EXECUTIVE OUTLOOK Pausing to reflect, direct and connect By Thad Doye Executive Director, Oklahoma Farm Bureau
klahoma Farm Bureau is important to me because I am proud to be a farmer. Like all farmers, I hope to be a good steward of the land and of our natural resources so I can pass on our family’s farm just like generations before passed it to me. To be able to see the next generation make a living from the land, it is important to stop from time to time and evaluate what is working, what is not, where you have been and where you are headed. Keeping your goals in sight and measuring your progress is always a good idea, no matter what area of life you are talking about. OKFB is at a great point do just that: analyze who we are as an organization, see the ways in which we are effective and target the ways we can grow. To accomplish this task, the OKFB state board and I have decided to take on a peer-review process to get an accurate snapshot of the status of your organization. We have asked American Farm Bureau to conduct this comprehensive review. They have the unique advantage of being “one of us” – they understand what makes Farm Bureau special – and they will be able to offer expert advice to help guide us into the future. In the coming weeks and months, AFBF will look at our organization’s structure, programs and services, analyzing them to see how they fit with our mission of serving our members. As part of the review, AFBF staff will also visit Oklahoma to do personal interviews with our members and staff as they
consider the efforts and initiatives OKFB is undertaking. From our member-driven committees to our publications and from our public policy efforts to our membership initiatives, AFBF will assess our organization and spotlight ways in which we can grow. I believe this is a great opportunity to pause and see where we are at as an organization. OKFB members have built their organization by striving to serve their fellow members, an attitude that we focus on and work toward every day. What we will learn from this review will allow us to concentrate our efforts and growth as an organization. We plan to thoroughly analyze the results of this review and implement any — Thad Doye changes that we can make to better serve OKFB members as we charge forward with our mission of improving the lives of rural Oklahomans. I am excited for this chance to take stock of where we are at, identify steps that we can take to better serve our members, and continue our work together to move agriculture and rural Oklahoma forward. After all, passing on the fruits of our labor is a tradition our organization holds dear.
I am excited for this chance to take stock of where we are at, identify steps that we can take to better serve our members, and continue our work together to move agriculture and rural Oklahoma forward.
8 — Oklahoma Country