NAFB member Matt Gunderson recently celebrated his ten-year anniversary with his employer and looks forward to a bright future.
Gunderson grew up in South Dakota listening to some famous farm broadcasters that interested him in the industry.
“I listened to WNAX, which covered five states and had a large agricultural program,” he said. “I heard the voices of people like Judy Stratman and Gene Williams.”
He attended South Dakota State University to pursue a bachelor’s degree in animal science. While in college, he competed on the livestock judging team. During his early career, Gunderson worked at South Dakota State University Cooperative Extension and University of Nevada – Reno Cooperative Extension.
“Even in the early years of my career, communications and marketing were part of everything I did,” Gunderson said. “I promoted 4-H events and communicated that to the public through interviews. At SDSU, I ran the youth livestock and horse programs for three years, and then I went to the University of Nevada – Reno to run the 4-H program for almost two years.”
He has also served as the executive vice president at the Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben Foundation and the executive director of Ak-Sar-Ben’s River City Rodeo and Stock Show. He transitioned to Farmers National Company about ten years ago.
“I originally started out on the client relations side, and through my job I was introduced to NAFB,” Gunderson said. “I served as one of the representatives for Farmers National Company at Trade Talk.”
During his time at Farmers National Company, he has served as the assistant vice president of farm & ranch management, vice president of farm & ranch management, and senior vice president of strategy, sales and marketing. He is currently serving as the senior vice president of business growth and strategic relations.
His favorite part of the job is working at an employee-owned company.
“It’s great to work with the employee owners every day and to know that we are successful as a company if our clients are successful,” Gunderson said. “It is so fun to work with people with the same mindset.”
