"From that point I decided Agriculture was something I had a real passion for" with Nick Crundall
“I suppose, if you're a city person, and I was one of those people before I came into the industry,
and I've got plenty of friends of mine who are, a lot of what they see in agriculture is a bad news story.
Every industry has its challenges. But there's as bigger opportunity, in agriculture, as any other industry that I that I've ever come across.
And it's about trying to get that message across to people in the city - that it's not all doom and gloom.
There's a very vibrant and successful industry here.
For me, agriculture punches well above its weight, it's not an industry that that gets nearly as much recognition as it should.
So you're working in something that's far bigger than yourself”
This week we are sitting down with Nick Crundall the CEO of Market Check a specialist grain marketing advisor.
Nick grew up in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs, his connection to agriculture was fairly minimal however today, he's determined to show kids just like him, the careers and opportunities in agriculture.
Initially he wanted to be a real estate agent, it was the interest in economics that saw him apply for and be accepted to Agriculture Economics at Sydney Uni before a summer internship with Meat and Livestock Australia solidified his interest and passion in Agriculture.
Since then, his career moves and interests have been well thought out, leaning on mentors, friends and the broader network to ultimately become a CEO in his mid-30's.
In this episode we chat about:
Leadership in an emerging agriculture business
Career Advice and decision making
Connecting Rural and Urban Australians
The Vast opportunities in agriculture
Building a career in agriculture in a capital city
Communication, business strategy and team dynamics
Throughout our conversation Nick reflects on his learnings that have driven him to be in the role and space he finds himself in today, and that you can develop a passion and grow a successful career in Agriculture, from any background.
A snippet from the conversation below:
“I was at the coalface and some opinions at the time, were, you know, if you don't know how to grow it, how to sell it,
you don't have that affinity with the land.
And that always kind of irked me, I suppose, and probably shook my confidence early on that I was, you know, somewhat of an imposter in an industry”
…I looked at other people who grew up on a farm, and they just so instantly knew so much more about what was going on than I did. But over time, I've actually tried to turn it into a bit of a bit of a positive a bit of a benefit in the fact that I'm a bit of an outsider when it comes to primary production. But, you know, I think I also come from things at a different angle, when you're not so emotional around the actual production of a commodity, which is a lot of the time what's being produced.
So I've tried to steer it into a bit of a positive, because I have a different perspective on things.
And I have an easier, sort of path to being a little bit less emotional about decisions that need to be made. And when it comes to, selling grain, selling, any anything that you produce, taking the emotion out of the decision often leads to better outcomes.
“I wouldn't be here if I didn't love it. So we share that in common with anyone who's grown up on a farm.
And if you've got that as a bedrock to go off, then, I think you can be equally successful as a farmer's son or daughter as you can be from from the city.
It's been something that I'm quite proud of that I've steered, I've gone a little bit against the grain and going into an industry that typically is only for people who are from rural backgrounds”
- Nick
Image supplied by Nick Crundall
Listen to Nick’s episode on your favourite podcast app or below