Are you in a “product business” or a “service business”? Not your company… you. The answer for the company is usually pretty easy… it depends on what you sell. But what about you?

Sure, your company might produce and sell things. But chances are, almost everyone on your team, from top to bottom, is in the service industry.

Let’s say you own a dairy. Most of us in agriculture call you a dairy producer. But… you don’t actually produce milk, your cows do. So, maybe a milk harvester would be a more appropriate name. But… as technology has improved and your role has changed, you don’t personally harvest milk these days, you hire employees who help do that. And even though we call these people milkers, the truth is… they don’t actually milk the cows either. Technically, they prepare cows to be milked and then attach a machine that does the actual milking.

So… what is it that you do again!? Technically, you run the company that owns the cows that produce the milk that’s harvested by the machines that your employees attach. There, that was simple.

So why does any of that matter? Maybe it doesn’t. I guess it depends on how you see your role and each of your employee’s role at your dairy. If you strongly believe that you produce some thing, then none of this will probably resonate. But if you can stand back and see that your true role as a leader is to provide a valuable service to another person or an animal, then hopefully all of this will make sense.

In your position as an owner or manager, your true role is to provide a service to the people on your team. You tell your employees what to do and when to do it, you teach them how you’d like it done, and explain why it’s important. But more than anything, you bring value to your product-selling company by providing services like communication, training, encouragement, accountability, and discipline to your people. And how does that bring value to you and your company? Your consistent guidance and support help your employees do their job better.

You see, your employees are service providers too. Every day, they sell you their time by providing your company with top-notch service caring for your cattle and your equipment. When you provide quality service to your team, they’re more capable of providing better service back to your animals and your dairy.

A lot of people in the dairy industry like to say that “It’s all about the cow.” And I agree, it’s hard to argue with the creature that’s making 100% of the product that you sell every day.

 But… day after day, your cows depend on your people and the services they provide them. Ultimately, your product depends on your service, and your people depend on you… “It’s all about the service.”