Planting SEED: How Keystone Cooperative Grows New Hires into Future Experts

Keystone Cooperative, a farmer-owned agribusiness headquartered in Indianapolis, serves rural communities across Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio with solutions spanning a diverse portfolio of agronomy, propane, fuels, grain, seed, swine production, and feed. More than 1,700 employees work daily to consistently deliver quality products and strong customer experiences. Keystone’s insight is simple and powerful – if “experience” defines how customers feel, it must also define how employees grow.

In 2024, Keystone operationalized that idea with the Securing Experience Employee Development (SEED) program – a yearlong, full-time rotation that hires participants with benefits from day one, pairs them with mentors, and immerses them across business lines before matching them to a long-term role. SEED participants rotate through energy, agronomy, grain, swine production, and animal nutrition, while integrating on the job corporate learning in human resources, marketing, and accounting.

“They rotate through the divisions, and you see them find their affinity,” said Sarah Morehouse, SEED Manager, currently tracking 18 participants in the 2025 cohort. “I think most come in thinking – I’ll want to work in agronomy. But by the end of it, they’re thinking, well I really enjoyed energy or production. So, it broadens their idea of what it means to work for Keystone Cooperative.”

The rotations are structured and skills based. The skills vary from mastering safety protocols and licensures, to understanding how a grain system operates, troubleshooting operational issues as well as professionally engaging with customers. After each placement, participants receive a formal review – often their first experience with rigorous feedback. Those check-ins align interests and performance with business needs and create a clear record of progress that informs the final placement at the end of SEED.

“They will have a full picture of the Keystone family when they’re done,” Morehouse said. “When they receive a full-time placement, they’ll have an appreciation for all the layers. Instead of wondering why that marketing plan took so long to get, they’ll know why it took so long because they’ll know what it takes to make one.”

SEED also functions as a future strategy for an aging sector – transferring hard-won expertise to the next generation while keeping careers on an upward trajectory.

“We need to develop succession plans for an aging industry,” said Lindsay Sankey, Director of Public Relations. “Our program allows the students to find their affinity, but more importantly the curriculum teaches them skills verses just teaching them tasks. They’re learning why and how not just what.”

Upon completing the yearlong rotation, employees step into a full-time role or begin a Registered Apprenticeship toward journey-level status in a chosen field. Either path ensures continued full-time employment and wages for the participant and delivers a more skilled, engaged employee for Keystone.

Upskilling can lead to career security and strengthen the talent pipelines of the employer to reduce turnover and increase productivity. With Indiana at full employment, it’s the investment in employees keeping industry in the state. Power Up Indiana proudly celebrates Keystone Cooperative. SEED’s structured rotations, mentor feedback, and purposeful placement create a compelling evidence trail that leads to competencies achieved, roles advanced, and pay steps earned.

“When I realized that college wasn't for me, I still wanted a career after high school,” said Brent Harvey, Keystone Cooperative SEED Class of 2024. “Keystone's SEED program has helped me develop life-long skills and uncover interests that I would have never known before. Now, I'm working with my mentors to determine where I fit long-term in the organization.”

The through line is clarity – hire for potential, expose people to the whole enterprise, measure progress, and place for impact. It’s an employee experience designed with the same care Keystone brings to its customer experience, and it’s how a cooperative future-proofs its workforce while strengthening Indiana’s agricultural backbone.