agricorps alumGuest Blogger: Kenny Quick – Business Strategist, Cargill & Returend AgriCorps Fellow from Chandigarh Area, India

 

Grit – of the business buzzwords, it ranks supreme.  It exemplifies qualities that make the difference when it comes to getting the job done, no matter what.

 

How do we find employees that have grit, that will push through difficult times and not lose focus or passion for the tasks that lay ahead? The go-to answer has been to ask behavioral questions regarding grit. The better solution is to recruit candidates where the experiences on their CV can be taken at face value to be synonymous with the coveted quality. Key among these: international development work.


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Published on November 22nd, 2016

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discrimination in the workplaceGuest Blogger: Paul Lander, Farms.com
 

Despite decades of progress towards worker rights and protections, discrimination continues to be an issue in many workplaces across the country. To deal with discrimination in the workplace, we first need to understand what it means, who it affects, and what can be done about it.

 

What is Workplace Discrimination?

 

Typically, in the United States, discrimination in the workplace refers to actions and decisions that negatively affect individuals or groups of people for reasons such as race, sex, pregnancy, religion, national origin, disability (physical or mental, including HIV status), age (for workers over 40), military service or affiliation, bankruptcy or bad debts, genetic information, and citizenship status (for citizens, permanent residents, temporary residents, refugees, and asylees).


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Published on November 15th, 2016

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hiring a veteranIn honor of Veterans’ Day, and Remembrance Day, AgCareers.com is pleased to share the results of the “Veterans & Military Professionals in the Agricultural Workplace” survey conducted this past summer. AgCareers.com has been a longtime advocate for the employment of military veterans in agriculture, taking on the Ag Warriors program from the International Agri-Center in 2012 and partnering with more than 20 employers who have made a commitment to actively hire military veterans.

 

Veterans are very receptive to working in agriculture. Our survey found that 57% of military respondents said that veterans are widely accepted and welcomed into the agricultural industry. The top five agricultural industry sectors preferred most by veterans are:

 

1. Crop Production

2. Animal Production

3. Plant and Soil Sciences, Seed, and Biotechnology

4. Education and Extension

5. Animal Health / Equipment, Manufacturing and Technical (tied for a fifth place ranking)

 

Additionally, 47% of veterans felt that agriculture was a more viable career path for military professionals returning to the workplace as opposed to other industries. The top two reasons cited for this were outdoor/field work and work that correlates with the military experience.


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Published on November 11th, 2016

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IMG_3624Kristine Penning is AgCareers.com’s Creative Marketing Specialist. She will have been with the company for three years in January of 2017 and works from the Ames, Iowa office.

 

What do you do on a day-to-day basis?

 

I have a unique job where I get to do a lot of different things daily. Primarily, I do graphic design for AgCareers.com, so this includes handouts and flyers, brochures, mailers, e-blasts, reports, infographics, social media graphics, basically anything the team needs that involves anything graphical. I also handle a share of social media tasks like creating content and posting the jobs that you see on our social media. And I get to do some video production and a variety of writing on the blogs, the newsletter, through the Career Guide, and creating surveys.

 

What do you enjoy about working here?

 

I love my job. I appreciate that my job is not just one sector of agriculture, but is all-encompassing of the industry. I feel so fortunate to come to work every day and get to do what I love for the industry that I love. I also love creating. And I feel genuine doing so. I grew up on a farm, and my husband and I farm, so coming from this industry and getting to support it through my daily work is and has always been my dream. All my passions fit into one job, which I think is pretty rare to find in a career.


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Published on November 4th, 2016

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