Leadership and Management in the Agribusiness Industry

One would normally expect that any institution-bound academician would spend much of his/her time in the simple act of reading. Unfortunately, this is one of many misconceptions which characterize the life of an academician. Not unlike agribusiness managers, academicians find that the normal "press of business" requires a vast diversity of actions, most of which prevent the individual from becoming deeply involved in the pursuit of leisurely reading. Unlike managers, however, academicians are occasionally afforded a brief respite from their routine press of business to read and pursue thoughts or ideas which would otherwise be judged inconsequential to their employer's day-to-day operational tasks. As I pursue, and enjoy, just such a respite, I elect to read, and do so rather extensively. Not all my reading is focused on a specific subject, but much is directed towards my personal interests in the practice of business management. Acknowledging that agribusiness managers are rarely afforded even a brief respite from their daily tasks, I would like to share with you a condensation of observations expropriated from my current practice of leisurely reading.