This week Paul Neiffer has a conversation with Dick Wittman and Cori Wittman Stitt. This father-daughter duo farm Lapwai, Idaho.
Wittman is transitioning from being CEO of the farm to becoming chairman of the board, as Wittman Stitt transitions into the CEO role.
The origins of Wittman Farms dates back to the 1920s. Today the operation includes cattle, timber and crops.
“We have 17 different cropping varieties we could grow in any given year,” says Wittman Stitt. “That can include wheat, barley, peas, lentils, flax, chickpeas, mustard, canola, hay and alfalfa.”
“We are constantly diversifying our crop production systems,” Wittman adds.
Both father and daughter spent time away from the farm before returning to take on leadership roles within the farm. Wittman spent eight years learning all facets of the ag lending world in a position with Farm Credit. Wittman Stitt spent six years in Washington DC doing agricultural policy in various roles and then moved to Thailand to work for a non-profit organization.
As a family business, Wittman Farms holds strongly to the values of stewardship and sustainability.
“We’ve always had strict adherence to professional management practices,” says Wittman, who specializes in financial management, process improvement, developing management systems, business succession planning and conflict resolution through his other career at Wittman Consulting. “When I cam back to the farm, we had no written documentation, policies, etc. As our generation came in, we knew the need for structure was absolutely essential.”
Now Wittman Stitt and her peers are re-engineering the farm’s management practices, while they adapt their own values to them. She is algo getting practice in being her dad’s boss.
“He wants us to succeed,” she says. “It is hard to watch us make mistakes, but he’s letting go enough to watch us learn on our own. I know we’re probably luckier than most in terms of the smooth transition we’ve had.”
Listen to the podcast episode:
Listen to additional episodes of the Farm CPA Podcast:
Episode 5: Roric Paulman from Nebraska
Episode 4: Dave Nelson of Iowa
Episode 3: Jim Wiesemeyer, Pro Farmer
