b'PARTNER CONTENTThese Skills are Crucial for Success in an Accelerated WorldBy Morgan Webb, President, Seed CheckT he business world has changed a lot since Seed Check was founded 20 years ago. Heres what we do to stay at6 Essential Skills for Modern Businesspeoplethe top of our game, and strategies you can employ to do the same.Learn to thrive under pressure. We1LEARN TO email results out as soon as we haveTHRIVE UNDER PRESSUREthem, and customers are able to look up their own results online. Twenty years ago, that wasnt the case. Weve learned2 COMMUNICATEto work well in a business environment defined by speed where we all expect more in less time. As an independent lab, weve had full control over our business3 THINK OFand can tailor our service delivery to ourYOUR STAFFunique clientele.Communicate, communicate, com-municate. To work well under pressure,4 TRAINcommunication has to be better among your staff. Customers need to be sure that seed is able to get where it needs to go. For us, that makes same-day purity and5 PUT THE#1germination results key. Tell a customerCUSTOMER FIRSTyou cant deliver, and that could be the death knell for your business.Be mindful of your staffing levels.6 CHECK IN WITH People sometimes think modern technol- YOURSELFogy allows one person to do the work of two or three people, but this is pretty much a fantasy used by productivity gurus to sell books. Since our inception 20 years ago, weve added extra seasonal staff, andmidnight oil when necessary is an impor- the same career for 30 years, I question that has really helped us level-up to wheretant part of service delivery. myself sometimes. There are days where we need to be. Know your staff. Everyone is different.I wonder if Im still at the top of my game. Training. Theres always more to knowSome people like to sit and do the sameI wonder if Im still doing my best for my in seed testing. As science evolves, sothing over and over again, other peoplestaff. Am I feeling any burnout? do seed analysts. Our staff are alwayslose focus after a while. The averageIm happy to report I still love what I enhancing their knowledge and training isattention span is about 90 minutes, anddo, but its essential to ask yourself these a never-ending process. often less. In general, people like to switchquestions and what you can do to ensure Put the customer first. This shouldfrom task to task regularly. After 20 years,you stay engaged in your work, especially be obvious, but making customers happyour staff know each other very well andif youre in a leadership role. Your staff is your job. That means going above andwe all know each others strengths. Thisand customers will thank you.beyond to get the work done and ensureallows us to delegate the right tasks to the they are pleased. It can be a challengeright people to make the most of our time.for you and your staff, especially whenCheck in with yourself. I co-founded things get really busy and the workloadSeed Check two decades ago. I was a increases. That said, staying focused onseed analyst for 10 years prior to that. InFor more info on Seed Check visit seedcheck.netthe customer and burning the proverbiala world where most people dont have MARCH 2022 GERMINATION.CA 21'