Job Description

Company Description

Founded in 1948, Lely is committed to a sustainable, profitable, and enjoyable future in agriculture. Driven by the challenges faced by farmers and the needs of cows, we develop high-quality robots and data systems that improve animal welfare, flexibility, and productivity on dairy farms. Our mission is to support sustainable food production.

For more than 30 years, we have been a global leader in the sale and service of automated systems for successive generations of dairy farmers. Every day, we inspire our colleagues to offer customers innovative solutions and to be a reliable partner for long-term advice and support. With our state-of-the-art Lely Campus in Maassluis and a global network of dedicated Lely Centers offering customized sales and service, Lely is active in more than fifty countries.

Job Description

How do we ensure that our innovative products meet the highest standards of quality, reliability and performance? As Head of Integrated Testing and Verification, you define the strategic direction for integrated testing and verification at Lely. You are responsible for developing the expertise, people and ways of working within the Competence Center. As a member of the Product Development Management Team, you also play an important role in shaping the broader direction of Product Development.

In this senior management role, you lead a growing multidisciplinary organization through a team of 8 direct reports, with an indirect organization of approximately 90–100 FTE. As the organization continues to grow, the leadership team is expected to expand. You work closely with the Business Teams and other competences to ensure that the right people, knowledge, technologies and resources are in place to deliver projects successfully and continuously improve product quality. As the organization continues to grow, you play a key role in further developing its capabilities, leadership structure and ways of working. You also keep a close eye on emerging technologies and industry developments, translating them into opportunities for innovation and ensuring the Competence Center is prepared for future challenges.

Your main responsibilities include:

• Defining and implementing the strategic vision for Integrated Testing and Verification, while contributing to the broader Product Development strategy.
• Leading and developing the Competence Center through a strong leadership team, with a focus on talent development, performance, recruitment, and learning and development.
• Strengthening collaboration with Business Teams and other competences, ensuring alignment between product roadmaps, technology initiatives, project requirements and resource allocation.
• Driving innovation and continuous improvement by monitoring emerging technologies, tools, processes and industry developments and translating them into opportunities for the Competence Center.
• Ensuring effective knowledge development and sharing, lifecycle management and technical documentation at project, product and competence level, in line with relevant legislation and quality standards.
• Taking responsibility for strategic workforce planning, resource allocation and the Competence Center budget, while developing external partnerships to strengthen expertise and capabilities.

Qualifications

You are a strategic, people-oriented leader who knows how to connect technical expertise with organizational goals. You have experience leading teams through other leaders, developing people and capabilities, and delivering results in a complex, multidisciplinary environment. You know when to focus on long-term strategy and when operational adjustments are needed to achieve the desired results.

In addition, you bring:

• A master’s degree in a relevant technical field or a comparable discipline.
• Preferably around 10 years of relevant professional experience, including at least 5 years in a leadership role.
• Strong leadership skills and experience developing teams, team leads and an effective management structure.
• The ability to develop a strategic vision and translate it into concrete plans aligned with organizational objectives.
• In-depth technical knowledge of the field, including an understanding of relevant industry standards, quality requirements and technological developments.
• Experience working across functions and bringing together teams and stakeholders within and beyond Product Development.
• Strong coaching skills, enabling you to help team leads reach their potential and develop their own leadership and coaching capabilities.
• Experience with resource planning, budget responsibility and balancing capacity, costs and organizational objectives.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, combined with a results-oriented approach.
• The ability to create a safe and open working environment where people share feedback, collaborate, take ownership and strive for high standards.

Additional Information

Working at Lely means contributing to sustainable progress within one of the most innovative organizations in the Netherlands. You help make the agricultural sector more futureproof, and we ensure you have the space, resources, and support to do so.

• An international work environment that values collaboration, initiative, and diverse perspectives.
• A culture that encourages learning, experimentation, and ownership of ideas.
• Excellent employment conditions, including up to 7 weeks of vacation per year and a strong pension scheme.
• A salary range of €6950 - €9950 gross per month. The package includes an electric car and a 20% bonus.
• Full ownership of your own development, with access to a wide range of courses through the Lely Academy.
• Daily access to outstanding sports facilities at the Lely Campus: an indoor gym, outdoor padel courts, basketball and volleyball courts, table tennis, and table football. You can join Hyrox workouts or sign up for personal training and challenge your colleagues during an active break.
• Fresh coffee and tea from our own barista (with milk from our own farm) and a healthy, affordable company restaurant.
• A healthy work-life balance thanks to our hybrid working policy: you work at least three days a week on Campus, with flexible hours and plenty of opportunity to spend additional time onsite (between 06:00 and 20:00).
• A free shuttle bus that takes you to and from the metro station in Maassluis, ensuring your workday starts and ends smoothly.
• And of course: we love to celebrate! Whether it’s an anniversary or the annual Christmas party. At Lely, we know how to do it.

We are also proud that our vision and efforts have been recognized with the Rotterdam Entrepreneurs Award 2025.

Recruitment & selection agency, consultancy, and/or staffing agency?

We appreciate the interest, but we recruit all our candidates directly. We understand that as intermediaries, you want to present candidates for our great positions and contribute to our ambitions, but this is not how we have set up our recruitment process. This means that all unsolicited profiles offered on Lely vacancies will be treated as direct applications.