Jamie Eichorn: Syngenta Technical Services Leader Advocates Collaboration
For Eichorn, involvement in ag organizations and his role-model dad instilled the importance of trusted relationships.
Growing up in Michigan, some of Jamie Eichorn’s most treasured childhood memories are of spending time with his dad, riding a tractor on his family’s farm. He also fondly recalls his active involvement as a boy in 4-H, FFA and the local county fair.
“It’s these experiences that taught me the value of hard work, the importance of having trusted relationships and the sense of pride that comes from being associated with American agriculture,” says Eichorn, head of technical services for Syngenta, North America. “Today, I’m able to take that collection of experiences and apply it to what we do at Syngenta—bringing new, innovative technologies, along with outstanding service and support, to the American farmer.”
Technical Trust
Eichorn has worked at Syngenta and its legacy companies for 23 years. He began his career with the organization as a sales representative serving northwest Ohio. That experience led him to a variety of sales and sales management positions. Thirteen years ago, he relocated to Greensboro, North Carolina, to work at the Syngenta Crop Protection regional headquarters. The marketing and technical positions he held following the move, together with his field sales experiences, have helped prepare him for his current role.
As head of technical services, Eichorn leads a team of men and women who provide industry-leading agronomic support for Syngenta customers. The team’s focus is to offer a compelling technical experience to help growers understand and benefit from new technologies. “It’s my job to align and exploit the technical capabilities and resources of our organization to better serve our customers,” he says.
Technical training is a top priority for Eichorn and his team. They serve as the conduit for sharing their organizational knowledge of the Syngenta technologies with the customer-facing team. They also collaborate closely with the product marketing team on educating the field agronomists and sales representatives, who, in turn, help growers maximize crop production with Syngenta products.
The technical team also helps growers literally see the benefits of the products with the Grow More™ Experience sites. In 2016, there will be more than 60 sites across the country.
“Our Grow More Experience initiative is just one example of how we’re putting the customer first,” Eichorn says. “These sites give our customers a front-row seat to witness how new products coming from our research and development (R&D) team perform under real-field conditions. The sites also enable us to demonstrate the return on investment our portfolio can provide to growers. At any of these sites, participants can step into a field and see the impact Syngenta products are having on crop production in their local area.”
Collaboration From Global to Regional
It’s exciting for Eichorn that Syngenta is helping to feed a growing global population, while still providing local support to the men and women who are actually producing the crops.
“In my 23 years with the company, I can’t remember a time when we’ve had so many new products to launch,” he says. “The momentum being created through the introduction of new technology is important for our industry. It gives me confidence that, along with the focus on serving our customers, Syngenta will continue to be a market leader.”
Collaboration is the key to fueling these innovations, globally, nationally and regionally, he adds.
“At Syngenta, we’re all working toward the same goal, and that’s to make sure customers understand how to use our innovations so they can increase crop productivity,” Eichorn says. “Our R&D scientists, technical experts and agronomists work with resellers to determine how a product—which may be available in multiple geographies across the country or around the world—can help solve a specific grower’s challenge. Tailoring the use of that product to maximize its value is where our local resources and knowledge really become important.”
For this Syngenta veteran, agriculture has always helped define who he is. “From my earliest memory, agriculture has been a passion of mine,” Eichorn says. “I feel very fortunate to partner with colleagues and customers who are equally as passionate about our industry and the positive role it plays in making our world a better place to live.”
“It’s these experiences that taught me the value of hard work, the importance of having trusted relationships and the sense of pride that comes from being associated with American agriculture,” says Eichorn, head of technical services for Syngenta, North America. “Today, I’m able to take that collection of experiences and apply it to what we do at Syngenta—bringing new, innovative technologies, along with outstanding service and support, to the American farmer.”
Technical Trust
Eichorn has worked at Syngenta and its legacy companies for 23 years. He began his career with the organization as a sales representative serving northwest Ohio. That experience led him to a variety of sales and sales management positions. Thirteen years ago, he relocated to Greensboro, North Carolina, to work at the Syngenta Crop Protection regional headquarters. The marketing and technical positions he held following the move, together with his field sales experiences, have helped prepare him for his current role.
As head of technical services, Eichorn leads a team of men and women who provide industry-leading agronomic support for Syngenta customers. The team’s focus is to offer a compelling technical experience to help growers understand and benefit from new technologies. “It’s my job to align and exploit the technical capabilities and resources of our organization to better serve our customers,” he says.
Technical training is a top priority for Eichorn and his team. They serve as the conduit for sharing their organizational knowledge of the Syngenta technologies with the customer-facing team. They also collaborate closely with the product marketing team on educating the field agronomists and sales representatives, who, in turn, help growers maximize crop production with Syngenta products.
The technical team also helps growers literally see the benefits of the products with the Grow More™ Experience sites. In 2016, there will be more than 60 sites across the country.
“Our Grow More Experience initiative is just one example of how we’re putting the customer first,” Eichorn says. “These sites give our customers a front-row seat to witness how new products coming from our research and development (R&D) team perform under real-field conditions. The sites also enable us to demonstrate the return on investment our portfolio can provide to growers. At any of these sites, participants can step into a field and see the impact Syngenta products are having on crop production in their local area.”
Collaboration From Global to Regional
It’s exciting for Eichorn that Syngenta is helping to feed a growing global population, while still providing local support to the men and women who are actually producing the crops.
“In my 23 years with the company, I can’t remember a time when we’ve had so many new products to launch,” he says. “The momentum being created through the introduction of new technology is important for our industry. It gives me confidence that, along with the focus on serving our customers, Syngenta will continue to be a market leader.”
Collaboration is the key to fueling these innovations, globally, nationally and regionally, he adds.
“At Syngenta, we’re all working toward the same goal, and that’s to make sure customers understand how to use our innovations so they can increase crop productivity,” Eichorn says. “Our R&D scientists, technical experts and agronomists work with resellers to determine how a product—which may be available in multiple geographies across the country or around the world—can help solve a specific grower’s challenge. Tailoring the use of that product to maximize its value is where our local resources and knowledge really become important.”
For this Syngenta veteran, agriculture has always helped define who he is. “From my earliest memory, agriculture has been a passion of mine,” Eichorn says. “I feel very fortunate to partner with colleagues and customers who are equally as passionate about our industry and the positive role it plays in making our world a better place to live.”
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