It’s a thread thatruns through nearly every chapter of his life—from growing up in anagricultural community, to more than 26 years in the Iowa National Guard, tothe more than two decades he has spent building a career at POET Bioprocessing– Emmetsburg.
Today, as theplant’s Maintenance Manager, AJ brings that same sense of service to his team.He believes in knowing your people, doing your part, and always looking for thenext way to move forward.
When he’snot at the plant, AJ’s time is split between family, home, and the farm. He andhis wife, Nicole, have been married for 24 years and have two children: a22-year-old daughter entering her final year at the University of Northern Iowaand a 16-year-old son who is a sophomore in high school.
Outside ofwork, AJ also spends much of his time helping a local farmer with a grainoperation.
“If I’m not at work or doingsomething around the house, usually I’m out at the farm,” AJ said. “There’salways something going on and something that needs to be done.”
Duty and Dedication
AJ grew up aroundagriculture and expected it to be the foundation of his career. His dad farmedwhen he was young, his uncle owned a local chemical and fertilizer business,and AJ eventually earned his Ag Business degree from Iowa Lakes CommunityCollege.
But before he evengraduated high school, he made a decision that would shape much of the nextthree decades of his life.
On Jan. 8, 1996, AJjoined the Iowa National Guard.
“I joined because Ineeded a way to pay for college,” he said. “I grew up in an agriculturalcommunity, and while the mid-’90s weren’t rough on everybody, I didn’t grow upwith much. The GI Bill gave me an opportunity to get my ag business degree.”
After Sept. 11,2001, his service took on a new meaning. He spent a year on active dutysupporting a Homeland Security mission, an experience that changed hisperspective on military service and ultimately led him to volunteer for anAfghanistan deployment in 2004.
His wife waspregnant with their first child when he left. Their daughter was born while hewas overseas, and AJ returned home in July 2005, just weeks before her firstbirthday. It was adifficult chapter for his growing family, but it was also an experience thatwould stay with AJ as his military career continued.
He came home readyfor a change in his civilian career, too.
A longtime neighborencouraged him to apply at POET, and AJ was hired as a Maintenance Technicianin September 2005.
What startedas a new job quickly became a career, even as his military service continued.
Over thenext several years, AJ deployed to Kosovo, served stateside with the IowaNational Guard while his family grew, and eventually returned to Afghanistanone final time in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. That deployment lookedmuch different from his first, as his unit helped close locations and preparefor the military’s withdrawal from the country. AJ eventually moved into Kabul,where he helped establish security around the international airport.
When hereturned to Emmetsburg in 2021, he stepped into a new chapter at POET, takingon the role of Maintenance Tech III. A year later, after more than 26 years ofmilitary service, AJ retired from the National Guard.
Throughout it all,POET remained a constant.
“Whether I wasdeployed overseas, serving full time with the National Guard, or coming back towork afterward, I never had anything but support from the team in Emmetsburg,”he said.
Finding the right place
Becoming MaintenanceManager wasn’t something AJ had mapped out.
Sometimes, the rightopportunity simply arrives at the right time.
Plant Manager JuddDuhn grew up just a few blocks from AJ, and the two have known each other sincechildhood. As Judd moved into leadership at POET, an opportunity eventuallyopened for AJ.
At the same time,the physical demands of running around the plant as a Maintenance Technicianwere beginning to catch up with him.
“Everything kind oflined up at the right place and the right time,” he said.
The transition fromturning wrenches to leading people has given AJ a new way to contribute.
“I feel morecomfortable putting down the wrenches and not having to stop welding all thetime,” he said. “It wasn’t necessarily something I had planned on, but it endedup being the right move for me.”
Knowing your people
For AJ, leadershipstarts with relationships.
“To me, knowing yourteam on a personal level and knowing a little bit about what’s going on ineverybody’s life go hand-in-hand with the favorite part of my job,” he said.“Making sure you know your people and understand where everybody’s coming fromis important to me.”
It’s a philosophy hecarried with him from the military, where knowing the people around you andunderstanding how they work together can make all the difference.
Today, AJ leads amaintenance team of 11, many of whom have spent a significant portion of theircareers at POET. That experience is something he values, but it’s the peoplebehind that experience that matter most.
It’s also one of thethings he believes makes Emmetsburg special.
With the exceptionof the General Manager, the plant’s management team all started as Technicians.They’ve grown through the ranks together, building years of shared knowledgeand experience along the way.
“We’ve all had thatgrowth, and I think that’s pretty special about the Emmetsburg team,” AJ said.
That kind of tenurecould easily create resistance to change. Instead, AJ sees it as a strength.
“You could look atthat much tenure and wonder if it makes people resistant to change, becauseeverybody’s got a little bit of that in them. That’s human nature,” he said.“But for the most part, our team has always been willing to adapt and moveforward.”
The question isn’t, Howhave we always done this?
It’s, What can wedo better?
“Never Satisfied”
Thatmindset is at the heart of what AJ values about the Emmetsburg team and what“Never Satisfied” means to him.
Over theyears, he’s been part of countless projects, improvements, and changes thathave challenged the team to think differently and find new ways to move theplant forward. For AJ, that willingness to keep looking for what’s next is oneof the things that makes being part of POET so rewarding.
“To be akey plant in that and to be part of a team that’s helping lead things, that’s abig bragging point for me,” he said.
For AJ, being “Never Satisfied”doesn’t mean being unhappy with where you are. It means refusing to stopimproving. It’s about asking what can be done better, finding ways to keepmoving forward, and never becoming too comfortable with the way things havealways been done.
“The culture ofstriving to be better every day is really important,” he said. “It’s a loteasier with the team that we have. Everybody’s been here for years and years,and nobody’s let up on trying to perform better.”
In maintenance, thatmight mean meeting budget goals, keeping equipment running, minimizing shutdownhours, or reducing emergency repairs. But the mindset is bigger than any onemetric.
“‘NeverSatisfied’ keeps that forward push on progressing through operations or makingthings better,” AJ said. “Everybody needs to have that. Not a shove—just alittle push. Keep going.”
That philosophy hascarried AJ through military deployments, career changes, and more than twodecades at POET. It’s also shaped the way he approaches leadership today.
The best advice he’sreceived over the years is simple: find something that makes you happy, excelat it and keep growing.
“Coming to work hereat POET has definitely been something that I’ve always felt like I’ve excelledat,” he said. “I’ve helped lead the team over a lot of years, whether that wason shift, through the maintenance world, or now in a management role leadingpeople.”
For AJ,that growth has never been about reaching a final destination. It’s aboutcontinuing to learn, taking on what comes next, and doing your part along theway. At the center of it all is a value he carries with him both at work and athome: personal integrity.
“I thinkeverybody needs to be responsible for their actions, at work and at home,” hesaid. “You need to be responsible for what you’re doing all the time.”
For someone who has spent hislife serving others, leading a team, and looking for the next way forward, it’sa fitting principle to carry into whatever comes next.
