Monday, November 1, 2021
10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. CT: Governance Case Study: Lisavaird Co-op
Approaching its 100th anniversary in 2025, Lisavaird Co-op in West Cork, Ireland started with a group of farmers producing less than 200,000 gallons of milk the first year. Since then, the co-op has grown and diversified to provide services such as hardware stores, agronomy and animal nutrition, solar energy installation, as well as, three food production subsidiaries. During this interactive session, Dr. Michael Boland will interview Lisavaird’s board chair and General Manager about how they have navigated change over the years and how they are approaching their next century of service to the people of West Cork.
Cormac O’Keeffe, Board Chair, Lisavaird Co-op
Pat Moriarty, General Manager, Lisavaird Co-op
Moderator: Dr. Michael Boland, Professor of Agricultural Economics, University of Minnesota
11:00 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. CT: Breakout Discussion Groups
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. CT: Policy Update
What’s in store for the agriculture industry in 2022? Chuck Conner, President and CEO of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, will review important policy issues impacting farmer-owned cooperatives in the year ahead.
Chuck Conner, President and CEO, National Council of Farmer Cooperatives
Moderator: Doug O’Brien, President and CEO, National Cooperative Business Association CLUSA International
2:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. CT: Breakout Discussion Groups
Tuesday, November 2, 2021
10:00 a.m – 11:00 a.m. CT: Competitive Strategies Using Alternative Business Models
Increasingly, cooperatives are working together under LLCs and joint venture models to gain efficiencies, while retaining autonomy and local control. In this session, we will hear from leaders from Skyland Grain LLC, and Landus Cooperative about their approaches to these alternative business models and the benefits to farmer members.
Matt Carstens, President & CEO, Landus Cooperative
David Cron, CEO, Skyland Grain LLC
Moderator: Dr. Brian Briggeman, Professor and Director, Arthur Capper Cooperative Center, Kansas State University
11:00 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. CT: Breakout Discussion Groups
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. Innovations in Management Structures: AMPI Case Study
Following the resignation of the co-op’s CEO in 2014, the Associated Milk Producers Inc. (AMPI) board of directors considered a co-management model with two long-time employees at the helm of the largest cheese cooperative in the U.S. In this session, AMPI leaders will share how the co-CEO structure aligns with the co-op’s culture, how this structure has worked for the board, and what to consider if you are exploring alternative management structures.
Sheryl Meshke, Co-President and CEO, Associated Milk Producers Inc.
Steve Schlangen, Chairman of the Board, Associated Milk Producers Inc.
Moderator: Ann Kafer, Vice President, Human Resources & Strategy Officer, GROWMARK
2:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. CT: Breakout Discussion Groups
Wednesday, November 3, 2021
10:00 a.m – 11:00 a.m. CT: Cyberattacks and Ransomware: How to Prepare Your Co-op
With more people working remotely as the global pandemic continues to change business environments, cybercriminals have capitalized on the opportunity to attack users working outside the corporate firewall. Recent cyberattacks on farmer cooperatives have demonstrated the vulnerability of the American food and agriculture systems. In this session, Robert E. Cattanach, will first share steps you can take BEFORE a cyberattack to minimize your cooperative’s risk. But we all know that ultimately it is a matter of when, not if. Bob will walk us through an example of a ransomware attack, the inevitable unknowns and many times unknowables, the typical cadence of how attackers exploit their victims, and the process for assessing the tradeoffs between negotiating the best price versus accepting the reputational and legal risk of not paying the ransom and accepting the fact that the world will know that your data compromised. Cattanach, a thought leader in the area of data security, regularly counsels boards and managers on matters of cybersecurity, privacy and information governance.
Robert E. Cattanach, Partner, Dorsey & Whitney LLP
Serge Jorgensen, Founding Partner & President, Sylint
Moderator: Dr. Keri L. Jacobs, Associate Professor of Ag & Applied Economics, MFA Chair in Agribusiness, GICL Distinguished Fellow, University of Missouri
11:00 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. CT: Breakout Discussion Groups
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. CT: Tillamook County Creamery’s Road to B Corp
In November 2020, Tillamook Creamery became a certified B Corporation. In this session, Tillamook leadership will share how the Oregon-based dairy cooperative is using this status with regard to business strategy.
Jocelyn Bridson, Director of Environment & Community Impact , Tillamook County Creamery Association
Dr. Michael Boland, Professor of Agricultural Economics, University of Minnesota
Moderator: Tom Swearingen, Director of Talent Management, GROWMARK
2:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. CT: Breakout Discussion Groups