Global Research Lead: Entomology & Weed Science

United Phosphorus Limited (UPL); Cary (NC); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Global Research Lead, Entomology and Weed Science at UPL in Cary, North Carolina, provides scientific and people leadership for late‑stage discovery and early development across insecticides and herbicides. The role sets global research strategy, builds screening programs from lab to field, and translates data into credible agronomic and commercial value propositions.

The role manages multidisciplinary teams, aligns regional needs with portfolio priorities, and ensures high‑quality, reproducible

Responsibilities

• Translate business and portfolio needs into a balanced entomology and weed science roadmap spanning late-stage discovery and early development.
• Define stage-appropriate evidence requirements and recommend advance, refine, partner, or stop decisions based on scientific quality, technical differentiation, development feasibility, risk, and potential value.
• Provide technical leadership across conventional chemistry, biologicals, combinations, formulations, seed treatments, and enabling technologies, including externally sourced concepts evaluated through OpenAg.
• Direct development, validation, standardization, and continuous improvement of insect, mite, weed, crop-safety, dose-response, spectrum, residual, rainfastness, resistance, and environmental-condition screens.
• Ensure laboratory, insectary, controlled-environment, greenhouse, and field methods are biologically relevant, reproducible, statistically sound, and transferable across sites and partners.
• Establish quality, stewardship, biosafety, permit, recordkeeping, and data-integrity expectations for internal and external studies.
• Coach and develop scientists and technical staff; set clear priorities, strengthen experimental judgment, and build succession and cross-training across both disciplines.
• Allocate people, facilities, budget, test organisms, germplasm, and field resources against portfolio priorities while balancing speed, quality, and cost.
• Build productive networks with regional development teams, universities, CROs, technology partners, and professional societies; lead rigorous evaluation and validation of external technologies and partnerships.
• Synthesize complex datasets into concise technical positions, risk assessments, and decision-ready recommendations for R&D, Category, Portfolio, Regulatory, IP, Formulation, Manufacturing, and Commercial stakeholders.
• Help the business define each technology’s agronomic value proposition, technical differentiation, development fit, evidence needs, and key uncertainties.
• Anticipate technical gaps, emerging pests and weeds, resistance trends, assay limitations, and field-translation risks; initiate experiments that reduce uncertainty early.

Job description

Global Research Lead, Entomology and Weed Science at UPL in Cary, North Carolina, provides scientific and people leadership for late‑stage discovery and early development across insecticides and herbicides. The role sets global research strategy, builds screening programs from lab to field, and translates data into credible agronomic and commercial value propositions.

The role manages multidisciplinary teams, aligns regional needs with portfolio priorities, and ensures high‑quality, reproducible