POSITION SUMMARY
Conception Nurseries is the industry leader providing clean, ready-to-grow TrueCloneTM tissue-culture cannabis plantlets. Our team is seeking an experienced Plant Pathologist to screen, identify, and characterize plant pathogens, viruses, and viroids in cannabis. This role is part of the discovery R&D team which will be engaged in disease screening, developing strategies for pathogen elimination, and running in-house molecular pathogen detection and diagnostics. This primarily is a bench scientist role who will work cross-functionally to support the production team, the business team, and customers to advance Conception's business interests. The role is positioned to advance science in a new crop with the potential to establish as an expert pathologist in the area. In this role, you will consult with upper management and the Research & Development team and make recommendations based on research findings and product performance. This position will report to The Director of Research & Development.
KEYS TO SUCCESS:
● Strong foundational knowledge and experience working with plant pathogens, pathogen genetics and biology, and plant diseases caused by viruses, fungi, and bacteria
● Demonstrated experience in molecular plant pathology, virology, pathogen-screening, identification, and characterization
● Experience developing effective and comprehensive disease control strategies by harnessing plant and/or viruses
● Strong interpersonal and management skills with the ability to manage multiple projects and geographically dispersed teams
● Demonstrated experience in meeting project timelines and deadlines, including but not limited to, meeting schedules, tracking weekly action items, and utilizing other project management tools
RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE
● Develop, implement and manage an in-house plant pathology program to ensure intake of clean explant material for tissue culture, pathogen elimination strategies to address plant health, and deliver of pathogen-free tissue-culture clones to customers
● Characterize, identify and manage viruses/viroids of interest
● Identify, screen, and characterize plant pathogens both in the laboratory and under field conditions using classical pathology tools
● Experience applying DNA, RNA- based molecular tools and evaluating 3rd party reagents for pathogen screening
● Keep up to date on regulatory policies pertaining to cannabis pathogens
● Stay current on surveys for new or re-emerging high-consequence plant pathogens
● Demonstrate the capability to be collaborative and effective in transitioning to new ideas and projects
● Provide training, technical information, and guidelines to mitigate the risk of plant diseases for internal and external customers
● Be visible and available for customers and partners, and occasional industry/social events or conferences
● Personal credibility and effectiveness, including but not limited to, technical capacity, ability to deliver results, teamwork, time management, and project management skills
● Work with the executive team as requested to respond to the needs of the business.
● Live Conception Nurseries' core values
REQUIREMENTS & QUALIFICATIONS
EDUCATION: Master's degree or Ph.D. in agriculture, plant pathology, virology, or related field
PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES
● Communication Impact – strong written, verbal communication and presentation skills
● Collaboration – team player who can work in a high activity, fast-paced environment
● Problem Solving – ability to utilize the scientific method for critical thinking
● Quality and Procedures – attention to details, data and metrics driven, maintain high quality of research, implement best-practices, draft SOPs, and ability to anticipate and identify opportunities at strategic level
● Self-Starter – Can work independently and able to collaborate with scientists to make appropriate and timely decisions to meet deadlines on experiments and projects
● You are data and metrics-driven with experience analyzing research and product trends, anticipating and identifying opportunities, and developing insight at a strategic level
● You can manage departmental change rapidly with the business and community needs.
● You possess an entrepreneurial spirit and have a passion for growing the business.
● You have a willingness to continually learn and grow.
Travel: Travel is 20%-25% designed around business needs.