Business Unit Manager Field Crops

As Business Unit Manager, you are part of the management team of Wageningen Plant Research. Wageningen Plant Research (WPR) together with the Department of Plant Sciences (DPS) forms the Plant Sciences Group (PSG). PSG consists of 19 chair groups and 8 business units. DPS is, as part of Wageningen University, responsible for teaching and has a fundamental research mission. WPR is, as part of Wageningen Research, focused on strategic and applied research. With our knowledge of plant production, resilient and efficient crops and food security, we offer new perspectives for sustainable agriculture and horticulture.

You are a full member of the board and management team of Wageningen Plant Research . With them you will form a competent and driven team working in an open and collegial manner for all of WPR and sharing leadership responsibilities on behalf of the institute. In your role as Business Unit Manager Field Crops within Wageningen Plant Research, you will use your expertise to inspire people as a strategic leader. You lead various teams within the Field Crops business unit in a practice-oriented scientific research environment. In addition, you have a good feel for the developments and forces at play in agriculture and horticulture.

As Business Unit Manager you are, together with your MT of the Field Crops business unit and its employees, responsible for the substantive profiling of the business unit and for its research and business economic results. You have a unifying style of leadership and a clear vision of the field, with an eye for both current and future developments, nationally and internationally. You are able to bring focus to the choices the organization continuously has to make with regard to acquisition, research policy and (inter)national cooperation as well as in the internal operations. With your commercial insight, you are able to profile yourself as the figurehead of the BU for stakeholders and bind potential clients to you.

The working atmosphere within Wageningen University & Research is professional and collegial. The main location of the Business Unit is located in Lelystad and there are further locations in Randwijk, Marwijksoord, Nagele, Valthermond, Vredepeel and Westmaas and you are also regularly in Wageningen. The total size of the Business Unit is approximately 200 people and €28 million in turnover.

Field Crops
The Dutch agricultural sector plays a valuable role in food production and is of great importance to the Dutch economy and European food security. The sectors with field crops (arable farming, arboriculture, fruit growing and outdoor vegetables) have significant challenges and opportunities. These concern sustainable production, earning capacity, social acceptance, water quality, climate change, biodiversity, labor organization and technological developments. This is the work field of Field Crops.

The Field Crops business unit is involved in a wide range of innovations aimed at the integral sustainability of open cultivation. To this end, we have practical farms (1200 ha in total) at six different locations throughout the country and we work together with farmers, horticulturists and other stakeholders on the development and transfer of knowledge in these dynamic sectors at home and abroad. Commissioned by private parties and governments, we work on applicable innovations in which an independent position and a scientifically sound working method are paramount. In this we work with companies, governments and other groups/knowledge institutions within and outside WUR.