General Manager Development Program Supports New and Veteran GMs
Managing a food co-op takes a large and varied set of skills, some of which even a highly talented general manager might need help developing. With an updated curriculum and a roster of talented instructors, the GM Development Program provides both new and veteran GMs with the support and the tools they need to successfully manage and lead their food co-op.
Ozark Natural Foods Strengthens Pricing Strategy with the Help of Jeanie Wells
In January of 2022, Columinate Organizational Development Consultant Jeanie Wells launched a four-part remote training program for Ozark Natural Foods in Fayetteville, Ark., to address how to manage price image during a volatile period of high food inflation with a relatively new management team.
What the Columinate Compensation Database Tells Us about Pay Ratios
"What is the ratio between the highest-paid and lowest-paid employees in food co-ops?" When evaluating the compensation of their general managers, boards of food co-ops often ask this question. And behind that lies another, sometimes unspoken, question: "What should that ratio be?"
“Why Some Diversity Teams Perform at a High Level While Others Do Not”
Intercultural Facilitator and Columinate consultant Darin Short is taking what he's learned working with diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) teams to facilitate “Why Some Diverse Teams Perform at a High Level While Others Do Not” at the Thought Leadership Conference in South Bend, Ind. on May 19.
How CBLD Helps Boards Become Better Employers
Cooperation among cooperatives is more than just a golden principle that all strive to achieve, it’s actually an organizational imperative that makes good use of collective time and resources. Columinate’s Cooperative Board Leadership Development program (CBLD) is built precisely to offer co-op boards the tools to make informed decisions and gain efficiency.
Art Sherwood Reimagines the Strategic Planning Process
After seeing how the co-op world has shifted away from in-person events during the pandemic, Columinate consultant and leadership strategist Art Sherwood wants to leverage the lessons he learned over the last two years to help co-op general managers be more strategic about multi-year planning. Sherwood has recently launched the Cooperative Strategic Leadership (CSL) program, an annual subscription course that utilizes different modalities to help co-op leaders build practical plans that are meant to be put into action every day.
What to Know About Owner Capital Campaigns
Raising capital is especially important for cooperatives, which don’t have a typical ownership structure that banks or lenders are used to. Mobilizing the co-op’s membership to raise funds through an owner capital campaign can be an excellent strategy.
Meet Columinate Consultant Cassia Herron
Cassia is a dedicated activist, a skilled community development professional, and a proud Kentuckian who brings 20 years of experience to the Columinate network. She is deeply rooted in the Kentucky local food movement, having organized farmer’s markets, established the Louisville Food Policy Council, and co-founded Louisville Association for Community Economics, which is opening the city’s only cooperative grocery store.
Meet Vernon Oakes
Columinate is proud to welcome Vernon Oakes as a new consultant. Vernon is a passionate advocate of the cooperative business model and brings a lifetime of diverse experiences to the Columinate network.
The Gender Equity Project: One Year Later
In February 2021, Columinate launched its Gender Equity Project in response to findings that grocery co-op general managers (GMs) who identify as female are paid significantly less than their male counterparts. We talked with project lead and Columinate consultant Carolee Colter to learn how the Gender Equity Project is going, one year after its inception.