Seed Operations & Compliance Specialist

ISU Research Park; Iowa, Northern (LA, KY); Hybrid; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

ISU Research Park seeks a highly organized professional to manage regulated seed cold-storage operations, ensuring accurate handling, labeling, and tracking of material for Corn Trait Introgression activities in controlled environments.

You will maintain chain-of-custody records, monitor storage conditions, and coordinate distribution to meet project timelines while adhering to biosafety, phytosanitary, and quality standards. Weekend/OH duties may be required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in agronomy, plant science, horticulture, or related field.
• Minimum 5 years' experience in agriculture, ideally in plant breeding or greenhouse / control environment operations.
• Good verbal and written communication skills.
• Flexibility to work weekends, overtime, and holidays as needed.
• Knowledge of plant propagation (including embryo rescue), greenhouse management, plant cycling, and GM traits.
• Highly organized and able to manage complex processes requiring multiple functions or teams working together.
• Adherence to stewardship, regulatory, and HSE requirements to maintain operation freedom.
• Ability to learn, experiment with and deploy new technologies and protocols.
• Relentless focus on continuous improvement and operational excellence.
• Good computer skills and proficiency with MS Office and corporate software.

Responsibilities

• Receive, inspect, label, inventory, organize, and store regulated seed according to approved procedures.
• Maintain accurate physical and electronic seed inventory records, including chain-of-custody and material movement documentation.
• Monitor cold-storage conditions, equipment performance, access controls, and storage-area organization.
• Retrieve, package, prepare, and coordinate distribution or shipment of seed to meet project timelines.
• Maintain stewardship, biosafety, phytosanitary, safety, and quality requirements for regulated materials.
• Investigate inventory discrepancies, resolve or elevate issues, and support corrective actions as needed.
• Support internal audits, inspections, inventory reconciliations, continuous-improvement activities.
• Coordinate with project teams and operational partners to ensure regulated seed availability and traceability.
• Use and develop data visualization applications (Power BI, Smartsheet’s etc) to track KPIs and progress of activities
• Activities will include embryo rescue, prepare plant tissue samples, label / stage seed and related materials for planting and other operational activities.
• Support planting, transplanting, pollinations, crop maintenance, harvest, seed processing and regulated-material movements in controlled environments.
• Complete activity records accurately and on time, maintaining traceability and compliance throughout the crop cycle.
• Follow all applicable controlled-environment, stewardship, biosafety, and safety procedures.
• Provide flexible support across Corn TI priorities as seasonal workload and operational needs require.

Skills

Seed handling

Communication skills

Organizational skills

MS Office proficiency

Education

Bachelor's degree in agronomy, plant science, horticulture, or related field

Tools

Power BI

Smartsheet

MS Office

Job description

ISU Research Park seeks a highly organized professional to manage regulated seed cold-storage operations, ensuring accurate handling, labeling, and tracking of material for Corn Trait Introgression activities in controlled environments.

You will maintain chain-of-custody records, monitor storage conditions, and coordinate distribution to meet project timelines while adhering to biosafety, phytosanitary, and quality standards. Weekend/OH duties may be required.