No stranger to accolades

Rebecca Miller, who farms with her husband Brent at Ealing, just north of the Rangitata River, has been nominated in the Emerging Leader category but has already made a significant mark on the industry.

The Federated Farmers sharemilkers chair for Mid-Canterbury and vice-chair nationally, she is also active with the Dairy Womens Network, having established the local group.

The Millers were finalists in the Employee Development category of MPI's Good Employer awards this year, while Rebecca was also a finalist in the Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year.

They also benchmark their business annually with the Dairy Business of the Year (DBOY), as a means of ensuring they are keeping in line with the industry, and to "apply pressure where we need to."

They have come away with eight DBOY awards in two years. 

Miller says it is recognising the need to "connect people's hearts" that has allowed them to develop one of the highest performing dairy businesses in Canterbury, if not New Zealand.

"My 'why' is to actually build the rapport between people and environment."

The Millers milk 2,600 cows across two properties. They have been on their home farm, River Terrace Dairy (1,150 cows), since it was converted in 2015 and this year have stepped up to take an equity stake in the property.

They are now in their third season contract milking on Ealing Pastures (1,450 cows).

Miller says Ealing Pastures was an older farm with half the team having already been there 16 years when they took over, and it was a challenge setting up a new team to their preferred management system.

They subscribe to a theory of management called Teal - characterised by self-organisation and self-management.

Everyone has the ability to make decisions, she says.

"A Teal organisation structure is more like 'everyone's the boss'. So they all take ownership over their roles. It's very flatlined. There's no hierarchy.

"If the cows need to be moved at a certain time, they can do that and make that decision themselves."

It means there's no "skill gap" when the manager or anyone else is away for any reason, she says.

They have six staff on Ealing Pastures and four at River Terrace.

In the day-to-day running, Rebecca Miller's main role is admin, also calf-rearing in season, but she makes a point of joining the farm walks.

"We farm walk twice week because what you can measure you can manage, mitigate and monitor.

"Identifying the things that move the boat faster - that residual is very important."

She also emphasises preparedness and planning for repairs, tools and maintenance and making sure consumables are always in stock, especially in these days of Covid uncertainties in supply chains.

"We want to keep that boat moving as fast as possible at all times." 

Raised on a North Island dairy farm, Miller went into graphic design and marketing, mainly in travel and tourism, but returned to farming after she met her husband in 1997.

"For us, it's very important that we take care of our people. And our people stay with us because they feel safe. Their well-being is taken care of and it's not just themselves - it's their family."

It is important because dairying is 24/7, 365 days a year, she says.

"A builder can close up the gate or close up the site, and walk away for two months and it's the same when they go back. But we can't do that. Not for one day."

The Millers place so much importance on interpersonal relationships and respect for their staff that have trademarked the term "Family" to describe their business, and they readily recruit from within their staff families.

"We don't just go out to advertise We ask within our teams, because they've been together for so long, who do you know, out there, that could work with us?"

She has also started writing a book with the working title 'Embrace the Intangible', because of her belief that the most important things are those that cannot be bought.

"It's about connecting people's hearts and actually growing that heart connection because it's the intangible."

Miller has also taken a leadership and governance course where she learned the importance of going "toe-to-toe" with others to break barriers and allow a two-way conversation to develop.

"So that's what we want to do. We want to go toe-to-toe with other farmers, other people within industries, and allow ourselves to be vulnerable and human and genuine.

"How do you grow? How do you become a real if not exposing some of yourself?"

"I think it does come down to relationships, it comes down to being honest, having that integrity and being who you are."