People & business

Overview

MLA invests in research and development (R&D) that focuses on people and businesses within the red meat industry. These investments aim to help enterprises develop and deliver information, tools and services to empower businesses across the value chain make sound decisions in addressing challenges and capitalising on future opportunities.

R&D in this area supports enterprises to attract, employ, manage and retain skilled and effective employees, which is essential for the growth and continued development of businesses and the Australian agricultural industry.

Business skills are critical to running a successful livestock enterprise and effective business management requires consideration of people, the feedbase and equipment as well as the health, welfare and productivity of livestock.

Core activities

MLA invests in the development and delivery of workshops and courses, including course materials, to help producers build their skills in business management. These include:

• BusinessEDGE and BreedingEDGE for northern beef producers
• More Beef from Pastures and Making More from Sheep for southern producers
• Goats hub.

Other R&D projects related to people and business focus on:

• creating a safe working environment through occupational health and safety
• working towards successful succession planning that ensures the continuation of a business through generations
• leading, motivating and encouraging people in the red meat industry to improve the rate of staff tenure
• formulating effective business plans that encompass the whole supply chain
• understanding individual business' financial situations to improve profitability and plan for business risk
• keeping appropriate records to help enterprises meet industry and legislative obligations.

Benefits to industry

• MLA’s investments in people and businesses helps foster the prosperity of the Australian red meat and livestock industry by investing in industry leaders, innovators and scientists to enhance business skills and build a sustainable, long term workforce for the industry. 
• Understanding an enterprise's financial position, along with an appreciation of what constitutes acceptable risk, helps identify potential efficiency gains, enables the business to be more robust in withstanding market and environmental fluctuations and helps identify opportunities for future investments.