R&D Technical Services Researcher

With approximately 100,000 planted acres in California's San Joaquin Valley, Wonderful Orchards is the world's largest grower of almonds, pistachios and pomegranates. In early 2015, Wonderful Orchards ventured into the Bee business with the intention of contributing to the long-term health of bees, investing in R&D efforts and further develop best practices for the industry. Wonderful Bees is growing across the nation! Our growth is exciting, but we can’t do it alone. Join us in this new venture as we look to expand and hire various roles! Wonderful Orchards and Wonderful Bees are a part of The Wonderful Company, a privately held $5 billion company dedicated to harvesting health and happiness around the world through its iconic consumer brands which include Wonderful Pistachios, Wonderful Halos, POM Wonderful, FIJI Water, Teleflora, and JUSTIN Wine

As a member of R&D team which is responsible for validating and creating farming innovations, Technical Services Researchers implement daily, seasonal and yearly technical and research tasks at their base location and as needed across all farming locations.   Must be able to work independently and remotely under field, lab and / or office conditions.  Must be able to navigate in a widely-divergent work environment, possibly traveling hundreds of miles per day using safe driving techniques with company provided vehicles.  Activities may include applied experiments in agronomy, irrigation, cultivars, farming systems, crop protection or crop physiology.

Key responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Establish and implement work plans with supervision of Director of Research
• Coordinate and conduct applied agricultural field and / or laboratory experiments while supporting numerous sequential and overlapping activities
• Ensures the quality and quantity of the work performed by support staff on experiments
• Provide technical information to Farming Directors, Crop Managers, Pest Control Advisors, Spray Operations, Irrigation Managers and field personnel
• Enhance the robustness of experimental activities through continuous vigilance for precision and accuracy of tasks, including trial design, data analysis, and reporting of results
• Seek out and implement opportunities to improve workplace efficiency and safety
• Use, maintenance and troubleshooting of specific field, lab, office, or agricultural equipment related to experiments
• Willingness to learn new tasks while maintaining core competency of existing skills
• Interact and engage with public (academic) and private (vendor) technical experts to explore existing and future farming improvements
• Creation and management of budgets associated with applied field and lab experiments
• Other duties as assigned.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily.  The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, shall, and/ or ability required.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential function.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor’s Degree in field of Science, Plant Health, Plant Science, Crop Science, Entomology, Biology, Lab Sciences or Agricultural related field

SPECIFIC KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, LICENSES, CERTIFICATIONS:

• Innovation-oriented, seeking to address current and future challenges with inquisitiveness and dedication to detail.
• Customer-oriented focus, serving the needs of farming operations as an adjunct member of divisional farming teams.
• A team player, flexible, consistent and reliable, able to work with minimal supervision.
• Ability to communicate effectively both in writing and orally for justifying change to various audiences (executives, farm management teams, farming personnel)
• Knowledge and experience with orchards or permanent crop farming activities preferred
• Familiarity with commercial agricultural conditions and practices
• Ability to have safety, productivity, and attention to detail as daily objectives
• Supervising internal employees and / or contract labor crews
• Assess changing workplace conditions and confidently make adjustments within the context of assigned tasks
• Understand the significance of errors and omissions during technical tasks and experience in addressing these problems
• Exposure to statistical measurements of data
• Holding or appropriate education / experience to obtain PCA and CCA certifications
• Valid California Driver’s License.
• Bilingual English/Spanish preferred.

Pay Range: $70,500 - $75,000. Final compensation will be dependent upon skills & experience. 

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to sit, stand, walk, talk and hear. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds.  The position is primarily office based but may occasionally involve field or outdoor work. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, and the ability to adjust focus. 

Environment

This job operates predominately in an office environment. This role will be exposed to noise levels low – moderate and moderate temperatures.

Disclaimer

This job description is a summary of typical functions of the job, not a comprehensive list of all possible job responsibilities, tasks, and duties. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Job responsibilities may differ and are subject to change from those outlined in the job description.

Why choose Wonderful?

Wonderful Nurseries and Wonderful Orchards are part of The Wonderful Company, a privately held $5 billion company, which also has other No. 1 brands such as Wonderful® Pistachios, FIJI® Water, Wonderful® Halos®, JUSTIN® Wine, and Teleflora®. To learn more about The Wonderful Company, visit www.wonderful.com, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. To view the current Corporate Social Responsibility report, visit www.wonderful.com/csr.

• We nourish, naturally - We believe that what you put into your body matters. The most nutritious -- and best-tasting -- foods are those from nature.
• We play to win - Our employees set ambitious goals and meet challenges with unified purpose and unmatched energy.
• We act differently - With courage and fearlessness, we are relentless in our quest to inspire healthier. food and beverage choices. As a privately held organization, we have the freedom and the power to make quick and effective decisions.

Wonderful Orchards and The Wonderful Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer and with opportunities for advancement. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected categories.

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