About the Innova Performance Products Team
In addition to our exceptional product line, our sales team is highly trained in identifying the best product for different geographical locations and specific crop and soil types. Our technical support team is also available to assist sales managers and customers to troubleshoot “unique” situations.
For product information or any other questions, contact one of our ag professionals.
Meet our team:
Jake Straub
VP, Proprietary Products
Jake has been involved in turf and ornamental management as well as agriculture for 30 years. He got his start in the business on the turf management side by building Stonewall Golf Club in Bulltown, PA while attending college. After graduation from the University of Scranton with a degree in Business Management, Jake went back to Penn State University graduating with a 2-year turfgrass management certificate.
He spent the first part of his career working as an Assistant Superintendent at Cherry Hills Country Club in Denver, CO and Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, PA before transitioning into sales and consulting.
In 2011, he started Back to Basics Soil Consulting which offered agronomic advice on soil and plant nutrition to golf course superintendents and turfgrass managers across the country. His clients have hosted multiple USGA championships and include top ranked golf courses in the United States as well and the rest of the world.
Jake joined Novus Ag from Performance Nutrition, a division of LidoChem, where he served as the Regional Sales Manager for their agricultural line. He worked to launch the Innova Performance Product line in Ohio and continues to seek out technologies to help their products evolve and stay on the cutting edge of plant nutrition.
Jason Brown
Manager, Operations / Production / Marketing
Jason has 26 years of experience performing various roles in the Agricultural Retail business. He started in Sales for the FS/Growmark System in 1996 in Madison County, IL. He achieved Certified Crop Advisor status in 1998 and was promoted to Certified Crop Specialist.
He went to work as a salesman for United Agri Products in 2004 and became a location manager in 2005. He managed the Browns, IL location for UAP and later Crop Production services until 2017.
In 2017, he assumed the role of Southern Illinois Division Marketing Manager for soon to be Nutrien Ag Solutions.
Jason joined Novus Ag in September of 2019. He began working for Innova Resources, LLC in December of that same year.
Jason has a Bachelor of Science Degree in General Agriculture from Southern Illinois University.
Amy Evans
Administration and Logistics Manager
Amy has 16 years of experience in the retail ag industry. She attended Rend Lake College in Ina, IL and graduated as Outstanding Ag Student of the Year with an Associate Degree in Applied Science.
During her time at Rend Lake, she worked with Syngenta Crop Protection in one of the first aerial fungicide pilot programs assisting both growers and pilots with software and mapping needs.
After finishing her internship with Syngenta, she was employed as a warehouse/delivery driver for Brown’s Fertilizer and Chemical, a family-owned full service retail business in Carmi, IL. While working for Brown’s, Amy earned a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture Business Management from Murray State University and became the Accounts Receivable Manager at Brown’s.
In 2018, she worked at Nutrien Ag Solutions-Carmi as the Administrative Manager before joining Innova Performance Products in March of 2020.
Jake Young, Ph.D.
Technical / Developmental Product Manager
Jake has earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Plant and Soil Science from Southeast Missouri State University and a Master of Science degree from the University of Missouri. His research on soybean breeding and genetics included evaluating novel genetic mutations that influenced soybean nutritional composition.
Jake then went on to earn a Ph.D. in Plant Sciences, also from the University of Missouri. While there, his research on agronomy and soil science included the evaluation of cover crops in Missouri corn-soybean rotations and how management practices influenced grain yields, soil health, and the soil microbiome.
He serves as an adjunct faculty member at Southeast Missouri State University and teaches online courses for the university’s Department of Agriculture. In addition, he is an advisory board member for the University of Missouri’s Agricultural Extension and Education Center in Albany, MO.
Jake began his career with Novus Ag in 2020 as a regional agronomist in Missouri and joined the Innova Performance Products team in 2022. He brings seven years of agricultural research experience to the team.
Jamie Kapes
Innova Technical Support
Jamie majored in Turfgrass Science at Penn State University and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from the college of Agricultural Sciences. He is also a graduate of The Dale Carnegie Course for Business Managers.
Jamie spent the first 14 years of his career as a successful Golf Course Superintendent at highly ranked clubs in the Mid‐Atlantic region and the last three as a Consultative Sales Representative on the T&O side.
After a few years as an Assistant Superintendent, he was named Superintendent of Merion Golf Club under Director of Golf Matt Shaffer and hosted the 2005 United States Amateur.
He assisted with preparations for the Walker Cup in 2008. Shortly thereafter, Jamie accepted the Superintendent/Property Manager position at Woodway County Club in Darien, CT. At Woodway, he oversaw an 18‐hole state ranked golf course, a full-service beach club, a winter racquets facility, as well as a large pool and tennis facility. In addition, Jamie managed more than 15 million dollars in renovations while hosting numerous regional golf events including a U.S. Open Qualifier and State Open Championship.
Jamie decided to get back to his agronomic roots and moved his family to Virginia where he spent three years as a consultative field representative building a new territory for an agronomic supply company, Noble Turf, on the T&O side. He visited clients throughout North Carolina, Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania successfully expanding the company footprint by focusing on a consultative sales approach.
In July of 2022, Jamie accepted a Regional Agronomist position with Innova Performance Products and provides agronomy expertise and solutions to members of the Novus Ag network and the growers they support.
John Laffey
Innova Business Development
John spent nearly 20 years with Dow/Corteva, where he held multiple leadership roles across the organization including 10 years of retail experience prior to his time with Dow/Corteva.
John grew up on a diversified farming operation in North Central Missouri and attended Northwest Missouri State University earning a degree in Ag Sciences with an emphasis in Agronomy. He started his career with Farmland Industries in Central Iowa as a Crop Management Specialist supporting the Farmers Cooperative Exchange in Prairie City, Iowa.
John moved back to Missouri in 2000 and was the Retail Sales and Marketing Manager for AgriServices of Brunswick.
In 2007, John joined Dow Agrosciences supporting the Mycogen brand and helped develop a retail strategy in Northwest Missouri. After working on the seed side of the business for Dow, he moved to the Traits Marketing Team as an Enlist Field Specialist assisting with the naming, labeling and launch of the Enlist Weed Control System in the Western U.S. In this role John worked with key stakeholders representing the 2-4D molecule across all platforms and governmental affairs.
Next, he moved to the crop protection Account Management Team supporting and leading the efforts with CPS (Nutrien) in the Western Cornbelt and plains divisions and was the National Account Manger for CPS Wholesale. John was also the National Account Manager for West Central Distribution and CHS, Inc.
He then moved to the seeds leadership team and managed the sales teams in Iowa and Minnesota and most recently led the team in Western Iowa launching the Brevant brand to retail.