Research Operations Lead

Who We Are, and What We Do:

At Corteva Agriscience, you will help us grow what’s next. No matter what your role, you will be part of a team that is building the future of agriculture – solving the world’s food problems through innovation, technology, and putting people first.

The Research Center Operations Lead is responsible for leadership and management of a large multi-crop research center that serves corn, soybean, wheat, and discovery science field research across north and central Indiana. The Operations Lead coordinates the leadership of day-to-day management at the research center, serves as the liaison between all process leads at the center level, and serves as the overall key contact for the center. They plan for research center resources (manpower, machinery, equipment, land, tools, and facilities) needed to produce high quality data, on-time field operations, meet winter research seed production and product advancement schedules. Additionally, they ensure safe, effective, and efficient management of research center processes at the local level.

What You'll Do:

• Manage and accountable for the daily center operations, ensuring on-time completions to meet research and business needs.
• Plan, organize, and direct research operations to ensure the most effective use of assets while meeting research/business objectives; may include, but not limited to the management of: personnel, equipment, facility and land use.
• Manage research operations through subordinate staff that have full accountabilities for their respective areas.
• Coordinate the research center leadership team meetings by developing agendas, schedules, and ensuring appropriate follow-ups.
• Effective management of land cooperators and contracts.
• Ensure regulatory compliance (safety, DOT, wage/hour laws, USDA, EPA, etc).
• Hold regular team meetings to provide short-term and long-term task direction, along with timely business updates.
• Meet with employees individually to stay abreast of business issues, workload levels, and employee concerns.
• Participate in station activities based on the seasonal needs of the center.
• Work with research center leadership team to proactively plan and address future needs.
• Participate in the labor planning for all regular, temporary, and seasonal research staff.
• Review of operations and fixed projections and implement corrective actions to stay within budget.
• Monitor and manage capacity constraints, equipment problems, labor scheduling, etc. to ensure research goals are met.
• Identify and resolve problems with help as needed from the local center leadership team and upper management (Research Directors, EZ Leads, etc.).
• Coach, support and develop employees on their team in a manner that fosters effective collaboration and teamwork, demonstrating and modeling the Core Values.
• Establish and support individual and team performance goals that are attainable and aligned with business strategy.
• Hold employees accountable for achieving performance results and demonstrating work behaviors that promote collaboration and teamwork in an effective manner while demonstrating and modeling the Core Values.
• Recognize and value employees through ongoing recognition of individual and team results.
• Strongly encourage employee feedback and ideas for process improvements.
• Promote health, safety, and environmentally- friendly practices
• Coordinate safety efforts at a station level and with partner site by leading safety meetings and ensuring safety standards are implemented and fully executed.
• Ensure all employees at the center are engaged in safety.
• Model and enforce Corteva’s Safety Life Critical Rules.
• Foster a positive safety culture on and off the job.
• Ensure Corteva Agriscience Management System (CAMS) is in place and effective.
• Provide oversight of and monitor quality levels through all stages of research.
• Organize and facilitate the management review meetings to ensure continual improvement through CAMS.
• Work in conjunction with Research Scientists, EZ Leads and Crop Leads to establish project goals consistent with business unit goals.
• Provide management, scientific leadership and creativity when initiating, designing, and executing research within/across projects.
• May monitor research progress and meet with center and regional science leaders to identify problems and opportunities impacting scientific procedures or protocols.
• May communicate with research leadership, business unit contacts, and/or external collaborators on progress of product opportunities and makes recommendations regarding product testing and evaluation process.
• May participate and prepare for product selection and cultivar advancements meetings. This may include preparing and analyzing data, keeping records, or otherwise facilitating advancement meetings.
• May serve on teams appropriate to cross project research initiatives.

What Skills You Need:

• Masters Degree or Bachelor’s Degree with equivalent experience in Agriculture related field
• 5 -7 years experience in Research operations
• Supervisory or leadership experience critical
• Physical ability to lift 30lbs, ability to work a in field setting in all kinds of weather, ability to stand/sit for extended periods, ability to travel overnight, sometimes for an extended period.
• Primarily in a Research Center setting with regular interaction taking place in plant/warehouse areas, plus frequent visits to field locations.
• High workload with long hours and weekend work during seasonal peaks. Occasional travel within region.
• Requires ability to look several months forward to anticipate labor needs, resource needs, space requirements, etc.
• Research operations knowledge combined with prior management skills and the ability to supervise/handle multiple tasks at one time is critical.
• Leadership capabilities to motivate others, initiate projects, make decisions, and effectively solve problems.
• Excellent interpersonal/communication skills are required for fostering teamwork, enhancing a good working environment, and effectively developing strong working relationships with a diverse group of people
• The Research Center Operational Leads job operates over three job grade levels with increasing responsibility, complexity, and impact. Factors that would affect this would be experience, scientific contribution, contribution to the department outside the local center level and overall research center complexity.