Congratulations to our most recent SelectPride Partner, Carland!
posted on Tuesday, February 2, 2021
“Carland is the standard of having a positive attitude at work,” said Finishing Supervisor, Chawn. “No matter what crazy technology issue I am having, he is always in a better mood than I am about fixing it. His positive personality through challenging times is about as contagious as COVID.”
Congratulations to our most recent SelectPride Partner, Carland! For nearly twenty years now, Carland has been helping farms communicate efficiently and effectively. From the days of landlines and fax machines to, Internet, automated alarms and 4G phones, just as technologies in live animal production have evolved, so have the technologies that help our farms stay online.
A native of Parkersburg, Carland worked several jobs in the technology field before getting his associates degree in Electronic Engineering Technology. He refers to himself as a self-proclaimed “gadget geek” and enjoys tinkering with electronics to get them functional.
In his role as Low Voltage Field Technician, Carland supports 265 farms across the state with installation, routine maintenance and emergency support. He received several nominations for the SelectPride Partner award.
“Even in the middle of the night, Carland answers our phone calls and takes the time to walk us through things step-by-step without making us feel dumb,” chuckled Mary, Sow 23 Farm Manager. “It’s comforting to know we have someone like him on our team to help with alarms when we need it.”
Sow 27 Farm Manager, Dana, echoed Mary’s thoughts.
“We nominated Carland for this award because he goes above and beyond when it comes to people, alarms and answering our questions,” she said. “He’s always in a positive mood and is always available. Whether it’s answering a call at 2AM to stop alarms or spending time training employees on-farm, Carland does whatever he can to make things easier for us.”
In addition to doing routine maintenance at all of the farms in his territory like replacing alarm batteries and ensuring functionality of controller alarms, Carland is responsible for managing tickets that farm managers and supervisors submit for work requests. From computers, phones, alarms, internet and network access, Carland helps ensure the functionality of technology that ties to essential functions like feeding, barn temperature and alarms.
“Carland is always showing concern for alarm system functionality and how it affects our animals,” said Sow 35 Farm Manager, Dustin. “He will go out of his way to proactively check alarm settings to make sure they’re correct and ensure optimal production of the system.”
Outside of work, Carland is equally as passionate about helping others. He is active in the Parkersburg Sons of the American Legion, which is an opportunity to honor his Dad, a Korean War Veteran. He is also involved in an amateur radio club that does storm spotting in Butler, Grundy, Tama and Marshall counties—a club that formed after the devastating Parkersburg tornado in 2008.
“I remember watching the tornado develop and trying to let as many people know as possible,” he recalled. “Since then, we’ve been committed to working together to keep our communities safe. That’s kind of how I look at my job at Iowa Select Farms. I enjoy helping others and doing whatever I can for them to make their lives easier.”
Congratulations to Carland on this much deserved SelectPride Partner award—a peer nominated program at Iowa Select Farms to recognize employees going above and beyond the duties of their jobs.
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