AgGateway Recognizes Leaders


Randy Fry (left) presents Joe Tevis with Ron Storms Leadership Award

Recognition

AgGateway Recognizes Leaders; Joe Tevis Receives Top Leadership Award

By Susan Ruland, AgGateway Communications Director

At the annual conference last month, AgGateway honored exemplary individuals and companies that are advancing the organization’s mission to enable the industry’s transition to digital agriculture. The honorees have all made substantial contributions that are enabling the industry to better access accurate information in order to maximize efficiency and productivity.

Joe Tevis, President of VIS Consulting, received AgGateway’s Ron Storms Leadership Award, the organization's top honor. The award recognizes repeated, outstanding efforts by an AgGateway volunteer member in promoting collaboration among AgGateway teams and advancing initiatives in digital agriculture. In presenting the award, former Ron Storms recipient Randy Fry of Ceres Solutions described Tevis as someone who has had an enormous impact on AgGateway success, and “one of our most passionate advocates when it comes to international agricultural standards.” He added that, “Joe has worked tirelessly to bridge the gap between equipment manufacturers and the broader farm management world.”

Tevis has been active in various phases of AgGateway’s ground-breaking, precision agriculture SPADE Project, and was instrumental in setting up a grain traceability proof-of-concept last year. Tevis now leads AgGateway’s new Traceability Working Group, which Fry described as “one of the most far-reaching and exciting activities at AgGateway today.”

“Joe believes deeply in the AgGateway mission, and represents the direction that AgGateway needs to go. He thinks and acts on a global level that cuts across specific sectors, and moves the entire industry forward,” Fry said.

AgGateway also presented its annual AgGateway in Action Awards at the conference. Recipients are chosen by the leadership within the various council segments that comprise the organization, recognizing individuals who have moved connectivity efforts forward in the current year. The 2018 winners include Ann Vande Lune of Key Cooperative, presented by the Ag Retail Council; Eileen Licitra, presented by the Allied Providers Council; Lori Edwards of Syngenta, the Crop Protection Council; Phil Kubesh of VitaPlus, the Grain & Feed Council; Nathan Stein of senseFly, the Precision Agriculture Council; and Greg Erler of Monsanto, presented by the Seed Council.

WinField United was recognized by the Operational Board with an AgGateway in Action Award for making significant contributions in 2018 toward advancing digital agriculture. The company was praised for providing leadership and preparing materials for the successful “Quick Connect” session in June, which facilitated additional electronic connections between trading partners. The company has been heavily involved in the Seed Council, including support for a value calculator that helps communicate the return on investment of going digital. Winfield United has itself served for a model in digital agriculture, implementing a variety of electronic transactions in their business.

In addition, President & CEO Wendy Smith gave the 2018 President’s Award to Natasha Lilly, Information Services Director at Effingham Equity. Smith described Lilly as “a master at encouraging others to engage to move the ball forward,” and instrumental in success of such AgGateway projects as the Case Study series and Quick Connect sessions. “She has been a soldier in the efforts to increase awareness, interest and ultimately engagement, which all have a direct impact on companies making connections.”