It started, as many stories in agriculture do, with fuel. Nearly 100 years ago, as farmers traded horses for machinery, they needed a reliable supply of gas and diesel. That simple requirement gave rise to GROWMARK — an agricultural cooperative based in Illinois that now generates $15 billion in revenue and operates across the US and Canada.
But despite its century-old roots, GROWMARK is anything but old-fashioned. In fact, the business has long embraced a technology-first mindset — quietly running one of the more advanced IT operations in the industry.
In a recent episode of Lemongrass Roots, our CTO, Eamonn O’Neill, spoke with Jordan Kuhns, Director of Enterprise Applications at GROWMARK, about the company’s SAP evolution — and how they’re shaping their future on their own terms.
A Cloud-First Culture, Before It Was Cool
GROWMARK’s digital transformation is hardly a recent development. Over 15 years ago, the business moved much of its application estate into the Cloud, including retail ERP systems and custom applications. Since 2010, they’ve been running their landscape on AWS — including SAP, which moved during their initial implementation around 2016.
It was a bold step at the time. “There were real questions at the time about whether a Cloud move would deliver the stability and uptime we needed,” Jordan recalled. And for a business that serves farmers operating in narrow weather windows, or commodities where switching vendors is easy, downtime wasn’t just an inconvenience — it was a risk to revenue and reputation.
But the move proved itself, and GROWMARK’s confidence in the Cloud has only grown since.
Looking Ahead: Choosing SAP S/4HANA
With ECC support deadlines looming, the GROWMARK team began exploring a move to S/4HANA nearly two years ago — a window Jordan admits still feels “tight” now that the project is about to begin. After weighing their options, they chose a Brownfield migration.
“The idea of another full cycle through a Greenfield implementation just wasn’t appealing,” Jordan said. “We’ve worked hard to stabilize our SAP processes, and we like how they’re working today. We want to be on the latest version, but we don’t want to start from scratch.”
The business had implemented ECC relatively recently, and with only seven years of SAP data and processes tailored to their agricultural model, Brownfield simply made more sense.
Why RISE Felt Like the Right Move
While the business case for moving to S/4HANA was clear, the decision to adopt RISE with SAP wasn’t based on spreadsheets.
“RISE just felt like the right move for us,” Jordan shared. “We already had trust in AWS, and RISE keeps us on the innovation track with SAP. We didn’t spend time trying to build a complex value case around it — it aligned with our direction.”
Reducing Risk with No-Regret Moves
Ahead of the full migration, GROWMARK has taken steps to reduce downstream project risk — including a series of what Jordan calls “no-regret” moves. These include:
- Cleansing and archiving historical data
- Resolving duplicate customer and vendor records
- And moving ten integrations to SAP BTP’s Integration Suite
“Working with Lemongrass, we’re getting a head start on some of the more complex aspects of the migration,” Jordan said. “It’s letting our teams build confidence with BTP now, before we’re deep into the S/4 project. We’ve already learned a lot, and it means less pressure later.”
Data Strategy and What Comes Next
Although GROWMARK hasn’t yet fully embraced SAP Datasphere or Business Data Cloud, they’re keeping a close eye on developments. Their current approach leverages native AWS tools — particularly as much of their business data still sits outside the SAP landscape. But having Datasphere included in their RISE package gives them room to grow if the direction changes.
“We’re trying to stay strategic,” Jordan said. “We want to understand what Datasphere is capable of, but we’ve also made a lot of investment in AWS. That’s a decision we’ll revisit when the time is right.”
AI: Cautious Curiosity, With a Clear Use Case
On the topic of AI — no modern IT discussion is complete without it — GROWMARK is taking a measured approach. The team has experimented with Microsoft Copilot and AWS tools, and is actively exploring use cases through pilot programs and vendor collaborations.
But one specific application is already in sight:
“We’re really interested in using generative AI to help with documentation and test script creation during the S/4 project,” Jordan said. “That kind of manual work is heavy and repetitive, and if AI can help us streamline it, we’re all in.”
Advice to Others: Start Early, and Be Pragmatic
Jordan left the episode with two key pieces of advice for anyone just beginning their journey:
- Start earlier than you think you need to.
“We’ve been exploring S/4 for nearly two years, and even now it feels rushed. Don’t underestimate how long the preparation phase can take.” - Be open to decisions that aren’t always financial.
“With RISE, we didn’t look for a business case that didn’t need to exist. It aligned to where we’re heading, and that was enough.”
