Survey results show a positive outlook by those in agriculture

Stakeholders were also more positive this year that AgriFutures Australia is making advances on national challenges facing agriculture. 88 per cent agree or strongly agreed ‘AgriFutures has made a positive contribution to informing the debate on issues of importance to rural industries’. Key successes highlighted included our latest research into community trust in rural industries and evoke^AG., our agrifood tech event held in February.

More than 1 in 2 stakeholders involved in our Rural Futures portfolio of work, said our work influences their decision making on rural issues such as climate, health and safety, agricultural innovation and market trends.

AgriFutures Australia’s General Manager, Business Development Michael Beer said there continues to be a consensus position on the importance of the role that AgriFutures Australia plays for their sectors and Australian agriculture more generally.

“This is a strong endorsement of the role a Rural Research Development Corporation like AgriFutures Australia can play and we will continue to explore ways to extend and deepen stakeholder engagement.

“Overall engagement with AgriFutures Australia satisfaction rating continues to improve, demonstrating we are listening, we are responding to feedback, and we recognise there is more room for improvement.”

Meanwhile, AgriFutures Australia continues to play a critical role in developing the capacity of our future rural leaders in agriculture. 90 per cent of participants in our programs such as the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award, AgriFutures Horizon Scholarship and AgriFutures Ignite Network said the Programs improved their knowledge of dealing with people and what it takes to be a leader.

“To build prosperous and sustainable rural industries, we need rural leaders with the skills and knowledge to make informed decisions about the future of their enterprises and industries. We know that skilled leadership is one of the most crucial elements in the health and prosperity of any rural industry and we are fortunate that we are an RDC that is able to continue to invest in leadership, capacity building and skills development programs,” said Mr Beer.

Researchers who took part in our Stakeholder Survey highlighted the need for better ICT systems to improve the way we work with one another.

Mr Beer said this feedback has already been taken on-board and the organisation is looking to replace its research report hosting system.

“We truly value all the feedback we receive each year from our diverse and varied stakeholders. It’s critical that if we are going to grow the long-term prosperity of Australian rural industries, that we continue to look for improvements in how we do business.

“We want to thank everyone that took the time to fill in our annual Stakeholder Survey and encourage anyone who we work with to continue sharing their feedback on the work we do.”

To register your interest in completing our 2021 Stakeholder Survey, please register here.