Sr. Research Manager: Plant Physiology

Job Details

Reporting Lines

Job Purpose

The Center of Excellence for Abiotic Resilience and Crop Genomics (ARC-Gen) is a partnership between Silal, the UAE’s leading agri-food and technology company, and Limagrain Vegetable Seeds (LVS), the world leader in Vegetable Seeds. This partnership aims to develop a world class research facility in UAE with state-of-the-art capabilities in plant physiology and gene editing, with the ultimate goal of enhancing crops’ ability to withstand extreme conditions such as heat, drought, and salinity.

As Senior Research Manager - Plant Physiology you will drive innovation and excellence in Plant Physiology. This role combines strategic leadership, team management, and scientific oversight to accelerate the development of a Plant Physiology Research Unit at ARC-Gen; aiming to improve the abiotic stress resilience in plants in arid and desert-like growing conditions.

This role involves the management and mentoring of a team focused on designing and implementing experiments to understand plant physiological mechanisms and their genetic control. This role will focus on translating findings into actionable strategies for abiotic resilience improvement in targeted crops. The position requires strong leadership skills to manage projects and teams, as well as the ability to communicate complex scientific concepts to stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Team Management

• Lead and mentor a team of Plant Physiology and Agronomy scientists, ensuring onboarding, goal setting and performance reviews.
• Translate the ARC-GEN strategy into actionable objectives and plans for your team, with an initial focus on setting up the Plant Physiology Research Unit.
• Promote cross-functional collaboration and develop an innovative work environment.

Scientific & Operational Excellence

• Oversee the Plant Physiology project portfolio and ensure timely delivery aligned with ARC-GEN governance and strategic roadmap.
• Develop and implement guidelines, processes, and KPIs to monitor progress, report efficiently, and provide transparency to ARC-GEN management.
• Lead innovation in high-throughput precision phenotyping and functional validation of edited traits.
• Ensure scientific rigor through continuous monitoring, technology scouting, and adoption of cutting-edge methodologies in Plant Physiology.
• Drive cross-domain collaboration within ARC-GEN.

External Collaboration & Resource Management

• Build and maintain strategic partnerships with public and private organizations.

Compliance & Continuous Improvement

• Guarantee compliance with legal, safety, regulatory and sustainability standards across all activities.
• Promote continuous improvement of protocols, processes, and cost-effectiveness.

Financial Management

• Manage team budgets and resource allocation in alignment with ARC-GEN management team.
• Contribute to CAPEX, OPEX, and PERC planning for domain activities.

• Lead and mentor a team of Plant Physiology and Agronomy scientists, ensuring onboarding, goal setting and performance reviews.

• Translate the ARC-GEN strategy into actionable objectives and plans for your team, with an initial focus on setting up the Plant Physiology Research Unit.

• Promote cross-functional collaboration and develop an innovative work environment.

Stakeholder Management

Key Internal Stakeholders

Key External Stakeholders

• All Sectors, Departments and Offices

• Any other concerned internal stakeholders as required

• Concerned government, semi-government and private sector entities

• Any other concerned external stakeholders as required

Required Qualification

Professional Experience

• PhD in Plant Physiology or related fields

• Fluent in English

• Professional experience of a minimum of 15+ Years.
• 5+ years in people management within an international/ cross-cultural environment.
• Deep understanding of plant physiological processes and their interaction with genetics and environment.
• Proficiency in experimental design, statistical analysis, and data interpretation.
• Experience with high-throughput precision phenotyping and physiological modeling is a plus.
• Proven track record of managing complex projects and delivering impactful results.

Competencies

Technical Competencies

Competency

Proficiency Level

Expert

Expert

Expert