On the final day of the 2025 Farm Equipment Manufacturers Assn.’s (FEMA) Supply Summit, attendees heard from next-generation leaders across the agricultural equipment manufacturing industry during the Learn from Leaders Luncheon. Joe Sampson, founder and CEO of Embo Sales and the host of The Germinate Podcast, moderated a session that provided an insight into the complexities of family business, the power of leadership styles and the balancing act that includes with non-family members, economic pressures, and the future of the industry as families pass down leadership.

The panel featured young-generation industry leaders deeply involved in their own family businesses:

• Glendon Kuhns, Vice President of Norden Manufacturing, North Bloomfield, Ohio. Kuhns is in the second generation of his family business that specializes in manufacturing bale accumulators and farm equipment.
• Dalton Carr, Sales Director at Superior Gearbox Co., Stockton, Mo. Carr is in the second generation of the family business that manufactures gearboxes for farm equipment, off-highway vehicles, and more.
• Kat Coombes, Manager at Tillage Management Inc., Tulare, Calif. Coombes’ family has been in farming for four generations and have started several businesses throughout that time. Tillage Management manufactures the Optimizer one pass tillage solution.

All shared the challenge of navigating the complexities of working for their family business. As Sampson articulated, “It’s emotional being in a family business. It’s also very personal.”

Coombes noted how the family aspect results in a candor that doesn’t exist in some other enterprises. “There’s no facade of politeness when it’s your siblings and your dad,” she says.

Family Lessons

The panelists reflected on advice from past generations, and the need to balance respect for the past and a need to actively innovate. Carr highlighted the importance of breaking out of the “we’ve always done it this way” mantra. For Coombes, learning to become less reliant on outside collaboration, and those outside of the organization, reshaped the company’s approach and has made it more self-dependent, while building up their internal employees.

From left to right: Glendon Kuhns, Dalton Carr, Kat Coombes, Joe Sampson

Kuhns emphasized the importance of being truly customer-centric: “You need to enter their world. The first question you ask is “is it going to rain?,” he says about Norden’s hay-centric business, “to get a sense of how urgent the issue is.”He, his dad and brother focus on putting themselves in their customers' shoes to properly address the situation.

Non-Family Members

All of the panelists strongly agreed non-family members are paramount to the success of each of their organizations. The panel shared that the respect, gratitude and inclusion of non-family members in the decision making process has helped their business grow.

Coombes said they have a heavy reliance on non-family member employees. “Just because you were born into the family,” she says, “doesn’t give you all of the skills and knowledge that some other people have.” Carr noted that he is “relatively green” to the business so he often relies on the wealth of knowledge from other leaders in the company.

“To ignore non-family team members, or not use their input, is leaving half of your brain on the table,” says Kuhns. His biggest piece of advice is to “just communicate, communicate, and communicate” to family members and employees alike.

Economic Challenges

The panel addressed the current economic situation facing the ag sector. Each shared the strategic shifts they have been making in these times of economic uncertainty.

Carr outlined the early stages of implementing lean manufacturing to optimize processes as much as possible, while keeping up with demand. Throughout this process, the company has found better ways to perform the processes that may have been done the same way for decades.

Coombes emphasized her company’s commitment to avoiding layoffs by retraining employees and diversifying their operations. “Our goal is to protect the work family,” she says. As any example, the firm has trained some employees to work more closely with the sales team and with great success.

Kuhns added how Norden has begun working more closely with their dealers to become more involved in their products to optimize their process further. “It’s the small things you can do to optimize what you already have,” he says.

Succession Planning

Sampson stated “only 19% of family businesses have a succession plan in place. Furthermore, he added that 30% of those businesses make it to the second generation, 12% to the third, 3% to the fourth, and so on. For the panelists, this is an issue at the top of mind.

Kuhns shared that his family is well into the process, with open communication between generations and the use of consultants to guide the way. Carr noted that the younger generation of family members are being positioned in key roles across the business, even if a formal succession plan isn’t in place. The three family members of the younger generation have been placed in roles from purchasing to manufacturing to sales.

Coombes candidly added “We don’t know [what happens after us, but] we want to.” She went on to explain the need for considering their employees’ stake in the company, as well.