Ravensdown has appointed Dan McLaughlin as Head of Digital Products, tasked with driving development and growth of digital tools by the company’s customer-shareholders. 

Dan’s strength is digital strategy and design, with over 10 years of private sector business experience in the United Kingdom and Australia, predominantly as a Management Consultant with Deloitte Digital. Prior to consulting, Dan was a Design Engineer in the local NZ aerospace industry.

His keenness for the role was heightened by seeing Ravensdown transition from a commodity producer to a valued partner providing intelligence to its customers. He views the Christchurch-based company as being well on the way to successfully embracing customer insight, technology, and data to enable smarter farming for a better New Zealand.

“The depth of customer insight we’re establishing means we can build really intuitive digital products and services that address specific farmer needs. The direct relationship with customer-shareholders also supports this – we’re close to the farmer and have an intimate understanding of how technology can help,” Dan said.

He said improvements in information tools can reduce the burden of compliance and farm planning.

“The digital mandate is very much about helping and empowering the farmer do what they do best – and that’s getting out on the farm.

“We can give our shareholders confidence that they have all necessary information to make the right choices when it comes to nutrient application, feeding, and planning.”

Ravensdown General Manager of Customer Relationships Bryan Inch said Dan’s background made him a good addition to the Digital Products Team.

“Our digital tools like HawkEye help farmers with tracking and demonstrating their compliance with an increasing amount of regulation. A great deal of effort is invested in the tools so they become effortless for farmers to use – after all, it’s important for them to spend more time farming and focused on their land.”