Farm / Ranch Manager
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
Manages operations at a farm or ranch. Directs crop production and management of livestock herds, and supervises farm workers who grow and harvest crops or tend to farm animals. Purchases supplies such as seed, fertilizer or animal feed, operates and repairs farm equipment, and maintains facilities. Monitors prices and adapts production as needed due to market changes, weather conditions or other factors.
Job Outlook
There were 209 Farm / Ranch Manager job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 5969 in the United States.
In combination with other careers in the Farm / Ranch Manager industry, which includes the Farm / Ranch Manager career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2012:
Salary
Many new Farm / Ranch Manager jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.
National
The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $41,102.
State
The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $42,634.
Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Farm / Ranch Manager postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $28,609.
Education and Experience
Posted Farm / Ranch Manager jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.
| Education Level | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Associate's Degree | 4% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 34% |
| Master's Degree | 8% |
| Doctoral Degree | 1% |
| Other | 53% |
Posted Farm / Ranch Manager jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Years of Experience | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 0 to 2 years | 53% |
| 3 to 5 years | 37% |
| 6 to 8 years | 6% |
| 9+ years | 5% |
Skills
Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Farm / Ranch Manager positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.
Baseline Skills
A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.
- Communication Skills (25%)
- Organizational Skills (19%)
- Physical Abilities (19%)
- Teamwork / Collaboration (18%)
- Planning (17%)
Defining Skills
A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.
- Farm Management (21%)
- Farm Equipment (7%)
Necessary Skills
A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.
- Repair (11%)
- Scheduling (11%)
- Budgeting (10%)
- Cleaning (9%)
- Food Safety (9%)
Distinguishing Skills
A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.
- Fertilizers (4%)
- Agronomy (4%)
- Crop Production (4%)
Alternative Job Titles
Sometimes employers post jobs with Farm / Ranch Manager skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:
- Farm Manager
- Farmer Market Vendor
- Farmer
- Plant
- Assistant Farm Manager
Similar Occupations
If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.
- Nursery / Greenhouse Manager
- Farm / Nursery / Greenhouse Worker
- Food / Agricultural Technician
- Soil / Plant Scientist
- Production Plant Manager
- Meat and Seafood Processor / Packager
- Food / Agricultural Inspector
Common Employers
Here are the employers that have posted the most Farm / Ranch Manager jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.
United States
- Pilgrims (349)
- Ecological Farming Association (159)
- Prime Ocean (67)
- Smithfield Foods (44)
- Public Consulting Group (34)
North Carolina
- Smithfield Foods (21)
- Butterball (9)
- Murphy Family Ventures (8)
- Pilgrims (7)
- Biltmore Company (5)
NC State Programs Relevant to this Career
If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!
- Agribusiness Management Undergraduate Certificates
- Agricultural Business Management Undergraduate Certificates
- Agricultural Business Management Undergraduate Certificates
- Agricultural Science Undergraduate Degrees
- Agriculture Data Science Graduate Certificates
- Animal Science Master's Degrees
- Crop Science Undergraduate Certificates
- General Horticulture Undergraduate Certificates
- Horticultural Science Graduate Certificates
- Horticultural Science Master's Degrees
- Plant Pests, Pathogens and People Undergraduate Certificates
- Soil Science Undergraduate Certificates
All wages, job posting statistics, employment trend projections, and information about skill desirability on this page represents historical data and does not guarantee future conditions. Data is provided by and downloaded regularly from Lightcast. For more information about how Lightcast gathers data and what it represents, see Lightcast Data: Basic Overview on Lightcast's Knowledge Base website.