Before you are fully in the swing of Spring, it's important to spend a little time ensuring that you and your team are ready to go. To help you through fine-tuning your budget and planning your workflow, we've put together the following checklist.
Setup
These are the things you'll want to review and possibly update on the Setup tabs:
- Be sure to add any new Operators who will be working with you this year, and ensure they're familiar with the Traction Enterprise mobile app.
- Add any new suppliers (making sure to add subsequent Inventory Locations and input storage as well).
- If you've picked up new fields over the winter, be sure to add new Landowners and any new Land Agreements.
- Add new fields or inactivate any old ones, and adjust existing field boundaries and acres (if needed).
- Copy over Land Agreements to the current year and make any edits you need to.
- Add new inputs for the year and estimated prices (contact Support to migrate prices from the previous year for existing inputs).
- Growing a new Crop this year? Contact Support to enable any needed crops.
- Add any new equipment you may have purchased over the winter.
- Build out your financial accounts list with prices for the new year (you can also migrate prices from the previous year, contact Support).
- If using Machine Data, be sure your import settings are configured appropriately.
- If integrated with the myJohnDeere Operations Center, be sure the integration is re-authorized for another year.
- As per John Deere security requirements, the API that allows this and other integrations you may have with your myJD account is valid for one year. Annually, when that API is refreshed, you may need to re-authorize the integration with Traction Enterprise Business.
Inputs
Now let's look at one of the most significant cost-drivers in farming. Lay the groundwork for your yearly budget by reviewing the following aspects of your input inventory.
- If you're carrying over input inventory from the previous year, move existing input balances over to the current production cycle.
- If you'll be taking input deliveries soon, be sure you're familiar with how to enter these.
- Get familiar with checking how much of certain inputs you may need based on what you plan to use in your Field Plans.
- Then, take a look at how to check inventory balances, to ensure you've got enough product on hand to get you through planting.
Operations
Planning helps to ensure that you are ready to manage your field operations for the season. Then apply your plans to see your budget in action.
Planning
- If this is your first year with Traction Enterprise, it might be helpful to learn about the recommended ways for managing traditional cropping practices, cover cropping, and how to manage perennial crop plans.
- Copy Crop Plans to the next year and start fine tuning (products, rates, applications, tasks).
- Once Crop Plans are updated, go to Operations>Plans>Field Plans and drag/drop them to make Field Plan assignments.
- Learn what to do when you're not sure what you'll be planting yet but you need to get started with other operations.
- Familiarize yourself with Task Manager for making last minute Field Plan changes.
- Know what to do when a drastic weather event takes you back to the drawing board.
- Check in with your budget on Profit Analyzer to ensure you are still on track for a profitable crop.
Field Operations
- Learn how to complete Work Orders for spring operations.
- Record Work for spring operations, when no Work Order or Task available.
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