Some leaders are transformational. Others are strategic. Some are more traditional. Or at least that’s what the books say. National Pork Producers Council’s new CEO Bryan Humphreys admits he doesn’t fit under any of those categories of leaders. If he were to wrap up his approach to leadership, he’d call it innovative.
“I want to lead a team and an organization that is constantly looking at ways to improve things – the same way that our industry and producers do,” Humphreys says. “Some of that’s going to be transformational, some of that’s going to be strategic, some of that’s going to be traditional. But the best way I can wrap it up is that it will be innovative.”
Innovative leadership requires looking at the challenges ahead as opportunities that we can grow and improve through, he says. Pork producers are constantly faced with challenges that can be seen as opportunities to do something different, to look at a problem differently than you have before. It might be easier to just throw up their arms and walk away sometimes, but they don’t.
“Innovation is not always going to be pleasant, rarely is it going to be easy,” Humphreys adds. “But if it was going to be easy, somebody would have done it already.”
Every time there’s a challenge, producers could throw up their arms about it and walk away from the business, but they don’t, he says. Instead, they look at new ways to tackle issues.
“I continue to aspire to be more innovative,” Humphreys says. “I don’t know that I’m there, but that’s my goal.”
Pigs and Political Science
For this Iowa born-and-raised leader, growing up on a hog and crop farm in Columbus Junction provided him with a strong foundation as he went off to Iowa State University to pursue a college education. He started off in computer science and quickly realized that he could not stand to be in a computer lab all day so he switched his degree to political science.
For the next few years, he worked on political campaigns and says he thoroughly loved it.
“They were a rush of adrenaline – fast paced and a lot of fun things happening,” he says. “But after 2008, I struggled a bit with a defeat and wanted to go do something different for a while.”
NPPC was looking for a director of grassroots operations – a perfect combination for his two passions of political science and the pork industry. He ended up staying for just over five years before accepting the executive director position at Ohio Pork Council. In 2020, he and his family had the opportunity to return to Iowa when he was offered a position at the National Pork Board as the vice president producer and state engagement.
Once he found his way back into the pork industry, he says there was nowhere else he would rather be.
“The folks in the pork industry are quietly optimistic but always pining for the future, too. It’s not just about the fires of today, but also what’s coming long-term. When you put that together with the political side of things that I enjoy, the agriculture component which I love it, it all just fits,” Humphreys says.
A New Direction
Former CEO Neil Dierks has served as a friend and mentor to Humphreys over the years. In fact, one could say Dierks has had a sizeable impact on Humphrey’s life and professional career.
“It’s been stated often that I have big shoes to fill, and there’s no doubt about that. He’s been a tremendous ally and asset to the industry for years,” Humphreys says. “But I also explained to the board, if they’re looking for Neil Dierks 2.0, I’m not their guy. I’m going to go a different direction.”
Dierks had a strong track record during his nearly three-decade long career with NPPC, but Humphreys’ vision includes a slightly new path for the organization as it moves forward in how to represent producer dollars.
“It’s important to remember your history and traditions,” Humphreys says. “Neil was here to create most of those moments. In no way, are we losing any of that. But that doesn’t mean we have to remain the same in every aspect either. Nor would Neil want us to. He’d want us to change, adapt and grow.”
One of his major goals is to help shift the mentality at NPPC from acting collaboratively to thinking collaboratively.
“There’s a distinct difference there. The U.S. pork industry, while phenomenal in many ways, is not big enough to change the outcome of everything that impacts the industry by itself. We have to recognize the need to work collaboratively with other ag groups, companies, states, whoever’s out there that is willing to work with us,” Humphreys says.
He wants to build a culture at NPPC that thinks collaboratively and brings more people together on behalf of all of agriculture.
“Neil was well-known for having the ability to ‘see around corners and look long-term,’” Humphreys says. “We need to have more of that within this organization, and within the industry as a whole. What are the challenges coming at us? How do we start listening more actively to all the aspects that impact our industry? How do we build collaboration and coalitions with others as we work to advance the interests of the U.S. pork industry?”
Year One Underway
One of NPPC’s greatest challenges during his first year of leadership is also one of the organization’s greatest opportunities, Humphreys says.
The pork industry has many unique traditions. He believes this history is important to remember as the organization moves ahead.
“It’s about remembering that history and the tradition of who we are as an organization while balancing that with adaptations we need to make to the challenges coming at us. That’s a real challenge because it’s not just a single issue,” Humphreys says.
But it’s easy to think about these challenges singularly, he points out, whether it’s international trade disruption or African swine fever prevention. While these are all important issues that the industry must navigate, Humphreys says his goal is to build a team that fully appreciates the history but is able to adapt and navigate to make needed changes moving forward.
Public policy on the federal level will remain a challenge this year, Humphreys says. Fighting for reasonable legislation and public policy remains an important pillar at NPPC. He says there are three main areas his team is focused on under this umbrella: federal and international, state and corporate policy.
“If there’s anything constant about the U.S. pork industry, it’s that it continually changes and there’s always a challenge somewhere out there. And the question is, are we proactively responding? Are we proactively getting ahead of those issues or are we quickly responding to them? One of the goals here at NPPC as we move forward is becoming more proactive in those efforts as opposed to quicker responses.”
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