GreenStone’s group of dedicated employees not only bring a wealth of experience to the table to service the needs of rural America, but a deep passion for what they do – many choosing GreenStone because of their roots in agriculture and upbringing in the country.
Sarah King
Sarah joined GreenStone more than seven years ago and serves as a regional operations manager in west Michigan. Prior to this role, Sarah worked on GreenStone’s crop insurance team. She grew up on a cattle and hog farm and became involved with 4-H by showing cows at state fairs and local shows. Since then, she has stayed involved in agriculture and loves serving customers in rural America.
Emily Kropf
Emily has worked for GreenStone for four years, currently serving as an associate crop insurance specialist working out of the Grand Rapids, Michigan branch. Prior to this role, Emily started as a learning and development intern in GreenStone’s human resources department, and later as a sales intern for GreenStone. Growing up around agriculture, Emily became extremely involved in Future Farmers of America (FFA) in high school, and recently participated in the United States NextGen Apple Fellowship. In her free time, Emily serves as a youth group leader for young women at her local church.
Joe Schlies
Joe has been with GreenStone since 2023 and has hit the ground running as a financial services officer in the Manitowoc, Wisconsin branch. Growing up on a farm and being a long-time member of the FFA, Joe brings an enthusiastic passion for serving customers in agriculture. Joe had dreamed of working for GreenStone since high school and made that dream a reality straight out of college. In his free time, Joe mentors FFA state officers and assists them with professional development.
One GreenStone
The dedicated team at GreenStone takes “service with a smile” to new levels. Each of our 630+ staff members bring an unwavering passion to their positions. For many, that passion is rooted in their love for rural America.
Joe Schlies, a financial services officer in GreenStone’s Manitowoc, Wisconsin branch, has aspired to join team GreenStone since high school. That dream became an exciting reality in July when he came aboard.
“It’s very crazy to think. It’s kind of surreal,” Joe recalled. “I remember getting the job offer from GreenStone, and I couldn’t believe it was true. When you’re young, you think that 20 years down the line you’ll find your dream job. Next thing I knew, it was here.”
Growing up on his family farm and participating in FFA for years, Joe has a deep respect for the agricultural community. Joe’s commitment to FFA landed him a spot as a State FFA Officer following high school, taking on the role of State President in Wisconsin.
“FFA allowed me to develop the soft skills that college didn’t teach me. Things like critical thinking, basic communication skills and working with others in a professional manner – those are skills that I learned through FFA that prepared me for my role at GreenStone.”
That role includes working with customers and helping them secure the financing they need to run their operations.
Emily Kropf, an associate crop insurance specialist at GreenStone, is also no stranger to FFA. She joined her home chapter in Lowell, Michigan in high school, and now dedicates her time to help mentor students involved in the program.
A product of rural America, Emily began her journey with GreenStone as a learning and development intern in the human resources department after her freshman year, and later went on to intern with GreenStone’s sales department. Following graduation from Michigan State University, Emily says the unmatched positive culture at GreenStone made her want to stay – and that she did.
In Emily’s role, she is able to assist GreenStone’s team of crop insurance specialists to help customers find the best risk mitigation plan for their operations.
“When I was first looking into first-time jobs, I put all my eggs in one basket and only applied for GreenStone,” Emily explained. “My family understood why because of the success I had as an intern. The culture is amazing, and it rules my decision to be here. I can’t think of anywhere else I’d want to work.”
The culture at GreenStone can’t be produced just from the top but is a testament to the hearts and dedication of people on all levels; people like Sarah King who serves as a regional operations manager in west Michigan. Sarah is in charge of onboarding many teammates, helping role out new systems internally to better serve our customers and manages the customer service and loan processing teams—among many other tasks.
“Working in agriculture was something I’ve always wanted to do,” said Sarah. “It’s a passion I have. I’ve been fortunate to always have worked in agriculture in different facets. Now, I’m not riding on a combine, but I’m helping farmers build their dreams and expand their businesses. It’s very rewarding.”
Starting out in GreenStone’s crop insurance team before transitioning to her current role, Sarah loves to be able to serve our customers both one-on-one and by creating a better customer experience behind the scenes.
“They're helping feed the world, and that's something to be proud of,” Sarah remarked.
That pride is felt by all across the company. GreenStone’s team doesn’t just set out to serve with a smile, but rather to serve with a passion, and that passion comes from within. It’s that passion that makes GreenStone a first choice career for employees like Sarah, Emily, and Joe, along with the rest of GreenStone’s dedicated team.
This article was originally published in GreenStone's 2023 annual report. You can view the annual report in its entirety here.
