Director Position 2: Mountain Plains Charlie Talbott

Charlie Talbott

Age as of March 1, 2026:      65

Residence Location: Palisade, Colorado 

Place of Operation: Palisade, Colorado 

Business Experience: I have worked in our family farming operations since my return to the farm in the early 1980s. I currently serve as the President/CEO of Talbott Farms, Inc., the General Partner of our business entities. Our business is the largest producer of both peaches and wine grapes in the state and in addition to our own fruit, we provide packing, processing, and marketing services for neighboring growers. My key focus in business lies in strategic and financial planning, budgeting, oversight of marketing, and oversight of new and existing business opportunities.

Education:

• Business, Science, and Math 

Current Boards: 

• Talbott Farms, Inc. 
• Talbott’s Mountain Gold LLLP 
• Talbott Land & Property LLLP 
• Harvest Chapel of Palisade 
• American AgCredit 

Nominating Committee Slated: Yes

Strategic & Visionary Thinking: I have the honor of being a past Chair of the Strategy and Risk Committee and continue to serve as a member. Strategic and visionary thinking uniquely energizes me, offering the challenge to pursue and discover what is possible while being grounded in fidelity to mission and achieving current mandates. Absent a healthy commitment to effective strategic thinking, the threat of irrelevance looms for any entity, whether it be financial, agricultural, or otherwise.

Corporate Governance: Corporate governance applied with discipline and professionalism is critical in cultivating and maintaining the rapport needed to achieve trust and alignment with senior management. We continue to update our “Governance Initiative” with its four pillars of governance wherein we challenge ourselves with governance worthy of a 20+ billion-dollar association. I have been certified after having completed all modules of the Premier Governance Series training. A commitment to cultural alignment is as critical as strategic alignment.

Financial Expertise: I have an effective working knowledge and understanding of financial planning, budgeting, income statements, and balance sheets. I oversee my own farm operation’s budgeting, financing, and long-term financial planning. I currently serve as the Finance Chairman of the Harvest Chapel Church in my hometown and am the “Tax Matters” partner in our business’s partnerships.

Communication: Throughout my years in business, farm credit, my community, and my industry, I have had numerous occasions where I have addressed various groups in a public speaking capacity and am very comfortable doing so. I have successfully developed marketing programs for our business, where genuine and persuasive communication is critical. I have a full appreciation of the value of emotionally intelligent communication to facilitate positive outcomes that avoid the potential for unresolved conflict.

Technology: It is sobering to accept the premise that “today” constitutes the slowest rate of change that we will see for the balance of our lives. While I do have a functional and working knowledge and use of the Microsoft Office suite of programs and industry specific software and accounting programs, I appreciate that with the advent of AI, we all will always be in a continuous learning and discovery mode to stay relevant and reasonably current in this area. With much of agricultural operations being highly dependent on labor, we must continually pursue opportunities to utilize new technologies including automation to survive and thrive. 

Human Resource Management: I have served on our association’s Compensation Committee for a time, and during my time as Chairman was prescriptively involved in monitoring our association’s succession planning on an ongoing basis. Our operations raising “specialty crops” have no close second to labor expenditures in our overall cost of production. Our business depends on local full-time as well as seasonal H2A labor to survive, and it is critical that we manage this reality in a manner that provides stability, continuity, and reliability. We have a H2A retention rate in the high 90 percentile. In our journey to cultivate successors, I am heavily involved in developing job descriptions, compensation packages, and leadership training.

Risk Management: Risk management must be informed by a viewpoint that recognizes embracing an unnecessarily low risk tolerance may be in itself an unacceptable risk. Risk is inherent in business and particularly in agricultural enterprises. Taking calculated risks with a clear understanding of the “levers” that can be activated when outcomes fall outside of an articulated acceptable range whether on the low or high side sets the stage for effective risk management.

Leadership: It has been my honor to serve as Vice Chair of the Board, Chair of the Strategy and Risk Committee, and as the Board Chair. Further, I am past Chair of the National Peach Council, and past Chair of the Western Colorado Horticultural Society. I currently serve as Chair and CEO of Talbott Farms, Inc., the General Partner of our land holding and operations partnerships. I serve in a leadership capacity in my local church as Finance Chair and as a Deacon. In my various leadership capacities, I am inspired to emulate leaders who humbly and confidently serve a mission greater than themselves, who respect, inspire, and motivate others to grow and achieve excellence, and who celebrate the success of team members pulling the spotlight away from themselves.