Ellison Chair in International Floriculture
Ellison Chair in International FloricultureTeaching, Research, Extension and Service

National Floriculture Forum a big success!

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This year’s National Floriculture Forum was held in Dallas, TX on March 10-11 and drew 46 participants from across academia and industry. Texas A&M University served as the host university this year. In addition to the tours, networking, and strategic planning that occurred, there were research presentations on the afternoon of the first day that highlighted various partnerships, alliances, brands, and initiatives that are being utilized by universities and industry firms across the country in order to compete successfully in the current hypercompetitive and budget-cutting environment.

A debriefing website has been developed (click here) which contains a history of the NFF, the proceedings from the papers presented, a roster of participants in this year’s meeting, as well as a listing of all sponsors this year. BTW, a special thanks to all of our sponsors — without your assistance this year, the National Floriculture Forum would have not been possible!

"If you're not informed, it's your own fault."

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ANLA and SAF have done a yeoman’s job of keeping green industry firms informed of what is happening in Washington in terms of the effects of mid-term elections and the critical regulatory and legislative issues facing nursery/floral businesses today. Be sure to check out the Washington Impact section (click here) of the ANLA Knowledge Center and the latest SAF analysis of the effects of mid-term elections on your business (click here). As the saying goes, what you don’t know, can hurt you.

Columbian Cut Flower Industry Loses Leader

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Bogotá, March 23rd, 2010. Asocolflores, its Board of Directors, member companies and employees deeply mourn the passing of Ernesto Velez, who served as the president of Asocolflores’ Board of Directors for the past seven years. Ernesto was known not only for the invaluable support he gave to Colombian floriculture in the areas of social responsibility and implementing environmentally friendly practices, but also for his drive, his business vision and the strength to endure through the toughest of times.

Ernesto Velez was also prominent for assuming the role of representing Colombian floriculture in a variety of national and international arenas. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Society of American Florists (SAF), the American Floral Endowment (AFE), the Flower Promotion Organization (FPO), and the Colombian Society of Farmers (SAC), just to mention a few.

Last year at Proflora 2009, the “Life and Endeavors of a Flower Grower” distinction was bestowed upon Ernesto and his wife Lucie de Velez for being an exemplary floriculturist; the prototypical affiliate all trade associations would like to be able to count on – a true role model for current and future generations. This past January 2010, he was also awarded the IFAS Scholar Award from the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences during the Asocolflores Board of Directors meeting for being an outstanding alumnus. Terril Nell, professor and president of the University of Florida’s Environmental Horticulture Department, granted the award.

A graduate of the University of California-Davis with a BS in Agronomy and a post-graduate degree from the University of Florida in Farm Agriculture, Ernesto Velez has held many board of director positions over the past ten years with both US and Colombian farming entities. He also served as a consultant for the World Bank and the Inter-American Bank on farming development projects in Brazil, Paraguay and the Dominican Republic. Together with his wife Lucie de Velez in 1980, he founded the Suasuque S.A. company and was its manager for 30 years.

“Ernesto’s passing represents an irreparable loss, not only for his family, but also for Asocolflores and Colombian floriculture. Ernesto dedicated most of his time to Asocolflores, being proactive by fueling ideas and putting forth proposals. He represented Asocolflores with great dignity at both national and international levels”, said Augusto Solano, President of Asocolflores.

More info to factor into your voting decisions

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The 2008 ANLA/Lighthouse Voter Guide is a non-partisan, informational guide that spells out the voting records for representatives and senators on green-industry issues, and a review of “industry champions.” The Lighthouse Program is the nursery and landscape industry’s national grassroots program. The program is a partnership between state and regional nursery/landscape associations and ANLA.

Who will economists vote for?

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The title reflects a question that I have been asked several times by friends lately. I was surprised that anyone cared, but nonetheless, here is the answer — it depends. OK, I know what you’re thinking. That is the typical retort you might expect from an economist, but hear me out.

Much ado has been made of various lists of economists supporting Obama (click here) and those supporting McCain (click here). But a recent survey (click here) of over 500 economists drawn from a subset of members of the American Economic Association, indicated that “Not surprisingly, 88 percent of Democratic economists think Democratic Sen. Barack Obama would be best, while 80 percent of Republican economists pick Republican Sen. John McCain.” So obviously, there is a strong correlation between favored economic policies and political pursausion.

Why does this matter? Well, for the most part, we need to understand where folks are coming from when we read or listen to them. To me, it is important to know enough to know the difference.

For example, among the plethora of resources I consult each day, I regularly read the column in the NY Times of recent Nobel prize winner Paul Krugman (a very good Princeton economist) who has made no secret of his Democratic leanings. But I also read stuff from Martin Feldstein (another very good economist) who is a professor of economics at Harvard and President Emeritus of the National Bureau for Economic Research. Martin also happened to be Chairman of President Ronald Reagan’s Council of Economic Advisors, so obviously he has a Republican slant.

So when I read comments from these guys [and others], I can better understand WHY they they hold certain positions because I know from “whence they came,” so to speak. The same holds true with mainstream media pundits as well. Unbiased commentary is a rarity, so it behooves us to, again, know enough to know the difference.

A mind is a terrible thing to waste! So read, listen, debate, evaluate, discern — use your gray matter — to decide where you stand. Because as the saying goes: “if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything!”

Ecomomic Rx for Business

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“In good times, running a company is exhilarating. Money is flowing, customers are happy, employees have a spring in their step. In not-so-good times—like now—the very same job can feel like scaling Mt. Everest in a snowstorm while wearing a knapsack filled with bricks and suffering from a bad case of the flu.”

In the latest Florists’ Review magazine, Quint Studor offers “Eleven Ways to Infuse Your Company with the Leadership Skills to Thrive in Tough Times” — a good read. For more, click here.

Another good read is George Whalins article on “Strategies for a Changing Retail World” — click here.

Other good reads include:

Don’t Just Survive—Dominate
When the Going Gets Tough…
Maintaining Strong Sales During the Summer
The Upside to a Downturn
The Business of Retail is Going to be Brutal in 2008

Standards Committee deadline extended

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Due to increased interest in the development of the Sustainable Agriculture Practice Draft American National Standard for Trial Use, the deadline has been extended for applications to participate on the Standards Committee and/or supporting subcommittees to May 23, 2008.

This extension is being implemented based on numerous requests to allow time for additional stakeholders to submit their applications. To learn more, click here for the official deadline extension announcement and click here for the Leonardo Academy press release announcing the call for Standards Committee applicants.

Why is it important to get involved? Ever heard the phrase “taxation without representation”? Need I say more?

SAF and OFA have great summary websites if you need to get caught up on this critical issue.

Spanish Immersion Study Program a Success!

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On February 24 – March 1, 2008, Texas AgriLife Extension hosted a unique educational program for commercial nursery floral producers. The FLORI-Culture & Marketing Spanish Immersion Study Program combined language instruction with daily tours focusing on labor and marketing. The event, led by Dr. Don C. Wilkerson, was conducted in Cuernavaca, Mexico. This international program with an emphasis on marketing and labor is an excellent example of how TAMU-Horticulture is addressing key GREEN industry issues.

I encourage you to read the summary of this innovative Extension educational activity (click here).

Leading at a Higher Level

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While “vacationing” this week [spring break], I happened across an article by Ken Blanchard in a periodical I had never heard of before called Success At Home, a magazine targeted at home-based businesses. In this article, Ken recounts leadership principles that I think are applicable to Green Industry firms that take a differentiation strategy serious. For example:

When you are leading at a higher level, you have a both/and philosophy. The development of people is of equal importance to performance. As a result, the focus of leading at a higher level is on long-term results and human satisfaction. Leading at a higher level, therefore, is a process.

Ken has found that in organizations where leading at a higher level is the rule rather than the exception, leaders do four things well.

They set their sights on the right target and vision. Great organizations focus on three bottom lines instead of just one. In addition to financial success, leaders at great organizations know that measuring their success with people—both customers and employees—is just as important as measuring the success of their financial bottom line.

They treat their customers right. To keep your customers today, you can’t be content just to satisfy them. Instead, you have to create raving fans—customers who are so excited about the way you treat them that they want to tell everyone about you.

They treat their people right. Without committed and empowered employees, you can never provide good service. You can’t treat your people poorly and expect them to treat your customers well.

They have the right kind of leadership. The most effective leaders realize that leadership is not about them and that they are only as good as the people they lead. These kinds of leaders seek to be serving leaders instead of self-serving leaders.

To read the complete article [which I highly recommend], click here!