Syngenta is a Global Agribusiness Company with its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. We are a market leader in the breeding and production of Seeds and Cuttings for high quality pot and bedding plants. In Kenya, we have two production Sites; Kenya Cuttings Limited based in Thika and Pollen Limited based in Ruiru.

To develop, implement and lead the long-term strategy of the site by transforming the site into the most efficient and preferred production location with high Health, Safety ,Environment & Quality  standard in order to produce the best quality plants for our customer. You will lead the site resources and continually improve the capabilities, processes and assets to meet the business needs in terms of customer responses, cost efficiency and full compliance with internal and external standards and legislation. You will provide leadership and develop the site team by creating strong succession pipeline and drive the implementation of a site-wide strategy to Secure Flowers and Seeds production processes and ensure a reliable system is in place with a sustainable production system.

Key Responsibilities

• You will  provide autonomous leadership for the site in line with the Syngenta Flowers culture and strategy.
• You will direct and guide functional leaders in execution of responsibilities for cost, volume, people and quality management for continuous and sustainable business operations.
• You will set targets and evaluate performance as per Syngenta policy for the management team to achieve overall business objectives.
• You will ensure sourcing of required resources for assets acquisitions and replacements in a cost-effective manner in order to produce for each season according to the forecast and quality standards.
• You will maintain the site Master plan & ensure implementation of short and midterm investment plans as per strategy to achieve targeted objectives.
• You will review and approve site budget and latest estimates to ensure reasonableness of the annual estimates in meeting business objectives.
• You will manage the budget and handle communication with Global flower controllers to ensure changes to the budget are agreed and aligned.
• You will ensure detailed reports on country events, business activities, investment progress, corporate social responsibilities and financial reports are prepared and distributed to various stakeholders for smooth running and monitoring of the business.
• You will establish, review and sustain communication lines with the seeds and flowers global managers, Global research teams with the local teams of all levels for smooth execution of the company’s activities.
• You will establish and maintain sound Industrial Relations.
• You will implement and maintain integrity and security of company assets and personnel especially the SOX compliance while taking the local context into account to ensure adherence with local legal and other stakeholder’s requirements for sustainable and consistent farm operations.
• You will enforces Health,Safety & Environment (HSE) rules & regulations and champion the implementation of the Syngenta HSE policy in all business decisions and activities.
• You will adhere to the Syngenta Code of Conduct and be an ambassador in  fully implementing our Diversity & Inclusion policy and speak up culture.
• You will oversee compliance to phytosanitary and other local and international regulations.

Academic Qualification ,Experience and Knowledge

• Have a Bachelor of Science degree in Agronomy (horticulture, agriculture, or agricultural related fields)
• Experience within the Agricultural Sector, specifically flowers is mandatory
• A Master’s degree in any management field would be a strong advantage.
• Have a Minimum of 10 years of management experience in a flower or general production environment and in leading and guiding multiple teams in operations, support and production.
• Good internal and external stakeholder management coupled with communication and influencing skills.
• Strategic/Big Picture thinking coupled with good ethics and integrity
• Ability to prioritize tasks and to work under pressure including during odd hours and peak season.
• Knowledge in Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, Zoom, etc.
• Basic green technical knowledge a must have.

Syngenta Leadership Competencies and Behaviours

• Customer-focused- Ensure that communication and updates given to our internal and external customers is relevant and timely while addressing the core customer requirements.
• Innovative- Challenge and improve the current way of doings things in your area of responsibility to increase customer   confidence.
• Decisive- Demonstrate ability to take prudent action with little oversight.
• Communicative- Demonstrates openness in communication to others, able to communicate to other workers in a language they can understand, listens well and incorporates the thoughts and ideas of others.
• Trusted-Track record for building trust and reliability to deliver required products.
• Team-oriented- Ability to work in a team and maintaining harmonious and collaborative relationships with other production, operational and functional teams.     
• Results-oriented- Ability to plan and provide information and reports as per set deadlines in the most efficient manner.

Critical Success Factors and Key Challenges

• Maintaining a factual overview of the production possibilities
• Timely planning of order confirmation
• Timely and factual communication of capacity updates.
•  Adequate preparations in production planning in conjunction with the Production Manager

Equal Opportunities Statement

Syngenta is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate in recruitment, hiring, training, promotion or any other employment practices for reasons of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, sexual orientation, marital or veteran status, disability, or any other legally protected status

Female candidates are particularly encouraged to apply.