Meet DSM: Ann Collins

By day, Ann Collins navigates boardrooms, numbers and corporate strategy. By night, and usually on the weekends, she’s operating the grain cart, delivering calves or running errands for the farm. For Ann, success isn’t about choosing between a corporate career and a rural life; it’s about embracing both, which is possible in the Greater Des Moines (DSM) region. 

After growing up on a hobby farm in Van Meter, Ann married her high school sweetheart, who had a passion for agriculture and wanted to farm. But joining another farm family didn’t stop her from pursuing a career in finance. 

Today, Ann is an Executive Vice President – Chief Financial Officer at EMC Insurance Companies, which is located in Downtown Des Moines (DSM) and credits her farm experiences for helping her make more inclusive and value-driven decisions in the office.  

“Agriculture is very inclusive,” she said. “It touches literally everybody in the country and even the world and it forces you to think about all the different impacts that it has on people and I try to carry that through to my work life as well.

That same mindset aligns closely with the company’s mission: “Our mission at EMC is to improve lives and to keep insurance human and I feel like that aligns really well with my personal life; I couldn’t be happier.”  

Ann shared that one of the most important things she’s learned from her rural lifestyle is that you can’t control the weather, meaning, there’s no point in worrying about uncontrollable factors. “I really try – whether it’s at home or the office – to only focus on the things that I can really control and I put my emphasis there.” 

When asked if she has a favorite farm activity or chore, Ann admitted that she loves calving season in the spring. “When we’re having baby calves, we go out and check on the moms to see if any of them need help or if they’ve had their babies yet." 

Whether Ann’s working in Downtown DSM or out in the fields, she carries herself the same in both settings: with a dedication to improving lives. Through her two worlds, she’s shown you don’t have to choose between farm life and a corporate career; it’s possible to thrive in both. 

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