Head of Agriculture and Biofuel Analytics (Remote)

Company Description

Fastmarkets is an industry-leading price-reporting agency (PRA) and information provider for global commodities, providing price data, news, analytics and events for the agriculture, forest products, metals and mining and new-generation energy markets.

Fastmarkets' data is critical for customers seeking to understand and predict dynamic, sometimes opaque markets, enabling trading and risk management. Fastmarkets is a global business with a history dating back to 1865 and is built on trust and deep market knowledge. It has more than 600 employees spread across global locations in the UK, US, China, India, Singapore, Brazil, Belgium, Finland and beyond. 

Job Description

The Role

This is an exciting opportunity for a candidate eager to help leading companies and governments successfully navigate constantly evolving agriculture commodity markets driven by factors like weather, geopolitics, domestic policies, increased biofuel demand, food security concerns and shifting trade flows.

The Head of Agriculture and Biofuel Analytics takes direct responsibility for developing and maintaining the overall house view through their management of the research, analysis, content and team. This includes overseeing data collection, analysis, development, and production of short-and long-term forecasts and associated data and analysis. This individual will be responsible for building strong relationships with internal stakeholders along with customers, media, and partners to advance the Fastmarkets brand in this rapidly growing market.

The ideal candidate will thrive in a fast-paced and innovative environment, have a can-do attitude, advice and can juggle a wide variety of tasks and projects.

Principal accountabilities

• Lead team to develop, produce and update house forecasts and underlying data for oils, fats, grains and biofuels (renewable/bio-diesel and SAF), including supply, demand, capacity, costs, government incentives and policies, and other critical metrics.
• Develop and maintain marketplace contacts to stay abreast of industry developments and to expand Fastmarkets’ content and brand
• Act as a spokesperson for Fastmarkets Agriculture and Biofuels content and brand with media, speak and/or represent Fastmarkets as the leader in Agriculture and Biofuels research and data at conferences and outside events
• Communicate with customers regularly to support the sales team, deepen relationships and assist with business development
• Manage a team of Analysts to ensure that content is delivered on time and to the highest standards and in line with our strategy
• Work with the head of consulting on projects by interacting with clients, helping specify and design studies which deliver to client needs, undertaking primary and secondary research, and supporting delivery.
• Partner with Fastmarkets Events producers to develop compelling event programs, leverage relationships in the marketplace to recruit external speakers, and present forecast content
• Manage client and internal enquiries about the markets and accountable for fulfilment of requests for insight and data for presentations and interviews

Organisation chart

• Reports to EVP, Analytics
• Part of an Analytics team of 90

Key interfaces

• Working with product management on the development of market-driven product
• Strong relationship with data science team to improve efficiency and quality of data delivery and management, and improve forecasting techniques
• Sales, Marketing, Events and Senior Management in order to ensure there is constructive feedback about the development of our services and how they fit with the strategy of the business
• Strong external relationships with market participants
• Editorial, marketing and sales

Qualifications

We recruit talented, dynamic people with diverse backgrounds and experiences, all united by a belief in our mission to provide the world’s leading and most trusted price reporting, events, and intelligence service for the markets we serve. We’re proud to be an equal opportunities employer and are committed to creating a fully inclusive workplace, where everyone feels able to participate and contribute meaningfully.

If you are open-minded, curious, resilient, solutions-oriented and committed to promoting equality, then read on...

KNOWLEDGE, EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS

We are looking for an individual who is highly motivated, driven, and have a passion to be part of a fast-paced, successful team. Being a strong team player is also important as well as someone who is happy to work flexibly.

• In-depth knowledge of markets including veg oils, fats, grains and biofuels (renewable/biodiesel and SAF)
• Working knowledge of government policies including RINS, LCSFs, etc.
• Excellent writing and verbal skills
• Confident with presenting at industry events, etc.
• Capacity to speak on the record to the media about market developments
• Able to foster and develop relationships in the relevant industry
• Comfortable with coaching team of analysts
• Collaborative team player
• Leadership qualities, especially in forming a view
• In depth experience in commodity analysis, ideally in the relevant field of research
• Strong analytical/mathematical/econometric modelling
• Appreciation of advanced statistical modelling and forecasting, some exposure to machine learning a plus. Able to critically assess statistical analyses and forecast models and suggest improvements.

BEHAVIOURAL COMPETENCIES

• The successful candidate will be proactive, pragmatic and resilient with a positive and flexible approach, focused on achieving results and the right outcome for a growing business
• Is self-disciplined and takes pride in managing self to deliver agreed objectives
• Personable with a preference for developing strong, collaborative working relationships
• Demonstrates high personal energy
• A confident and inquisitive communicator who actively listens and questions – shows a growth mind-set and naturally curious
• Demonstrates influence with humility – is able to provide advice and guidance without being a ‘knower’.
• Is collaborative and able to adapt own approach and style to the situation.
• Comfortable with ambiguity – where a pathway may not be clear, thrives in working through the challenge

If you're excited about the role but your experience, skills or qualifications don't perfectly align, we encourage you to apply anyway.

Additional Information

Our Values

Fastmarkets people come from all different walks of life. It’s this mix of brilliant personalities, experiences and insights that gives us that warm, open, and friendly culture you can feel as soon as you meet us. But however wonderfully different we all are, there are six things we all have in common – and they form our Fastmarkets values.

Created by our own employees to reflect some of the personal traits that Fastmarkets people have, our values are key to what makes our culture unique. They reflect who each of us are and they're embedded in everything we do. Our values are:

• METRICS DRIVEN. We use insights to improve our customers’ experience and our business performance
   
• ACCOUNTABLE. We are accountable to ourselves and those we work with: we keep our promises and get things done
   
• GROWTH MINDSET. This value enables us to be nimble to the changing realities and operate with a sense of urgency
   
• INCLUSIVE. We are inclusive and respectful, celebrating each of us and giving everyone a deep sense of belonging with the desire to bring their best self to work every day.
   
• CUSTOMER CENTRIC. We are customer-centric in all that we do
   
• COLLABORATIVE. We are collaborative, able to work across teams and capitalise on the diversity of intellect, perspectives, and experiences.

This opportunity is available to applicants based in the following states:
•    Florida
•    Georgia
•    Illinois
•    Massachusetts*
•    North Carolina
•    New Hampshire*
•    New Jersey*
•    New York*
•    Oregon*
•    Pennsylvania
•    Tennessee*
•    Texas
•    California
•    Colorado
* Denotes states with office locations to support hybrid working

You can see that  on a map here: US Hiring States

You’ve read a little about us – now it’s over to you!

If you like what you’ve read so far and think you can see yourself as a Fastmarkets person, it’s time to fill in your application form. This form is an important part of the selection process: it’s used to determine whether or not you’ll be chosen to have an interview and acts as a basis for the questions we’ll ask you on the day.

It’s vital that you try to capture all the relevant information we have asked for on the form so we can get a good feel for who you are and why you’re great.