December 7, 2015

Carter Hought
Subject: Company Profiles for Job Search
Dear Instructor Kaser:
The two companies that I am currently profiling for my current job search are
Monsanto, and Minnesota Soybean Growers Association. Just comparing
company to company they both stand out very differently from one another.
Monsantos focus is on coming out with new genetics and chemistries to
further advance agricultural seed and chemical products.
The Minnesota Soybean Growers Association is quite different compared to
Monsanto. The Minnesota Soybean Growers Association focuses on making
soybean growers within the state of Minnesota more profitable through their
focus on research and distribution of research information to growers.
The Minnesota Soybean Growers Association is more grower focused, and
there website shows that. In comparison to Monsantos website shows that
there related to the general public, they are putting on a face to show the
public what they care about. And they are showcasing some of their products
that help third world countries making them less dependent on other
resources for food. That isnt surprising because Monsanto produces some
very controversial products that some of the public does not agree with. The
research that I have done between both companies really will help me in
writing my resume and cover letter. It will allow me to polish my skills and
write them in a way that seem most appealing to each individual company in
their own way.

Sincerely

Carter Hought
Monsanto Profile
Company Profiled: Monsanto
Position: Regional Sales Manager Southern Minnesota
Company Website: http://www.monsanto.com/pages/default.aspx
Company History: In 1901 John F. Queeny was a 42 year old purchasing
agent for the Meyer Brothers Drug Company , he had been thinking about
starting a company that would make artificial sweeteners and he founded
Monsanto, named after his wife Olga Monsanto Queeny. Monsanto didnt
enter into the agricultural world until the Mid-1940s. At the time Johns son
Edger the CEO of Monsanto had a 600 acre farm and understood the
frustrations that farmers were dealing with. Through those frustrations a
product called Santoban an insecticide to control corn borer and other
insects was developed. This product eased one of the frustrations that
farmers were dealing with at the time, and through Johns son and the
frustration of farmers Monsanto Company knew that there will always be a
need for the next big thing in agricultural products. Monsanto produced a
wide variety of successful herbicides insecticides and fertilizers in the 50s
and 60s but in 1970 Monsanto finally blew the doors off the world of
agriculture. John Franz was a chemist at Monsanto that was able to
synthesize a compound that was able to be metabolized within plants, that
compound was glyphosate and it changed the world of farming once again.
Monsanto began developing crops to that were adapted to metabolize the
glyphosate molecule with no harm with hopes to one day release crops that
were modified to be unharmed by the molecule but yet allowing the
molecule to be effective on killing all weeds both broadleaf and grasses.

Since then Monsanto has developed many products too many to talk about,
most of those products came in the bio technology and genetic alteration.
Type of Business: Monsanto is a sustainable agriculture company that
delivers agricultural products that support farmers all around the world. They
are focused on empowering farmers both large and small to produce more
from their land while conserving more of the worlds natural resources such
as water and energy. They do this with leading seed brands in crops like corn,
cotton, oilseeds and fruits and vegetables. They also produce leading in the
seed trait technologies for farmers, witch aim at protecting their yield,
supporting their on farm efficiency and reducing their on farm costs.
Company Core Values: Monsanto has very clear core values, they operate
under a genuine value system. Their pledge is to demonstrate integrity,
respect, ethical behavior, perspective and honesty as a foundation for
everything they do. A key part of fulfilling their promise is by engaging there
communities in a significant and positive manner. Not only do they work hard
to support the family farmer in a variety of ways but they also provide
extension education programs, fund numerous research grants, and work in
partnership with government bodies.
Description of Position: Regional Sales Manager for the southern 2/3 of
Minnesota. This role is also responsible for leading a sales team of 4-8
District Sales Managers directing sale efforts within the team, leading
program implementation efforts within the sales team and providing territory
analysis and recommendation for making adjustments and analysis.
Demographics: Monsanto is a Fortune 500 Company, there headquarters
are located in St. Louis Missouri. Globally they employ 21,183 employees at
404 facilities and in 66 countries. In the United States they employ 10,227
employees in 146 facilities in 33 states.
Key Players: Hugh Grant is the chairman and chief executive officer. Brett
Begemann president and chief operating officer, Pierre Courduroux Senior

Vice President. Midwest Sales manager Kirk Bronson. President of Human

resources for Midwest sales region Sandra Smith. Hiring manager for
Southern Minnesota Roger Richels, Roger will be the one who will be looking
at my application materials.
Company Hierarchy: Based on my research consisting of looking for the
people listed in my key players section on Facebook and on Twitter I had
some poor results, Roger Richels was the only person I was able to find, I
believe that my search may have been better if some of the key players at
Monsanto were younger. Roger is 28 years old, and lives in Rogers
Minnesota, his interests are the outdoors, family, his lake cabin on Big Stone
Lake, and golf. Roger seems like a laid back kind of guy, one that really
enjoys what he does and really enjoys his hobbies and spending time with
his wife Nancy and there three kids based on what I could find on his
Facebook Page.
Public vs Actual Persona: Monsanto presents a very public face, they do
their best to make themselves look as best they can in the spotlight of the
public and they do a pretty good job doing so. They are very active in the
communities that they are present in, for example Monsanto had one of the
largest donations to NDSU for the construction of their new green house.
They are also very generous in supporting youth, and do donate to youth
sports and activities. I have not visited a Monsanto facility, I have seen
firsthand some of the not so good sides of a company like Monsanto. Through
Farming I have seen on several occasions where a farmer has in some way
broken a technology contract, even if they did it in a way that was not
intentional Monsanto has always stepped in and they always prosecute the
violation to the greatest extent of the law. After seeing that I believe that
Monsanto is definitely a two faced company. They do take care of the
communities that they are present in, but they also are not afraid to show
their power if needed.

Why Do I Want the Job: I want this job because like John Queenys son
Edgar I too feel some of the frustrations of farmers because I am a farmer. I
can relate to other farmers about some of the issues of farmers are
experiencing today. And with this job I will be able to help resolve some of
those issues by helping my customers by showing them the new genetics,
crop protection products, and chemicals that Monsanto has to offer. With my
experience as a grower myself I feel that I can make a good connection to
the end customer and they will feel like they can trust me since I am too
using the same products on my farm.

MSGA Profile
Company Profiled: Minnesota Soybean Growers Association
Position: Director of Product Research
Company Website: https://mnsoybean.org/msga/
Company History: Established by soybean farmers in 1962, the Minnesota
Soybean Growers Association (MSGA) is a non-profit, farmer-controlled
membership organization aimed at monitoring government policies,
supporting research activities and market development activities to improve
the profitability of soybean farmers throughout the state.

Type of Business: The Minnesota Soybean Growers Association (MSGA)

monitors government policies, supports research activities and market
development activities to improve the profitability of soybean farmers
throughout Minnesota. Growing soybeans is one part of an overall soybean
system that includes seed companies, transporters, processors, marketers
and many others. The MSGA recognizes this and sometimes joins with
corporate partners to work together on issues of mutual concern. Working
with experts in the industry helps connect Minnesota farmers with the many
other available resources.
Core Values: The Minnesota Soybean Growers Association has a simple set
of core values. The association is there to help lead Minnesota soybean
farmers to speak out on behalf of farming and to protect the lifestyle that
they love. They empower growers to be advocates for agriculture and help
farmers in policy discussions in St. Paul and in Washington D.C. The
association looks to help farmers who believe in a greater cause and take the
direction of their fellow farmers to make a difference in the world today.
Description of Position: Director of Product Research overseas a strategic
soybean research team and provide educational effort to improve Minnesota
Soybean farmers Profitability by conducting field and on farm research along
with working with Universities around the state.
Demographics: There only Corporate office is located in Mankato MN.
Research will be conducted through the state of Minnesota at different
Universities and on some of the Associations Members farms.
Key Players: The President of the Association is Paul Freeman, Paul was
formerly head of research along with being president. I would key in on Paul
since he was part of the research team he could have some insight on what
skills the job will require. Theresia Gillie is the Vice President of the MNSBGA.
Bill Gordon is the National Director and will be helping the research team in
advocating problems in St. Paul and in Washington D.C. Lance Peterson is the

Ottertail County Representative, I have been in contact with Lance and he

has provided some key insight about the Association. I was unable to find
who exactly would be handling my application materials.
Company Hierarchy: Doing some research on Facebook and twitter on my
list of key players showed no results. But doing some research on the
MNSBGA website shows a friendly face of all board members, they
emphasize on being family oriented because most of the farms they help
serve are family farms. I attended one of the Associations Growers meetings
in the end of October and their meeting reflected there very family
orientated way of doing business. The way the meeting was conducted
showed that they really care about the future of the family farm in Minnesota
and they want to keep farming a vital part of Minnesotas economy.
Public vs Actual Persona: The Minnesota Soybean Growers Association
shows a very friendly family oriented persona. Through the meeting I
attended and some of the board members that I have spoken to this persona
holds true. They do not put on a fake face for the public, the way that they
act is the way that they truly are.
Why Do I Want the Job: I want this job because I care about the future of
the family farm. It is my dream to help family farms by conducting research
that will provide valuable information to make all Minnesota soybean growers
profitable year in and out. I can relate to some of the struggles that a family
farm faces, through the research of the Association will help grow the family
farm and the Minnesota farming economy.