Congratulations to Nikki Farrell for 15 Years With Iowa Select Farms
posted on Thursday, April 9, 2020
Congratulations (and happy belated birthday!) to Nikki Farrell for celebrating 15 years with Iowa Select Farms!
After graduating from Buena Vista University with degrees in accounting and business, Nikki interviewed for a job with the accounting department at Iowa Select Farms on her birthday. Although she didn’t get the accounting position, the company knew she would be a tremendous asset and called her that same day with an offer to join the feed team. She’s been a reliable resource at our feed desk ever since.
As a feed logistics coordinator, Nikki is responsible for processing feed orders, coordinating schedules and communicating with feed mills and farms throughout the day. Last year, she and her team processed 114,315 orders and the movement of 2,341,682 tons between 16 different feed mills to 798 farms.
While the past four years alone have brought about a significant amount of changes and growth to Nikki’s team (in 2015 they “only” processed 76,000 orders), she says the biggest change over the years was in 2012 when they implemented an electronic ordering system.
“We used to work most weekends simply because we couldn’t keep up with all of the orders coming in,” she said. “We would fill the printer with 300 sheets of paper on Friday afternoon and by Monday morning it would be empty.
Now, Nikki and her team communicate with farm managers and supervisors via calls, texts and e-mails. Working with so many different people is what Nikki enjoys most about her job.
“Even though we don’t see them face to face, we play an important role for all of our farms,” said Nikki. “There are some managers I’ve known for 15 years now but have never actually met. We’ve developed friendships, know about their families and hobbies. We get to work with every department of the company.”
Outside of work, Nikki enjoys spending time with her boyfriend Travis and his three children, Hailey, Hallie and Hayden. They frequently have get-togethers at their home in Eldora with Nikki’s large family which consists of her parents, 2 older sisters, 2 younger brothers, 4 nieces, 13 nephews and 2 great-nephews.
According to Nikki, the past 15 years have been extremely enjoyable and she doesn’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon.
“We’ve grown so much as a company since I’ve been here, but no matter how large we become, I always feel like my opinions are heard,” she said. “Changes I suggested have been implemented and, you know, it’s nice to feel important. Deb and Jeff make sure every employee feels like they’re appreciated and I’ve never lost that feeling in fifteen years.”
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