4-Part Series

Virtual Ranch Management

October 8th, 15th, 22nd, 29th

12PM-1:30PM MST

Platform: Zoom

Profit Preserves Passion

Informing Management Through Examining Finances

Take control of your ranch’s success with our 4-Part Virtual Ranch Management Series.

Learn to pinpoint vital enterprises, understand their interplay, and perform a ‘quick and dirty’ analysis of your operation to guide effective management decisions.

What to expect

  • Session 2

    PERFORMING AN ANALYSIS

    Analyze financial impacts to choose the best enterprise mixExplore methods for performing analysis using managerial accounting, review last year’s performance, and plan for the upcoming year.

  • Session 3

    MAKING INFORMED MANAGEMENT DECISIONS

    Understand how to use analysis for decision-making, including cost transfers and inventory accounts, and explore how managerial accounting can enhance marketing and sales strategies.

  • Session 4

    TAILORING TO YOUR NEEDS

    This session will address any questions from previous sessions, with a focus on practical applications such as setting up systems for the next year or exploring other ranch management topics like creating a grazing plan.

  • Session 1

    UNDERSTANDING MANAGERIAL ACCOUNTING

    Learn the basics of managerial accounting, its differences from tax accounting, and how to identify your enterprises and cost/profit centers.

Join the Series

Meet Your Facilitator

  • Caroline is a Brunswick, Maine, native who came to Montana in 2014 to pursue a degree in cows. She graduated from Montana State University with a degree in Livestock Management and Industry before spending the next five years working in and around the ranching community of Montana. From running the DNA department at the American Simmental Association to organizing pens of cattle at Headwaters Livestock Auction, she learned early on to love problem-solving on the go.

    She has baled hay and fixed fences from north of Yellowstone up to the plains and breaks of Central Montana. Most recently, she earned her Master's in Ranch Management from the King Ranch Institute for Ranch Management. She used that education to inform her work as the Ranch Systems Analyst for Sunlight Ranches in northern Wyoming and southern Montana. Her passion lies in helping rural producers, especially women, understand enterprise analysis to help them identify economically sustainable actions and practices in order to keep farming and ranching a vital part of the rural landscape. 

    She takes on the world with her dog, Moxie, a frequent participant in her adventures, whether road-tripping obscene distances, hiking to alpine lakes, or devouring a book on the front porch.

Support Our Mission

We are committed to building power through equity, and we’re excited to offer this programming in an accessible virtual format and at no cost.

While registration is free, a one-time donation of $30 or any amount you choose helps us sustain and expand our offerings.

Thank you for your support!

Register & Access via Zoom

Frequently Asked Questions

  • The Virtual Ranch Management Series is a 4-part workshop designed to enhance skills in examining and managing finances related to ranching. It focuses on financial analysis, not tax preparation, and is ideal for women currently managing or running a ranch business.

  • This series is designed for women who are currently running a ranch business and have some information about production and costs. While it is not specifically for those just starting a business, it is open to anyone with an interest in improving their financial management skills.

  • Participants should be familiar with using financial software to create an income statement. However, the series will not cover tax preparation or require advanced financial expertise.

  • While there will be optional ‘homework’ for those who have their own financial books, you do not need to prepare anything from your own books before the series begins. The sessions will provide financial information for analysis.

  • You will learn how to identify and integrate enterprises within your operation, perform a ‘quick and dirty’ analysis of your finances, and use this analysis to make informed management decisions for your business.

  • The Virtual Ranch Management Series is offered free of charge. However, if you wish to support our mission and help fund future programming, we encourage a one-time donation of $30 or any amount you choose.

  • All sessions will be conducted virtually via Zoom. You will receive access to all four parts after the series concludes.

About Ranch Management Weekends

The idea for our Ranch Management Weekends, a program of Women In Ranching (WIR), emerged from requests for more connection with women ranch hosts and managers, as well as for skill and experience sharing with those who own and/or manage land.

In response to our community’s call for more accessible events, we are excited to introduce this first-ever virtual series.

These sessions have been made possible by generous donations from the Plank Stewardship Initiative!

Join Us Virtually

What we mean by “Women”

Let us be clear, if you identify yourself as a woman, no matter the complexity, we welcome you at Women in Ranching.