From motherhood to rural convenor

Alison Ferris, 39, is mum to three girls: Lucy, 7, Emily, 5, and Molly, 3. She lives on a dairy farm at Rangitoto, just out of Te Kuiti.

Two years ago Ferris was at a crossroads. Her daughters were growing up and the former school teacher began to wonder about her career path.

Then a newsletter arrived from the Dairy Women's Network, advertising its Pathway Programme - a six-month leadership and coaching course for rural women.

"I thought it looked really good for where I was at and the stage of my life," said Ferris, who applied and was accepted to Pathways. "My last child was at day care and I was wondering where to next. I thought it would be a good way to start exploring new options."

Developed by the Agri-Women's Development Trust and the Dairy Women's Network, the Pathways Programme was designed to help women lead change within their own businesses and communities. It taught leadership, influence and communication skills, and encouraged women to identify their own skills and strengths.

The programme, which was funded by DairyNZ and Ministry for Primary Industries, included two two-day leadership workshops held six months apart, with three coaching and mentoring sessions in between. Nearly 30 women have completed the programme over the past two years.

In November 2014 Ferris embarked on the programme, joining other rural women for a two-day workshop.

"We looked at leadership and how you can lead change within your community and also within yourself," said Ferris.

"We looked at how to manage change and how to use different tools and methods for doing that successfully."

At the end of the first workshop participants were encouraged to set 'change goals' to work on over the next six months.

Ferris decided to focus on leading change in her community. She'd recently taken on the role of North King Country regional convenor for the Dairy Women's Network.

"My goal was to become more visible as a convenor," said Ferris. "And I also set myself the goal to gain more dairy industry knowledge."

The North King Country group currently has about 100 members and covers a large region, from Otorohanga to the north, Kawhia to the west and Taumarunui and Mahoenui to the south.

As Dairy Women's Network regional convenor Ferris made a point of hosting more events for rural women in the region, including modules on topics such as health and safety, human resources and calf rearing.

"The modules are educational and well-attended," said Ferris. "We also put on more social events which people enjoyed. It's important to get women off the farm so they can come out and meet other women and learn. Women aren't always good at putting themselves first and this is something for them."

Ferris also set about communicating regularly with the group, emailing out a newsletter to the membership.

She said the Pathways Programme pushed her to go outside her comfort zone, and take on the challenge of the convenor role. In return she became more confident in her leadership abilities and communication skills.

"The Pathways Programme gave me the confidence to have a go and put my hand up," said Ferris. "I'd been busy having my family, and Pathways made me realise that even though I was new to the role, I had the skills to do a good job."

Ferris, who moved to New Zealand from Cambridge, England 10 years ago, said the Dairy Women's Network regional group is a great resource for rural women to build friendships and professional connections.

"I enjoy the role as it's given me the chance to meet other women in the region," said Ferris.

"I have learned not to be afraid to put myself out there. I push myself to network and meet people and the results have been worth it."

The Pathways Programme coaching sessions were also valuable, said Ferris, as they helped her remain accountable to her goals over the six-month period. "I got so much from the programme, it's given me a real boost."

In February this year Ferris joined the board of Dairy Women's Network as convenor representative, communicating information to around 75 convenors around New Zealand.

She's also started teaching again, doing one day a week at Rangitoto Primary School.

"I think there are a lot of us who have had a career in different fields and then married a dairy farmer, had a family and looked up and thought, 'what now?'," said Ferris.

"The Pathways Programme came at just the right time for me and has helped me grow."