Commitment to Cooperatives

by John Ruedinger

President , Genex Cooperative, Inc.

Cooperatives have been part of the agricultural heritage of the Ruedinger family for three generations, and cooperatives remain an important part of my life today.

In the 1940s, my grandfather helped found the Oshkosh Shipping Association, a cooperative formed to meet feed and seed needs of area farmers. As frozen semen became available, he began using artificial insemination service from a cooperative.

My father began his cooperative career as a director for a local supply cooperative in the late 1960s. For nearly 30 years he was active locally and nationally in cooperative work.

In the mid 1970s, my wife and I attended many cooperative leadership conferences. These conferences solidified my commitment to the cooperative way of doing business, offered insight, taught us the value of organization, business and governance structure, and offered a chance to work with other people in the industry - from dairy producers to management.

Since cooperatives had become part of the Ruedinger way of doing business, when former director Ray Koepp asked if I had an interest, I decided to run for a 21st Century Genetics director position. After my election, I began to learn being a member of a cooperative is not just buying products and receiving service. Cooperatives are a complex system of smaller businesses rolled into one large business. They can be aggressive, yet conservative in their business approach. They offer diversity to the members they serve.

The cooperative model also offers the ability for an organization to change. I am proud to say I have helped to bring about some of the necessary governance changes for the membership of Genex/CRI.

Since I became a director in 1989, growth through mergers and consolidations have offered opportunity within a mature industry. The 1993 formation of CRI was an industry milestone, creating new possibilities for Genex and for members. The consolidation was necessary to maintain the excellent quality of products and services members had grown to expect.

The change to national membership has been very positive for our cooperative. With redistricting, we have 13 directors across the U.S. including two new board members. This adds a much needed diversity to the board of directors. There are distinct differences between producers in the West, Midwest and East. Now Genex can add value by drawing new ideas and suggestions for products and services from a vast population of livestock producers.

As the cooperative has changed in the past, it will also change throughout the future. We will need to draw from our sister subsidiaries AgSource and Central Livestock. They offer a wide variety of programs which fit well into the Genex producer profitability model.

We also need to continue to develop international markets - marketing not only semen, but our intellect. International markets add new dimension to the "outside the box" thinking management instills within Genex. This is evident in IndiaGen, our venture in India. This project could open the door to many more franchising opportunities.

With knowledge and experience, your board of directors and management team offer the leadership skills necessary to meet the CRI mission. This driving force gives producers within the CRI family the ability to grow their businesses while maintaining a strong, viable cooperative.

As former Genex president David Hileman wrote in a previous Horizons, "A member-controlled cooperative led by engaged and involved delegates, a strong board of directors and a skilled, dedicated management team all pulling together is a powerful business model."

I believe his statement to be true. By working together your cooperative has become a well respected leader in the industry. As I am proud to be the third generation in my family committed to the cooperative system of business, you too, should be proud of being a member of a strong cooperative with a bright future.