Catalyst Performance Agronomy’s new partnership with Resolution farm software matches industry leading agronomy skills with a smart system to help farmers make decisions quicker, and more profitably.
Catalyst CEO Patrick Davis said the collaboration between the two companies promises to help farmer clients have even easier access to the multiple sources of data their farm businesses generate, bringing together the many strands into a simple, easy to use platform.
“We were particularly impressed with Resolution on the grounds it was very simple to operate and easy to integrate with. It also has multiple functions that include record keeping and task management, two big needs for farmers.
“For example, Catalyst advisors can pin AgWorld recommendations to jobs within the app, and it means we have a greater chance of that recommendation being completed.”
Resolution was founded in 2017 by farmers and tech experts who saw a need to build a software capable of recording, storing, and sharing farm data in a simple, accessible manner.
They had previously tried adopting multiple existing platforms, but failed to achieve the flexibility and simplicity of what they wanted to do with what was on the market. So, as practical farmers, they decided to build a better one.
Southland farmer Paul Ruddenklau was one of those founders. He says having all the data generated on a single platform, capable of being shared among multiple staff members was a key requirement.
“It was the one thing we could not solve by trying to adapt what was already available. If you can get everyone on the same page, then you get real efficiencies popping up.”
A pet hate of all farmers is having to enter data twice, and this also became a key non-negotiable aspect of whatever system they eventually developed.
Building on its farmer origins, the Resolution team knew honest, blunt feedback from fellow farmers would be the best test bed for their prototype, and they duly approached 100 South Island pastoral farmers for feedback. Taking that feedback and fine tuning the software has resulted in strong farmer to farmer recommendation in the past two years.
Paul Ruddenklau says Resolution’s platform is now a digital Swiss army knife for farmers, incorporating the latest in mapping technology, input sections for animal and farm treatments, daily tasks, and staff timesheet data.
“We have even made it possible to enter notes and observations using video or voice if you don’t want to input using the keypad.”
Manawatu sheep and beef farmer Sam Brown has been using Resolution since its launch, describing it as a game changer for his business.
“I like that you can get stock distributed evenly whether it is in rotations, you know how many hectares it has got, how many paddocks you need in that rotation.
“You know how much tucker you have, how much stock you can buy in, it’s all readily available to you, it’s in your pocket all the time.”
Sam also appreciates the buy in he gets with Resolution from his farm team.
“Everyone uses it, you can see what is going on without making a million phone calls and it gives everyone a little bit of accountability and responsibility.”
Paul Ruddenklau says the partnership with Catalyst extends Resolution’s ability to share information across the farm team, putting Catalyst’s farm advisors firmly in the picture about their clients’ farm operations and decision making.
He says working with Catalyst goes above and beyond the norm for their farmer clients at a time when things can be tough on farm.
Working with Catalyst is also helping Resolution lift its profile in a way that provides farmers considering adopting their software with peace of mind Resolution comes with the experience, and endorsement, of a respected consulting firm.
“Our adoption rate has been high despite our relatively low profile. Farmers appreciate hearing stories about farmers who have used Resolution and are happy to talk about how successful it has been for them.”
Patrick Davis says Resolution puts Catalyst advisors firmly on the same page as their farmer clients.
“All the data is in one place. Catalyst implements an end-to-end agronomy model that records all the agronomic inputs, and it can be easily uploaded to Resolution.
“We feel Resolution aligns very well with our business and our clients. They are young, progressive, and willing to collaborate and listen to us as professional agronomists.
“We know they will adapt and innovate with us, which is better for the farmer and the industry.”