Executive Summary
What is this report about?
In 2005, Jeff Coutts and Kate Roberts undertook a comprehensive review of how agricultural consultants are used by farming businesses in Australia. This “Users Guide” has been written to help farm business managers maximise the benefits of the relationship they have with their consultants. It was developed from surveys with consultants, and case studies undertaken with a range of agricultural industries and states across Australia.

Who is the report targeted at?
The “Users Guide” is designed for use by producers who are either currently using a consultant or are contemplating using one.

Background
In 2004, a two year study of extension and education across Australia by Jeff Coutts, Kate Roberts, Fionnuala Frost and Amy Coutts found that…there is much to learn in terms of ‘what works and why’ in the relationship between client and consultant/mentor. This may be critical in the way learnings are integrated and used on a farm”.

Research subsequently undertaken to examine the relationship between consultants and their clients highlighted the need for a guide to assist producers to choose, engage and work with a consultant.

Aims
This “Users Guide” was written to inform farmers wanting to employ private agricultural consultants to work one-on-one with them to assist in enterprise decision-making. Producers will find that some of the suggestions made in the “User Guide” will also be relevant to working oneon- one with public sector extension officers, and advisors employed by seed and chemical companies.

Methods used

This guide was developed following a literature review, case studies and a web survey to explore the role of consultants and the consultant-client relationship. The research found that the questions (and answers) the producers had were:

• Where to look for a consultant (– ask friends and work colleagues, professional organisations, look at consultant websites).
• What qualities to look for in a consultant (– adaptability, knowledgeable, established reputation, independent from government or product, someone you can work with).
• What questions to ask on first meeting (– find out as much as possible about the consultants background and operating style).
• How consultants charge for their time (– either per hour or flat rate per year).
• What you can expect from a consultant (– ranges from a written list of services, objective and indendent advice to getting to know the family).
• How consultants work with clients (– ranges from providing advice, being a sounding board to keeping records about chemical application and paddock data).
• What consultants expect from their clients (– being clear about what is wanted from the client, inquisitive, and involved in joint decision making).
• How to get the most from your consultant (– suggestions include being organised for meetings, review the relationship regularly and taking all technical data and advice and adding it to your farm knowledge).

This guide is organised according to these questions and answers.

Implications
There is a lot of evidence that agricultural consultants are becoming an increasing force in supporting managers of agricultural enterprises across Australia and that they play a critical role in assisting managers to integrate wider learnings into their specific farming system.

The profession, however, largely relies on the informal advisory approach that is the legacy of the public extension system - few consultants appear to have formal written agreements with their clients and there is a reliance on informal networks and recommendations in reaching potential clients.

This guide will provide a valuable resource to producers seeking to choose engage and work with a consultant.

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Last updated: July 2007
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http://www.rirdc.gov.au/reports/HCC/07-103sum.html