On-Farm Recruitment and Readiness Series Learning Pathway

The 2025 production season is fast approaching! Applications Now Open – Apply Today

Learning Pathways

Welcome to our Learning Pathways

Join a group of like-minded entrepreneurs as you work towards a milestone in your own business. This program is designed to incorporate the wealth of knowledge from our Subject Matter Experts as well as provide a connection for networking with businesses that are going through the same growth stage as yourself.

Click the topic below to jump to the section of your choice. 

Agriculture

On-Farm Recruitment and Readiness Series Learning Pathway

The 2025 production season is fast approaching!

Did you know there are many opportunities to find and keep employees for your farms, even in an environment of upward wage pressures?

This winter, a significant portfolio of wage subsidies, post-secondary co-op placement, apprenticeships, and other support programs for farmers and food producers will be available.

Now is the time to plan to staff your food enterprise for the 2025 production season.

This 6-week series of recorded workshops and biweekly working groups will help you prepare for upcoming recruitment opportunities and staff onboarding.

Getting Ready to Hire for this Season  

Level up your hiring plan for the 2025 production season. In this webinar, you will learn the basics of getting your farm ready to find the people who will make your season great. 

Learn about: 

  • Writing appealing job descriptions for agriculture 

  • How to pitch your farm as an attractive place to work 

  • Safety and compliance for agriculture businesses 

  • Employment regulations for on and off-the-farm 

  • Wage planning and budgets 

Finding the Right Candidates for your Farm 

Recruiting suitable candidates is critical to success on the farm. This session will outline where and how you can find the superstars who you want on your team this year. 

Learn about: 

  • Where to advertise so candidates can find you   

  • Different types of wage support programs and recruiting support 

  • Various employment models that are available to you, such as Co-op students and retraining programs 

Interviewing, Onboarding and Retention 

Employee retention is a product of effective hiring plans that include a well thought out interview and onboarding plan.   

Learn about: 

  • The ins and outs of conducting interviews (i.e. choosing an appropriate format, setting and duration)  

  • Drafting effective and appropriate interview questions 

  • Laying out job expectations (including those for seasonal workers) 

  • Involving the right people in the screening process   

  • Training and mentoring new employees  

2023 Distribution Bootcamp

Calling all food producers looking to get into the wholesale business or those planning a visit to a trade show this year! The Distribution Bootcamp is a three-part series where you will work with our Advisors to prepare your product and pitch for wholesale buyers and distributors alongside other producers in your region.

Registration is now closed. 

Topic 1: Being a Good Supplier

Date: September 26, 2023

  • Life Cycle/Where are you?​
  • What makes a good supplier?​
  • Product readiness​
  • Relationships and Rapport​
  • Delivery/etiquettes​
  • Re-order and maintenance ​
  • Next Steps

 

Topic 2: What to Prepare for Your Pitch Meeting

Date: October 3, 2023

  • Review Good Supplier work​
  • Preparing Pitch​
  • Sell Sheet vs Order Sheet​
  • Promotional schedule​
  • Sales Expert ​
  • Product Expert​
  • Order Management​
  • Risk management​
  • Leveraging rapport​
  • Reinforce Commitment to Selling

Date: October 3, 2023

  • Create a “Go Kit”, marketing, signage
  • Write an elevator pitch and practice

 

Date: October 10 , 2023

  • Present and give feedback to each group that has presented; tell them what worked well and what didn’t.

Topic 3: Prepare for Food Expos and Trade Shows

Date: October 17, 2023

  • Finalize elevator pitch and make any changes to go kit/marketing from feedback from peers/working group.
  • Practice, get comfortable with your material
  • Prepare samples/demos
  • Critique plan

Date: October 24, 2023

  • ​​Finalize your “Go Kit” to be ready for trade shows and expos
  • Create a post-trade show checklist to follow up with potential leads

Pricing Fundamentals Learning Pathway: How Food Growers Price for Success

Food growers need to know how to price their products to make their farms sustainable and increase revenue.  Understanding pricing fundamentals allows us to improve efficiency and reduce expenses.  This series is for food growers who want to improve pricing models to make a profit in 2024. During this 8-week series of workshops and working groups, we will learn how to calculate production costs for effective planning and product pricing, and we will dive into using margins to plan for cost of production, revenue, and staffing.    

Registration has now ended. Please check back later for the On-Demand version.

Calculating the True Cost of Production 

Learn about: 

  • Why farmers should know how much it costs to grow a unit of product 

  • How to calculate the cost of production for sustainability, growth and profit 

Factors that Determine Sustainable Product Pricing

Learn about: 

  • How to use financial statements to calculate operating costs (i.e. growing and packaging) and fixed costs (i.e. mortgage/lease) to price our products 

  • How to use your unit cost data to understand production intensity and harvest intervals for what you grow 

Determining How Much You Need to Plant to Generate a Profit  

Learn about: 

  • How to plan for profit before you put anything in the ground or in the barn 

  • How to use break-even analysis to calculate how many units you need in a given production area to produce enough  to exceed your operating costs 

Making Data-Driven Decisions Based on Pricing Knowledge 

Learn about: 

  • Why data and gut feelings can sometimes give you different answers 

  • How to use break-even analysis to make data-driven decisions; for example, how much labour will be required, how much shrink to account for, how to think about potential risk, how to plan future harvests, how to consider future land opportunities 

Food Processors

Financial Literacy

Financial Learning Pathway

Learn to leverage your financial reporting to make better business decisions.

One of the best tools business owners can use is their financial reporting!

During this 10 week series of recorded workshops and live working groups, you will learn the fundamentals of these influential reports and how to use them to make data-driven decisions. You will know what the information tells you about your business, what changes to make to get more accurate data and key ratios to analyze your business’s health.  

Registration is now closed. 

Commit to 10 weeks of learning to leverage your financial reporting to make better business decisions.

One of the best tools business owners can use is their financial reporting. Join us for this multi-week series of recorded workshops and live working groups to learn the fundamentals of these influential reports and how to use them to make data-driven decisions. Learn what the information tells you about your business, what changes to make to get more accurate data and key ratios to analyze your company’s financial health.  

  • 10-Week Program (approx. 1.5-3 hours per week): April 25-June 27, 2024
  • Occupancy: Limited to 10 participants
  • Delivery: Virtual working group series.  Participants will watch a recorded workshop and complete assigned tasks before each bi-weekly working group session.
  • Program Instructors:
    • Denise MacDonald
    • Steve Fisher
  •  

Qualification Requirements:

  1. Minimum company annual revenue  $100,000
  2. We are open to service—or product-based companies. The best fit is product-based companies with multiple products or service-based companies with multiple services. Your company should have at least one employee involved in delivering services or making products.
  3. Able to produce or get financial reports from your accounting system like QuickBooks or Wave (Profit & Loss/Income statement and Balance Sheet)
  4. Bookkeeping up to date (within last quarter) 
  5. Working knowledge of Excel
  6. Time – 3-hour commitment per week (class and homework time)
  7. The business has full-time equivalent staff

Space is limited, and specific business requirements are required. Once you apply, a BBA Program Representative will contact you.

Annual Profit and Loss (P&L) Statement; Trailing 12-month (TTM) Profit and Loss

We all know that the Annual Profit and Loss (P & L) Statement is useful to report taxable income for the government. But does it give us enough information to manage a business effectively? Adjusting financial reporting processes can optimize a business.
In this session, we explore:
– adding detail to a profit and loss statement for better business management overall
– increasing frequency of financial reporting for access to relevant, up-to-date information throughout the year

Cost of Goods Sold (COGS); Gross Margins (GM); Chart of Accounts (COA)

A detailed Chart of Accounts (COA) allows for tracking where money comes in and goes out within a given reporting period. Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) and Gross Margin (GM) play a key role in financial reporting.
In this session, we explore:
– What is COGS and why is it important to include in a P & L statement?
– Why is Gross Margin one of the most important numbers to have on a P & L statement?
– How and why do we lay out revenue centres to correlate with COGS?
– How do we lay out Point of Sale (POS) for the Chart of Accounts (COA)?

In-Depth P&L: Sales Channel Analysis; Gross Margin by Revenue Channel; Gross Margin Calculations  

Often when we look at a Profit and Loss Statement, we focus on the revenue listed at the top and the profit listed at the bottom. But what about the data in between? To make data-driven decisions for a business, we need to pay close attention to Gross Margin and Gross Margin per revenue channel.
In this session, we will explore:
– Why calculating Gross Margin per revenue channel matters
– Sales channel analysis (calculating Gross Margin by revenue channel)
– Decisions that can (and should) be made with this data

Margins and Ratios: Pro Forma vs TTM and Break-Even Analysis 

The TTM is an invaluable accounting tool that allows us to look back and spot trends over time. But to scale a business up or down through any market condition and survive, we need to look forward and plan accordingly. A Pro Forma, also generated monthly, allows us to forecast how the business is likely to perform in the future by projecting the potential financial impact of hypothetical strategies. A Pro Forma empowers us to justify decisions we make in our business.
In this session, we will explore:
– Using a Pro Forma to numerically test potential strategies in the service industry vs in the manufacturing industry
– How to calculate break even
– The role of break-even analysis in decision-making

Gross Margin and Profit Margin Consistency; Three Ways to Affect Profitability; Using the Break-Even Formula

To create a reliable Pro Forma, the TTM needs to be solid first so we can see trends over time. To do this, we must understand that the profit margin is the result of the intersection between factors we can control: revenue, gross margin, and expenses.
In this session, we explore:
– How and why to keep the Gross Margin and monthly expenses consistent
– How the break-even analysis formula can help a business reach profitability
– Three ways to affect profitability
– Monthly financial routines

 

People Management

Leadership Learning Pathway: The Structure of Effective Leadership

Do you want to elevate your leadership acumen and implement a toolset that will propel your business forward?

Effective leaders are good engineers!  This 12-week online series of workshops and working groups will illustrate the structure, process and tools of effective leadership. You will learn how to implement a reliable blueprint in your business that will proactively guide your team to achieve predictable and elevated business results.

 

Registration has now ended. Please check back later for the On-Demand version.

Why Leadership Requires Structure, Process and Tools (Why you need a plan). 

If you don’t lead your team, you will get what you are given – not what you want.

In this session, you will learn about:

  • The key elements for successful leadership in any business:
    • Structure
    • Process
    • Tools 

Create a Focus for the Plan (Making the plan). 

If your team is not focused, you are like a rudderless ship being blown in the wind.

In this session, you will learn the processes required to:

  • Set your strategic direction
  • Identify your business model
  • Create specific goals to focus your entire team

Answering Your Why (Vision), What (Mission) and How (Values) – Making the plan

When making a plan, it is crucial that you are clear on your vision, mission and values.   

In this session, you will learn:

  • How to identify why your company is important and how that motivates your team
  • The importance of living your company values
  • Discover how your company values are used to set your company apart from the competition

Bringing your Foundational Structure to Your Team (Communicate the plan)  

When everyone is accountable, no one is accountable. 

Clear communication creates accountability and provides a framework for success.

In this session, you will learn how to create clarity for your team and empower them through:

  • Leadership tools
  • Organizational charts
  • Job descriptions 

Lead Your Team – Empowerment Through Accountability (Execute the plan)

Leadership involves not only a framework but also someone to implement that framework.  That is what it means to be a leader; you are the only one who can do it. 

In this session, you will learn how to use structure, process and tools to empower your team to execute a plan while:

  • Holding yourself accountable
  • Holding your team accountable

 Re-evaluate the Plan, Assess Performance and Re-focus (Pivot)

The world does not stand still, and neither does your business.  If you don’t continue to revisit your plans, learn from mistakes and adjust, you will not optimize and/or be able to scale your business.

In this session, you will learn to:

  • Evaluate your success
  • Make decisions
  • Pivot where necessary 

Sales and Marketing

Growth Learning Pathway

A company needs a stable foundation to thrive. The Growth Learning Pathway will give you a fundamental understanding of the key components to develop a successful growth strategy.

During this 10-week series of live online workshops and working groups, BBA Advisors will guide you through the essential fundamentals and teach you how to strategically position your company for growth and expansion.

Applications are closed.

 
Growth Learning Pathway  – Starts September 19th!
 
Thursdays (9:00-10:15am PST)
                                                               

Course Description:  A company needs a stable foundation to thrive. The Growth Learning Pathway will guide you through the essential fundamentals, teaching you how to strategically position your company for growth and expansion.  

Course Objective: This pathway will help you understand the key components to develop a successful growth strategy.

Session Topics
  • Session 1 – What is growth, and what are the key components of a growth strategy? 
  • Session 2 – Defining your Business Model
  • Session 3 – Who is your customer?  
  • Session 4 – How to develop a marketing plan and process  
  • Session 5 – How to develop a repeatable sales process
Course Details
  • 10-Week Program (approx. 1.5-3 hours per week)
  • Occupancy: Limited to 10 participants
  • Delivery: A series of 5 workshops and 5 working group sessions. Each live, online workshop will provide participants with the knowledge they need to prepare for their bi-weekly working group session. 
  • Program Instructors:
    • Denise MacDonald
    • Steve Fisher

Qualification Requirements:

  1. Minimum company annual revenue  $250,000
  2. Your company should have at least 3 FTEs (any number of employees working the equivalent of 3 full-time employees)
  3. Time – 1.5 – 3-hour commitment per week (class and homework time)
  4. I have a proven business model, and I want to grow the revenues from my existing products/services

Space is limited, and specific business requirements are required.

Once you apply, a BBA Program Representative will contact you.

What is growth, and what are the key components of a growth strategy?  

Course Outcome 

  • Pre-requisite elements for growth 
    • Need Foundational Financial Systems  
      • Reliable, predictable results 
      • Financial Monthly Process in place 
      • Need to know how to analyze results 
    • Leadership Foundations 
      • Goal Setting System 
      • Set MVV 
      • Org Chart and JD’s  
      • HR Systems and Employee Journey: Leading the Team 
      • Do you have the right team, and does your team have extra capacity? 
    • Product Market Fit 
    • Reliable, consistent customer experience 
      • Need SOP’s to make this possible  
      • Treating your business like you’re building a franchise 
      • Then you can either:  
        • Add more locations 
        • Add more clients to your system without it breaking 
        •  Franchise 
        • Sell or reduce time in business 
      • Many think the product is a commodity, but the actual product is a consistent customer experience. 
      • “Because the business format franchise is built on the belief that the true product of a business is not what it sells, but how it sells it.” The E-Myth. Refers to consistent customer experience 
      • These three together create scalability. 

 

 

Defining your Business Model – Building a reliable result machine.

  • Use the Business Model Canvas
  • What is your Value Proposition, and can your team state it?
    • EX:  Concierge service vs mobile massage 
    • Provide template
    • How is your Value proposition different than your competitors 
  • What problem are you solving?
    • Can you quantify the problem?
    • Provide a solution that’s cheaper than the problem they have. If you can measure an ROI, this will support marketing and sales. 
  • What is your position in the market? 
    • Cheaper, better, faster (1 or 2 of the 3, never all 3) 
    • What are your 3 Uniques? 
  • Marketing Strategy
  • What is your Key Differentiator?  
  • Product Market Fit – what is it, and do you have it?   
  • Can your model scale, is the market big enough, how much do you need to sell to make a living?

Who are your customers, and how do you leverage them?

  • Who is your Core Customer? 
    • Definition 
    • Age, earnings, language that resonates with them, how do they want to be sold and/or serviced? 
  • The core client has the problem your business solves 
  • What is the customer journey? 

 

 

How to develop and implement a Marketing Strategy.

  • Background 
  • What is Marketing? 
  • Why do you need a marketing strategy? 
  • Key components of a marketing strategy 
    • Market Research – Understanding your market 
    • Know your Core Clients and where to reach them 
    • Marketing vs advertising 
    • Marketing Mix (4 Ps)
    • Marketing Funnel 
    • Marketing Implementation Plan 
    • Marketing budget 

 

How to Develop a Repeatable Sales Process

  • Revenue first! 
    • Fuel for change 
    • Customer feedback 
  • Who is responsible for sales in your company? 
    • Do they have the tools 
    • Training plan 
  • Creating a weighted Sales funnel (from the marketing plan) 
    • Measurability, tracking, targets, brought back to unit economics 
    • Spreadsheet example  
  • Repeatable sales process and why this is necessary 
    • Measurability, effectiveness  
    • It needs to be dialed and scalable 
      • Someone can follow the process with predictable results