General Manager - Plantation

Prestige Group; Sakleshpur; On-site; INR 1,200,000 - 1,800,000; Full time

Job summary

Prestige Group invites an experienced Plantation Manager to oversee 250 acres of coffee, pepper, cocoa, arecanut and herbs in Sakleshpur, Karnataka. You will drive sustainable farming, organic certification, and precision agronomy, ensuring high yields and strong P&L performance.

This role manages wet/dry processing, guest-facing experiences, and eco-tourism initiatives, while maintaining compliance with local laws and wildlife safety protocols.

Qualifications

• Degree or post-graduate qualification in Agriculture, Plantation Management, Agronomy, Ecology or related discipline
• Minimum 10 years of progressive experience in plantation or large-scale agricultural estate management
• Demonstrated experience managing coffee and/or other cash crops in Western Ghats or comparable terrain
• Proven track record in organic or sustainable farming — certification experience preferred
• Experience managing large workforces — recruitment, welfare, compliance and productivity
• Working knowledge of Karnataka Plantation Labour Act, FSSAI regulations, forest and wildlife protocols
• Ability to manage P&L, prepare budgets and report to senior management

Responsibilities

• Overall management of coffee, pepper, cocoa, arecanut and herb cultivation across 250 acres
• Implementation of organic and natural farming practices; organic certification attainment and renewal
• Yield optimisation through precision agronomy, soil health management and crop scheduling
• Management of wet and dry processing facilities, drying yards and bonded storage
• Small-batch production management for the Roastery's retail and guest take-away programme
• Plantation P&L accountability: budgeting, capex management and profitability reporting to PHVL
• Market relationships and offtake arrangements for premium estate produce
• Stewardship of gravity-fed waterbody network monitoring, balancing and maintenance
• Pisciculture programme management across estate lakes
• Elephant early-warning system (acoustic sensors, CCTV) — operation and maintenance
• Elephant-grade fencing management with wildlife corridor preservation
• Reptile management programme and rapid-response coordination
• Biodiversity monitoring; liaison with Karnataka Forest Department and wildlife authorities
• Compliance with environmental and water extraction statutory requirements
• Maintenance of 11km internal road and pathway network to all-weather standard
• Boundary fencing, CCTV surveillance and estate security management
• Landscape lighting programme — low-lux, controlled, ecologically sensitive
• Management of temple sites within estate boundaries
• Full compliance with Karnataka Plantation Labour Act, FSSAI, forest regulations and water permits
• Coordination with construction contractors during active build phase
• Recruitment, training and retention of plantation workforce
• Labour colony management: housing standards, sanitation, community facilities
• Workforce welfare: medical access, crèche, grievance redressal, mental health support
• Staff attire and guest-interaction training for estate-facing workers
• Delivery of CSR programme for adjoining villages: school support, medical camps, street lighting, water supply, crèche
• Relationship management with village communities, panchayat leaders and district authorities
• Design and delivery of the plantation's guest experience programme in partnership with hotel team
• Bean-to-cup journey, harvest participation, ecology walks, waterbody and pisciculture tours
• Cocoa and chocolatery trail; cooking and herb garden experiences; temple and heritage walks
• Sustainability masterclass for engaged guests — certifiable completion pathway
• Ensuring guest interaction protocols are trained, maintained and delivered across estate staff
• Continuous innovation in experience programming — level-progression model encouraging return visits

Skills

Leadership

Strategic planning

Stakeholder management

Operations management

Education

Degree in Agriculture / Agronomy / Ecology

Tools

BIM

LADAR

Job description

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Overall management of coffee, pepper, cocoa, arecanut and herb cultivation across 250 acres
• Implementation of organic and natural farming practices; organic certification attainment and renewal
• Yield optimisation through precision agronomy, soil health management and crop scheduling
• Management of wet and dry processing facilities, drying yards and bonded storage
• Small-batch production management for the Roastery's retail and guest take-away programme
• Plantation P&L accountability: budgeting, capex management and profitability reporting to PHVL
• Market relationships and offtake arrangements for premium estate produce

2. Ecology, Hydrology & Wildlife

• Stewardship of the gravity-fed interconnected waterbody network monitoring, balancing and maintenance
• Pisciculture programme management across estate lakes
• Elephant early-warning system (acoustic sensors, CCTV) — operation and maintenance
• Elephant-grade fencing management with designated wildlife corridor preservation
• Reptile management programme and rapid-response coordination
• Biodiversity monitoring; liaison with Karnataka Forest Department and wildlife authorities
• Compliance with all environmental and water extraction statutory requirements

3. Infrastructure & Statutory Compliance

• Maintenance of 11km internal road and pathway network to all-weather standard
• Boundary fencing, CCTV surveillance and estate security management
• Landscape lighting programme — low-lux, controlled, ecologically sensitive
• Management and preservation of historical temple sites within estate boundaries
• Full compliance with Karnataka Plantation Labour Act, FSSAI, forest regulations and water permits
• Coordination with construction contractors (L&T, K2K, MEP teams) during the active build phase

4. Labour, Welfare & Community Development

• Recruitment, training and retention of plantation workforce
• Labour colony management: housing standards, sanitation, community facilities
• Workforce welfare: medical access, crche, grievance redressal, mental health support
• Staff attire and guest-interaction training for all estate-facing workers
• Delivery of the CSR programme for adjoining villages: school support, medical camps, street lighting, water supply, crche
• Relationship management with village communities, panchayat leaders and district authorities

5. Guest Experience Curation

• Design and delivery of the plantation's guest experience programme — in close partnership with the hotel team
• Bean-to-cup journey, harvest participation, ecology walks, waterbody and pisciculture tours
• Cocoa and chocolatery trail; cooking and herb garden experiences; temple and heritage walks
• Sustainability masterclass for engaged guests — certifiable completion pathway
• Ensuring all guest interaction protocols are trained, maintained and consistently delivered across estate staff
• Continuous innovation in experience programming — level-progression model encouraging return visits

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE

Essential

• Degree or post-graduate qualification in Agriculture, Plantation Management, Agronomy, Ecology or related discipline
• Minimum 10 years of progressive experience in plantation or large-scale agricultural estate management
• Demonstrated experience managing coffee and/or other cash crops in Western Ghats or comparable terrain
• Proven track record in organic or sustainable farming — certification experience preferred
• Experience managing large workforces — recruitment, welfare, compliance and productivity
• Working knowledge of Karnataka Plantation Labour Act, FSSAI regulations, forest and wildlife protocols
• Ability to manage P&L, prepare budgets and report to senior management

Highly Desirable

• Exposure to premium hospitality or eco-tourism projects where the plantation/farm interfaces with guests
• Experience with waterbody management, pisciculture or hydrological systems
• Exposure to wildlife management, forest department liaison or biodiversity monitoring
• CSR programme design and delivery in rural or tribal community settings
• Familiarity with BIM, LADAR or digital agronomy tools is an advantage
• Experience in the Sakleshpur / Hassan / Western Ghats region.