Celebrating a Productive Six Months

From The President

Celebrating a Productive Six Months

By Brent Kemp, AgGateway President and CEO

The first half of this year felt like everything moved at 100 miles per hour – maybe faster. So fast in fact that we closed out some working groups at the June Mid-Year Meeting in Iowa, USA. The pace of completion left Jeremy, Ben, and I to wonder what else was left in the pipeline. We shouldn’t have worried – you all came up with at least five ideas for new work.

Meanwhile, conversations at the Europe Mid-Year may result in additional work. And LATAM is spinning up a climate data working group. The AgGateway working group model is going strong.

I’ve also participated in conversations with prospective members in new segments where resources like AGIIS, ADAPT, Modus, Mix Ticket, and others are being viewed as valuable assets to adopt. It’s a testament to the work you’ve already done that others are looking to it to help their own businesses build efficient and effective communications among their trading networks.

New use cases for existing tools will assuredly mean requests for modifications and tweaks. As such requests come through, be on the lookout for communications about new working groups or standards reviews. These are great opportunities to engage new volunteers as well! Fresh eyes on our resources and the way we work will not only improve AgGateway’s operations, but also offer chances for your team members to build networks, industry awareness, and technical insights they might not otherwise.

One other way of making sure your company continues to see value from your investment in AgGateway is to let us know when primary and other important contacts are moving on or shifting responsibilities. We’re an industry where it’s not unusual for employees to stay more than 20 years in a company, but we know that jobs change and work roles evolve. Our regional directors and I are very eager to meet with you and your personnel as those changes happen to make sure that the connections you’ve worked so hard to build remain strong. Drop a line directly or to Member Services if you’d like a virtual or in-person meeting. And don’t be surprised if you hear directly from one of us.

This time after the Mid-Year Meeting is a chance to take a short breather and reflect on how far we’ve come this year. The second half of 2023 will be just as busy and just as focused on developing and implementing the resources and relationships you need to optimize and gain new insights into your operations. I look forward to talking with you as we launch new working groups and help you identify what’s next for industry interoperability.

Whether it is traceability, climate data, or that adjacent segment that you need to trade with, your investment in AgGateway will pay dividends. Let me know what you’re thinking about so we can respond to your needs!