Don Hofstrand                                                                                Co-Director, AgMRC Iowa State University Extension dhof@iastate.edu

Informative Articles

• What is an Entrepreneur? -- Revised, December 2005
• Entrepreneurial Skills Assessment -- Reviewed, February 2006
• Peter Drucker and Innovation -- Reviewed, February 2006
• Group Decision Making in Value-added Business Projects -- Reviewed, February 2006 
• Designing Successful Business Teams -- Reviewed, February 2006
• Improving Value-added Business Communication Skills -- Revised, February 2006
• What is Your Managerial Attitude? -- Written, January 2007
• New Ways of Looking at Your Farm Business -- Written, January 2007
• Solving Conflicts Between Business Associates -- Written, January 2006
• Inter-Personal Skills Assessment -- Reviewed, February 2006
• Keys to Successful Planning for Strengthening Your Value-added Business -- Reviewed, February 2006
• Energy Measurements and Conversions -- Revised, August 2007
• Agricultural Measurements and Conversions -- Revised, August 2007
• Business Strategy Terms -- Revised, February 2006
• Commodity Marketing Terms -- Revised, November 2005
• Financial Terms -- Revised, February 2006
• Cost Terms -- Written, October 2006
• Specialty Grain Terms - Written, October 2006
• Transportation Terms - Written, October 2006
• Farm Analysis Terms -- Revised, November 2005
• Product Marketing Terms -- Written, November 2005
• Idea Assessment / Business Development Process -- Written, December 2005
• Business Development vs Economic Development -- Written, November 2006
• Considerations when Selecting a Consultant -- Reviewed, August 2005
• What is a Feasibility Study? -- Revised, February 2006
• Feasibility Study Outline -- Revised, February 2006
• When to Do and How to Use a Feasibility Study -- Written, February 2006
• Forming a Viable Value-added Project Committee and Holding Successful Meetings -- Reviewed, February 2006
• Value-added Business Committee / Project Meetings -- Reviewed, February 2006
• Creating a Mission Statement, Setting Goals, and Developing Strategies -- Written, January 2006
• Barriers to Entry and Exit -- Written, March 2007
• Breakeven Selling Price -- Written, March 2007
• Breakeven Sales Volume -- Written, March 2007
• Commodities vs Differentiated Products -- Written, March 2007
• Demand -- Written, March 2007
• Economies of Scale -- Written, March 2007
• Economies of Scope -- Written, March 2007
• Elasticity of Demand -- Written, March 2007
• Experience Curve -- Written, March 2007
• Managerial Costs -- Written, March 2007
• Opportunity Costs -- Written, March 2007
• Product Life Cycle -- Written, March 2007
• Writing a Business Plan -- Updated, January 2006 
• Create Your Own Value-added Business Plan -- Written, August 2006 
• Key Points in Writing a Business Plan -- Revised, September 2005
• Location, Location, Location -- Revised, February 2006
• Obtaining a Business Loan -- Written, January 2007
• How to Use Grants -- Written, January 2006
• Setting Your Price -- Written, March 2007
• Marketing Strategies -- Written, March 2007
• Promoting Your Business -- Written, July 2005 
• Evaluating Alternative Types of Advertising -- Written, July 2005 
• Steps for Using Trade Shows -- Written, July 2005 
• Dividing Business Income -- Written, April 2006
• Understanding Net Worth -- Written, August 2006
• Understanding Cash Flow Analysis -- Revised, August 2006
• Understanding Profitability -- Revised, August 2006 
• Grain Price Hedging Basics - Written, October 2006
• Grain Price Options Basics - Revised, October 2006
• Options Tools to Reduce Price Risk - Revised, October 2006
• Options Tools to Enhance Price - Revised, October 2006
• Grain Price Options Fence - Revised, October 2006
• Strategic Planning for Value-Added Farm Business -- Written, April 2007
• Farm Business Strategies -- Written, April 2007
• Growth Strategies by Type of Farm -- Written, April 2007
• Setting Personal, Family and Business Goals for Business Success -- Written, April 2007
• External Scanning - Industry Analysis -- Written, April 2007
• Internal Scanning -- Written, April 2007
• Portfolio Analysis and Enterprise Strategy Development -- Written, April 2007
• Strategic Management Concepts -- Written, May 2007
• Assessing Agricultural Processing Investment Opportunities (html)- Written, March 2007

Decision Tools

• Value-Added Processing Facility Start-up Costs
• Partial Budgeting
• Cash Flow Budget (short form - 6 periods)
• Cash Flow Budget (short form - 12 periods)
• Cash Flow Budgeting (monitor projections)
• Income Statement
• Net Worth Statement (balance sheet)
• Dividing Business Income
• Grant In-Kind Match Contributions
• Travel Expense Voucher