Country Manager

Litherland & Co.; Guelph; Hybrid; CAD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote work option

Travel opportunities for industry &客户?

Job summary

Litherland & Co. is seeking a Country Manager to drive growth across Canada, focusing on Western Canada and national expansion.

You will lead sales, marketing, operations, and regulatory functions while building a strong leadership team and coordinating with suppliers, research partners, and distributors. The role reports to the President and Board; travel (30-40%) is required and the position offers remote work flexibility anywhere in Canada or in-person in Guelph, Ontario.

Qualifications

• Degree in business, agriculture, agricultural economics, or related discipline.
• 10+ years of progressive commercial and management experience in crop protection or related sector.
• Proven success leading sales, business development, and distributor relationships in Canadian market.
• Strong knowledge of Western Canadian crop production and distribution channels.
• Experience with PMRA and CFIA regulatory frameworks is an asset.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute the Canadian strategic plan and objectives.
• Lead national sales and business development with key partners.
• Assess market and regulatory developments to guide portfolio strategy.
• Oversee all Canadian functions: sales, marketing, purchasing, supply, finance, and regulatory.
• Own annual budget, forecasts, cash flow, margins, and reporting to the Board.
• Build the Canadian organization with defined accountabilities and capabilities.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic planning

Sales management

Financial & budgetary analysis

Regulatory compliance knowledge

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in business, agriculture, agricultural economics, or related discipline

MBA (asset)

Job description

Our client is an established Canadian agribusiness in the crop inputs sector that develops and markets registered crop protection solutions used across agricultural, horticultural, turf and ornamental, and industrial vegetation management markets. The new Country Manager will lead its next stage of growth, with a mandate to strengthen its national commercial presence, expand more across Canada with emphasis in Western Canada, and build the team and operating structure required for this expansion. This leadership role will have full accountability for the national strategy, commercial performance, operations, financial results, regulatory compliance, and organizational development, and be supported by longstanding customer, supplier, research, formulation, and distribution relationships.

Reporting to the President and Board of Directors, you will:

• Develop and execute the Canadian strategic plan, translating growth priorities into measurable commercial, operational, financial, and organizational objectives.
• Lead national sales and business development, with direct involvement in key customer, distributor, retailer, and strategic partner relationships; deepen the company’s market presence across Western Canada while sustaining established business nationally.
• Assess customer needs, competitive activity, regulatory developments, and market opportunities to guide portfolio strategy, pricing, research priorities, label expansion, and the introduction of additional products suited to Canadian markets.
• Oversee all Canadian business functions, including sales and marketing, purchasing, supply and distribution, outsourced production and packaging, finance and administration, product development, and regulatory management.
• Own the annual budget, forecasts, cash flow, gross margin, pricing, expense management, and performance reporting; use financial and market analysis to support investment decisions and recommendations to the Board.
• Maintain productive relationships with suppliers, formulators, logistics providers, research partners, regulatory agencies, industry associations, and government stakeholders; negotiate commercial, supply, and intellectual property agreements as required.
• Ensure compliance with PMRA requirements and other applicable federal and provincial obligations, including product registrations, research programs, labels, safety data sheets, technical information, audits, inspections, complaints, recalls, and corporate filings.
• Build the Canadian organization in step with growth, establishing clear accountabilities and adding capabilities across technical sales, marketing, purchasing, logistics, customer service, regulatory affairs, finance, and administration as required.
• Represent the Canadian business in national and international planning meetings, contributing Canadian market insight and collaborating with business leaders across multiple countries.

Your background includes:

• A degree in business, agriculture, agricultural economics, or a related discipline. An MBA is an asset.
• 10+ years of progressive commercial and management experience in crop protection, agricultural chemicals, crop inputs, or a closely related sector.
• Demonstrated success leading sales, business development, key accounts, and distribution relationships within the Canadian agricultural market.
• Strong knowledge of Western Canadian crop production, retailers, distributors, and buying groups is strongly preferred.
• Ability to lead a complete business while remaining hands-on, including direct participation in customer development, pricing, negotiations, and financial and operational problem-solving.
• Working knowledge of adjuvants, surfactants, spray application technologies, or adjacent crop protection products, with the ability to translate technical considerations into commercial decisions.
• Experience with the Canadian PMRA product registration and stewardship requirements, including CFIA requirements, research programs, label expansion, or regulatory submissions is an asset.
• Strong financial and analytical capability, including experience interpreting income statements, gross margin, cash flow, ROI, budgets, forecasts, and business risk.
• Experience working with an international leadership group or cross-border suppliers and partners is an asset.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, bilingual English and French capability is an asset, paired with sound digital proficiency to improve systems and reporting as the organization grows.

This leadership role offers flexibility to work remotely anywhere in Canada, or in-person at the Guelph, Ontario office. Travel is required (30-40%) for customer, supplier and partner meetings and industry events in Canada, and internationally for business related meetings and events.

Litherland & Co. is dedicated to fair and equal opportunities for all applicants. Candidates are selected based on the highest level of equity, diversity, and inclusion across the organization and throughout its hiring process. If you are selected for an interview and require accommodations, arrangements will be made for your convenience throughout the recruitment.