Lead Horticulture

San Manuel Band of Mission Indians; Highland (CA); On-site; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

San Manuel Band of Mission Indians is seeking a Horticulture Lead to supervise daily grounds, landscape, floral operations and seasonal décor, providing hands-on guidance and ensuring safe, high-quality maintenance across outdoor spaces.

You will manage tasks, train staff, oversee inventory and equipment, and uphold safety, SDS and regulatory standards while delivering exceptional service to casino guests and staff.

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or GED required.
• Minimum two years of progressive experience in horticulture, exterior maintenance, seasonal decor, groundskeeping, floral or casino experience required.

Responsibilities

• Assigns tasks, organizes work schedules, and provides hands‑on support to team members performing grounds, landscape, and horticultural maintenance activities.
• Performs grounds, landscape, and horticultural maintenance duties and projects, including biohazardous cleanup; trains team members on proper practices and horticultural techniques.
• Provides safety instruction and ensures safe working conditions; enforces PPE usage and proper labeling, storage, and SDS compliance.
• Maintains inventory, fills supply requests, and ensures equipment and materials are available for the team.
• Engages in exceptional customer service to foster brand loyalty among external and internal customers.
• Conducts preventative maintenance checks, follows up on tasks, and reports unsafe conditions to management.
• Performs other duties as assigned to support department operations.

Skills

Team leadership

Communication

Problem-solving

Adaptability

Safety awareness

Education

High School Diploma or GED

Tools

Microsoft Office 365 (Word, Excel)

Job description

Under the direction of the Supervisor, Horticulture, the Horticulture Lead coordinates daily horticulture operations, providing leadership, technical guidance, and hands‑on support across functions such as plant care, landscaping, grounds maintenance, floral operations, and seasonal décor. Ensures safe use of equipment, maintains quality and safety standards, and supports environmental compliance and service excellence. Strong leadership, communication, problem-solving, and adaptability are essential to meet changing operational needs.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• 1. Assigns tasks, organizes work schedules, and provides hands‑on support to team members performing grounds, landscape, and horticultural maintenance activities. Monitors progress, coordinates daily work priorities, and ensures all responsibilities are completed in accordance with established standards and organizational expectations.
• 2. Performs grounds, landscape, and horticultural maintenance duties and projects, including biohazardous cleanup. Trains team members on proper practices, procedures, and horticultural techniques, and provides guidance on plant care, irrigation, pruning, and landscape maintenance activities.
• 3. Provides safety instruction and ensures safe working conditions for grounds, landscape, and horticultural operations. Enforces the use of proper safety precautions and personal protective equipment (PPE), and ensures chemicals, fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides are properly labeled, stored, and maintained in accordance with Safety Data Sheets (SDS) and applicable safety requirements.
• 4. Maintains inventory, fills supply requests, and ensures necessary equipment and materials are available for the team.
• 5. Engages in exceptional customer service to foster brand loyalty among both external and internal customers.
• 6. Conducts preventative maintenance checks, completes area walk-throughs, follows up on tasks, and reports unsafe conditions to management.
• 7. Performs other duties as assigned to support the efficient operation of the department.

EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS

• High School Diploma or GED required.
• Minimum two (2) years of progressive experience in horticulture, exterior maintenance, seasonal decor, groundskeeping, floral or previous casino experience required.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSA)

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office 365 suite (Word, Excel).
• Polished and professional demeanor in person, online and via phone with exceptional verbal and written communication skills, including strong spelling and grammatical skills.
• Ability to use all necessary tools and equipment required to complete all duties and jobs.
• Ability to follow safety guidelines when using required chemicals, equipment, tools, and techniques while performing job duties; ability to give safety instructions to team members.
• Knowledge of emergency shut‑off procedures for gas, water, electrical, etc.

LICENSES, CERTIFICATIONS AND REGISTRATIONS

• At the discretion of the San Manuel Tribal Gaming Commission, you may be required to obtain and maintain a gaming license.
• Authorized Driver: Role requires operation or driving of Tribe-owned vehicles or driving patron vehicles. A valid driver's license with an acceptable driving record as determined by the insurance carrier is required.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS/ WORKING CONDITIONS - ENVIRONMENT

The physical demands and working environment described here are representative of those that an employee encounters and must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

• Primary work environment is in an outside setting.
• Work requires travel to attend meetings, trade shows, and conferences.
• Incumbents may be required to work evening, weekend and holiday shifts.
• Must be able to work in a fast-paced, high-demand environment.
• Strength sufficient to exert up to 10 pounds of force occasionally and/or a negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects and/or move up to 40 pounds occasionally.
• Sedentary work: involves sitting most of the time. Constantly operates a computer and other office productivity machinery, such as a calculator, copy machine, and computer printer.
• Physical activities that apply to the essential functions of the position are balancing, stooping, kneeling, crouching, reaching, pushing, pulling, lifting, grasping, talking, hearing, and repetitive motions.
• Hearing sufficient to hear conversational levels in person, via videoconference and over the telephone.
• Speech sufficient to make oneself heard and understood in person, in front of groups, in meetings, via videoconference and over the telephone.
• Visual acuity that meets the requirements of the position: The worker is required to have close visual acuity to perform an activity such as preparing and analyzing data and figures; transcribing; viewing a computer terminal; expansive reading and visual inspection of employees, visitors or facility.
• Mobility sufficient to safely move in an office environment, walk, stoop, bend and kneel, and enter, exit and operate a motor vehicle in the course of travel to promotional events, meetings, conferences, trade shows and San Manuel properties.
• Endurance sufficient to sit, walk and stand for extended periods, and maintain efficiency throughout the entire work shift and during extended work hours.
• The employee may be exposed to fumes or airborne particles including secondhand smoke.

Reasonable accommodation will be made in compliance with all applicable law.

As one of the largest private employers in the Inland Empire, San Manuel deeply cares about the future, growth and well‑being of its employees. Join our team today!