council, a group of the bank's farming clients who volunteer their time implementing programs that contribute to the sustainability of rural and regional communities.
Offered free of charge to participants, the interactive workshops provide practical, hands-on advice for understanding financial statements and banking requirements and explore topics such as taxation versus management accounting, essential business management ratios and understanding key components of a business's financial profile.
Rabobank Western Australia Rabo Client Council chair David Fulwood said financial skills "are vital for our primary producers and future primary producers".
"And it's exciting to bring these workshops back to WA – the last workshops we hosted in the state were held virtually in 2021," Mr Fulwood said. "During this series of workshops, we will be delivering a combination of Module One and Module Two content. Although participating in one of the previous sessions is not a pre-requisite to attend.
"The workshops will explore financial reports – one of the most useful and underutilised reports for many farming businesses. Module One will help farmers gain an understanding of how to read, interpret and use these reports for farming businesses."
Module One provides knowledge and insights for running and managing the day-to-day aspects of an agricultural operation from a financial perspective, Mr Fulwood said.
"In the second module, we take an enterprise-focused approach, separately looking at grains and livestock enterprises. We will consider cash flow implications of a variety of enterprise choices. The module will also focus on preparing annual cash flow budgets," he said.
Rabobank regional manager Western Australia Steve Kelly said farmers who attended previous workshops have told the bank the knowledge provided through the workshops is real and valuable – useful information they can walk away with and apply in their operations.
Mr Kelly said, for primary producers, having a better understanding of their business when approaching financiers can also help when applying for any additional finance requirements or to fund a new enterprise.
"Since commencing these workshops in 2018, the Rabo Client Councils have delivered this learning opportunity to more than 3,300 farmers across Australia and New Zealand," he said.
"If you're interested in these workshops, keen to meet other leading producers in the agri sector and increase your financial literacy and skills – confirm your place before the courses are fully allocated."
The workshops – which will be limited to 30 participants each and are not restricted to the bank's clients – will be presented by director of Hudson Facilitation, Tony Hudson.
Workshop dates and locations are:
- Monday, 11 September 2023 – 8:30am – 3:30pm – Wickepin (Module 2)
- Tuesday, 12 September2023 – 8:30am – 3:30pm – Tambellup (Module 2)
- Thursday, 14 September2023 – 8.30am – 3.30pm – Carnamah (Module 1)
To register to participate, please click here
Morning tea and lunch catering will be provided.
