YOUNG LOT FEEDER OF THE YEAR

ENTRY CRITERIA

To be eligible for entry, applicants must:

• Be 35 years or younger as at 31st December in the current year.

• Be employed at a feedlot that is a current financial Member of the Australian Lot Feeders’ Association.

• Have completed all sections of the entry form and provided all necessary documents.

• Six finalists will be selected to be interviewed in Sydney in August by the Award Judging Panel with applicants travel expenses arranged and funded by ALFA – one return flight per person from their nominated nearest regional centre or city, overnight accommodation and meals.

• The selected six finalists must be available to travel to Sydney (or attend via zoom if necessary).

• Three Grand Finalists will be invited to the ALFA Annual Conference in October for the winner announcement. Event registration fees, return airfares and accommodation for Grand Finalists are covered by ALFA.

• Agree to be a part of the promotion of the Award.

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To enter, you need to complete and submit the following:

• Fill out the online entry form below and submit before the close date.

• Upload a typed essay (up to 1,000 words) outlining an industry problem (perceived or real), discussing its implications to the feedlot industry, and exploring a proposed solution.

• Upload your Resume.

• Upload a short letter of endorsement from your Manager.

• Upload your headshot, for use in Award promotional activities.​

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JUDGING ROUNDS & WEIGHTINGS​

ROUND ONE: (non-weighted)

The Preliminary Round of Judging consists of all judges independently reviewing completed applications online and providing scores against the 5 weighted criteria outlined below. All judges’ scores will be tallied by ALFA with the highest scoring 6 applicants progressing to the Second Round of Judging and become Finalists.
 

1. Desire to win the Award and Prizes (15%)

2. Merit of past achievements in the cattle feedlot industry (35%)

3. Likelihood of achieving further in the cattle feedlot industry (30%)

4. Practicality of the submitted solution to a real, or perceived, industry problem; does it have industry wide application/benefits (10%)

5. Accompanying comments by the Feedlot Manager or Company Director (10%)

ROUND TWO: (70% weighting)

The Second Round of Judging takes place in Sydney during the August ALFA Board Meeting. A maximum of 3 Finalists will progress to the Final Round of Judging to become Grand Finalists based on the top 3 scoring candidates from the weighted scoring criteria applied below:
 

1. Preparation & Organisation (10%)

2. Professionalism (10%)

3. How much further the applicant built on their initial idea (10%)

4. How much further effort the applicant put into reviewing and refining their solution (10%)

5. Enthusiasm for the future of the feedlot industry and the role applicant will play in its development (20%)

6. Value of how the applicant proposes to use the $5,000 prize money towards industry and/or the individual’s career progression (20%)

7. Enthusiasm for participating in the ARLF's TRAIL program (20%)

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ROUND THREE: (30% weighting)

The Final Round of Judging takes place online. The final round involves the grand finalists producing a 1.5-minute video on their essay topic and themselves for the judges to score. This video will also be published on ALFA’s YouTube channel and shown at ALFA’s Annual Conference in the lead up to the presentation of the winner.

Round 2 (70% weighting) & Round 3 (30% weighting) Scores are tallied and accumulated between rounds to reveal the overall winner. Scores are not provided to judges so as not to potentially bias scoring between rounds.

A maximum of one Grand Finalist will be named the Overall Award Winner on stage at the BeefEx Conference. 

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PRIZES

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FINALISTS

• Six Finalists are flown to Sydney for the second round of judging. Included in the prize are flights, accommodation, training materials and a networking dinner with the ALFA Board.

GRAND FINALISTS

• Three Grand Finalists are flown to the ALFA Conference in October for the presentation of the Overall Winner.  Included in the prize are flights, accommodation and registration.

• Provided training in professional presentations and creating engaging content around story-telling.

OVERALL WINNER

• Your name is added to the Award perpetual trophy and you receive a keepsake trophy.

• Funding towards undertaking a professional development course or overseas study trip, to the value of $5,000.

• A scholarship to attend the next Australian Rural Leadership Foundation’s TRAIL: for emerging leaders program valued at $11,550. 
   

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KEY DATES

• Entries Open: May 1

• Entries Close: June 30

• Finalists Announced: July 

• Second Round Judging: August 21, Sydney NSW

• Grand Finalists Announced: September 

• Overall Winner Awarded: ALFA BeefEx Conference, 15-17 October, Brisbane QLD

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ENTER

To enter, submit the online entry form below with your supporting documents before the close date.