Primary producers in the Longreach, Blackall and Emerald districts 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 critical to managing an agricultural enterprise.
The practical Financial Skills Workshops – providing farmers with an opportunity to both upskill and network – will be held in early August.
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.
These complimentary, interactive workshops provide practical, hands-on guidance on 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 Northern Queensland and Northern Territory Rabo Client Council member and Aramac-based beef producer Lee-Ann Boyd said “these workshops aim to provide key financial skills and tools to assist in the effective management of agricultural operations”.
"And it's exciting to bring the workshops back to these communities,” she said. “Producers who had attended previous Rabobank Financial Skills Workshops have told the bank the information provided is very valuable.”
The workshops – which will be limited to 30 participants each and are not restricted to the bank’s clients – will be delivered by director of Hudson Facilitation, Tony Hudson.
Ms Boyd said the workshops are designed to help close the gap between farming expertise and financial knowledge.
“And while many of our well-educated primary producers have extensive on-farm experience, understanding the intricacies of financial reporting and banking requirements can still be unfamiliar,” she said.
Ms Boyd said the workshops will explore financial reports, “one of the most useful and underutilised reports for many farming businesses”.
“Module One, presented at the Longreach and Emerald workshops, will help producers gain an understanding of how to read, interpret and use these reports for agricultural businesses,” she said. “This module provides knowledge and insights for running and managing the day-to-day aspects of an agricultural operation from a financial perspective.
“In the second module, delivered in Blackall, we take an enterprise-focused approach – we will consider cash flow implications of a variety of enterprise choices. The module will also focus on preparing annual cash flow budgets. However, participating in the previous session is not a pre-requisite to attend.”
Ms Boyd said the workshops are designed to allow couples and family members to attend together. “The workshops offer a valuable opportunity to step away from the business, absorb the same information and foster a shared understanding of financial reporting. By learning together, they can enhance their financial skills as a team,” she said.
Rabobank’s Rabo Client Council network is focussed on developing meaningful grassroots initiatives to support key themes focusing on agri education, rural wellbeing, sustainability, adaption and creating rural/urban connections, Ms Boyd said.
“By empowering primary producers with the expertise to effectively utilise financial reporting and navigate banking processes, the Financial Skills Workshops contribute to bolstering the resilience and prosperity of local farming businesses,” she said. “Consequently, our rural and regional communities also benefit from a financially-healthy ag sector.”
Rabobank head of relationship management for Northern Queensland and Northern Territory Joe Webb said since the launch of the workshops in 2018, the Rabo Client Councils have extended this valuable learning opportunity to over 4,550 farmers across Australia and New Zealand.
“If you’re interested in attending 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,” he said.
Workshop dates and locations are:
- Monday, 5 August 2024 – 9:00am – 4:00pm – Longreach (Module One)
- Tuesday, 6 August 2024 – 9.00am – 4.00pm – Blackall (Module Two)
- Thursday, 8 August 2024 – 9:00am – 4:00pm – Emerald (Module One)
To register to participate, please visit the Rabobank Australia website, or click here
Morning tea and lunch catering will be provided.
Please contact rabocommunity@rabobank.com with any queries about the workshops.
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Disclaimer
The Financial Skills Workshop is for information purposes only. Its contents will be general in nature and does not take into account your personal objectives, situation or needs. Rabobank Australia Limited ABN 50 001 621 129 AFSL 234700 and Coöperatieve Rabobank U.A. (Australia Branch) ABN 70003917655 AFSL 238446 (collectively referred to as, ‘Rabobank Australia’) recommend that you seek independent professional advice before making any decisions related in any way to the contents of this information session.
Media contacts:
Denise Shaw Will Banks
Media Relations Media Relations
Rabobank Australia & New Zealand Rabobank Australia
Phone: 02 8115 2744 or 0439 603 525 Phone: 0418 216 103
Email: denise.shaw@rabobank.com Email: will.banks@rabobank.com
About us:
Rabobank Australia & New Zealand Group is a part of the international Rabobank Group, the world’s leading specialist in food and agribusiness banking. Rabobank has more than 125 years’ experience providing customised banking and finance solutions to businesses involved in all aspects of food and agribusiness. Rabobank is structured as a cooperative and operates in 38 countries, servicing the needs of more than nine million clients worldwide through a network of more than 1000 offices and branches. Rabobank Australia & New Zealand Group is one of Australasia’s leading agricultural lenders and a significant provider of business and corporate banking and financial services to the region’s food and agribusiness sector. The bank has 90 branches throughout Australia and New Zealand.
