Vice President of Innovation

Company Overview

At Ralco, we specialize in natural and effective products for farmers and ranchers. Our patented approaches in essential oils, energy maximizing diets and microbial processes are designed to improve the health and productivity of animals and plants alike, covering areas such as health, nutrition and crop management

Our Mission:

Steward our God-given gifts to perfect technologies that enhance the vitality of plants and animals for a safe and abundant food supply.

Our Values:

We do what is right

We serve others and help them succeed

We believe in hard work and a commitment to family

We treat others with dignity and respect

JOB SUMMARY:

As Vice President of Innovation, you are charged with expanding the base, strength, and application of our technologies and our intellectual property (IP) to strengthen our position as a technology company. This includes overseeing our technical teams and research facilities to further strengthen current technologies, acquire and develop new technologies, secure regulatory paths to enable the selling of our technologies and ensure technical confidence and belief with our sales teams and customers. You must be inquisitive by nature with a passion for identifying and understanding customer problems and possess a drive to explore unique approaches that can be applied to the broader market. You and your team will serve as subject matter experts, providing technical support to all areas of the organization as we work to capitalize on customer needs and changing market dynamics to expand our market share.

You will need to effectively partner and communicate across the company, including sales, marketing, operations, and finance, to ensure that our technology efforts and priorities connect with industry needs and provide the best return for the company. You will partner with product management to assist with product, positioning, and pricing that maximizes profitability for our technologies.

You must have strong collaboration skills, possess a strategic mindset that understands business, operate with personal courage, and have a passion for building an effective team.

This job description is not meant to be all inclusive and duties may vary based on departmental and company needs.

KEY WORK DUTIES AND REQUIRED SKILLS:

• Champion our inventive culture and be our loudest voice for innovation
• Develop and expand our knowledge and understanding of the mode of action and economic benefits of Ralco IP
• Lead the Ralco swine, ruminant, poultry, agronomy, aqua, and corporate technology teams and oversee the research plans and facilities to ensure that they are well utilized to support our customer needs and technology advancement
• Provide ongoing technical sales support to meet the needs of our customers, including aiding in new customer acquisition
• Oversee formulation services to ensure the proper and timely formulation of our products
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with suppliers to identify opportunities to improve our products and increase profitability
• Expand our knowledge and understanding of the application of our technologies with target species to ensure our programs and approaches are staying ahead of the curve
• Utilize legal counsel to prioritize and manage our IP projects as it relates to patents, licenses, and trade secrets, including managing and negotiating IP agreements with potential partners
• Ensure regulatory compliance and registration to support our technologies
• Oversee quality assurance to ensure the consistent quality of our technologies
• Ensure research efforts are aligned to company priorities, protocols are well defined, research is consistently executed and analyzed, and outcomes are well shared to maximize return on research investment
• Support Ralco’s technical and sales efforts with internal technical presentations/training, customer visits, trade show attendance and conference presentations domestically and internationally as required
• Provide technical support to the production teams to support products, resolve problems, and ensure expected quality and consistency.
• Manage the annual research budget and plan
• Develop your people through effective hiring, training, and personal development consistent with our mission, vision, and values
  
  

JOB REQUIREMENTS:

Education: Degree in Animal Science, Marketing, or Business related field or equivalent work experience. Advanced degree preferred.

Experience: 5+ years of leadership responsibility. Ag-related experience is essential.

Physical: The following activities are required as needed to perform the job function: lifting, driving, bending, climbing, carrying, and twisting. Confined space entry is not required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the key work duties.

Location: This position is based in the Ralco Headquarters office in Marshall, MN.

Travel: The position requires travel to customer and non-customer sites.

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