A Time to Recognize Excellence

From the President

A Time to Recognize Excellence

By Brent Kemp, AgGateway President and CEO

On a Saturday morning in late November 1990, I was interviewing with Virginia Senator Charles Robb’s Service Academy Selection Board. I clearly remember one of the board members asking me, “what is your greatest asset?” I also remember my answer, stated clearly and quickly: “The team of people I work with.” Over thirty years later – just this morning in fact – it occurred to me they were probably looking for a personal assessment of my own strengths. I stand by my answer though.

I share that story because I believe AgGateway’s strength is you. Our greatest asset is the quality of volunteers that form teams, network, produce digital resources, and implement them for the benefit of your own organizations and the agriculture industry. For some of you, engagement in AgGateway activities is part of your job description, and we thank your management and your company for that strong support. Others of you participate on a Working Group by Working Group basis, and we appreciate that commitment of time and energy as well. In every case, it’s your ideas and efforts that move the needle. Each eBusiness message implemented, each ADAPT enhancement committed to GitHub, each business problem brought forward to be solved happens because you find value in business efficiency, interoperability, and sustainability.

Each year AgGateway recognizes a few of its individual and corporate leaders in our awards program. The AgGateway in Action awards recognize an individual or team from each region that promotes, enables, and expands digital agriculture using AgGateway resources during the year. Our Ron Storms Leadership Award recognizes an individual for exceptional volunteer leadership. Each of these awards are based on nominations made by you, the volunteers and member companies, and we receive quite a few nominations each year. You recognize that our greatest strength is the quality of volunteers putting forth ideas and effort, and we all want to see them recognized for that work.

Take some time in the next few weeks to think about those you’ve worked with who have pressed forward to solve problems with AgGateway resources. I’ve had the privilege of working with folks from Co-Alliance and Ceres Solutions to plan and execute a great Energy Meetup in Indianapolis; with WinField United to host a crop protection product data guidelines Meetup; with Syngenta as they hosted Europe’s first in-person meeting since 2020; with Topcon who helped facilitate our presence at Ag on the Mall in Washington, DC, earlier this year; and with so many more of you.

Who will you recognize as an AgGateway hard-charger this year? I look forward to seeing who you nominate!

Attention Members: Nominations for the 2022 AgGateway In Action Awards are being accepted through September 16, 2022. Please send nominations to your Regional Director via email. Nominations will be gathered for review by an executive committee, which will select recipients.