Ford West Leadership Academy

The Ford West Leadership Academy sessions are designed to be participant-centered, engaging experiences, rather than lectures. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss topics and share their experiences with their peers alongside the guidance of an industry professional serving as a facilitator. These learner-centered sessions focus on real-world experiences and situations to maximize retention and application of the material. 

CURRICULUM OUTLINE BY SESSION 

Fertilizer 101: This session will establish a baseline understanding of the value, needs, concerns, and placement of the fertilizer industry in global agriculture. By the end of the session, co-hort members will understand the purpose and types of fertilizer, be able to describe the connection between soil health and nutrient management, explain the NPK cycles, understand how fertilizer is manufactured, and visualize the global supply and demand impacts of fertilizer.   

Agronomy and Stewardship: The session covers the nutrient lifecycle, 4R framework, basics of agronomy, and answers the question, “Why is fertilizer important in feeding the world?” Participants will be able to explain the 4R Nutrient Stewardship framework and how it is used within the fertilizer industry, provide examples of how to implement the 4R Nutrient Stewardship framework, and apply their newfound knowledge of the 4R Nutrient Stewardship framework to their individual job functions. 

History of Fertilizer: This session shares how major events have shaped the fertilizer industry over time, and why it is important as a leader to study these events in preparation for those to come. Attendees will be able to identify major milestone events that shaped the fertilizer industry, articulate how both domestic and global events have an impact on the fertilizer industry, and better anticipate how major events or breakthroughs may impact the fertilizer industry.  

Advocacy: This session will provide the supports and resources to craft a short advocacy elevator pitch. Build an initial draft in the session, then practice it at the evening networking event! The goal of the session is for participants to become advocates for the fertilizer industry by creating a 30-60 second elevator speech to use in a variety of professional situations. In addition, participants will know where to find more information about fertilizer industry key topics and issues to be better equipped to speak to those topics/issues, and practice delivering their elevator speech out loud and in front of their colleagues.  

Sales and Business Development: Participants will hear about the importance of relationships in the fertilizer business. Emphasis will be placed on sales goals and theories such as, “We aren’t here to sell tons; we are here to make a profit.” The panel discussion should also discuss current Innovation(s) in the business development sector of the industry and its importance. The session will help attendees see the value of human relationships within a sales role, understand the connection between sales and business development, and recognize the unique nature of sales/business development in agriculture.  

Crisis Management, Safety and Security: This session prioritizes the discussion of “hot topics” on safety and security. Participants will work through a case study on Crisis Management and creating a culture of safety. After participating in this session, participants will be able to: Identify the effects major crises have on the overall industry and individual companies, consider ways to better prevent such events from happening, articulate what it means to have a Culture of Safety, plan for ways to better prepare themselves for crisis situations and to better prevent such situations as leaders in the industry. 

The Essentials of Finance: This session discusses how companies make money in the fertilizer industry. Participants will learn about the common financial tools and systems such as P&L and EBITDA. After participating in this session, participants will be able to: Understand how companies in the fertilizer industry make money and key financial issues pertinent to the fertilizer business, identify important financial documents and terms, plan for how to increase their understanding of finance in the fertilizer business. 

The Future of the Fertilizer Industry: The session discusses the future of the fertilizer and agriculture industry and what needs to change in order to meet global needs. In this session, participants will share examples of how the agriculture industry is expected to evolve in the future in order to meet food production and environmental needs, and recognize how the fertilizer industry will evolve over the next 5 to 10 year and their role in that evolution.