Richard Anscombe, the chief executive of AtlasFram, the farmer-owned co-operative based at Framlingham, was named Director of the Year in the 2013 East Anglian Daily Times Business Awards. Our Q&A aims to get to know him a little better

Q. Many congratulations. You must be thrilled at receiving this award – what does this recognition mean to you and your company?

A. It is great to receive a pat on the back and recognition, it’s something that I fundamentally believe in and being on the receiving end with such a well respected, prestigious, award really is something special. Recognition from respected peers such as the EADT and New Anglia LEP means a lot to me and the team. The buzz on the night and in the office in the days following the award was tremendous and showed just how proud the team was of what we have achieved together. Someone taking a good hard look in at your business from outside is a very valuable and informing process and to come out as the chosen winner of the award is vindication that we are doing a good job.

Q. Could you give us a brief synopsis of your career to date?

A. I’ll start at aged ten when we moved into the countryside in Cheshire and I started working on farms at weekends and holidays to earn pocket money. At the age of fourteen I managed a poultry farm for the summer holidays whilst the owner was away in France. Managing a small team, ordering feed and selling to customers was great experience. I’ve always had a work ethic and was the top territory manager in the UK in my first full year from a field force of around 200 in my first job with Norsk Hydro Fertilisers which was after graduating from Harper Adams in 1984. That got me noticed and in 1989 I was asked to join a newly created subsidiary company, based at Levington that had been created to market medium to large scale Software and IT systems. In 1991 I was part of the team that bought the company from Norsk Hydro. I sold my shareholding in 2000 to help found a startup IT company in Ipswich which I left in 2010 and joined AtlasFram Group as chief executive on 1st September 2010. The last three years at AtlasFram have been tremendous, the group has changed and moved forward in a very positive way thanks in no small way to the strong team of professionals who have willingly joined me on our journey of change and innovation.

Q. How long has AtlasFram been trading, what was the original concept and how has the business evolved?

A. AtlasFram was formed in 1962 as Framlingham Farmers, the original farming co-operative in the East of England and a name that many people recognize and respect as a leader and innovator in the co-operative sector. The original concept was to bring a group of forward thinking farmers together to challenge the dominance and high margin merchant businesses that had the market to themselves at that time. Quite quickly the co-operative achieved around a 30% reduction in the average price of key inputs, which speaks for itself! In so doing, the cooperative sector has brought significant benefit to the whole of the farming sector, not just those who are members. If we move forward to today you will see a business that turns over £190 million pounds, buys very well for its 1250 farming business members and delivers significant added value, but we do so much more in addition. We have a team of professionals who watch the key agricultural markets on an hourly and daily basis and whose resulting market knowledge cannot be replicated on even the largest member farms. We are seen by our members as an extension of their businesses, of their own farm office and very much part of their team. The uniqueness of our cooperative is that we work as one with our members, we are all in it together. In addition to purchasing the key farm inputs for our members we also market their crops. This year has seen a 40% increase in the tonnage that we market for members, a great performance when the total UK crop was down by over 20%. We put a lot of emphasis on understanding our suppliers’ businesses and working together with them to tackle the challenges of the global food supply market. I believe fundamentally in a collaborative approach not an adversarial one and that this will benefit the group strategically going forward.

Q. The judges were looking for someone who has brought innovation to his role or industry. Can you give an example of that?

A. I can think of no better example than the investment in our online, digital interaction with our members. We are ahead of the sector in this respect having invested significantly over the last two years. Members log into their secure area on our web site and have their personal trading relationship with the group and with other farms that they may also farm at their fingertips. They can order online 24x7 for key commodities and see a rich picture of their trading history and accounts. This did not exist two years ago and represents a major step forward. Member to member interaction is also possible for key products, something that we are expanding on. With access from smart phones too, I am delighted with what we have achieved and are continuing to innovate.

Q. How important is leadership within a co-operative with more than 1,250 members? What are the most important qualities you bring to this role?

A. Members of AtlasFram put a significant amount of trust in the group and rely on us to provide impartial advice and service in a transparent way. Leadership is vital in making sure that everyone in the organisation is aligned to our vision and strategy and is communicated with, involved and invested in so that they are motivated to do the best job they can.

I bring a wide range of qualities with commercial experience founding and building businesses, financial and legal experience and appreciation of the value of good HR, but for me the most important attribute is passion for my job and warmth towards my team and members. Showing genuine warmth and caring for people and the job that we do is the key conduit of trust. Once the team who work with me and our members and board have trust then together we can really go places.

Q. What are the biggest challenges facing AtlasFram in the current economic climate?

A. In the current economic climate we must remain vigilant. Our members’ businesses can be large and diversified outside of core farming and are not immune to the tighter financial markets and the effects of the double dip recessions of recent times. With recent bad weather and poorer harvests we monitor and manage our business closely, recognizing that cash flow in our members’ businesses is likely to become tighter as we head into spring 2014. The support of our members businesses by the banks is important through this winter and into spring 2014.

Q. On a personal note, what is the most rewarding part of your role and what causes the most frustration?

A.The most rewarding part of my role is when members of my team tell me that I’m doing a good job and that they are behind me. Change is essential but it is only by involving those who care about the group, my team, our farmer members and key stakeholders, and making sure that you have good communication channels in place, that the right decisions can be made.

The most frustrating part of my role is the group’s dealings with the tele-communication sector. These household names who provide broadband and mobile services are the worse to deal with as they clearly have no focus or remit to deliver good customer service and evidently operate in their own bubble where serving the interests of their own organizations is paramount. I’d like to see a major shakeup in the telecommunications sector in the UK.

Q. Finally, how did the process of entering the awards help you take stock of your business and would you recommend others to enter next year?

A. The process of entering the awards is an excellent way for you to take a step back and evaluate your business through a critical eye in a constructive way. In order to be successful and win you need to provide compelling evidence of positive progress and doing the job in the right way across a broad set of key business imperatives. Looking at yourself and asking yourself to prove that you are worthy of winning an award really does confirm whether you are simply announcing good intentions or are you actually carrying them through and making a positive difference.

I would recommend others to enter next year. Your team will like the fact that they have a leader who has been judged worthy of making the shortlist in such a prestigious and well respected awards as the EADT Business Awards. It shows them that the business that they work in has been recognized by external judges as worthy of an award, and your team will know that they have played a very important part in that success. No leader gets there on their own.