Why did you choose FCS Financial?
Having grown up on a small century dairy farm in Lafayette County and obtaining a B.S. in Agricultural Economics and MA in Economics from the University of Central Missouri, I felt that FCS Financial was a good fit for me since I was able to combine both my business and agricultural knowledge.
What do you enjoy about your work?
I truly enjoy the diversity and challenges that I face as a loan officer each day. It’s rewarding to see your customers develop and prosper. At FCS Financial, each loan officer manages his/her portfolio and consequently there is a lot of responsibility put into the loan officer’s hands. I enjoy production agriculture and spending time with customers who are the best in the world at what they do. At FCS Financial, there are plenty of opportunities to climb the corporate ladder but at the same time we don’t have layers and layers of middle management. I take great pleasure in managing a successful loan portfolio and subsequently I feel that FCS Financial values the efforts of its employees.
What would you say about FCS Financial?
As a cooperative, FCS Financial is geared towards satisfying the needs of our customer borrowers. We take great pride in being the premier agricultural lender. We simply could not provide the impeccable service without all employees working together as a team. I truly believe that FCS Financial has some of the most talented individuals in the agricultural lending business. The level of tenure and experience in our organization is truly impressive.
What do you like to do outside of work?
As a loan officer with a passion for rural America, I can easily relate to my customers because of my current experience with farming. I enjoy working on my 80 acre hobby farm growing corn, soybeans, and alfalfa. Like many of the employees, I enjoy spending time outdoors as much as possible whether I’m deer hunting, attending football games, working on my farm, or attending events such as the Missouri State Fair or Farm Progress Show.
What has been the most amazing experience or day you’ve had at FCS Financial thus far?
It’s very rewarding to see your customer’s operations grow and prosper and to know that you were a part of the process. On several occasions, I have received written “thank you” notes from my customers simply thanking me for doing a job well done.
What has been your career path since beginning with FCS Financial?
As with many industries, consolidation within the industry continues to unfold and agriculture continues to see its fair share. As agriculture continues to consolidate, lenders have had to adapt as well. When I started in June 2002 at our central office in Jefferson City, FCS Financial had just undergone a merger between Farm Credit of Eastern Missouri and Farm Credit of Western Missouri. The newly formed organization was known as Farm Credit of Missouri. I started off as a Financial Services Officer and traveled to different offices throughout the state. I was privileged to be able to work with many tenured loan staff and consequently I gained valuable information in a very short amount of time. In late 2002, I had the opportunity of becoming a loan officer in Hannibal, MO as vacancies opened up. Since that time, Farm Credit of Missouri has become FCS Financial in order to appeal to an ever changing market place. As I have successfully managed an extensive portfolio and gathered additional experience, I have progressed from a Financial Services Officer to Assistant Vice President to the current role of Vice President. The one thing that has not changed is my commitment to FCS Financial and equally important my commitment to the customer.
