Career Pivots, Trusting Your Gut, and Working with Family | How Could I Know? Ep 5

Why It Matters

The story shows how blending corporate agronomy expertise with family farm work can accelerate career growth while addressing land‑price challenges, offering a model for sustainable agricultural succession.

Key Takeaways

• Family farms benefit from external expertise and flexible career paths.
• Trusting instincts can redirect career away from expected family expectations.
• Early industry experience accelerates advancement into leadership roles.
• Supportive spouses and mentors influence pivotal professional decisions.
• Land price pressures drive strategic expansion and diversification strategies.

Summary

The episode of “How Could I Know?” features Henry Prinsen, a young Ontario farmer who balances a corporate agronomy role with family farm responsibilities, illustrating how modern agricultural careers often blend off‑farm expertise with on‑farm stewardship.

Henry explains that he works as the Ontario agronomy lead for Mazak Seeds, handling hybrid selection, variable‑rate mapping and fertilizer pricing, while also stepping in on his 80‑acre family farm whenever his brothers need help. He notes the high cost of land—$25‑26k per acre in Norfolk County—makes expansion a slow, strategic process.

He credits his wife Colleen’s encouragement and early retail experience for taking a territory‑manager position just one year out of university, saying, “you don’t have to get it right the first time.” He also reflects on loyalty to employers versus pursuing personal passion, emphasizing that supportive mentors and family can shift career trajectories.

The conversation underscores that agricultural families benefit from external expertise, flexible career planning, and strategic land‑use decisions. For industry leaders, it highlights the value of nurturing talent that can bridge corporate agronomy and hands‑on farming, especially as land prices constrain growth.

Original Description

Ontario agronomist Henry Prinzen thought he had his future mapped out early: go to the University of Guelph, return to the family farm, and build a career there. Instead, the self-described “older kid on the farm” found himself following a different path — one shaped as much by instinct and opportunity as by planning.

In this episode of the How Could I Know? podcast, hosted by Patti Durand and Chris Corbett of Brightrack Consulting, Prinzen reflects on career decisions, family business dynamics, and learning to trust both himself and the people around him.

Now agronomy lead for Ontario at Maizex Seeds, Prinzen still plays a major role on his family’s 1,600-acre cash crop and 2,000-sow operation in southern Ontario. But getting there required stepping away from assumptions about what success was supposed to look like.

“I almost had pigeonholed myself,” says Prinzen. “I was going to school and just going to farm. That was what I was going to do. Don’t box yourself in.”

Prinzen shares how several pivotal moments — including walking away from plans to expand the family’s hog operation and leaving a retail agronomy role after only one year — forced him to balance loyalty, family expectations, and his own interests in crop science and agronomy.

Throughout the conversation, Prinzen repeatedly returns to the importance of surrounding yourself with people who believe in you, especially during periods of uncertainty and growth. He credits both his wife, Colleen, and his employers for encouraging him to take opportunities he initially doubted he was ready for.

“You’ve got to trust yourself and believe in yourself,” he says. “But also understand there are other feelings at the table too.”

Website: https://www.realagriculture.com/

#farming #agriculture #family

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