Director of Crop Protection Products

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Wilbur-Ellis is seeking a top-notch National Director for our Crop Protection team. The ideal candidate is someoneready to hit the ground running with confidence, exceptional communication skills, and a keen ability to listen and influence. Our crop protection team is a highly collaborative one that thrives on the ability to propose creative solutions and a willingness to challenge one another. The Director of Crop Protection Products will play a critical role in developing, negotiating, tracking, allocating, and collecting supplier marketing program rebates that maximize our PTNI with a long-term view of developing and strengthening relationships.

General Purpose and Scope of Position:

The Director of Crop Protection Products is accountable for the development and execution of the Crop Protection (CP) business, vendor strategy, and annual planning. As leader of the CP Supplier Relations team, this role requires a high level of cross-functional coordination to ensure comprehensive and effective communication needed to deliver maximum pre-tax net income and retained earnings for the Crop Protection Product Category. The CP Director will also play a critical role in the developing, negotiating, tracking, allocating, and collecting of supplier marketing program rebates that maximize our PTNI and with a long-term view of developing and strengthening relationships.

Key Skills and Abilities Include:

• Education: BS Degree in Agriculture or related field required, MBA preferred but not required.

• Experience: minimum of 10 years of experience in an Ag related field. Prior experience working with supplier relations required. Strong track record in establishing vendor partnerships.

• Strong and visible leadership - Ability to quickly establish credibility and utilize strategic thinking to shape the team and strategic plan within the functional organization as well as in partnership with cross-functional stakeholders.

• Impact and influence - Ability to influence, develop and maintain effective internal/external relationships to facilitate change, with and without authority, and ensure cohesion across the organization. Able to promote and secure buy in from a cross-functional leadership team and peer groups within the organization.

• Interpersonal effectiveness - Is sensitive to different points of view and seeks to understand and resolve conflicts/issues in a constructive manner. Able to operate effectively and comfortably with different cultures, in strange and challenging situations and to direct and instruct in a respectful and polite manner.

• Effective communication - Ability to, both verbally and in writing, communicate strategy and information to key stakeholders at all levels of the organization (internal/external) especially influencing across organization and departments to ensure alignment and delver CP strategy results

• Knowledge, ability, or proficiency:

  • Deep level of industry knowledge including CP market and products

  • Developing and executing strategic vision including vendor strategy and management

  • Negotiating favorable pricing and terms from vendors

  • High business and financial acumen, outcome-based analytical skills, inventory, working capital, and budget management

  • Effectively builds and leads high-performing teams

  • Extensive knowledge of Sales and Operational Planning (S&OP) processes
    

Key Personal Attributes Include:

• Aligned to our Core Values (Integrity, Diversity, Effort, Accountability, Service)

• Leads by example. Embodies servant leadership (values diverse opinions; cultivates a culture of trust; develops other leaders; helps people; encourages; sells instead of tells; thinks you, not me; thinks long-term; acts with humility).

• Is well organized, manages multiple projects and deadlines, great attention to detail, and works well under pressure.

• Demonstrated ability to deliver a high level of creativity

• Solid and trusted relationships among peers and industry contacts
  

Specific Responsibilities and Key Deliverables Include:

• Leader, delegator and developer- Establish the right organization structure, and lead the coaching of the team, specifically:

  • Articulate strategic vision and business goals to garner buy-in and drive the team to fulfill that vision.

  • Attract, develop and retain talent (i. e. plans for staffing, succession, career paths).

  • Promote and drive an employee engagement plan with an aligned, focused culture, through clear performance targets, regular one-on-ones focused on culture, mindset, stakeholder alignment and conflict resolution.
    

• Relationship manager and influencer- Establish strong relationships both internally and externally

  • Maintaining strong relationships with all CP suppliers, enhancing and building business to business relationships.

  • Coordinating across all departments including Branded Seed regarding supplier selection and strategies and Procurement to ensure the right product is at the right place at the right time to meet the Division's high service level expectations both efficiently and competitively

  • Support the Actives Portfolio Lead in maintaining the Tenkoz relationships and associated communication
    

• Operations Leader- Develop and optimize annual operating budgets to support and drive CP strategy and achieve department financial goals. Partners with cross-functional leaders in directing the processes for CP including planning, procurement, supplier and product selection, inventory control, logistics, distribution, marketing program negotiation, rebate tracking, and collection.

  • Manages CP supplier selection and qualification process and CP inventory and working capital to optimize annual return off of CP segment.

  • Leads product use analysis and modeling to support the Sales and Operational Planning Process (S&OP) for CP products.

  • Owns the CP inventory levels as category management. Responsible for ensuring these are reduced to hit financial performance goals at critical points in the year.

  • Oversees rebate planning, forecasting, tracking and the timely collection of suppliers' rebates

  • Negotiates and communicates CP supplier programs, pricing, and key information throughout the division

  • Develops and implements Costing Systems that deliver accurate rebate forecasting, net cost information, .