A new series of workshops launched earlier this year to support farm succession planning is proving hugely popular with Kiwi farmers and growers.
The free one-day Planning for Succession workshops were launched by Rabobank in June following feedback to bank staff and Rabo Client Council members on the need for more information on the topic. The launch of the workshops also coincided with the release of Rabobank’s latest industry whitepaper which examines the succession challenge facing New Zealand’s agricultural sector.
Given the strong interest in the workshops to date, the bank has now announced a new series of workshops will be rolled out throughout 2026.
The succession workshops are open to both Rabobank clients and non-clients and aim to provide attendees with an understanding of business transition and succession, giving them the confidence to start and progress their own farm succession plan.
Feilding Succession Planning Workshop
Over the past five months, 18 succession planning workshops – facilitated by Lawrence Field from Rural Field Consultants – have taken place across New Zealand, attended by 473 farmers and growers. The total cost of the series has been covered by the Rabobank Community Fund – a fund set up by the bank in 2021 to help contribute to the vibrancy and resilience of rural New Zealand.
Workshop feedback
Mr Field said feedback from workshop participants had been really positive with attendees appreciating the helping hand to get them started on their succession journey.
“Attendees at the workshops have come from a wide variety of sectors including dairy, beef, sheep, arable, kiwifruit and other horticultural operations,” he said.
“Many participants said they had been thinking about succession planning for a while and that the workshops provided them with an ‘in’ to get the ball rolling.”
Mr Field said much of the workshop is focused on what he described as the succession ‘discovery phase’ which he breaks down into three components: family, business and roles and responsibilities.”
“The family component is just so crucial as you can’t start making a plan until you understand what everybody wants, and this part should involve discussions around things like timelines for transition, where will current owners live and what involvement do the next generation want in the business,” he said.
“It’s also often overlooked that family members taking part in these discussions might not be from farming backgrounds, and it’s therefore essential that information is communicated in a way that everyone understands.”
Mr Field said workshop participants were strongly encouraged to attend alongside at least one other member of their farming business, and that those who had attended with other family members had benefited the most from the workshops.
“In several instances, we had multiple generations from the one family attending the workshop, and these family groups were able to really dig into the key components of the discovery phase,” he said.
“I heard some great conversations amongst the family groups that attended, and these groups were able to put more of the key issues on the table and to make some excellent progress.”
Mr Field said several attendees had also flagged with him that workshop attendance had led to a change in mind set.
“With the groups being relatively small (no more than 30 participants), we’re able to create an environment where attendees feel comfortable to have honest conversations and to share the challenges they are facing,” he said.
“Several participants spoke to me after events and said they’d been really reluctant to get in an external facilitator to help with the succession process, but after attending the workshop and hearing from others, they could now see how this could add significant value.”
Mr Field said a webinar for all this year’s succession workshop participants was currently being planned for later this month.
“This will involve a number of guest speakers and is essentially a chance for participants to reflect on any progress they have made since attending their respective workshops,” he said.
“Once families get the succession process started, it’s much easier to keep things moving, and the key focus of this webinar is to maintain momentum.”
Further workshops planned for 2026
Rabobank NZ General Manager for Country Banking Bruce Weir said he was encouraged at the positive response to the succession workshops.
“As expected, there’s been huge demand for these workshops and all 18 have been well attended,” he said.
“In many regions, the workshop have been oversubscribed and, as a result, we’re planning to run another 24 succession workshops next year, in areas where we’ve already held workshops, as well as in some new locations.”
Due to improved farmer confidence and strengthening balance sheets, Mr Weir said, many farmers and growers were now looking to progress their succession plans.
“If we look back across the last five years, we’ve had a global pandemic followed by an industry downturn, and the financial challenges and uncertainty created by these events meant many farmers parked succession planning discussions,” he said.
“Things have improved significantly over the past 18 months, and with financial positions now stronger and confidence in the future growing, many farmers and growers see this as an ideal time to begin the succession planning process.”
“The pending capital return to Fonterra shareholders due next year may also act as a catalyst for succession discussions. And it’s our view that demand for succession-focused workshops is likely to remain strong for the foreseeable future.”
Mr Weir said farmers and growers interested in attending a Rabobank farm succession planning workshop in 2026 should register their interest via the Rabobank website - NZ Succession Workshops.