‘In these times it is even more important to stand shoulder to shoulder with our Lely Centers and Farmers'
Interview with André van Troost
BOARDWALK
'It is, of course, an unimaginable situation that we have all ended up in. The Lely mentality, to not panic and deal with the situation as best as we can, not only helps me as CEO, but our entire company to survive in this situation. Everyone takes his or her role and responsibility right now. It is hard work, but it is worth it because it concerns our future and our farmers.'
You were just in your role as CEO when Corona took over the world. How do you experience that?
'Once things have calmed down a bit, we want to stick to our Route25 objectives. I realize that this will not be easy, but at the same time it will help us to keep our focus on the medium to long term. Focus on innovation, customer centricity, building a winning organisation, and strengthening the distribution channel. Due to the Corona situation we are likely to communicate our great plans, that we would normally share live with our employees and Lely Centers during the Lely Future Farm days, in a different way, using online means. But for sure, it will be done in a way that suits us and all our stakeholders.
That’s also the reason we’ve decided to send this new, twice yearly, digital We Are Lely Magazine also to our Lely Centers from now on. We aim to work even more closely with our distribution channel and help them to keep their business on track, as there undoubtedly will be hard times to come. It is in our common interest to help each other and our farmers, shoulder to shoulder, through these confusing and tough times.'
What does the current situation mean for our future plans?
Did you know…
Until 1998, André van Troost was a professional cricket player for the Dutch national team and also played for some years in the English cricket league?
Bio André van Troost
'The interest in climate and sustainability are likely to offer us even greater opportunities after the Corona crisis. In this respect, it is important to understand the end dairy consumer, as well as our dairy farmers. That means: responding to the increasing demand for animal-friendly, sustainably produced food, with clear information about its origins. Our principle of free cow traffic puts us in an excellent starting position here! The Lely Orbiter, the mini-milk factory that makes milk processing on the farm feasible and profitable, is also a fantastic example of how we’ll be able to respond even better to demands in the future.'
What about sustainability?
'For our robotics and data solutions, the future is fantastic! Adoption rates are continuing to grow, and I believe that due to the Corona crisis this will only speed up as labour is also becoming more of an issue with lots of migrant workers leaving.
At the same time, in Europe in particular, dairy farming is coming under increasing pressure, partly due to manure and the emissions of harmful substances to the environment. This year, we’re going to present our renewed vision of the farm of the future to our employees, our Lely Centers and farmers and to the international press. Innovations to solve some of these environmental challenges will be an important part of that vision. In addition, Alexander van der Lely and Karel van den Berg are working on potential innovations in the area of alternative food supplies. We at Lely have to be prepared if the Western trend towards flexitarianism, veganism and protein replacers continues, though this really is for the long term.'
How do you see the future after 2025?
'The core values of Lely are innovation, passion, progress, respect and honesty, and they’ve always been extremely important for this family business. Especially in these times of crisis you can see that we really are different to the big corporations – we really are all in it together. It makes me very proud to see how involved we are. Not only with each other at all Lely locations, but also with our Lely Centers, our farmers and everyone who makes an important contribution to keeping our sector healthy. That’s something we’re going to focus on more in the coming years, to give it some extra emphasis and make sure our many new colleagues internalise our core values. All of us on the Executive board share the feeling of being responsible for a truly healthy & happy Lely family.'
You’re the first CEO who doesn’t bear the company name. How do we maintain the family feeling?
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‘In these times it is even more important to stand shoulder to shoulder with our Lely Centers and Farmers'
Interview with
André van Troost
BOARDWALK
'It is, of course, an unimaginable situation that we have all ended up in. The Lely mentality, to not panic and deal with the situation as best as we can, not only helps me as CEO, but our entire company to survive in this situation. Everyone takes his or her role and responsibility right now. It is hard work, but it is worth it because it concerns our future and our farmers.'
You were just in your role as CEO when Corona took over the world. How do you experience that?
'Once things have calmed down a bit, we want to stick to our Route25 objectives. I realize that this will not be easy, but at the same time it will help us to keep our focus on the medium to long term. Focus on innovation, customer centricity, building a winning organisation, and strengthening the distribution channel. Due to the Corona situation we are likely to communicate our great plans, that we would normally share live with our employees and Lely Centers during the Lely Future Farm days, in a different way, using online means. But for sure, it will be done in a way that suits us and all our stakeholders.
That’s also the reason we’ve decided to send this new, twice yearly, digital We Are Lely Magazine also to our Lely Centers from now on. We aim to work even more closely with our distribution channel and help them to keep their business on track, as there undoubtedly will be hard times to come. It is in our common interest to help each other and our farmers, shoulder to shoulder, through these confusing and tough times.'
What does the current situation
mean for our future plans?
'The interest in climate and sustainability are likely to offer us even greater opportunities after the Corona crisis. In this respect, it is important to understand the end dairy consumer, as well as our dairy farmers. That means: responding to the increasing demand for animal-friendly, sustainably produced food, with clear information about its origins. Our principle of free cow traffic puts us in an excellent starting position here! The Lely Orbiter, the mini-milk factory that makes milk processing on the farm feasible and profitable, is also a fantastic example of how we’ll be able to respond even better to demands in the future.'
What about sustainability?
'For our robotics and data solutions, the future is fantastic! Adoption rates are continuing to grow, and I believe that due to the Corona crisis this will only speed up as labour is also becoming more of an issue with lots of migrant workers leaving.
At the same time, in Europe in particular, dairy farming is coming under increasing pressure, partly due to manure and the emissions of harmful substances to the environment. This year, we’re going to present our renewed vision of the farm of the future to our employees, our Lely Centers and farmers and to the international press. Innovations to solve some of these environmental challenges will be an important part of that vision. In addition, Alexander van der Lely and Karel van den Berg are working on potential innovations in the area of alternative food supplies. We at Lely have to be prepared if the Western trend towards flexitarianism, veganism and protein replacers continues, though this really is for the long term.'
How do you see the future
after 2025?
'The core values of Lely are innovation, passion, progress, respect and honesty, and they’ve always been extremely important for this family business. Especially in these times of crisis you can see that we really are different to the big corporations – we really are all in it together. It makes me very proud to see how involved we are. Not only with each other at all Lely locations, but also with our Lely Centers, our farmers and everyone who makes an important contribution to keeping our sector healthy. That’s something we’re going to focus on more in the coming years, to give it some extra emphasis and make sure our many new colleagues internalise our core values. All of us on the Executive board share the feeling of being responsible for a truly healthy & happy Lely family.'
You’re the first CEO who doesn’t bear the company name. How do we maintain the family feeling?