Respect, Honesty, Integrity And Work Ethic: The Values That Drew Adam Sperfslage To Agri-Access

When the opportunity to work full time for Agri-Access first came around, Adam Sperfslage initially passed. He’d loved his internship with them when he was in college, but wasn’t sure it was the right time to move jobs. A few months later, though, the opportunity came back around. And Adam decided that this time, he’d jump on it.

“I hit the ground running,” he says, “and I’ve been so happy ever since.” He’s now the Agri-Access Business Solutions Specialist working out of Des Moines, Iowa.

Guided By Values Learned Early In Life

Growing up on a small family farm raising pigs then cattle, Adam came to deeply value the work ethic and integrity that farm chores, 4-H, FFA and other youth organizations instilled in him.

In his career, those values learned in childhood have helped guide his moves. At Agri-Access and in the agriculture finance community he’s seen those values demonstrated time and again. “Respect, honesty, integrity, work ethic … they just seem to resonate with a lot of people” in this industry, he explains. “People are passionate about what they do.”

Adapting And Growing

Since starting full-time at Agri-Access, his role has continually evolved. Originally hired in lender relations, his strengths in data analysis and process enhancement have led him to take on a major role in some of Agri-Access’ biggest initiatives. From developing an ecommerce platform for offering financing in the digital marketplace to the renovation of the Agri-Access lender portal, Adam’s found himself researching and implementing solutions for an incredible range of challenges.

As complex as his projects may get, his drive comes from something exceedingly simple. “My favorite part about our job is helping people,” he explains, “providing (Agri-Access personnel) tools to make their job easier, and making our clients’ lives easier as well.”

Oftentimes his work involves digging into complex data. Surprisingly, Adam didn’t really come to the role envisioning a high degree of analytical work. “That’s something that kind of threw me for a loop,” he laughed, “but it really clicked for me.”

Being A Part Of Something Bigger

A fan of travel, Adam reflects fondly on the opportunities he’s had to visit some of the many different commodities Agri-Access works with. He remembers one jaw-dropping Idaho operation in particular — a 10,000-head dairy operation that supplied all the milk to a major national yogurt brand.

“Here in Northeast Iowa we have a lot of dairies, but none that are 10,000-head. It was massive, and impressive to see all the coordination and different technologies. That was jaw-dropping. This is huge, and we’re a part of it.”

This amazement is coming from a part-time farmer himself, albeit on a much smaller scale. He still joins his parents on their farm throughout the year to help with planting, harvest and more. You can hear the smile in his voice when he explains, “It’s a little bit of a hobby or vacation getaway for me.” Not a surprising sentiment for a man with his values, and who has found such meaning in working with the agricultural community through Agri-Access.