The Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Agency has dismissed Kerry Wright eight weeks after she was hired as executive director.
She will not be replaced until the board of directors tries out its new collaborative approach to manage the large and diverse organization that not only answers to its members, but also to federal and provincial governments which have chosen it to deliver some programs, mainly related to soil and water conservation and management.
Wright took over from a board member Brady Jones who held the boss position after Ahley Honsberger took over in September, 2023, from veteran Andrew Graham who left two years ago.
Weeks prior to Wright taking on her role, three senior managers were simultaneously removed from the organization.
None of them have been replaced.
Gone are Sara Lin Barnes, head of programs, and Angela Straathof, director of research and knowledge transfer, and the director of client services.
Past president Tom Oegema said the board has been working on the new management structure for more than a year.
Wright came to OSCIA with a strong track record with the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, the Canadian Agri-food Automation & Intelligence Network (CAAIN) and Mallot Creek Group where she provided strategic advice to the food, beverage and agri-food industries.
