Kansas FFA Career Development Events
FFA Career Development Events (CDEs) are competitive activities that help students develop real-world skills for careers in agriculture and beyond. These events are designed to build skills like critical thinking, communication, and teamwork by focusing on specific agricultural fields, from mechanics and sales to livestock evaluation and public speaking. The Agricultural Economics Department oversees two contests: agriculutral sales and farm and agribusiness management.
Agricultural Sales
The agricultural sales event evaluates students’ sales and customer service skills through individual and team activities, including written exams, sales calls, and customer service scenarios. It fosters essential communication, problem solving, and relationship-building abilities for success in agricultural sales career.
The Team Sales/Marketing Activity will provide the opportunity for teams of up to four contestants from each chapter to work together as a team to demonstrate teamwork, rapport building, need discovery, creativity, problem solving, ability to handle objections, closing, and overall sales, marketing, and presentation skills. Advisors are not allowed to assist participants during the Team Sales Activity, except for set up and technical support as needed.
2025 Ag Sales Contest Information
Coordinator: Dr. Aaron Johnson, ajjohnson@ksu.edu
Farm and Agribusiness Management
The farm and agribusiness management event is a competition designed to cultivate essential business management skills among participants. This event emphasizes the assimilation of information, critical thinking, and problem-solving abilities necessary for success in the fields of farm and agribusiness management. Participants gain valuable skills that can be applied not only in managing agricultural enterprises but also in pursuing careers in agricultural business and personal financial management.
The Farm & Agribusiness Management event will have one part including problems designed to determine the team member’s ability to apply economic principles to solving agribusiness type problems. The test will include multiple choice, numerical calculations and true/false questions. This part will include questions similar to previous years tests available below in the sample exams.
Team members will work as individuals on all portions of the exam. Contestants may use calculators. Cell phones and cell phone calculators will not be allowed. Use of other materials is prohibited – computers, books, etc. A coin toss will be used to break scores.
2025 Farm and Agribusiness Management Contest Information
Coordinator: Dr. Gregg Ibendahl, ibendahl@ksu.edu, 785-477-2071