Clint Schwab, president of Acuity Genetics, will be the first to point out the pedigree of swine industry leaders who have mentored him in his career. It’s something he doesn’t take for granted in his role leading one of the newest swine genetics companies in the country.
“I’m lucky to have had access to a lot of great people,” Schwab says. “It started at Iowa State where Tom Baas and Maynard Hogberg pushed me in ways that challenged me as a master’s and PhD student. Then I went to work for the National Swine Registry where Darrell Anderson mentored me in the next chapter of my career and exposed me to some really forward-thinking purebred breeders that shaped a lot of how I think about things today.”
He says purebred swine legends like Everett Forkner, Bill Temple, Mike Lemmon and Max Waldo who had “been there and done that” impacted his perspective. Although he says he doesn’t think about everything the same way they do, there’s tidbits from each of those purebred breeders in how he thinks about genetic improvement today.
Currently, he credits his boss, Bradley Wolter, for shaping him in a different way that’s probably having an even greater impact now because of the foundation that was set years ago.
Schwab shares his views on leadership, business strategy, the pork industry and what he’s learned along the way.
Q. Tell me about your business.
A. Acuity is a spin-off business from The Maschhoffs’ pork production system that has evolved rapidly over the past couple of decades. Innovation has always been core to The Maschhoffs, and the genetic program was developed internally as one of the ways that we can create extra value through the pork production business. For over a decade, those genetic resources have proven themselves. They’ve been tested within the system, and the lines have had to prove their value along the way. Recently, the decision was made to offer that to the broader industry as an additional solution for others in the industry. There’s also an element of gaining broader perspective from Acuity’s customer base to help guide future improvement.
Q. What is your why?
A. We wake up every day with the intent of making the industry more vibrant and profitable. As a genetics company, what we do is largely centered around an ability to harvest value from genetic resources. It’s not a surprise that genetics essentially sets the floor and the ceiling of what you can achieve in a production system. There is a wide array of how different genetic lines create value, but the ability for a system to capitalize on the unique differences is where you can create differentiated outcomes. That can occur from the time the animal is conceived all the way through the time that it is harvested. There are many ways a production system can impact gene expression, whether it’s through a nutrition program, gilt development system, or wean-to-market management program. It all has an impact on how much of that raw genetic potential we can actually capture in the form of profitability.
Q. Describe a typical day on the job for you.
A. It’s a mix, but most of my time is spent leading people and business strategy. I strive to make sure we have a model to compete in the industry, one that is differentiated and resourced appropriately in terms of the right people in the right seats on the bus driving that strategy. But also, that capital investments are oriented towards facilitating our competitive advantage and ensuring it is felt by the customer. I make sure our system of people, pigs and technology is pulling rope in the same direction towards one common goal that makes success more likely for our customers.
Q. What opportunities exist in the industry?
A. The concerns I have for the industry create the opportunities I see. The pork industry is as volatile as it’s ever been. If we think back to 2014-2015 when we had porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) hit the industry, it reminded us of how volatile the markets can be. We’ve seen several of those swings since then. That general lack of stability is my biggest concern. Lots of things go into that, but at the end of the day, what that creates is a concern of where capital is going to go in this industry. If you’re an outside investor looking in, you’ll see how volatile this is and that it’s hard to pull out stable returns. Because of that, capital could end up somewhere else. I worry if we don’t get ahead of it and fix certain things in our industry, that our kids and the next generation will not have the same opportunities we have. Not to mention, one of every three pigs is exported, demand hasn’t increased, viruses evolve faster than what we do, and labor issues are on the rise. Any places where we can solve some of those constraints and make things better are huge opportunities.
Q. What do you enjoy most about your job?
A. At the core of my job, I get to innovate swine production. One thing I appreciate most about genetic innovation specifically is once you make the change, it’s largely permanent. Now, there’s a risk to that, too. It’s permanent change. Also, genetic change is not invasive to a production system, it happens in the background. In genetics, if you measure it and you focus on it, it will change. The inherent opportunity there is fun to me. Plus, I get to lead a team of people that are much smarter than I am, allowing me to learn every day. All of that together – the creativity, innovation and entrepreneurism – is what’s fun to me.
Q. Describe a time where you were stretched in your career.
A. The first thing Bradley Wolter did when I started here 10 years ago was give me production responsibility over a significant portfolio. Truthfully, I had no idea what I was doing. I thought, “I came here to be a geneticist. I didn’t come here to run operations.” But Bradley thought this would make me more grounded in genetics through learning the practical realities of production. I was frustrated initially but am so glad to have that experience and perspective now.
Q. How does your company help and work with its customers?
A. The most obvious is how our customers directly interact with the supply chain of Acuity. This could be through semen supply, gilt supply or implementation of genetic programs in a customer’s herd. Our team is geared toward making sure each partner gets the tools they need, when they need it, and that they are harvesting the full potential. Customers’ needs change daily – they have pressures on their business that may result in them needing to elevate a gilt order or slow it down, or they may need a slightly different product. There are also a lot of boots on the ground within the customer’s operations to try to help them achieve their goals. It’s everything from technical support to research trials to data analysis aimed at ensuring customer success. Ultimately, we’re creating and delivering genetic potential to achieve an outcome. That outcome can be slightly different for each customer, which means they may need a little different variation of the product to get there.
We believe a boar is not a boar is not a boar. For example, you may have a boar stud that has 300 boars in it that all meet a certain index threshold, but there’s still considerable variation amongst those 300 boars that can be leveraged. Some of them may have reached an index because they’re an outlier for feed efficiency. For others, it may be growth or survival. Customers may prioritize these differently, so it’s important to help customers leverage the resources that meets their objectives best. It’s not simple but creating tailored genetic solutions where needed is something we believe in and focus on.
Keep reading to learn what Schwab wishes he would have done differently in his career and where he thinks the swine genetics business is going to be in 20 years.
PORK Perspectives is a recurring column that provides business and leadership strategy tips from some of the pork industry’s finest. Opinions expressed in this column are the opinions of Clint Schwab and do not represent the opinions of Farm Journal’s PORK. Watch for future columns featuring advice and insights from more of the pork industry’s leaders.
