Cultivating the Ag Manufacturing Workforce

By Karen Sample & Janet Morley

Canada’s Farm Show Regina SK

presented by Viterra, and AMC collaborate to ease labour shortage

Kirk Westgard, Vice President of Agriculture at the Regina Exhibition Association (REAL), has had a busy first year at the helm. During the past 12 months, one of his countless interactions was meeting and talking at some length with AMC President Donna Boyd at last year’s show. Recognizing an opportunity, Westgard later invited her to sit on the Exhibition’s Advisory Committee, which eventually led to REAL partnering with AMC to officially release “Launch your Career in Ag” at Canada’s Farm Show (CFS) Regina SK presented by Viterra on June 22nd.

Originally founded in 1884 as the Assiniboia Agricultural Association, the name changed to the Regina Agricultural and Industrial Exhibition Association Limited before becoming REAL. Over 100 years after its inception,

REAL has grown to host a wide variety of events at its venues, but its roots are still firmly planted in agriculture and the industries that surround and support it. CFS is an event that remains focused on the original foundation of agriculture. Constantly moving forward with the ever-evolving industry, REAL works hard to ensure they are bringing exhibitors and attendees what they need now and what they need to know for continued growth into the future. It’s a big job, but Westgard and his team take it all in stride.

When asked what he believed this addition brings to the farm show, Westgard said REAL was looking for ways to add value and the collaboration with AMC was a clear choice. “Being a leader in the growth and manufacturing of agricultural equipment has traditionally been Saskatchewan’s strong suit. What the future of agriculture brings to the rest of the world is centred right here in Saskatchewan,” he proudly notes. The strength and success of the AMC membership in this province supports his statement.

Westgard stresses that a career in ag is “more than just welders, machinists, and millwrights, which are all very good jobs and all very important to the industry. It’s everything from finance to marketing to the human resources side of it. There’s a lot of opportunity. I don’t think people understand how big the agriculture sector is and how important it is to Canada and the rest of the world. It all started with people with good ideas wanting to make things better. A little hard work and ingenuity, and we’ve got world-class manufacturing facilities.”

A match made in agriculture

To continue to foster growth in agricultural manufacturing means coming together to find solutions to new challenges as they arise. Through CFS’s advisory committee and exhibitors, Westgard was advised that difficulty finding labour was becoming a roadblock to growth for many companies.

“We want to continue to support our manufacturing associations and dealerships, and part of that is finding the right labour. AMC is a perfect partner for us. When Donna Boyd and AMC came up with Careers in Ag, we thought it could provide added value to a lot of our exhibitors. We’ve got the best of the best for manufacturers at Canada’s Farm Show. It’s a natural fit.”

In order to put a lens on technology, what’s new and what the future of farming will look like around the world, Canada’s Farm Show started working more closely with Boyd to understand what AMC does and what she is hearing from the front lines of ag manufacturing. “Starting to talk about how we make things better, the idea of consistent and constant improvement and how that would add value to a lot of our partners and exhibitors, we found more alignment in our goals for REAL, CFS, and AMC. There’s a natural fit that works together.”

Launch your Career in Ag at Canada’s Farm Show

The meeting of AMC and REAL experts has yielded what Westgard describes as a very exciting event. The inaugural event: Launch your Career in Ag will be at CFS on Thursday, June 22nd. The day will include panel discussions about Careers in Ag and how some companies are approaching the problem with reallife examples of what is going on in the industry. Students from universities, colleges, and high schools with specialized trades programs from across Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Manitoba are being provided complimentary admission for the day so that they can connect directly with companies that are hiring. Westgard says, “Students will be able to scan a QR code that will give them access to the show all day on Thursday to take in the summer farm show and hopefully find someone to make a career with.” that happen. REAL will help market companies looking to hire, in part, by placing special recognition in each exhibitor listing. As potential employees read the list of exhibitors, they will be able to easily pick out those companies that are hiring and seek them out.

Moving in the right direction

happening at the provincial and federal levels that supports agriculture as well.” Cultivate your workforce through collaboration

Exhibitors at CFS will be asked to participate in the networking event. The goal is to let people know which companies are hiring and to assist them in making connections with people who are seeking careers in the ag industry. Westgard says it’s about fitting the right people in the right positions to allow organizations to continue to grow and getting the initial contacts made to make

When asked about the Launch your Career in Ag initiative, and other changes being made at CFS, Westgard says, “We’ve got to continue to reinvent and reinvigorate the show. I think we’re on the right path. Exhibitors are ahead of where we were last year, so I think we’re moving in the right direction. We’re seeing international visitors come back up nicely to almost pre-pandemic times. We’re seeing buyers come back. We’re really listening to what we heard from our stakeholders and what they would like to see – what’s new, what’s happening on the technology side and how do we get there. We are watching everything from technology to Careers in Ag to everything in between – what’s

AMC will be hosting a booth at CFS and will invite members to join them in the AMC space Thursday afternoon to connect with potential workforce recruits. The space will be dedicated to championing the benefits of the many available careers in agriculture and will be a place where AMC members who may not be exhibiting at the show are able to connect and network with people interested in working in ag manufacturing.

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