January 2026 - Journal_Final - Flipbook - Page 12
Business
Overwhelmed to Empowered:
VALUE IN DECISION-MAKING
Jim Marzolf
EVP of Business Services
Pipestone Business
Jim Marzolf is a Minnesota native who graduated from the University
of Wisconsin-River Falls with a B.S. in Animal Science; followed by an
Executive MBA from Purdue University. Jim brought his experience in
livestock production, 昀椀nance, and business management to Pipestone in
2019 and serves as Executive Vice President of Pipestone Business.
The most dif昀椀cult decisions in a business are often
the ones made least often—strategic investments,
new ventures, partnerships, or major directional
shifts. They carry high stakes and uncertain outcomes,
and managers are 昀氀ooded with data, inputs, and
expectations, making it hard to know what truly
matters. Great managers don’t eliminate that chaos—
they create clarity that allows them to act with
con昀椀dence.
For pork producers, that chaos is familiar: feed budgets
that don’t pencil, health data pointing in different
directions, labor challenges, and market signals that
shift weekly. All arrive at once, demanding attention
and decisions. The best managers cut through the
noise, turning uncertainty into
insight and action.
Seasoned managers often
rely on intuition—gut instinct
shaped by experience—for
these infrequent decisions.
That intuition is built over
years of seeing what works and
recognizing patterns. Instead
of analyzing every data point
from scratch, they lean on rules
earned the hard way.
Intuition works best for
routine decisions. Managers
follow these internal rules,
often without thinking, when
circumstances remain stable.
The result: con昀椀dence and
ef昀椀ciency. A clear example is
crop insurance. Many farmers
buy the same Federal policies
year after year, relying on past
decisions. When conditions
are similar, the choice is
straightforward—and clarity
comes easily
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Over time, though, new options appear. Higher
coverage, lower subsidies, or private insurance
products can change the game. Suddenly, old rules no
longer apply. These decisions require fresh data, careful
comparison, and judgment under uncertainty. Slower,
more complex—but necessary—to restore clarity as
conditions evolve.
The same pattern exists in pork production. Routine
choices—feed programs, vaccination timing, pig 昀氀ow—
often rely on experience. But when systems, health
challenges, or economics shift, those same decisions
demand fresh data and a willingness to rethink old
assumptions.
