Saskatchewan's Top Employers (2026) Magazine - Magazine - Page 14
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SASKATCHEWAN’S TOP EMPLOYERS (2026)
Canpotex helps employees grow into their next role
A
lthough she would be
taking her career into
uncharted territory,
Jillian Willick says
she had a good
feeling about going to work for
Canpotex Limited. “I saw it as a
place to grow and make an impact
globally.”
Like most people from
Saskatchewan, Willick knew
about the potash marketing
and exporting company and
its contribution to global food
security. Growing up on a farm in
the south of the province, she’d
even seen Canpotex railcars
rolling by — part of the company’s
extensive transport system for
shipping the essential agricultural
nutrient overseas.
Our people have the
opportunity to wear
multiple hats and
connect with a variety
of business partners
and cultures as we
operate an increasingly
complex global
business.
— Derek Gross
Senior Vice-President,
Finance and Strategy
Willick later moved west to
attend university in Edmonton
and after earning a degree in
engineering went to work on the
business side of the Alberta oil
and gas industry. In 2018, she and
her husband decided to return
to Saskatchewan to be closer to
Derek Gross, senior vice-president, finance and strategy (left), and Jillian Willick, senior manager, export
documentation and credit, at Canpotex.
their two families and settled
in Saskatoon, the midway point
between them.
It’s also home to Canpotex’s
global head office, where Willick
started as manager, sales and
operations planning. She took
on increasingly complex roles
and in 2022 became senior
manager, export documentation
and credit.
Like others in the finance and
strategy group, Willick and her
team are not directly involved in
the sales and delivery of potash.
Instead, their work encompasses
activities that contribute to the
smooth execution of Canpotex’s
business. This includes essential
functions such as export
documentation, credit analysis,
risk management and more.
“My manager saw I was eager
to learn and so she made sure I
had the training and mentoring
I needed,” Willick says. “That’s
something Canpotex does really
well: they provide you with
opportunities that broaden
your skills and experience and
allow you to grow into different
responsibilities.”
Derek Gross, senior vicepresident, finance and strategy,
says Canpotex’s unique business
context makes working there both
exciting and fulfilling. “We’re a
relatively small company with a
massive global reach,” he says.
“With approximately 170
employees around the world, we
export over 14 million tonnes of
Canadian potash to more than
40 countries each year. Our
people have the opportunity to
wear multiple hats and connect
with a variety of business
partners and cultures as we
operate an increasingly complex
global business.”
Founded in 1972, Canpotex is
Saskatchewan’s largest overseas
exporter. And while it has a
history of successfully overcoming
challenges, Gross says the
company cannot afford to rest on
its laurels.
To that end, Canpotex has
developed a robust strategic plan
— as well as annual operating
plans and budgeting processes
— to support both daily
operations and effective decisionmaking across the organization,
Gross says.
“We try to anticipate the
changes that are coming our way
but we know that in any given
year we’re going to have to adjust
our game plan,” he says. “I think
the last five years have really
demonstrated this agility and built
