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Rick Lunquist is an independent nutrition and management consultant based in Duluth, Minn.

Sarah Beth Aubrey’s mission is to enhance success and profitability in agricultural and rural communities by building capacity in people. She believes everyone has a unique definition of success and strives to foster that potential through one-on-one executive coaching, by facilitating peer groups, or by leading boards through change-based planning initiatives. An entrepreneur since 2003, in 2015 she founded A.C.T., Aubrey Coaching & Training, a performance-based leadership training and executive coaching firm. Her A.C.T. Now! Program, a series of live seminars, launches in Indianapolis in 2016. Sarah Beth holds a B.S. in Agricultural Communications from the University of Illinois and a M.S. in Strategic Communication from Purdue University. She began her career with Novartis moving next into business development and training with ABG, Inc. Entrepreneurial at heart, at 26 she launched a retail meat business and at 30 a grant writing firm. Both businesses have been sold to investors. As the CEO of Prosperity Ag, LLC, Sarah Beth wrote over 300 successful grants in 39 states, yielding nearly $60 million in funding. She is technically savvy in understanding the complex issues facing agriculture today, and blogs on these topics for Farm Journal Media’s Agweb.com. The author of four books, Sarah Beth is also part of the Adjunct Faculty at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) where she designs curriculum and teaches graduate courses on entrepreneurship. She is a 2011 alumna of the Richard G. Lugar Excellence in Public Service Series, a member of the National Speaker’s Association, the Indiana AgrIInstitute, and the 2015 class of the Stanley K. Lacey Executive Leadership Program. The Indianapolis Business Journal named her one of 2013’s 40 Under 40 list of young professionals to watch and in 2015 she was honored as a member of Vance Publishing’s 40 under 40 in Agriculture. As a speaker and workshop leader, Sarah Beth emphasizes personal accountability and process improvement. Clients work with her to facilitate professional assessment tools, including Strengths Finder ™, for the creation of customized small group and individual training needs, and to design qualitative market research programs that support better understanding of customer or member needs and decision making. Her unique ‘Your Strategic Plan on a Page in 1-Hour or Less’ workshop is a popular program for executive teams, farm family governance boards, and for conference breakout sessions. A partial list of clients includes: American Feed Industry Association, the National Sorghum Association, Indiana Farm Bureau, the State of Indiana, Brock Grain Handling, Purdue University, Wabash Valley Power Company, Farm Journal Media, Vectren, Virginia’s Ag Region 2000, NTCA, The Rural Broadband Association, and Westfield-Washington Township. Sarah Beth and her husband raise cattle in Central Indiana where she is active in statewide and local organizations, including serving as a Director for a rural telecommunications cooperative. Follow Sarah Beth on Facebook or by joining her newsletter at: www.sarahbethaubrey.com.

Bob Utterback has more than 26 years of experience and offers producers a disciplined approach to marketing and preparing for the future. Utterback Marketing Services, Inc. is a commodities brokerage firm based in the small farming community of New Richmond [West Central] Indiana, serving clients throughout the U.S. who trade agricultural and related commodities. Trades are cleared by a family owned futures commission merchant based in Chicago since 1914. Utterback Marketing Services, Inc. and its staff are registered with the National Futures Association.

John Dillard grew up on a beef cattle farm in Amelia, Va., which is still operated by his parents. John’s work on farms and ranches in Virginia, South Dakota and Wyoming provided him with an appreciation for the unique challenges faced by agricultural producers across the United States. He earned bachelor’s degrees in Animal Science and Agricultural Economics at Virginia Tech. John also earned a master’s degree in Agricultural Economics at Purdue University. Prior to attending law school, he worked for a consulting firm that advised agribusiness clients (seed, renewable fuels, cooperatives, equipment) in marketing and business strategy development. Additionally, Mr. Dillard was an economist for USDA’s Economic Research Service, where his work focused on preparing farm income reports and reports examining the financial health of the agricultural sector. Now an attorney practicing with OFW Law in Washington, D.C., John concentrates his practice on litigation, with an emphasis on environmental and agriculture-related litigation. Mr. Dillard has represented clients in complex matters involving Clean Water Act disputes, livestock odor nuisance tort actions, and government contract regulations. He also advises clients in the food and agricultural industries regarding the impacts of litigation, government regulations and legislation on their businesses.

We’re unlocking the mystery and getting inside the heads of Top Producer of the Year winners and finalists. Check out what they’ve learned along the way and tips that you might be able to incorporate into your own farm.

Pam Henderson Smith was reared on a diversified grain and livestock farm in west-central Illinois where five generations of family still till and toil. She is a graduate of the University of Illinois and currently is a seed technology and production editor for Farm Journal.

Kevin Spafford is the monthly succession planning columnist for Farm Journal, author of Legacy by Design: Succession Planning for Agribusiness Owners, and has been featured in many industry publications and televised segments. Kevin launched Legacy by Design in 2005. As a Certified Financial Planner, armed with an education in agriculture and 25 years of experience in financial services, Kevin guides farmers and agribusiness owners through plans designed to optimize success for the owner, the family and the farm. Speaking opportunities have taken Kevin to major agricultural events, including the Top Farmer Crop Workshops at Purdue University, Farm Journal Media’s Top Producer Seminars in Chicago, and the California Farm Bureau’s Leadership Conference.

Crop-Tech Consulting, Inc. Farm Journal Field AgronomistIn 1990, Ken Ferrie started Crop-Tech Consulting, Inc., which serves farmers in central Illinois. As an independent consultant, Ferrie directly oversees 90,000 acres through farmer clients. At the same time, he works with leading fertilizer dealers to provide agronomic direction for another 250,000 acres. Ferrie, who is Field Agronomist for Farm Journal magazine, puts in almost 150 test plots each year, testing everything from herbicides and varieties to planters and technology tools. Data gathered in the plot research helps fine-tune his systems approach to farming.

Whether or not you attend World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis., you won’t want to miss Catherine Merlo’s daily dispatches from this international dairy show. Starting at the end of September, she’ll share her insights about the event that draws the dairy world’s attention for a hectic week. Visit this blog to read Merlo’s reports on what she sees and hears, who she meets, and the behind-the-scenes discussions that really make Expo worthwhile. As Dairy Today’s Western editor, Catherine Merlo is based in Bakersfield, Calif. She travels widely across the United States covering national and Western dairy issues. Merlo has more than 25 years of experience as an agricultural writer, journalist and photographer.