Senior Director of Plant Science

About FYTO

Do you strive to improve the world through sustainable agriculture? Do you want to develop technological solutions to grow more food while using fewer resources? FYTO grows unique aquatic plants through innovative automated processes to generate high quality feed, food, and fertilizer products with a dramatically lower carbon footprint. The company’s patent-pending technology produces nutrient-dense ingredients using much less energy, water, land, labor, and fertilizer than conventional choices. Our company launched out of MIT in 2019 and is backed by leading technology investors including GV / Google Ventures.

About the Role

We’re seeking an exceptional individual to lead FYTO’s cutting edge aquatic plant science team and research activities. You should be a creative problem solver and an effective and empathetic people manager. This is an exciting opportunity to improve the food system with novel crops, reduce carbon emissions through more sustainable farming systems, and collaborate with a diverse, mission-driven team to develop state of the art technologies to solve real problems within agriculture. This position is based in our Petaluma, CA headquarters with modest travel required to our commercial growing operations in CA. Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States and are subject to a background check.

What You’ll Do

• Lead research in optimizing yield, nutritional composition, and quality of our leading aquatic plant crops
  
• Manage a team of multiple research scientists and expert consultants
• Lead scale-up strategies for the farming of aquatic crops
• Work with our engineering and operations teams to develop state-of-the-art tools and sensors for plant analysis and aquatic crop farming
• Build and manage proactive research and development plans to ensure long-term success of our crops and company.

Requirements

Your required qualifications

• Ph.D. in plant science, biology, botany, or related field
• 8+ years of professional experience growing plants or alternative crops such as algae
• Expert command of the scientific method AND readiness to put scientific knowhow into practical action
• Ability to synthesize large and diverse datasets into actionable information
• Proven management skills in a fast-paced environment
• Ability to work with minimal supervision in remote locations as well as with a team
• Curious learner who is flexible, self-motivated, able to solve problems from lab bench to farm-scale
• Ability to thrive in the occasional ambiguity and roller-coaster ride of a startup environment
• Owner mindset – willing to pitch in on everything to help the company succeed
• Strong computer skills, including experience with MS Office (Excel, Powerpoint, and Word)
• Have a valid driver’s license and good driving record

Other preferred qualifications

• Experience in the cultivation of aquatic plants or in hydroponic systems
• Experience in an early-stage startup environment
• Knowledge and experience with farming in California

Fyto is committed to equal opportunity and complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. Fyto does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, religion, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, or veteran status in its recruitment processes and employment practices.