Learn more about the open roles available at FBN.
Rebecca Willison, head of FBN Data Science, shares how her passion for combining agriculture and data began and how her work positively impacts farmers in our latest “Why I Chose FBN” post.
Our “Why I Chose FBN” series features stories from employees across different roles, teams, and geographies on how they got to FBN, what it’s like to work here, and how their teams help fulfill our mission of putting Farmers First®.
I joined FBN in March 2021 and currently lead the Data Science team. I am fully remote and based in St. Louis, Missouri.
FBN is truly a mission-oriented company. “Farmers First” is the guiding principle for decision making, from top-level decisions down to how we approach a data science problem.
The Data Science team at FBN is a unique and special team to work on because we get to engage on a mix of projects that leverage data and modeling to improve the operational efficiency of FBN as well as drive new products and strategies. Because we are a centralized team that supports all of FBN, we get a view across the different business units which allows us to focus on the most impactful projects for our customers. Some examples include:
Demand forecasting to ensure we have the right products available for purchase and delivery to farmers when they need them, where they need them
Leveraging satellite imagery and other approaches to make data collection for sustainability programs easier, faster, and more accurate for farmer participants
Using AI to make internal processes more efficient and enable faster service to our customers
I grew up on a beef seedstock and turkey operation in central Missouri. That was when I discovered my passion for collecting and analyzing data in order to make decisions for our Angus breeding program. I took a winding path in college, but I eventually found my way to statistics. After graduate school, I began my career at Monsanto as a research and development statistician. Since then, I have held several other roles in ag at companies big and small, all focused on developing new biotech, chemistry, and software solutions for farmers.
I first became interested in FBN after learning about their price and seed transparency reports. My experience living and working in ag showed me that there was a huge lack of transparency that prevented producers from making the best decisions for their operations, so I really respected that FBN was putting that information into the hands of farmers.
I had been following FBN for several years, but it wasn’t until the pandemic that I realized that working remotely might be an option. During the fall of 2020 I decided I was ready for my next role, and it just so happened that FBN had an opening. After several conversations with one of FBN’s co-founders and members of the Data Science team, I knew FBN was the right place for me to continue my career.
The best thing about FBN is the team. Not only is the team very talented, but they are humble, practical, and dedicated to building the best products for farmers. There is a strong sense of ownership and innovation, allowing every employee to make an impact and have a voice on what we are building.
I have a five-year-old daughter who keeps me busy outside of work. We enjoy spending time outdoors and visiting with family. I am also a pepperhead and like to experiment making new types of hot sauces, pepper powders, and other foods with hot peppers from my garden.
FBN offers a lot of opportunities to grow and try on different hats. If you're excited about our mission and eager to tackle challenging problems that make a real impact, consider making FBN your next career move!
FBN works to help level the playing field for family farmers. It takes talented individuals in marketing, sales, procurement, finance, and more to make FBN a one-stop shop for data, services, and crop protection and animal health products.
Learn more about the open roles available at FBN.
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