Dean and Kristen Nikora's vision statement for their dairy business is simple and effective: "every day is a growing day". Applying that vision underpinned their success as the winners of the 2008 Ahuwhenua Trophy for Maori Excellence in Farming.
The annual comptetition alternates between the sheep and cattle, and dairy sectors. Judging is based on governance, financing, management, environmental sustainability and the recognition of tikanga Maori.
Dean and Kristen own Mangatewai, a 342ha dairy farm near Takapau that milks about 1,000 cows. In less than 20 years they have worked their way up from farm labouring, through sharemilking to building their own thriving business, Cesped Lands Ltd, encompassing five properties and 14 staff.
Ahuwhenua judges commended the company's top-end farm management in all respects - the engagement of staff, focused management, and impressive record of asset accumulation - and noted that Dean and Kristen applied best practice principles across the board, including training.
"Training is fundamental to our business," Dean says. "It's core to everything.
"My view is that if you can't train someone up to do your job, you haven't got the ability to move up. Senior staff are expected to be able to train their replacements, just like I'm training my staff to do what I do. It is part of their KPIs (key performance indicators), how they're training people up."
Cesped staff are engaged in Agriculture ITO training from level 2 to level 5. Managers are expected to attend at least one major conference a year. There is continual training in health and safety, operational and other compliance areas.
Agriculture ITO Training Adviser Hamish Blackmore has worked with Dean for more than five years.
"Dean's always had a focus on training," Hamish says.
"We held a special Milk Quality course for all of Dean's staff recently. Dean organised the catering - there was a rolling meal all day, and a barbeque afterwards that he invited his bank manager and advisers to.
"He made an event of it. Dean is forward-thinking when it comes to developing his staff."
On awards night, Dean was quick to credit his staff, advisers, business mentors and partners for the win, which included $40,000 in cash, services and farm products and well as the Ahuwhenua trophy.
"A good employer is like a good team captain - you can't pick him until the whistle blows and he goes up the front.
"He's another cog in the wheel, he knows his job and that of others around him -whether he's part of the milking team or leading the business at a strategic level."
Dean says one of the things he'd learned through his career was that a business's approach to compliance and other processes was a good indication of the status of the operation as a whole.
"If there are good procedures in place, like induction, health and safety practices, reviews and so on that are working, then usually it means the business is going well."
Training is a key element in embedding these procedures into the business.
"Good training is a culture, a discipline, it's not something where you think, 'Oh, today I've got to get some training'. It happens on a daily basis, it's something everyone knows is there.
"It can be as simple as spending 10 minutes with a guy on how to put a fence up."
Every day is indeed a growing day for Dean and Kristen - the country's top Maori dairy farmers - and that applies to personal growth and skill development as much as grass, milk solids or profit.
Agriculture ITO is a proud sponsor of the Ahuwhenua Trophy - Bank of New Zealand Maori Excellence in Farming Awards. For more information on the competition, finalists and winners, www.ahuwhenuatrophy.maori.nz
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