Six Sigma's Impact on the Agriculture Industry

Robert King is the Executive Vice President of the Crop Protection at Corteva Agriscience. His role involves overseeing the performance and profitability of the Crop Protection business unit. With extensive experience in the specialty chemicals and agriculture industries, Mr. King has successfully led teams in the U.S., Canada, China, and the U.K. He has a proven track record of improving operational capabilities and driving top- and bottom-line growth. Before joining Corteva, Mr. King served as Senior Vice President and Chief Integrated Supply Chain Officer at Nouryon, where he led the global and cross-business integration of the company's supply chain. He previously worked at PPG Industries as Vice President of Global Operations, Industrial Segment before joining Nouryon in 2020.

How has Six Sigma enabled agricultural operations to minimize the number of assets that remain unused?

Six Sigma methodology and philosophy greatly improve the industry's efficiency and productivity. By following Six Sigma's principles of continuous improvement and innovation, agricultural operations can identify and eliminate process inefficiencies, reduce waste, and optimize resource allocation. This can result in increased asset utilization, ensuring that no asset is left inactive or underutilized. Additionally, Six Sigma promotes data-driven decision-making and the utilization of statistical instruments for process enhancement. This methodology can assist operations in analyzing and optimizing their asset management strategies, identifying areas where assets are not being used proficiently, and implementing corrective measures.

Six Sigma contributes significantly to the business's success by boosting productivity, enhancing efficiency, boosting quality, facilitating datadriven decision-making, and fostering continuous improvement. By implementing Six Sigma principles, agricultural organizations can streamline processes, reduce waste, and optimize resource utilization, resulting in increased service to the farmer. By enforcing stringent quality control measures, they can ensure consistent and high-quality outputs, meet regulatory requirements, and ensure food safety. In addition, the philosophy of continuous improvement enables the business to adjust to shifting market demands and drive the adoption of sustainable practices.

How do you envision the future of the space?

There are three key areas where agriculture can help improve the world: reducing environmental impact by providing sustainable agriculture products and solutions for farmers, helping the farmer be more productive to produce more food, and creating innovative ways for farmers to provide more biofuel to serve a growing demand.

By following Six Sigma's principles of continuous improvement and innovation, agricultural operations can identify and eliminate process inefficiencies, reduce waste, and optimize resource allocation

Precision agriculture will be enabled by integrating technical solutions such as drones and using on-farm data coupled with advanced data analytics. Using innovation to improve farming practices and farm yield is key to helping solve these issues. The application of Six Sigma principles to these technologies will increase productivity, decrease waste, and optimize the process as a whole. In addition, data analytics and artificial intelligence will play a significant role in transforming the industry by providing valuable insights from large quantities of data. Farmers can optimize crop yields and resource management based on informed decisions. Additionally, adopting more sustainable agricultural practices, such as the use of biological and natural products, will help alleviate social pressures and contribute to a more widely accepted method of crop treatment.

What advice would you give someone interested in pursuing a career in agricultural operations?

The agricultural industry is distinctive and offers participants a rewarding experience. People in the industry have a shared social responsibility to provide food and fibre to the globe. This common goal creates a special affinity between agricultural industry workers. Individuals involved in agriculture, including employees, partners, and farmers, are motivated to enhance their productivity and contributions through their passion and commitment. If you possess a genuine interest in agriculture and its purpose, then joining the industry can provide fulfilling opportunities and allow you to have a meaningful impact on society.