Stability and Steady Growth
CoBank and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Farm Credit Leasing, boast a number of characteristics that significantly contribute to our stability and consistency. First, we are a GSE – a government sponsored enterprise. As a part of the Farm Credit System of banks, CoBank funds its lending from the sale of Farm Credit System securities. Because of the market acceptance and attractiveness of these securities we are able to offer extremely competitive interest rates. Second, we are a cooperative, not a publicly held or traded company. This means our leadership is free to make the best possible business decisions to grow our customer/owners’ interest in CoBank, and not be driven by short-term, and often short sighted, decisions that can sometimes stifle public companies. Finally, our commitment to rural America is enduring. We are not in this business to “chase the money.” We have relationships that not only go back decades, but generations. Our promise to be there for our customers, regardless of the economic landscape, means our own workforce and support system will be there, too.

Engagement
In 2005, CoBank began partnering with The Gallup Organization^® to implement its Employee Engagement Survey. Gallup’s years of experience evaluating employee engagement has enabled it to create an incomparable database of employee information. Their approach, known as the Q12^TM throughout the industry, has identified the twelve most critical questions that define whether an employee chooses to engage and at what level. In our most recent survey, CoBank’s associates provided feedback that qualified our approaches as “best practice.” Each leader within the bank is responsible for creating action plans to increase our ability to meet the needs of our associates. And when you look at our recent financial results, it is easy to see that engagement directly translates into a more profitable organization.

Professionalism
CoBank’s Core Values - Integrity, Respect, Teamwork, Customer Service, and Personal Excellence/Accountability – say it all. We live and breathe each element of these values and share high expectations for our fellow associates.

Work/Life Balance
We expect our associates to have a life that is comprised of more than just working for CoBank. That translates into something different for each us. It may mean the time to coach a child’s soccer team, volunteer at a local shelter or play in a band. For others it may simply be the comfort of knowing that they can make it home for dinner each night. Make no mistake -we work hard, but we also “work to live.” Maintaining a healthy life balance, whatever that may look like, is crucial to the bank’s sustainable success.

Short Term Incentive Plan
We can’t think of a better way to recognize and reward teamwork than our annual Short Term Incentive Plan. Every full-time associate at CoBank participates in our plan. Their ability to share in the success of the bank is driven by their individual role and achievements, their workgroup’s achievements, and the bank’s performance against its goals and objectives. It’s the only way we know how to work!