Our Management Team
Dr. Thomas Stein
Chief Innovations Officer, Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board of Directors
Dr. Stein is regarded as one of the world's leading authorities on information systems,
reporting and analysis for pork production. He has served as the CEO of MetaFarms
since its inception in 2000. A native of Illinois, Dr. Stein received his undergraduate
degree in Animal Science from Purdue University, and earned his DVM degree from
the University of Illinois. He completed a Master's Degree in Veterinary Medicine
at the University of Minnesota and went on to earn a PhD in Clinical Epidemiology
and Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Stein’s PhD thesis project at the University of Minnesota
focused on the design and development of the PigCHAMP record-keeping system. In
1990, Dr. Stein founded Knowledgeworks, Inc., a management consulting and software
development firm, with core competencies in financial analysis, investment analysis,
and business planning for large-scale pork production, industry-specific knowledge
management, and software development products and services. Knowledgeworks was acquired
by MetaFarms in late 1999.
Chad Becker
President and Chief Executive Officer
Prior to MetaFarms, Chad spent 17 plus years with Fair Isaac Corporation in numerous
executive positions managing, developing, and deploying advanced analytic software
solutions for numerous industries. In that capacity, he was a General Management
Executive with a broad background as a strategic member of a corporate leadership
team. He is a versatile business leader that has integrated several aspects of highly
complex software businesses. His strong experience in product management, sales,
and operations has allowed him to communicate and execute on strategies with a focus
towards creating customer and shareholder value. Chad is a graduate of St. Cloud
State University, MN, graduating Cum Laude, with a BS in Management/Finance and
a minor in Business Computer Informational Systems.
Alan Childs
Vice President of Information Technology
Alan has worked for MetaFarms since 2001 designing and developing the i-Production
platform. Alan’s specialty is large scale databases and data warehousing solutions
serving online customers. Alan currently serves as the Vice President of Information
Technology bringing livestock industry customers the latest in online application
technology. Prior to MetaFarms, Alan worked for Resaleworld, a software company
serving the second hand retail industry, and formed database partnerships with Amazon,
eBay, Yahoo, and other industry leaders in delivering online merchandise solutions.
His experience in database development began in the 1980s with Oracle and worked
in the database consulting industry with customers like MnDOT, Disney, CBS, The
Salvation Army, Koch Industries, Hershey, and Lands End.
Jeff Duffy
Vice President of Operations
Jeff joined the MetaFarms team in 2007 to manage the data center infrastructure
used to run i-Production. He also manages the Customer Support, Quality Assurance,
Finance and Human Resource areas within the company. Prior to joining MetaFarms,
he spent 10 years with Fourth Shift/SoftBrands, a client/server based software company.
There he oversaw numerous areas within software development including working with
remote Development and Translation teams throughout the world. As a Certified Novell
Engineer, he worked for a local CPR firm as a network consultant for both internal
and external customers. Jeff has a B.S. degree in Accounting from Mankato State
University which he used in several finance positions with National Computer Systems
in the early 1990's. His background in finance and network systems continues to
help MetaFarms manage their growing needs.