Spotlight: Micah Wells on being an all-encompassing resource to clients

Micah Wells says his goal is to be a one-stop resource and business partner to his clients, no matter their request.

His specialty lies in finding and landing top sales and marketing talent for clients in the beef, dairy, genomics and AgTech spaces, but he’s always happy to jump on the phone and consult on any aspect of his colleagues’ businesses, to the best of his ability.

“You should strive to bring extra value to the people you work with, outside of your main products or services,” he says.

The Charles Aris senior associate practice leader learned to apply this philosophy to his work throughout a career in sales and agriculture, where his genuine connections to a vast network of top scientists and cattle ranchers fueled his success.

Cattle ranching and range ecology

Micah grew up in the southeast corner of Oregon, where he lived a truly remote lifestyle. He recalls being recognized on Main Street as a member of the Wells family, and he even delivered the newspaper for his small town via motorcycle.

After high school, he decided to join the navy, where he served as a firefighter and gas turbine mechanic. After a few years of service, the young Oregonian then opted to pursue higher education.

Having grown up in the ranching industry, plus additional experience working on a neighbor’s cattle ranch, Micah studied agriculture at Oregon State University, where he double majored in animal science and ecology.

Micah’s undergraduate work earned him a research assistantship to complete his master’s program, where he conducted research on range ecology and studied the behavior of cattle across remote areas of Oregon’s high desert.

Upon completing this research, he then pivoted to a lobbying role with the Oregon Cattleman’s Association.

Lobbying and introduction to sales

Moving from ecology to lobbying wasn’t part of Micah’s plan, but it helped him quickly learn the value of advocating for his ranching connections.

In this role, he learned the ins and outs of agricultural legislation, but he also became well known among Oregon’s rural ranching community, which served him well in his next role as a livestock nutrition salesman.

Lobbying may not be the traditional pathway to a career in sales, but Micah says it’s the ultimate sales job. Instead of selling a product or service, you’re tasked with selling ideas to the legislature.

This gave Micah the confidence to find success in his sales career, but he also benefited from knowing the cattle ranchers he sold to. This is also how he learned to apply his one-stop resource mentality; ranchers would call Micah asking for advice on all aspects of ranching, and he was more than happy to provide it.

After establishing himself as a true resource and knowledge expert, selling livestock nutrition was an easy byproduct of the relationships he made.

An inch wide and a mile deep in agriculture

Micah’s early success in sales led to a varying career path with a host of companies in many locations across the United States. The products he sold ranged from feed and minerals to genomics, but agriculture, specifically beef and dairy, was the common thread.

The genomics expert and sales professional made a point to keep his cattle ranching connections alive throughout his career and make new ones along the way. Now, he’s proud to have worked with some of the largest livestock feed and vaccines suppliers in the world.

In fact, his résumé is so impressive that Charles Aris recruiter (now senior associate practice leader) Jacob Watkins placed Micah with one of his clients in 2017.

History and future at Charles Aris

Since then, Micah served in several other top companies, but with the recent success of the Charles Aris Agriculture Practice, the firm asked Micah to join as a senior associate practice leader focused on sales, marketing and business development roles in agriculture, chemical and industrial companies across the United States.

Micah says he’s glad to have been on the other side of the Charles Aris aisle at one point in his career, because it showed how extensive of a recruiting process the firm utilizes to find and place top talent.

As a recruiting professional, he’s excited to continue applying his sales philosophy of being an all-encompassing resource for the people he works with.

Micah is always happy to hop on the phone and walk clients through an issue, no matter if the solution is to hire top talent.

To learn more about our recruiting capabilities in agriculture or sales and marketing, contact Micah at (571) 701-9205 or micah.wells@charlesaris.com.