We're looking forward to the 30th Annual Agricultural Summit!

Join us at Purdue University's Ross-Ade Stadium on Wednesday, February 19th for a deep dive into the issues and outlook for midwestern agricultural in 2025.

Stream the Ag Summit

The 30th Annual Agricultural Summit

The 30^th Annual FFBT Agricultural Summit will welcome industry experts, our experienced lending team, and our VIP guests - farmers and agribusiness clients. We can't wait for the conversations and speaker sessions. You can start streaming Wednesday, Feb. 19th, at 8:45 AM Eastern!

Watch the Stream

Celebrating

Years of Agricultural Summits

Over

Years Ag Experience on Lending Team

The Directions Group

Mark Purdy

In his role as EVP, Colonel (retired) Mark Purdy is responsible for day-to-day operations, research oversight and accountability toward achieving organizational goals. He guides clients to strategically activate on their research results, assess impacts and develop business strategies. A graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Mark brings 30 years of results-oriented experience leading organizations of more than 2,000 people.

Mark’s vast experiences range from leading combat units over multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan to managing multi-billion-dollar security assistance portfolios that included procurement, managing the supply chain and government regulatory compliance. Mark also served as Director of Wargames at the U.S. Army War College providing actionable solutions to top national security dilemmas.

Mark grew up on a farm in central Ohio where his family raised sheep, corn, soybeans and hay, and continues to operate the family farm today. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Engineering from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, as well as master’s degrees in Military Operational Arts from the Air Force Air University and Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College.

Ag View Solutions

Andy Hruby

Andy Hruby is an associate with Ag View Solutions, dedicated to empowering growers to better understand their business through collaboration, transition planning, cost of production analysis, and strategic growth. With a career deeply rooted in agriculture, Andy combines hands-on experience with a passion for helping farms excel through innovative business practices.

Growing up in West Michigan, Andy worked on various farming operations before earning his Ag Business degree from Michigan State University. For the past 14 years, he has been farming in Northeast Indiana alongside his wife, Abby, raising their three boys on the farm.. Their collaborative farming operation includes five non-family members and a custom forage harvesting business that serves the tri-state area.

Over the course of his career, Andy's focus has transitioned from working in the business to working on the business. His expertise in analyzing farm profitability, understanding ROI trends, and fostering collaboration has made him a trusted advisor in the agricultural community.

Peterson Corn Genetics

Kevin Cavanaugh

Kevin grew up on a family farm in Northwest Ohio. As a summer job during high school and college, Kevin worked for a hybrid seed corn company (Pioneer Hi-Bred International) at a corn research station. There Kevin developed a passion for increasing productivity through genetics and corn hybrid selection. Kevin received his BS in Agronomy at Iowa State University in 1988 and then completed his MS and PhD at Purdue University in Plant Breeding and Genetics in 1993. At Purdue, Kevin deepened his knowledge of corn research and taught the Introductory Soil Science class to undergraduates for several semesters.

These experiences prepared Kevin for his role as Director of Research at Beck’s Superior Hybrids in Central Indiana where he was the first full time research employee and was part of the Company Leadership Team. During the 27 years Kevin worked at Beck’s, the company grew 26 times bigger and became the largest independent seed company in the United States. Kevin was charged with developing a competitive corn and soybean lineup as well as many other research functions. During this period, Kevin served many national and state seed organizations and has been President of several of these organizations including the Indiana Seed Trade Association and the Indiana Crop Improvement Association.

In 2020, Kevin decided to make a change to gain ownership in a corn genetic licensing company. Now as President of Peterson Corn Genetics, Kevin’s company licenses corn genetics to the independent seed companies in the United States and Canada.

Kevin enjoys giving back to the community and has served multiple terms on the local School Board. He has served as President several times and many other offices supporting local public education. Kevin has two sons, Jackson and Grant and is married to Carey, and lives in Central Indiana.