Job Description

As part of our growth strategy and our plans to establish breeding teams for our Vegetable Business Unit, we are looking for a Tomato Breeder based at KWS Vegetables Breeding Station in Antalya, Türkiye You will contribute to the driving of our breeding team in Antalya and will report to the Head of Breeding within the Vegetables business unit of KWS Group

Job purpose: Develop commercially and producible successful varieties for specific market segments in an efficient way.

Key Success Factors:

• Quantity and quality of output of breeding program i.e. commercially successful varieties.
• Efficient and effective functioning and professionalism of the breeding team.
• Effectiveness and quality of communication (internal and external).
• Quality of advice and proposals.
• Creativity with entrepreneurial mindset.
• Combining market information and translating it into breeding goals/ideotype.

Your Tasks:

• Development: Optimize efficiency and output of the breeding program (i.e. ensuring a constant flow of commercially successful varieties) by developing and implementing (new) technologies, equipment and breeding methods within the crop improvement process by using and generating relevant genetic material in the right environment and by developing the breeding team.
• Management information: Advise, propose, and discuss with the R&D Tomato Crop Lead regarding long-term and short-term crop-specific breeding strategy/developments and participate in relevant crop teams for optimizing information exchange and decision making.
• Breeding plan: Formulate, design and, after the approval of the Head of Breeding and the Tomato Crop Lead, implement and execute the crop-specific breeding plan by managing a continuous process of crop improvement in line with the departmental breeding strategy to achieve the breeding goals. Identify promising results from different fields of research and integrate them in the breeding program. Evaluate formally with Head of Breeding and the Tomato Crop Lead on an annual basis.
• Breeding goals: Translate market requirements and future needs or opportunities as well as the company strategy for the crop into new products in order to be able to determine breeding goals.
• Budget responsibility: Prepare, discuss and, after approval of the Head of Breeding, implement specified operational plans for the breeding program, analyzing planning deviations together with Head of Breeding, in line with the departmental guidelines, to optimize the execution of the crop breeding budgets and the operational plan.
• Management: Manage, support and direct the breeding team and breeding-related activities in line with the breeding plan, guidelines and procedures and corporate values and vision within KWS Vegetables in order to ensure an efficient and effective breeding team. The breeding activities have to be managed on the site where the breeder is located, but also on other sites where part of the program is executed, nationally and internationally.
• Support: Support and provide all departments with all necessary technical and product knowledge through structural and ad hoc working relations in order to facilitate their processes and decision making.
• HRM: Manage, direct, and, after approval of the Head of Breeding and in cooperation with HR, coordinate the personnel flow within the breeding team located on the site and on external sites, including appraisal, training and development and career planning by using HR instruments, guidelines, procedures and advise in order to select and maintain competent employees and ensure an efficient and effective functioning breeding team.

Your profile:

• MSc/PhD in plant breeding or genetics or Bachelor level + necessary experience.
• In depth working knowledge of horticulture, agronomy, genetics, pathology, physiology and molecular genetics.
• Minimum five years of experience in plant breeding.
• Computer skills (data management, management information systems, databases, spread sheets).
• Fluent spoken and written English and Turkish
• Experience in management, organization and planning.
• Ability to work independently with excellent communication and pragmatic skills.
• Analytical, structured and solution-oriented work in a team as well as a quick grasp and a high degree of personal responsibility, commitment and flexibility.
• Team player with hands-on mentality.
• (International) travel app. 10-25%

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