Brendan finds his happy place at Rabobank

Rabobank’s Brendan Knight.

With the cheeriest of dispositions and infectious positivity, there’s little doubt Brendan Knight enjoys a career and lifestyle that happily gets him out of bed each day.

And considering his boundless energy, it would be little surprise if this Senior Rural Manager actually bounces out of bed daily.

This self-described “farmer at heart” has a simple philosophy that underpins his effervescence, and that’s that every day he gets to “live his passion”.

“I don’t ever think of myself as a client’s bank manager, but rather as their business partner. That is helping farm businesses to grow, supporting the next, and existing, generation on-farm, and genuinely having an opportunity to change our clients’ lives.”

Growing up on a family sheep, cattle and lucerne operation in the Oberon and Bathurst region, Brendan has spent his career in banking – first in Wagga Wagga on a Graduate Program followed by nearly 14 years in Young, predominantly with another lender.

He made the move to Rabobank just over six months ago, enticed by its sole focus on agricultural clients.

“I’d always been curious about Rabobank, ever since my university days – it’s always been a leader in the market and Rabo clients are always so glowing about the bank.”

“Meeting the likes of NSW State Manager Toby Mendl, Head of Relationship Management Craig Croker and Area Manager Virginia Croker certainly piqued my interest, it’s an incredibly impressive team.”

Having now settled into his role – living and servicing clients in Young and surrounds supported by the Goulburn branch – he laughs that “I’m not sure why I didn’t make the change years ago”.
 

Brendan is enjoying being part of the Goulburn team.

“The culture is outstanding and I love that there are so many like-minded people – and just as the Rabobank logo suggests we’re standing with our clients through time, season after season be it good, or challenging.”

Farming and banking intertwined

Brendan also prides himself on being a “farmer who looks after farmers”, with he and his wife Melanie running a hay contracting business in the district.

“With land prices the way they are, we have looked outside the square to be involved in farming and have been very lucky to have the opportunity to establish our own hay contracting business producing irrigated lucerne hay for a great family in the region.”
 

Farming is a family affair for Brendan, Melanie and their children Bentley and Ella.

“Having the ability to raise our kids on the land and allowing them to experience the farming life on our own property we call home is such a privilege.”

“Rabobank has been really supportive of me balancing my banking career with my farming interests, and I truly believe it makes me a better finance professional – it lets you live and breathe what our clients are going through, it also affords me insights into setting up an agricultural business, and I also acutely feel triumphs and challenges like my clients.”

Even in his spare time, Brendan is always looking for opportunities to pitch in on-farm.

“I’ve helped many local farmers with harvest or sowing on weekends – if there’s a tractor, harvester or a truck to be driven, that’s where you’ll find me – and the more horsepower the better!”

Even in his earliest days courting his high school sweetheart Melanie, his penchant for machinery was earning him brownie points with his future in-laws.

“Melanie’s family grew vegetables in the Bathurst district, and there was never any twisting my arm to volunteer taking the Kenworth to the Flemington markets on the weekends!”

“There’s nothing more rewarding than putting in a hard day’s work on the farm, you can see what you’ve achieved and I just love machinery -  whether it’s a baler, a header, an air-seeder or a Kenworth truck there’s nothing I enjoy more than when my kids jump in too and I get the opportunity to showcase the joys of farming to the next generation.”
 

Brendan and Bentley love pitching in during harvest.

Putting clients first

Working for a bank focussed solely on agriculture is a breath of fresh air for Brendan, and, he believes, hugely beneficial for clients.

“There’s a reason Rabobank is unique in the market, our staffing resources are plentiful, and our ability to execute on behalf of our clients is tenfold market leading.”

Turning around approvals in a timely manner is something he’s observed at Rabobank.

“Farmers are always innovating in this tightly held and competitive market environment, standing still is seldom an option.”

“Our farmers need confidence that they can expand and grow their business now and into the future – Rabobank gets this and its longer-term funding options showcase this understanding, and are relatively unique to the market”

Brendan says he’s also been extremely impressed with the agricultural focussed credit process; which he describes as “market leading” in terms of its efficiency and understanding of the cyclical nature of agriculture.

He believes Rabobank looks outside the square to support its clients with challenges imposed by high input costs, variability and high land values.

“Thanks to the agri specialised resources at Rabobank, we have full teams behind the scenes, which means that as rural managers, we’re not tied to the desk – we can be out on-farm, spending more time learning about our clients’ businesses and what they need to succeed.” 

“This form of backup is hard to find these days in the banking industry I continually hear – a  tractor is only as good as its back-up service and the same goes for finance.”

 “When you’re supporting clients in the agricultural space, there’s a lot more to it than just what’s on paper or your last tax return.”

Brendan is also thrilled to be able to remain living and working in Young – a community his family, which also includes seven-year-old son Bentley, and three-year-old daughter Ella – clearly cherish.
 

Brendan with daughter Ella.

“Young is a beautiful place to raise a family, we feel so connected and it’s definitely home – our children love it. On the farm, Ella loves coming with me on the evening pivot runs to water the lucerne during the summer. Bentley loves helping service and operate the hay machinery. It is really nice to see our kids gaining a deep connection to the land and where things come from in a fun way.”

The diversity of Young’s agricultural offering has been fuelling Brendan’s passion in the finance industry, and he’s proud to have the opportunity to now share his skills and expertise to local farmers, backed by Rabobank.

“From mixed farming cropping and livestock operations, wineries to orchards, piggeries to poultry and other intensive industries, there’s not much that isn’t covered in the ag space in this region, and it’s extremely satisfying to be involved in it all.”

“I just love being outdoors, watching things grow,” he beams. “Every season is different, every year is different and it’s such a privilege to see firsthand how innovative and adaptive our farmers are, and to be part of their story.”
 

Brendan and son Bentley love their regional lifestyle.