Ag Lending Veteran Shawn Smeins is New Head of Rabo AgriFinance
Rabo AgriFinance has promoted Shawn Smeins to head the business. Throughout his 25+ year tenure, Smeins has shown a commitment to growing Rabo AgriFinance’s ability to meet the ag industry’s evolving financial needs through client-focused solutions, innovative products and services, and long-term business relationships, a release from the company says.
Part of the global Rabobank Group, Rabo AgriFinance is a financial services provider for farms and ranches in the U.S. In his new role, as leader of Rabo AgriFinance, Smeins is the Head of Rural Banking, North America, for Rabobank. He is also a member of the Rabobank North America Executive Team, which oversees the business and operations of all Rabobank subsidies and business units operating in the region, including Rabo AgriFinance, Rabobank Wholesale Banking North America and DLL equipment finance, the release says.
“Rabobank leads the world in financing its critical food and ag production, and there is a lot of potential for the entire value chain in North America – from seed and farm equipment to packaged foods and foodservice – to benefit from our global expertise and knowledge,” says Paul Beiboer, CEO, North America for Rabobank, in the release. “Shawn takes a client-focused approach to the business, which will undoubtedly help all our teams continue to deliver unrivaled value to ag producers and reach our growth goals.”
Smeins has been with Rabo AgriFinance and a legacy company – Ag Services of America in Cedar Falls, Iowa – for 27 years. He’s held roles in operations, risk and business development. Smeins has served as interim Head of Rabo AgriFinance since August following the departure of previous Head, Curt Hudnutt. For the past 18 months as Deputy Head, Smeins has overseen the lending teams nationwide and overseen the business’s multi-year technology transformation, which creates a more streamlined experience for clients.
Snider Selected to Serve as okPORK Interim Executive Director
The Oklahoma Pork Council has selected Nikki Snider to serve as its interim executive director, effective Dec. 23, while the Board of Directors pursues a permanent replacement, according to a release from the council. The Board of Directors has formed a search committee to identify the next leader of the organization.
Snider will step in for former Executive Director Roy Lee Lindsey who has accepted a position as the CEO of the North Carolina Pork Council.
“I am humbled to continue serving Oklahoma pig farmers as interim director at okPORK,” Snider says in the release. “I am excited to use my 16 years of experience at okPORK to keep our organization moving forward. The staff and I are committed to serving the industry daily and our goals and objectives have not changed.”
Snider, is the current director of marketing and communications for the Oklahoma Pork Council, and has many years of experience telling the stories of Oklahoma’s pork producers, as she worked for okPORK since 2003 in the roles of marketing and promotions, communications and also as a contractor while she took time to focus on the role of mom.
“Nikki is no stranger to Oklahoma pork producers,” said Dottie King, okPORK board president, in the release. “Her years of experience and knowledge of our operations, goals and objectives at the Oklahoma Pork Council made her an easy choice while we search for a new leader. We are thankful for the time and effort Roy Lee Lindsey has put in to growing our organization, and we wish him nothing but the best in his new adventure.”
