Job Openings at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)

Background

• IITA has successful breeding programs on six very important crops in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA): cassava, yam, banana/plantain, maize, soybean and cowpea. In recent years, these have been reviewed based on the Breeding Program Assessment Tool (BPAT) (https://plantbreedingassessment.org/).
• The programs have also had extensive interaction with the CGIAR Excellence in Breeding (EiB) platform during which crop specific and cross cutting (institutional) improvement plans have been developed along with product profiles and market segmentation analyses. Implementing these plans will require a strong focus on step changes to improve efficiency of breeding and delivery of increased rates of variety turnover and genetic gain. This has been identified as a high priority by IITA.
• To achieve this, IITA seeks an experienced product development manager (product placement lead) with expertise in strategic product decision-making, including market analysis and the development of product concepts that deliver unique value based on customer demands.
• Through effective communication and dissemination of product and market information between clients and the product design teams, this position is a key component of the IITA/NARS breeding program and will ensure a continuous improvement process.
• It will also contribute to better targeting of variety development and supply of high quality planting materials in a timely and effective manner.
• The appointee will report to the Head of Breeding and work closely with leaders of the crop breeding teams.   

Position Responsibilities

• The Product Manager will play a cross-functional leadership role, most notably between breeding teams, clients and market stakeholders.
• S/he will also be part of a network with other product managers inside and outside IITA (coordinated by the CGIAR Excellence in Breeding platform).  

The Product Manager will:

• Serve as a liaison between the IITA and NARS or commercial breeding teams, overseeing strategic decision making in the product development and delivery process.
• Provide market intelligence and help with prioritization of breeding objectives to meet market needs.  
• Set the roadmap for product design and delivery, in addition to the overall product strategy.  
• Work with seed system partners (in the public and private sectors) to develop a strong and streamlined route to market for new varieties of cassava, yam, banana/plantain.
• Coordinate product design activities between IITA and NARS to confirm clear product concepts.
• Work to properly position products for greatest impact and uptake after release.  
• Provide feedback to the breeders as to how closely products will satisfy market demand.
• Establish a continuous improvement cycle in order to better focus the breeding product design on the needs of the market.
• Contribute to resource mobilization to support crop breeding.

 Educational Qualifications

• The candidate should have a finalised MBA or agri-business related degree with proven product development and marketing focus OR MS/Ph.D. degree in agricultural sciences with knowledge of product development and/or seed systems.

Core Competencies

• This is a high-level specialist appointment requiring knowledge of breeding, seed systems and the market context for clonal crops (especially cassava, yam and plantain/banana) in sub-Saharan Africa.  

 The appointee will have:  

• At least 10 years of experience in a similar position  
• Private sector or government seed system knowledge and a proven ability to collaborate
• Demonstrated ability in product design, management, marketing, seed scaling and dissemination  
• Ability to manage a cross-functional team as part of the product design process and the development of product profile contracts  
• Demonstrated successful delivery of product management strategies and the development of a plan of multiple product pipelines across a multi-cultural and multi-country environment
• Excellent interpersonal, communication and organizational skills  
• Skills and experience of markets and seed systems for clonal crops to complement the breeding and research expertise currently in place
• Experience in working with breeding programs

General information and Remuneration
The contract will be for an initial period of three years. IITA offers an internationally competitive remuneration package paid in US Dollars. 

Interested applicants should complete the online application below, attaching detailed Cover Letter and Curriculum Vitae saved with their names in Microsoft word. The application must include the names and e-mail addresses of three professional referees which must include the applicant’s current or previous direct Supervisor, a professional colleague and evidence of current remuneration package.Click here for more Information (PDF)

Background

• IITA has successful breeding programs on six very important crops in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA): cassava, yam, banana/plantain, maize, soybean and cowpea. In recent years, these have been reviewed based on the Breeding Program Assessment Tool (BPAT) (https://plantbreedingassessment.org/).
• The programs have also had extensive interaction with the CGIAR Excellence in Breeding (EiB) platform during which crop specific and cross cutting (institutional) improvement plans have been developed along with product profiles and market segmentation analyses.
• IITA plans to improve the quality of its field stations, farm operations, and plant growth facilities as part of the plans for, and in support of, improving crop breeding. To achieve this, an experienced manager with a strong background in research farm management and the ability and credibility to work closely with an Institutional Head of Breeding and breeding team leads is needed. The appointee will report to the Head of Breeding.

Position Responsibilities

• The Head of Farm Management will manage the research farms and plant growth facilities of IITA in support of activities of the Institute’s crop breeding programs.
• S/he will have responsibility for all IITA research farms and plant growth facilities in sub-Saharan Africa, with 70% of his/her time in West Africa (especially at Ibadan, Ikenne and Kano stations in Nigeria) and 30% for IITA stations outside West Africa (e.g. in Zambia, Tanzania, Uganda, DRC).

With support from station farm managers/superintendents and other staff, his/her activities will include the following:

• Define an investment plan for research farms and plant growth facilities in consultation with the head of breeding and breeding team leads.
• Manage greenhouse equipment, fertigation, pest management, and environment controls.
• Develop and implement improvement plans for irrigation and soil and pest management.  
• Ensure organization and regular maintenance and repair of farm and plant growth facilities, machinery and equipment.  
• Ensure measurement and control of farm operations efficiency.
• Develop the capacity of research farm staff and raise quality of farm management at all sites, including increased level of mechanization of operations.
• Contribute to increased investment in research farm infrastructure and equipment.  
• Manage the budget for the Research Farms Unit.
• Optimize procedures for material handling and workflow for seed processing and packaging.
• Establish a culture of continuous improvement of experimental stations and farm practices.
• Promote a culture of maintaining healthy, safe and environmentally friendly stations.
• As lead for a Western Africa support network for field operations, develop a plan for running trials (at cost) for other CGIAR centers and national research programs and identify opportunities for sharing services with them.
• Lead farm operation teams in the implementation of field plans of breeding programs.

Educational Qualifications

• The candidate should have a finalised MSc degree in Agronomy or related field in Agriculture.

Core Competencies:

• At least ten years’ experience in management of research farms and plant growth facilities, preferably in support of crop breeding programs.
• Ability to manage change in complex, multi country operations.  
• Sound understanding of agronomy and proven experience in management of soil fertility, irrigation systems, and mechanization.
• Proficient in the use of software packages for managing projects and agricultural practices on research stations and farms.
• Excellent work ethic and effective leadership, organizational, and communication skills.
• Ability to adapt to longer work schedules when seasonally required and to operate under time pressure when needed.  
• Experience in research farm management in Africa will be an advantage. 

General information and Remuneration
The contract will be for an initial period of three years. IITA offers an internationally competitive remuneration package paid in US Dollars. 

Interested applicants should complete the online application below, attaching detailed Cover Letter and Curriculum Vitae saved with their names in Microsoft word. The application must include the names and e-mail addresses of three professional referees which must include the applicant’s current or previous direct Supervisor, a professional colleague and evidence of current remuneration package.

Click here for more Information (PDF)

Background

• IITA has successful breeding programs on six very important crops in sub-Saharan Africa: cassava, yam, banana/plantain, maize, soybean and cowpea. In recent years, these have been reviewed based on the Breeding Program Assessment Tool (BPAT) (https://plantbreedingassessment.org/).
• The programs have also had extensive interaction with the CGIAR Excellence in Breeding (EiB) platform during which crop specific and cross cutting (institutional) improvement plans have been developed along with product profiles and market segmentation analyses. Implementing these plans will require a strong focus on step changes to improve efficiency of breeding and delivery of increased rates of variety turnover and genetic gain.
• This has been identified as a high priority by IITA and the appointee will play an important role in prioritizing future investments at the Institute within the Crops to End Hunger initiative.
• IITA seeks a senior plant breeder with commercial plant breeding and people management experience to lead modernisation of all IITA breeding programs and to facilitate the institutional changes that will allow this to occur in an effective and efficient manner.
• The appointee will report to the Deputy Director General for Research-for-Development.  

Position Responsibilities
The Head of Breeding will:

• Align breeding focus and operational resources to validated breeding targets.  
• Establish a crop advancement agenda in partnership with breeders of the IITA mandate crops and the product manager.
• Establish specific metrics for variety and trait advancements for each crop.
• Establish metrics for population improvements within the breeding program.
• Modify breeding structure of each crop to deliver demand driven products at the lowest cost.  
• Establish a culture of continuous improvement.
• Improve breeding strategy for all six mandate crops.
• Lead breeding teams to design and implement breeding strategies.  
• Work closely with the product manager and cross-functional product teams to define targets for the breeding programs to develop breeding strategy.
• Work with breeders to strengthen collaboration with national breeding programs and other relevant stakeholders (e.g. seed companies, input suppliers, etc.)
• Define investment plans and mobilize increased resources for crop breeding.
• Facilitate establishment of collaborative research with advanced research institutions.
• Serve as the focal point of IITA’s interactions with the Excellence in Breeding platform.
• Connect IITA resources in design, engineering and operations to develop highly effective product development teams.  

Educational Qualifications

• The candidate should have a finalised PhD in Plant Breeding, Genetics or related field.

Core Competencies:

• At least 15 years of experience in plant breeding programs (with at least 10 years in the private sector) at progressively higher levels of responsibility.
• Evidence of significant management skills including change management and management of successful breeding teams.
• Ability to work well in a diverse multicultural environment.
• Excellent interpersonal and organizational skills.  
• Evidence of experience in resource mobilization.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Ability to build consensus/function as part of a team.

General information and Remuneration
The contract will be for an initial period of three years. IITA offers an internationally competitive remuneration package paid in US Dollars. 

Interested applicants should complete the online application below, attaching detailed Cover Letter and Curriculum Vitae saved with their names in Microsoft word. The application must include the names and e-mail addresses of three professional referees which must include the applicant’s current or previous direct Supervisor, a professional colleague and evidence of current remuneration package.

Click here for more Information (PDF)