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Our Leadership

At Innovative Ag Services, our leadership team consists of a highly qualified staff of Vice Presidents who direct and manage each business unit and are led by our Chief Executive Officer. Our leadership team supports all employees in fulfilling our purpose statement of Growing Relationships to Maximize Success^®.

	Rick Vaughan Chief Executive Officer Rick began his career with Innovative Ag Services in February 1995. He has a total of 35 years of experience in the Ag Business field. As Chief Executive Officer, Rick oversees all activities of Innovative Ag Services. Throughout the years, Rick has held several positions within the industry. He started his career at Mid-Iowa Coop as a Location Manager and Director of Planning and Development. Rick moved onto the Avon Grain Company where he served as Controller and CEO. He then progressed his career to become an Assistant Manager at Heartland Coop before he joined Prairie Land Cooperative as the General Manager. Rick holds a BS degree in Ag Business from Iowa State University. He has served and continues to serve on the board of directors for multiple organizations including Agricultural Cooperative Employment Services and Associated Benefits Corporation.

	Brenda Hoefler Chief Financial Officer Brenda began her career with Innovative Ag Services in December 2008 and has a total of 25 years of experience in Accounting. Brenda is responsible for the financial operations, including audit, tax, treasury and information technology. She also oversees the risk management policies and insurance procurement. Prior to joining the company, Brenda was Chief Financial Officer for Cottingham & Butler, Inc., an insurance brokerage and health, property, and casualty insurance third party administrator. Previously, she held a series of increasingly responsible positions at Barnstead International. Her final position with Barnstead International was as Vice President of Finance and Business Development. Brenda holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from the University of Northern Iowa and is a certified public accountant.


	Tim Krausman Vice President of Agronomy Tim began his career with Innovative Ag Services in October 2002 and has a total of 18 years of experience in the Agronomy business. Tim’s responsibilities include the procurement of fertilizer, chemical and seed as well as the oversight of the sales and P&L management for the agronomy department. Tim has held various positions of increasing responsibility in the industry including seed specialist, seed manager and most recently agronomy department manager. Tim received his Ag Business Degree from Iowa State University.

	Mike Duncomb Vice President of Feed Mike began his career with Innovative Ag Services in November 1996 and has a total of 30 years of experience in Sales and Marketing. Mike is responsible for sales & P&L management of the feed department. He manages his team to add value to the products and services sold to our member customers. Prior to joining the company, Mike was an Agricultural Instructor at St. Ansgar Community Schools and a Feed Account Manager for Land O’Lakes in southeast Iowa. Mike began his career with the company managing the feed department and in 2001 assumed responsibilities of the Agronomy Department. Since 2012 Mike has been the V.P. of Feed. Mike graduated with distinction from Iowa State University with a degree in Agricultural Education. He is active in the Agribusiness Association of Iowa where he has been a past president along with local community service organizations.

	Randy Swenson Vice President of Energy Randy began his career with Innovative Ag Services in April 1993 and has a total of 30 years of experience in the Energy business. Randy is responsible for the marketing, procurement, risk management and P&L of all petroleum and service products. Other responsibilities include, dispatching of transport loads, managing all service personnel, overseeing delivery routes and managing inventory. Prior to joining IAS, Randy managed his family’s Osceola, IA cattle and grain farm. He then became a service technician and LP delivery man for Thermogas Companies where he developed his career to Location Manager. In 1993, Randy was hired by a representative of the Hubbard Farmers’ Cooperative to start a propane business. That business continues to thrive today under Innovative Ag Services. Randy graduated from Radcliffe Community School.

	Brian Kramer Vice President of Operations Brian began his career with Innovative Ag Services in November 1993 and has a total of 27 years of experience in Ag Business. Brian is responsible for the operations and facilities at our thirty-five locations, as well as overseeing all new project construction. He began his career with the company as a custom applicator where he later moved into an entry level management position before becoming the Location Manager at Farley. He left the company for a few years to operate a dairy farm with his family, but returned as the Location Manager of Monticello. He continued to increase his responsibilities as he became Regional Operations Manager and then Vice President of Operations. Brian received his Agriculture Business Degree from Kirkwood Community College where he continues to serve on their Ag Advisory Board.

	Carla Elliott Vice President of Human Resources Carla began her career with Innovative Ag Services in April 2012 and has a total of 20 years of experience in Human Resources. Carla is responsible for recruitment, workers compensation, benefits administration, employee labor relations, HR legal compliance, marketing communications, payroll, and training & development. Prior to joining the company, Carla has served in positions with increasing responsibility in a variety of industries. She has worked for companies such as Parker Hannifin Corporation Fluid Connectors Division as a HR Administrator, Hupp Electric Motors, Inc. as HR Manager and prior to coming on board with IAS she was serving in the role of Director of Human Resources for J&P Cycles, Inc. a worldwide supplier of aftermarket motorcycle parts. Carla attended Kirkwood Community College prior to graduating Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Human Resource Management from Kaplan University.

	Kevin Babcock Vice President of Innovative Building Supply Kevin began his career with IAS in April 1997. Kevin has a total of 29 years of experience in the lumber business. Kevin oversees the operations of the lumber division that supplies general contractors and do it yourselfers. Prior to joining IAS, Kevin worked for area farmers, Green Products in Conrad, Buckeye Coop, and Wolf Creek Distributors, Inc. in Eldora. Kevin spent his time at Wolf Creek Distributors Inc. working his way up to the position of manager of the woodworking production shop and was involved with distribution sales. Kevin graduated from Wellsburg Community School. IAS is proud to have Kevin Babcock on our team.

Board of Directors

Innovative Ag Services is proud to be a member-owned cooperative governed by the very people that use our products and services every day. Our management team is governed by our Board of Directors who are elected by our members for three year terms. The Board of Director’s mission is to advise and assist Innovative Ag Service’s CEO in providing our members with the products and services that will best ensure long range profitability to those members.

Name	Title	City
Randy Blake	President	Bellevue, Iowa
Paul Cook	1st Vice Chairman	Hubbard, Iowa
Steve Perry	2nd Vice Chairman	New Providence, Iowa
Loren Manternach	Secretary	Cascade, Iowa
Tim Burrack	Director	Arlington, Iowa
LeAllan Buerger	Director	Monona, Iowa
Joe Thraenert	Director	Elma, Iowa
Adam Hill	Director	Ellsworth, Iowa
Stan Norman	Director	New Providence, Iowa