About

About Me

Ryan Edward Rock is an Ankeny, Iowa, based agriculture industrial general contractor who is the president of Empire Ag. The move into business ownership was a natural progression for a young man who has always worked hard to serve his country and various employers. A son of the Midwest at heart, Rock ended up settling near his childhood home and has built a life, a business, and his own family.

Current Role and Duties

After years spent working in the agricultural industrial industry, Ryan Edward Rock of Ankeny, Iowa, was able to branch out on his own. He launched his business, Empire Ag, to design and build agricultural and industrial facilities. With the full understanding that success is better with others, Rock works with business partners he describes as outstanding and a top-notch field crew. Together they build high-quality facilities across the United States to process and store the grain, feed, and flour that help feed America and the globe.

By minimizing overhead and keeping a close eye on the needs of consumers, Rock believes Empire Ag can provide the best construction experience possible and maximize client satisfaction.

Career History

Ryan Rock has maintained a steady stream of employment for his entire life. Growing up, his family rented a 160-acre farm from his grandmother, so Rock was attuned to the responsibilities of farm management and the needs of an ag community from an early age. These were reinforced through active participation in the local 4-H club, and Rock also learned dedication through Boy Scouts, competitive sports, and participation in his church.

At 17, he joined the Army National Guard and planned to attend Iowa State University in Ames. The Army National Guard provided an opportunity to serve his country and to help fund his college education without the long-term burden of student loans.

He maintained his dedication to this throughout college by working as a resident assistant in a dorm at ISU in his junior year before being called to active duty with the launch of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Rock was deployed in February 2003 and ended up serving in Iraq for 15 months.

While completing his senior year of college post-deployment, Rock continued his interest in construction and hands-on projects by completing handyman jobs in Ames. One job connected him with the owner of a local firm involved in the agricultural and industrial construction business, Todd & Sargent.

Rock started with the firm as an assistant superintendent at an ethanol plant under construction in Nevada, Iowa. When the project concluded, he moved to the main office and started work as a project estimator, a role he would hold for two years, before migrating to his true passion for operations and project management. In this area, Rock could utilize the full range of skills developed through his military experience, career experience, and education. As a project manager, he oversaw contracted projects from start to finish and through design and engineering to commissioning and punchlisting.

After a few years, Rock was promoted to Senior Project Manager and earned shares in the company. The new responsibility provided even more oversight of project managers, project engineers, and more. He then progressed to leading the Purchasing Department and Safety Department before earning a vice-president role. All these skills culminated with Rock's starting his enterprise within the same industry.

For the businessman, this provides an opportunity to provide an enhanced client focus and have the time needed to focus on his family and further develop his home parcel in Ankeny, Iowa, into the perfect spread for his wife and children.

Academic History

As a high school student with an eye toward the future, Rock devoted himself to taking as many courses as possible during high school that would provide college credit. In his junior and senior years, he obtained enough college credits to complete basic training for the Army during the 2000 fall semester and begin matriculating at ISU on schedule in the spring.

After his tour of duty in Iraq, Rock's unit returned to Ames just in time for him to witness his younger sister graduate from ISU.

He quickly caught up and completed two semesters with a heavy course load of 18 credits each to complete his degree. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the school in the spring semester of 2005.

Personal Interests and Hobbies

Ryan Edward Rock is extremely dedicated to his wife of over ten years and their three daughters. The family lives on a four-acre parcel in Ankeny, Iowa, and is building a new home to accommodate their family's needs better.

Always one to tinker, when Rock isn't spending time with his family, he is helping friends with construction projects, working around his home, or working on hobby cars.