The Advanced LAIB class included  ASA President Wade Cowan (TX), Treasurer Davie Stephens (KY), Vice President Bret Davis (OH), Director and Commodity Classic Planning Committee Co-Chair Sam Butler (AL) and ASA Directors and Commodity Classic Planning Committee members Ed Erickson (ND) and Gerry Hayden (KY).

Six American Soybean Association (ASA) Directors completed the first ASA Advanced Leadership At Its Best program this week in California.

This program is sponsored by Syngenta and allows farmers who already hold a leadership position on the national level to enhance their skills even further through training on select topics. This week’s program was held Aug. 24-26, and focused on a more advanced level of communications training. The participants learned more about consumer and policy maker audiences today, effective ways to reach them and how to tailor key messages to fit specific audiences. They also had the opportunity to put their new skill sets to work through group exercises that included a mock senate hearing and news conference.

The first class of ASA farmer-leaders to graduate from this Advanced Leadership At Its Best program included ASA President Wade Cowan (TX), Treasurer Davie Stephens (KY), Vice President Bret Davis (OH), Director and Commodity Classic Planning Committee Co-Chair Sam Butler (AL) and ASA Directors and Commodity Classic Planning Committee members Ed Erickson (ND) and Gerry Hayden (KY). This past January, the participants completed Part 1 of this training program which focused on negotiation skills and consensus building.

For more information on Leadership At Its Best programs, visit the “Learn” section of SoyGrowers.com or contact Michelle Hummel in the ASA office at (314) 754-1328 or mhummel@soy.org.