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2019 ABA Agricultural Bankers Conference

October 8, 2019 by
2019 ABA’s Agricultural Bankers Conference

Make plans to join the FINPACK Team in Dallas at the 2019 ABA National Agricultural Bankers Conference Nov. 10-13.  FINPACK, Farmer Mac, and Dr. Kohl kick off the conference on Sunday afternoon as hosts of the Pre-Conference Seminar titled, “We’re All in the Same Boat – Are You Paddling; Treading; or Bailing Water?”.  This year’s session will focus on what you can do as an ag lender to help customers navigate these challenging times and position your bank to be ready when profitability resurfaces.

Bob Craven will also be hosting a workshop session on Tuesday during the conference titled, “The Numbers and Beyond: Traits of Successful Farms”. Come learn more about the trends we see in FINBIN and how this can apply to your work at the bank.

Don’t forget to join the FINPACK Team as we again host the Grand Opening Reception on Sunday evening.  And, throughout the conference stop and visit our team at the FINPACK booth, located in the Exhibit Hall.  We love to connect with current and potential customers.  While at our booth, get a preview of this year’s FINPACK updates, FINPACK+ developments, and ask those “how do I” questions.

To learn more about the conference and to register visit here.

We look forward to seeing you soon in Dallas!

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2019 FINPACK Lenders Conference

September 12, 2019 by
2019 FINPACK Lenders Conference in Minneapolis, MN - December 11 and 12, 2019

Registration is now open for the 2019 FINPACK Lenders Conference. The conference will take place at the Radisson Blu Mall of America in Bloomington, MN on December 11 and 12, 2019. Cost is $345 per person. Pre-registration is required by November 29, 2019.

To register, go to z.umn.edu/2019FPLendersConf

or

Register Now

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Did you know?

September 25, 2019 by

Like any software, FINPACK has capabilities that users may be unaware of or have forgotten, as they aren’t often used.  We’ll explore some of these options here.

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Upcoming FINPACK Training

September 18, 2019 by

The Center for Farm Financial Management is once again offering FINPACK training for agricultural and commercial lenders. The session will take place on October 15-16, 2019.

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Prevented Plant Cash Flow Projections

August 6, 2019 by

Challenging production years lead to abnormally high levels of prevented plant acres.  When this occurs, many revisit cash flow projections completed earlier in the year to consider the impact of prevented plant acres, including the addition of cover crop plantings.  The following provides recommendations and considerations when working through cash flow projection updates for prevented plantings.

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Filed Under: Agricultural, Credit Analysis Tagged With: , ,

Mid-Year Monitoring

August 1, 2019 by

Cash Flow Monitoring WorksheetSomehow, we are already halfway through the year.  Periodic monitoring of projections that worked earlier this year may prevent surprises or problems later.  Now is a great time to use the cash flow monitoring worksheet to review how the monthly cash flow projection you completed compares to what has actually happened.  This tool is available for both of the monthly projection versions, with or without budgets.  Generating the cash flow monitoring worksheet is done in the cash flow plan that you wish to monitor.  Using this feature allows for timely monitoring of customer progress during the year.  And, if needed, adjustments to the cash flow plan can be made based on the actual data received.   [Read more…]

Filed Under: Agricultural, Credit Analysis Tagged With: , ,

Recent FINPACK Update Features

July 15, 2019 by
New FINPACK Features 2019

By:  Kevin Hamilton and Taylor Engquist

FINPACK version 5.10.6 was recently released. New features included in the update are the ability to import or export balance sheet details and a financial scorecard addition to cash flow projections (FINFLO). These features have been added at the request of our users and we hope will be useful to all. Let’s take a closer look at these new features.

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MN Crop Land Rental Rates Continue Downward Trend

July 2, 2019 by

Over the last five years, the average land rental rates across Minnesota have declined by twelve percent. This includes a one year decline from 2017 to 2018 of 1.6%. This information is based on weighted average data from the FINBIN farm financial database. The Cropland Rental Rates publication has recently been updated and includes detailed information for each Minnesota county over the last five years.

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Filed Under: Agricultural Tagged With: , ,

Save the Date: 2019 FINPACK Lender’s Conference

June 27, 2019 by

We are excited to announce that the 2019 FINPACK Lender’s Conference will be held on December 11 and 12 at the Radisson Blu Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.

Details

Visit the conference website for details, registration information, and a full agenda closer to the event. Registration will be available starting Aug. 1.

Dr. David Kohl will be back, along with a full lineup of speakers including an overview of this year’s FINPACK update. We look forward to seeing you there!

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The Impact of 5%

June 12, 2019 by

Each year as you work with customers you encourage them to set goals.  Undoubtedly, some of these goals revolve around financial management.  Within your credit analysis review, you are looking at the past financial performance of the individual farm or business operation.  In this process, you likely look at their individual trend performance and may also benchmark this against their peers.  Hopefully, the customer has also taken the time to evaluate their financial position and talks to you as their lender about the business goals they’ve set.  These may be things like, “Reduce fertilizer costs”, “Improve marketing”, “Improve yields”, “Improve profit margins”, etc. 

Have you ever considered with your customers the impact these relatively small changes actually have on the business?  I suggest challenging businesses to work to improve their margin management by 5%.  It may seem like a simple task, improving gross income and decreasing operating expenses by 5%.  But, this 5% improvement can have a significant impact on a business in any given year.  And then, think of the impact over the customer’s career!

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