Research Supervisor at Seedco Nigeria – 2 Openings

Seed Co Nigeria Limited is a joint venture between Seed Co West Africa Limited (a subsidiary of Seed Co International Limited a public listed Company incorporated in Zimbabwe and quoted on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange) and Saro AgroSciences Limited, a leading Nigeria Agro Input provider.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Research Supervisor

Location: Kaduna
Employment Type: Full-time
Slot: 2

Job Summary

He/She will coordinate the establishment of product development trials, data collection, product maintenance, and seed production research in tropical lowland environments.

Primary Responsibilities
Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Coordinate planting, crossing, harvesting, and seed processing of parental lines of maize hybrids and ensure implementation of planned activities in different locations.
Research field selection, land preparation, and farmers’ engagements.
Seed packaging and design of trial randomization.
Layout, planting, and evaluation of maize, soybean, rice, wheat, sorghum, millet, and cowpea trials.
Layout of breeding nursery using different experimental procedures and appropriate plot techniques to achieve the expected breeding goals.
Purification and regeneration of parent seeds through hand pollination.
Design and execution of seed production research trials including synchronization and agronomic studies to enhance productivity.
Prepare seeds for storage in the cold rooms and take inventory of the quantity and quantity of seeds of inbred lines in the cold store.
Prepare seeds of inbred lines and hybrids requested by collaborators for shipment.
Providing support for product development and registration.
Coordinate all field operations and labour allocation for planting, thinning, weeding, fertilizer application, harvesting, and post-harvest handling of seed crops
Data collection, analysis, interpretation, and technical report writing.
Management of soil and plant nutrient; carry out soil and plant nutrient analyses
Supervision of field technicians and casual labour
Perform any other duty as may be assigned by the supervisor.

Qualifications

Minimum of a second class upper University Degree or Upper credit preferably in Plant Breeding, Agronomy, Plant Science, Crop Production, or any other related discipline
At least three (3) years relevant experience performing a similar role
Supervision, management, and leadership attributes
Experience and knowledge of the Nigerian agricultural industry will be an added advantage.
Age Requirement: 25 – 35 years.

Our Ideal Candidate – Knowledge, Skills, and Competences:

Good networking
Have applied knowledge in crop breeding and genetics, plant propagation, plant pathology, post-harvest storage, and field trial management
Have experience in establishing field research activities with field crops such as cowpea, maize, rice, wheat, sorghum, millet, soybean, and vegetables.
Have good field data collection skills, experience in experimental and trial design, data analysis, and good technical report writing skills.
Position requires extensive driving across the country and the incumbent must be highly energetic and self-driven.
The candidate must be a self-starter, passionate about farming communities and farmer education, with experience in sustainable farmer relationship management.
Good organizational development skills with excellent communication (verbal and written) capabilities.
Ability to protect the reputation of the organization and maintain integrity.
Good coping skills with heavy workloads extending beyond office hours and during weekends
Ability to work harmoniously in an interdisciplinary team with an international and intercultural background.
Ability to work in the field and stay in the rural areas of the job location
Ability to speak the local dialect of the job location will be an added advantage.