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ABM CEO AND CO-FOUNDER DAN CUSTIS EES COMPANIES OWNER AND PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER JEFF ELWER ISSUES INK DIRECTOR, CLIENT SERVICES LINDSAY HOFFMAN KSI CONVEYORS DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT JASON KAEB AGRONOMIX PRESIDENT, CEO AND FOUNDER DIETER MULITZE EUROFINS BIODIAGNOSTICS MYCOLOGY PROGRAM SUPERVISOR LORENA DEAN As CEO, Dan Custis over- sees financial, marketing and sales operations, as well as new product development. Custis’ expertise is centered in the fungicide and insec- ticide seed treatment and legume inoculant markets. He has held positions with national and multinational companies. Custis earned a bachelor’s in agriculture from Eastern Kentucky University and a master’s in business from Regent University. Jeff Elwer, a Professional Engineer, is the founder, owner, and president of EES Companies — an engi- neering, procurement and construction company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. With more than 39 years of experi- ence, Elwer has completed projects around the globe. Throughout his career, he has helped clients develop solutions to improve effi- ciency, productivity and safety. 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. Having earned a bachelor’s in agricultural engineering from Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, with an emphasis on plant pathol- ogy, and an MBA from the University of Dallas, Lorena Dean’s career has spanned industries and continents. She is known for her inter- national business acumen. Before joining Eurofins BioDiagnostics, she served as an agribusiness consul- tant and also worked as an environmentalconsultantfor the oil and gas industries. 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.