Many farming managers, especially those with 100 employees or less, struggle to convince their peers or supervisor about the value of investing and participating in compensation surveys. Typically, it’s thought to be too expensive or not worth the time. However, you may not realize it, but you could actually save money by participating in one. How, you ask? Any new hire made in the coming months will also entail a guessing game about how much they should be paid. Rather than overcompensating them, you could have a better understanding of what is both a fair and competitive salary based on a number of factors including location, years of experience and more.

Here are five solid reasons to participate in a compensation survey and take the guesswork out of compensation:     

Not sure where to start looking for an agricultural compensation survey? For the past decade, AgCareers.com has built a highly respected and reputable compensation survey, the Compensation Benchmark Review, featuring more than 230 positions in the United States with input from 150 North American companies. Employers find the Compensation Benchmark Review a meaningful business tool, no matter how large or small. For information regarding the Compensation Benchmark Review, visit the CBR webpage or email [email protected].

Ultimately, ask yourself and your team members this: Can I afford to guess at my largest and most valuable expense item, my employees’ compensation?

The opinions of the author are not necessarily those of Farm Futures or Penton Agriculture.