Wesley Uses Construction Background, ‘Gurus’ to Succeed as Procurement Manager

Wesley’s background in construction, and the experience of the “gurus” who support him, made his transition to Tessenderlo Kerley an easy one.

“I call them the gurus, so to speak, because of what they bring to the table and their years of experience. I think they’re a big asset to project services,” said Wesley, who joined Tessenderlo Kerley as a procurement manager in 2017. “This is a new arena for me, but I am learning more about the sulfur recovery business, and learning new ways to make sure that we support turnarounds, capital and greenfield projects for our sulfur recovery facilities, which facilitates making new fertilizer that’s required by the industry to help grow product and be more efficient.”

Wesley helps facilitate projects at Tessenderlo Kerley’s plants across the country, where capital improvements and maintenance are always required. He’s also assisting with construction of Tessenderlo Kerley’s newest plant in Defiance, Ohio. The groundbreaking for that plant took place in August 2022.

“I look forward to the challenges that it brings, and I like working with the team as far as seeing this facility come to fruition,” he said.

Wesley’s favorite aspects of the job include providing facility and project managers the support they need in expending facility output to provide farmers the resources they need to feed the world, along with Tessenderlo Kerley’s mission of environmental sustainability.

Being surrounded with a team that includes decades of experience helps him serve both areas the best he can – and it’s a constant reminder of the opportunities that await, in terms of future projects and his own career advancement.

“There’s a lot of stability here. A lot of people move up from within the company,” Wesley said. “The company is constantly growing, even since I’ve been here. When you come on board with Tessenderlo Kerley, you will have many people with a lot of years of experience that can help guide you through in your career. That shows you that the company culture is very nurturing for people to stay that long. I think anybody who’s coming out of college would love the work here because of that.”