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For Calli Williams, agriculture isn't simply the industry she works in. It has been part of her life from the very beginning. Now a first-generation rancher in South Dakota and Customer Success Representative with Gallagher eShepherd, Calli has recently been named one of Cattle Business Weekly’s Industry Leaders: Top 10 Under 40. She brings a lifetime around cattle, along with first-hand experience of the realities of building a ranching operation.
Cattle from the beginning
Calli Williams' journey in the livestock industry began, as she puts it, "quite literally" when she was born.
Her parents both worked full-time off the farm in agricultural careers, but they wanted Calli to experience the responsibility and work ethic that came with raising livestock. The winter she was born, her dad purchased two Angus cows. He joked that he had eight years to build a herd before Calli started 4-H - and he'd need to provide the quality of cattle her mom would want her to show.
Growing up, Calli was involved in every part of her parents' cow-calf operation. That included breeding and calving seasons, plus summer pasture checks. Showing cattle through 4-H became the family's "sport". It also introduced Calli to lifelong friends and future colleagues across agriculture.
The people are still one of the things Calli values most about agriculture. She credits the cattlemen around her with showing her what it means to keep moving forward, even when the weather, markets or other challenges don't cooperate.
"I have been very fortunate to be led by some of the best cattlemen in the industry," she says. "No matter what Mother Nature or the markets threw at them, they always moved forward. Call it resilience, stubbornness, relying on their faith, or simply the cowboy way!"
Those early experiences left little doubt that agriculture would remain part of Calli's future. What she didn't know was whether that would mean raising cattle herself or building a career advocating for the beef industry. Today, she gets to do both.
Building their own operation
Cattle also brought Calli and her husband, Tate, together. They met at the South Dakota State Fair Angus Show when Tate asked Calli to show his heifer, Miss Kay.
Later, the weekend they became engaged marked another milestone. They signed the paperwork to purchase the acreage they now call home.
TW Angus is a first-generation purebred Angus seedstock operation in eastern South Dakota. Calli and Tate have doubled their herd since bringing their cattle together on the property. Today, they raise registered Angus cattle, hold an annual online production sale and run a direct-to-consumer beef business – all while raising their two sons.
For Calli, building the ranch is about more than cattle.
"Being a rancher also means I am showing our children what it takes to care for something other than just ourselves," she says.
Life on the ranch gives Calli and Tate an opportunity to teach their sons lessons through action. Livestock need to be fed, properly bedded and sheltered before a South Dakota storm. Those everyday responsibilities can help plant the seed for another generation of good land stewards, whether or not their sons ultimately choose ranching themselves.
Finding smarter ways forward
Being first-generation ranchers means Calli and Tate don't always have a decades-old blueprint to follow. They are continually considering how they can grow TW Angus and make the ranch a viable option for the next generation.
A favorite saying from a mentor helps guide that outlook:
"We are an optimistic bunch, or we wouldn't be here."
That optimism doesn't mean ignoring the realities of ranching. For Calli and Tate, it's about being willing to ask what they could do differently to keep moving forward.
Limited grazing space is one of the challenges facing TW Angus. Each spring, Calli and Tate spend considerable time repairing fences on rented pasture or pay fencing contractors to replace them. That practical challenge is one of the reasons virtual fencing caught Calli's attention.
"When we were comparing the cost of replacing fences on pastures we don't physically own to the collars, and the benefits of utilizing virtual fencing during a drought like we are facing this year, the eShepherd collars became very appealing," she says.
For Calli, virtual fencing has potential from both a financial and environmental perspective. It offers another way to think about using their home ground efficiently while taking good care of the pasture they rent. Like any agricultural technology, however, Calli believes it has to deliver practical value in the real world.
A producer supporting producers
Calli brings that first-hand producer perspective to her role as a Customer Success Representative with Gallagher eShepherd.
Her career has kept her firmly connected to the wider agricultural industry. Her experience spans communications and advocacy, and now includes supporting producers who are considering or already using virtual fencing.
Being a rancher shapes the way Calli supports eShepherd customers. She understands many of the questions, concerns and ideas producers bring to the conversation because she's working through similar decisions on her own operation.
"As producers, we can learn together," she says.
For Calli, it's a fitting combination of the two paths she has always wanted to pursue: raising cattle and advocating for the people who produce them. It’s a combination that has earned her place among Catte Business Weekly’s Top 10 Under 40, recognizing her as one of the next generation leaders of the beef industry.
"At the end of the day, I raise livestock and advocate for our industry because I can't imagine a better life. It's hard work, and it's humbling. There's purpose in caring for animals, and raising your family at the same time."
"I believe production agriculture is more than a way of life. I believe it's a calling, and something worth passing on."
If this type of work excites you - check out our current available roles in the eShepherd team.
