Labor model and weekly operating rhythm¶
Purpose¶
Make family capacity and time explicit for a two-site operation: ~5 ac home base (planning, records, shop, telemetry ops) and ~120 ac production (field labor, livestock, equipment), separated by ~35 minutes one way (planning default—measure). The weekly template is a starting hypothesis; surge weeks (calving, hay, shipping) override it.
Coverage detail: Weekly coverage matrix — two-site farm operations, Family labor model and coverage matrix — two-site smart farm.
Hub: East Tennessee two-site farm business plan — planning framework.
Hostile operator-burden review (Phase 0–1): Phase 0–1 operator burden review — East Tennessee two-site (hostile) — travel, field/off-grid/sensor/gateway/backup/observability triage, surge, and invisible load; use when the weekly grid feels “fine on paper.”
Decisions supported by this page¶
| Decision | This page provides |
|---|---|
| Maximum enterprise complexity vs available hours | Phase expectations + surge honesty |
| When to hire or lease instead of stretch family | Explicit “no phantom hired man” rule |
| How telemetry interacts with labor | Trip saved vs triage time spent |
Batch days at SITE_FARM |
DOW template |
Labor philosophy¶
- Family-first labor pool (father / son / grandson as named roles in your copy).
- No phantom hired hand: if help is needed, budget and insure it in Phase 3+.
- Travel-time-aware: batch field work; do not assume daily presence at 120 without resident labor or hired coverage.
Local evidence (Campbell / Demory): Sloped, rough ground (WSS AOI summary) increases on-site hours for fence, water, stock movement, and road repair vs flat row-crop imagery—surge planning must absorb that before adding enterprises (Demory site intelligence).
Field verification: Budget named site walks and measurements per Field verification program — Phase 0–1 (Claxton and Demory)—labor and calendar evidence for V* tasks, not optional photography.
Roles (assign real names locally)¶
| Role | Typical duties | Peak risk |
|---|---|---|
| Ops lead | Schedule, sales coordination, vet, major equipment moves | Burnout in surge |
| Field lead | Rotations, water, fence, handling | Injury; fatigue |
| Tech lead | Broker, sensors, backups, spares | False confidence in dashboards |
Weekly rhythm (template — grazing-led)¶
| DOW | Homestead (~5 ac) | Production (~120 ac) |
|---|---|---|
| Mon | Plan week; order parts/materials | — or short check if alert |
| Tue | Shop / fab / print | Batch visit: rotate, water, eyes on stock |
| Wed | Books / records / compliance | — |
| Thu | Telemetry review; firmware/patch window | Batch visit |
| Fri | Family admin | — or preflight weekend work |
| Sat | Optional deep work | Heavy tasks if needed |
| Sun | Rest / exception | Calving or hay override |
Rule of thumb (Phase 2+ grazing): minimum two batched 120 visits per week—increase during surge (Recommended enterprise strategy).
Why the weekly template is usually wrong (until proven)¶
The DOW grid is a hypothesis, not a promise. Execution illusion: the farm will follow the grid because it reads sensibly on paper.
Falsifier: one measured surge week (calving, hay weather, processing squeeze, major escape) where logged hours exceed the template’s implied capacity. Until V11 includes at least one such window and the coverage matrix shows who absorbs overload, treat the grid as unproven—especially under the 35-minute split (distance-tax rules).
Seasonal surge (placeholders)¶
| Window | Surge type | Mitigation |
|---|---|---|
| Calving (if cow-calf) | Possible daily need | Temporary stay near 120, reduce herd complexity, or hire |
| Hay | Weather windows compress work | Custom hire or partner—avoid solo equipment trap |
| Weaning / shipping | Trailer and handling hours | Pre-book buyer or auction slot |
Telemetry and labor¶
| Telemetry outcome | Labor effect |
|---|---|
| Tank OK | Skip unnecessary trip |
| Tank bad | Dispatch—batched or emergency |
| False alarm | Costs labor in triage—budget time in weekly plan |
Burden stacking (default pessimism): Assume telemetry ops (triage, patch, restore drills) collides with field surge the same month—Operator burden review. If Tech lead and Field lead are the same body, halve parallel pilot pretense.
Phased labor expectations¶
| Phase | Expectation |
|---|---|
| 0 | Low hours; paperwork and maps |
| 1 | Field days 2–4×/month + surveys |
| 2 | Often 0.3–0.5 FTE combined family on farm work—validate |
| 3 | Scale or explicit hired fraction |
| 4 | Possible full-time equivalent on-farm if margin supports |
Known facts¶
| ID | Statement |
|---|---|
| K1 | The business plan names a three-generation family as the default labor core. |
| K2 | The 120-acre parcel is the primary field labor surface; the 5-acre parcel is not primary production. |
Assumptions¶
| ID | Statement |
|---|---|
| A1 | At least two able-bodied adults available most weeks for routine work. |
| A2 | Off-farm jobs fund early years for most household cash (Phase 1–2). |
Open questions¶
| ID | Question |
|---|---|
| Q1 | Realistic available hours per person per week (by season)? |
| Q2 | Health or absence plan for each key person? |
| Q3 | CDL / trailer competence: how many people, and backup? |
| Q4 | Neighbor or pro on-call list for escape or welfare checks? |
Iterative updates¶
- Replace template DOW with actual recurring commitments (jobs, school, church, sleep).
- After one surge season, add observed peak hours—then resize enterprise.