Technical Development Mgr

<p><strong>Essential Responsibilities:</strong></p> <p><strong>Field Research & Product Validation</strong></p> <ul> <li>Design, implement, and manage field trials and on‑farm demonstrations in specialty crops (e.g., fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, vines, potatoes, turf, or other high‑value systems).</li> <li>Ensure trials are agronomically sound, statistically defensible, and aligned with intended claims and use‑patterns.</li> <li>Collect, analyze, and interpret agronomic, physiological, and yield/quality data to support product performance claims.</li> <li>Provide feedback to the lab/greenhouse team and Product Management on formulation performance, crop response variability, and use‑case optimization, consistent with the organization’s emphasis on scientifically validated product performance.</li> </ul> <p><strong>Agronomic Support & Commercial Enablement</strong></p> <ul> <li>Serve as the subject‑matter expert (SME) for product use in specialty crop systems, integrating products into grower‑relevant fertility, stress mitigation, and crop quality programs.</li> <li>Partner with Sales and Marketing to support customer meetings, field days, and technical trainings.</li> <li>Help sales teams position products credibly by explaining mechanisms of action, realistic performance expectations, and best‑fit agronomic scenarios.</li> <li>Support the development of crop‑specific guidelines, technical bulletins, and decision tools grounded in field data and biological rationale.</li> </ul> <p><strong>Grower & Stakeholder Engagement</strong></p> <ul> <li>Build trusted relationships with growers, consultants, researchers, and specialty crop influencers.</li> <li>Act as a technical face of the company in the field, answering agronomic questions, troubleshooting performance issues, and reinforcing product confidence.</li> <li>Provide in‑season agronomic support to ensure correct product use and to identify opportunities for program improvement.</li> </ul> <p><strong>Data, Insights & Cross‑Functional Collaboration</strong></p> <ul> <li>Translate field data into clear insights for internal teams, including Product Management, Regulatory, Marketing, and R&D.</li> <li>Contribute to internal knowledge sharing by documenting learnings from trial programs and customer interactions.</li> <li>Support regulatory and stewardship activities by ensuring field use aligns with label requirements and regional crop practices.</li> <li>Other duties not listed above may be assigned by immediate supervisor</li> </ul> <p><strong> </strong><strong>Criteria:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Broad agronomy knowledge of specialty crops in the U.S. and around the globe.</li> <li>Experience managing the technical aspects of product development projects for crop inputs</li> <li>Experience planning, facilitating or summarizing agronomic field trials</li> <li>Experience in technical support for differentiated products in a competitive market</li> <li>Strong interpersonal and customer relation skills, but also an innovative and creative thinker</li> <li>Strong ability to work well with others to achieve objectives, but Independent and comfortable working from a remote office at their home</li> <li>High level of proficiency for analyzing and summarizing data (i.e. Excel, ARM, etc…)</li> <li>Achieves Results: Self-starter, self-disciplined, detailed and organized. Identifies and resolves problem in a timely manner. Prioritizes and plans work activities and uses time efficiently.</li> <li>Adaptability & Change Management: Effectively deals with and handles change and uncertainty. Adapts easily and quickly to a changing environment without losing effectiveness. Resilient</li> <li>Personal Development: Listens well and is aware of personal strengths and weaknesses and takes continuous action to improve personal capabilities</li> <li>Uncompromising ethics; Passionate for excellence; Unaccepting of mediocrity; Efficient with time</li> <li>This position requires 40-60% travel on average. (some weeks zero travel, some weeks 5 days).</li> <li>Work location is preferred in one of the following states: CA, but other adjacent states will be considered for strong candidates</li> </ul> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>Qualifications:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Bachelor’s degree in Agronomy, Crop Science, Plant Science, Soil Science, or a related field (Ph.D. degree preferred).</li> <li>5+ years of experience in field agronomy, technical services, or crop consulting, with direct exposure to specialty crop systems.</li> <li>Strong working knowledge of plant nutrition, soil fertility, crop physiology, and stress responses.</li> <li>Demonstrated experience designing and executing field trials or on farm research.</li> <li>Excellent communication skills with the ability to translate complex biological concepts into practical agronomic recommendations.</li> <li>Willingness to travel extensively during the growing season</li> </ul> <p><strong>Physical Demands:</strong></p> <p>The physical demands described here are the representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job:</p> <p>While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; and talk or hear. The employee frequently is required to stand, walk; and stoop or kneel. The employee must regularly lift and/or move up to ten pounds, occasionally lift and/or move up to twenty pounds, and rarely lift and/or move more than twenty-five pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.</p> <p><strong>Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.</strong></p>