Pursehouse Rural take the LEAD with FMC.
Women are taking the lead in our industry more than ever before. Currently women equate to one third of the agricultural workforce in Australia. Agricultural sciences company FMC are looking to promote female leadership roles in agriculture, through an innovative scholarship program, FMC LEAD.
LEAD is a platform for female leaders to share ideas and be heard across a broader distance. Early in careers, it can be challenging to know when to speak up and in what forum. Speaking up with confidence is a key element of career development and FMC aims to support this characteristic with LEAD.
Despite a growing female workforce, there is always more to be done to support and encourage women entering the Ag industry. Pursehouse Rural’s Kareena Pritchard submitted her thoughts on encouraging and supporting women considering agriculture as a career, to FMC’s LEAD scholarship program.
“I wrote an essay on rural communities, talking about how, if we get younger women in the industry and provide them with pathways to leadership positions then rural communities will benefit.”
Her ideas are echoed by FMC’s Managing Director, Kristina Hermanson, who reiterates that this type of program is intended to benefit the industry and support women working towards leadership positions.
“The industry can only benefit from more diversity of thought. Seeing more young female graduates entering Ag is promising, but the key is bringing that diversity through the ranks to senior management to continue building diversity in decisions and strategic direction.”
In her proposal to the LEAD program, Kareena discussed training and support systems to elevate women into leadership positions in the Ag industry. Her thoughts build on her own experiences with Pursehouse Rural.
“Agriculture, for me, has been better than any industry I have been in. Pursehouse Rural have given me opportunities that I didn’t get in other industries.
“Seeing things like this scholarship program come out, kindly facilitated by FMC, which proactively provides a platform for women is so encouraging.”
Kareena, Pursehouse Rural’s Group Financial Controller and member of the executive committee, emerged as one of two winners of the FMC scholarship. The objective was set into four categories; be creative, be authentic, be practical and demonstrate leadership attributes. Kareena’s comments on career pathways for young women in rural communities ticked all the boxes.
Now Kareena is set to select from a range of courses focused on leadership, sustainability and innovation as well as having the opportunity to present her ideas at the NFF national conference and dinner in Canberra and at FMC’s national Ag Day lunch in Sydney this November.
Find out more from FMC and their LEAD scholarship program at www.fmccrop.com.au/en/lead/
You can read even more stories from the second edition of Your Rural Success Magazine at www.pursehouserural.com.au/your-rural-success-magazine