Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84MEET OUR INSIDERS! Advice from industry experts! ABM DIRECTOR OF TECHNICAL SERVICES AND REGIONAL SALES MANAGER VINCE WERTMAN SYNGENTA SEEDCARE GLOBAL COMMERCIAL HEAD MARTIN FAERBER CREATE BY ISSUES INK DIRECTOR, CLIENT SERVICES SHAWNA SCHIMNOWSKI KSI CONVEYORS DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT JASON KAEB AGRONOMIX PRESIDENT, CEO AND FOUNDER DIETER MULITZE OLIVER MANUFACTURING PRESIDENT/CEO BRIAN BURNEY As the regional sales man- ager and director of techni- cal services for ABM, Vince Wertman works closely with company researchers to bring products to the field and with sales repre- sentatives to ensure prod- ucts are properly applied. A graduate of The Ohio State University, Wertman earned his bachelor’s in agriculture, specializing in agri-chemis- try, microbiology and nutri- tion. Today, he’s based in Minnesota but traverses the country educating others about biological application. Martin Faerber serves as global head of commer- cial and key account man- agement for Syngenta Seedcare. With a back- ground in chemistry and economics, Faerber joined the company more than 35 years ago. In 1986, he transitioned to international businesswhereheheldposi- tions in Zimbabwe, Kenya, Cameroon, Hong Kong and China. In 2005, he returned to the company’s headquar- ters and became global head of seed treatment. Passionateaboutagriculture, Lindsay Hoffman serves as director, client services for CREATE by Issues Ink. She is committed to finding solution-driven options for clients to create a platform for success. Having worked in the agribusiness sector, she honed her agronomy, sales and marketing skills. Here at Issues Ink, Hoffman has been part of both the content and business devel- opment teams, giving her a unique perspective. A K-State graduate, Jason Kaeb earned a degree in management information systems and operations management. After gradu- ation, he worked for Sprint Nextel before joining KSi Conveyors, where he has served in operations, auto- mation/controls, service and sales. As director of business development, he leverages his broad understanding of the seed handling and treatment industry to pro- vide solutions to customers, and maintains relationships with some of the largest and most influential companies. Drawing on his experience in developing plant breeding software since the 1970s and working as a plant breeder, Dieter Mulitze, Ph.D., released the first version of “AGROBASE” and incorpo- rated Agronomix Software in 1990. In 2001, AGROBASE Generation II, a fully rela- tional software system, was released. Then in 2009, a more powerful version was released. Seed companies, government research cen- ters and universities in more than 40 countries now use AGROBASE Generation II. Brian Burney, a third genera- tionfamilymember,currently serves as the chief executive officer and the president of the board of directors for Oliver Manufacturing. He has learned everything about the company by working his way up through every area of the business. Participation and interaction with indus- try professionals, combined with collegiate development courses, allowed Burney to understand how to lead a world class manufacturer in today’s global economy. GRO ALLIANCE PRESIDENT JIM SCHWEIGERT A third-generation seeds- man, Jim Schweigert grew up in the business. He earned a degree in public relations from the University of Minnesota and worked for corporate public rela- tions firms before joining the family business full time in 2003. He has since been active in the American Seed Trade Association, the Independent Professional Seed Association and earned his master’s in seed technology and business from Iowa State University. CULTURA SEED SOLUTIONS SALES AND OPERATIONS MANAGER As head of the Cultura Seed Solutions software team in North America, Mike Dorris is responsible for delivering a comprehensive seed busi- ness management software solution. Since 2014, he’s been working to create stra- tegic partnerships, maxi- mizing customer value and customer satisfaction. Dorris has always been a part of the software or agricultural industries having worked for The CBORD Group, Gro Master Inc., Ag-World Exports and Illini Swine Inc. MIKE DORRIS NOROGARD PRESIDENT KETTY NILSSON Ketty Nilsson has her agri- cultural roots in southern Sweden, and specialized in chemistry engineering. She started her career as a scientist, and then pursued more technical and busi- ness development expertise. After earning an MBA, she was recruited as the presi- dent of NoroGard, where she has been able to combine her scientific background and business savviness. NoroGard has been engi- neering and manufacturing seed treatment equipment since 1965, with a focus on quality. MERIDIAN MANUFACTURING PRODUCT MANAGER CHAD THIESSEN For the past six years, Chad Thiessen has served as product manager for Meridian’s conveyors and augers. He brings a wealth of knowledge to the table about the needs of farmers and the seed industry and uses his experiences grow- ing up on a farm to provide solutions to those “every- day challenges” of storing, moving and handling seed and grain. Prior to joining Meridian, Thiessen worked for the conducted farmland valuations and was an insur- ance underwriter. Check out Page 29 for expert advice on everything from biologicals to software and data management.