Congratulations to Adam Our Select Pride Partner
posted on Monday, October 17, 2022
“Iowa Select Farms has allowed me to grow, not only in my career but who I am as a person,” said Adam Green, a maintenance technician for Iowa Select Farms. “This company is a true joy to work for.”
Congratulations to Adam, our Select Pride Partner award recipient!
Adam started with Iowa Select Farms in February 2016. He turned in his application to the Iowa Falls office on his birthday, and he was officially hired one week later. He started in production as an animal caretaker working at Sow 113. In no time, Adam was working his way up in leadership within his farm. He became the breeding lead, followed by the Heat Check and Artificial Insemination (AI) Specialist. After working at Sow 113 for over three years, Adam was looking for a change and joined Allan Schnitker’s team at Sow 117.
“I could tell when Adam joined my team that he was well organized, could prioritize tasks and managed his time well,” said Allan. “He took every opportunity to expand his skillset on the farm. Adam was quick to find a solution when something broke and always tried to fix it without having to put in a request to maintenance.”
“When a maintenance team member was on the farm to fix something, I would follow them around and take notes on what they were doing,” laughs Adam.
So, when an opening on the maintenance team popped up, Adam said it was Allan who pushed him to apply.
“It’s tough to lose a great help on the farm, but it was clear to me Adam was fit for maintenance,” said Allan. “He has excelled over the last year and a half, and it has been fun watching him grow.”
Adam took the handyman skills he learned from his dad, both sets of grandparents and uncles on the farm, and applied them to his new job.
“I enjoy tinkering on broken things,” said Adam. “I have the mindset to work on it until it’s fixed and leave it better off than I found it.”
“Adam has been a great addition to the maintenance team. His background from having previously worked in sow farms gives him a unique perspective of the challenges farm staff face with maintenance issues,” said Brian Blumhagen, maintenance director. “He is quick to respond when issues arise and brings a real pride in everything he does.”
Today, he is responsible for 12 farms in central and northern Iowa, providing them with the repair and maintenance services they need to keep their farms operating.
One of those is Peterson sow farm, located just south of Clarion. When asked, farm manager Angel Richardson gleamed about Adam.
“He is patient and has a great attitude when visiting,” she said. “He is willing to work with and teach my team members simple solutions to feed issues or even minor welding jobs. I appreciate the help he brings.”
That easy-to-work-with attitude has gone a long way. Adam says he takes between 18 and 25 phone calls daily and tries to problem-solve over the phone if he can. His quick ability to find solutions has stood out to his peers.
Tom Daily, manager of Sow 8, says, “Adam always knows how to get us up and going again—he’s very talented when it comes to identifying the problem and bringing a solution, and we appreciate how much he helps us out.”
Travis Hermsen worked alongside Adam at Sow 113 before he was manager, and both continue to work with each other in their newer roles when maintenance is needed.
“He has an amazing work ethic and always goes above and beyond to help out when he’s at our farm,” said Travis. “He’s often the first person to arrive in the morning and can get tasks done quickly and efficiently.”
Though all of these farms and managers greatly appreciate Adam, he says he’s the one who’s grateful for them.
“I am thankful for the relationships I’ve built with many farm managers,” he said. “I appreciate the work they put in the keeping their farms running, but I also have a sense of the struggles they go through, having spent many years working in the barns.”
Adam’s supervisor, Logan Clark, is most appreciative of all.
“Adam goes above and beyond the call of duty and puts in the time to ensure to the best of his ability that jobs are being taken care of to keep the farms moving forward,” said Logan. “He is always willing to give a hand and help fellow employees and offer to help take a load off. He is also a great addition to the maintenance team in central and northern Iowa, as he spends a small percentage of his time covering part of the northern Iowa on-call schedule.”
Adam, we are so lucky to have you! 
Subscribe to our newsletter: Get fresh articles delivered straight to your inbox.
Subscribe