Senior Manager, Crop Protection & Seed

The Ag Solutions team is hiring a Senior Manager, Crop Protection and Seed on a permanent full-time basis located in Saskatoon, SK, Regina, SK, Calgary, AB, Edmonton, AB, or Winnipeg, MB reporting to the Director, Ag Solutions. For the right candidate, remote work options may also be considered.

Are you a strategic driver with a strong passion for agriculture and driving growth? This opportunity will allow you to use your expert knowledge and experience to help sculpt and develop the future growth of the Co-operative Retailing System, while having an impact on the communities we support.

What You’Ll Do:

Under the direction of the Director, Ag Solutions, you will establish the long-term vision for the CRS crop protection and seed (including inoculants) business, including developing and executing the roadmap strategy.

Strategic Direction

• You will develop the long-term (five-year) roadmap for the crop protection and seed business and articulate the vision to internal and external stakeholders to generate support and buy-in.
• You will lead the development of an annual strategic business plan for crop protection, seed, and private/exclusive brand. You will also proactively provide valuable insights and direction to the annual Ag Solutions business plan.
• You will understand future trends, new and novel products, regulations, and practices in crop protection; anticipate and provide strategic direction to evolve the business to meet future needs. You will provide insights from the crop protection and seed market to understand CRS’ market position and performance. You will also understand future trends and practices, so the CRS can adapt and evolve to ensure future relevancy.
• You will support the Private Brand Manager role. This will include providing guidance on strategic direction for private/exclusive brands for market differentiation, enhanced profitability, and negotiation leverage.
• You will guide the development of private brand products in seed and/or inoculants. This could include leading licensing discussions with breeding companies and modelling CRS opportunity for potential seed opportunities.

Team Leadership

• You will provide effective leadership and coaching (through ongoing feedback as well as formalized performance reviews) and set direction for direct reports including Product Line Managers, Associate Product Line Manager, Coordinator, and Private Brand Manager.
• You will be accountable for ensuring an engaged team. This will include developing and implementing an engagement action plan based on bi-annual survey results.
• You will work collaboratively with Key Account Managers, Operational Support Analysts, Fertilizer division and the Agronomic Market Development team to meet the crop protection and seed sales and operational needs of Co-op Agro.
• You will work with marketing team to ensure proper messaging to market and diligent co-promo planning with manufacturers.

Guidance on Portfolio Management

• You will provide strategic direction on future products, product life cycle management, and share-of-shelf for seed and crop protection brands and segments, both for manufacturer partner brand and our private and exclusive brands.
• You will effectively lead the communication of our strategic portfolio management to local Co-ops to achieve alignment and cooperation.

Stakeholder Relationships

• You will be accountable for strong strategic relationship with account managers and leaders from crop protection and seed manufacturers.
• You will foster strong working relationships with regulatory and industry trade organizations.
• You will continually and proactively articulate the CRS, Ag Solutions, and Crop Protection and Seed value proposition for local Co-ops, their farm customers, and to manufacturers; foster strong, collaborative working relationships with local Co-op ag leaders.
• You will lead the team critical in understanding manufacturing marketing programs, brand/segment shelf management, product life cycle management, and industry trends – all necessary to build strategic FCL marketing program offers.
• You will lead the team responsible for analysis and negotiation of business plan volumes and pricing for the CRS; identify opportunities to maximize CRS profitability.
• You will lead strategic negotiations with manufacturer partners to maximize CRS profitability

Who you’ll work with:
The Team:  You will work closely with a team of Procurement, Customer Service, Operations and Private Brand Managers and will have 5 direct reports; you will report directly in the Director of Ag Solutions.

The Collaborators:  You will alongside other members of our Ag Solutions team including Key Account Managers, the Senior Operational Support Manager and the Digital Ag Manager; you will also work closely with other business units within the organization as well as local Co-op Ag leaders. 

• Why it matters:
• Our Agro team helps to feed and grow Western Canadian communities by sourcing and distributing products and services to local Co-ops in the feed, crop supplies and fertilizer business.
• Who you are:
• You are looking for a career in Sales & Marketing and:
• You have a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, or a Bachelor of Commerce.
• You have a minimum of 8+ years of progressively responsible experience in sales or research experience in agriculture (a combination of relevant education and experience may be considered).
• A license to practice agrology (PAg) is an asset.
• You’re honest and trustworthy, are results oriented and strive to be the best in what you do.
• You believe in collaboration, building relationships and value the perspectives of others.

What We Offer:

• Competitive salaries, short-term incentives, a comprehensive benefits package, and an employer-contributed pension plan.
• Encouragement to take advantage of learning opportunities to grow and develop as a Team Member. 
• As a co-operative, we do business differently. We believe in working together to serve Western Canadians, delivering profits back to our communities and investing in sustainable growth. To learn more about who we are and what we offer, visit www.fcl.crs.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process to ensure an enjoyable candidate experience. If you require an accommodation during the recruitment process, we invite you to submit your requests to us via fclhr@fcl.crs. All information received will be kept confidential.

If this opportunity speaks to you, we invite you to apply by October 24, 2025.

We thank all candidates for their interest, however only those selected to continue in the recruitment process will be contacted.  FCLHP

As this position is considered a position of trust and safety sensitive, you may be required to complete a substance test, criminal record check and provide a drivers abstract in accordance with FCL policies.

FCL embraces diversity and inclusion. We’re working to create a workforce that is as diverse as the communities we serve and an environment where every team member brings their whole self to work. We believe all candidates should feel at home with us and be given the opportunity to fully participate during the recruitment process.

As a co-operative, we do business differently. We believe in working together to serve Western Canadians, delivering profits back to our communities and investing in sustainable growth. Our work is guided by our values of integrity, excellence and responsibility and driven by our vision of building sustainable communities together. To learn more about who we are, visit www.fcl.crs.