Effectiveness vs. Efficiency: Lessons from the Orange Groves
When I was young, I worked for a company that managed small citrus and avocado groves. These were tiny operations—not big enough to own their own equipment, hire full-time crews, or even manage themselves—but still full of promise and capable of producing high-quality fruit. Our job was to help these small growers stay viable in a world dominated by large, industrial-scale agriculture.
In big agriculture, efficiency is critical. Margins are razor thin, and profits depend on scale—huge machines, permanent crews, and tightly coordinated logistics. These operations are optimized to produce, pick, and deliver fruit as cheaply as possible, even when prices are low. It’s a system built for volume.
But small groves can play a different game.
They can’t compete on efficiency. They don’t have the infrastructure or the volume to spread out costs. Instead, they rely on something else: effectiveness—the ability to do the right thing at the right time.
Here’s how it worked: During rainy periods—which coincide with the harvest season here—the big groves came to a halt. Their heavy equipment and large crews couldn’t get into the groves, couldn’t work efficiently, and were destructive to the water-logged ground. Fruit shipments slowed, then stopped. But we could still move. With small, nimble crews, lightweight ladders, and pickup trucks, we could carefully harvest groves that were ready—without tearing up the land.
And while the big growers were stuck, the market price for oranges and avocados began to climb. When prices doubled, that was our signal. We’d move quickly, harvest the fruit, and get it to market. That one week of smart timing could cover a small grower’s costs for the entire year.
It wasn’t about maximizing yield. It was about picking the right moment.
Efficiency is doing things right. Effectiveness is doing the right things.
That lesson has stayed with me ever since.