SPI NA Production Research Corn Work Lea

Bayer; Lincoln (NE); On-site; USD 154,000 - 231,000; Full time

Job summary

Bayer is seeking a Production Research Corn Work Lead to bridge business needs and Seed Production Innovation in North America. You will align stakeholders, set priorities, and drive accountable delivery across cross-functional teams to enhance yield, quality, cost efficiency, and pipeline progress.

Responsibilities include defining success criteria, tracking KPIs, and ensuring portfolio alignment with strategic priorities. Domestic relocation may be offered; Equal Opportunity Employer.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Agronomy, Plant Breeding, Agricultural Research, or related field.
• Excellent communication skills across diverse audiences and settings.
• Strong project management and change management capabilities.
• Proven track record delivering projects within a matrix organization and cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary intake point and strategic liaison for NA Corn challenges; translate needs into priorities for SPI.
• Define success criteria, deliverables, timelines, and measurable outcomes.
• Ensure work aligns with NA and SPI priorities while balancing impact, urgency, risk, and resources.
• Prioritize initiatives to improve yield, quality, cost efficiency, and pipeline advancement.
• Lead cross-functional Corn work teams and coordinate regional delivery against commitments.

Skills

Communication

Project Management

Stakeholder Influence

Seed Industry

Strategic Thinking

Problem Solving

Budget Forecasting

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Agronomy/Plant Breeding/Agricultural Research

Master’s degree in Agronomy/Plant Breeding/Ag Research

Job description

SPI NA Production Research Corn Work Lea

This role serves as the primary link between business needs and Seed Production Innovation (SPI), ensuring that key regional challenges are translated into clear priorities, actionable outcomes, and measurable business results. This role leads the North America Corn portfolio by aligning stakeholders, prioritizing work, mobilizing cross-functional teams, and driving accountability for delivery. The position maintains a strong focus on strategic alignment, portfolio performance, and value creation to improve seed pipeline performance, product quality, operational efficiency, and cost competitiveness.

YOUR TASKS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The primary responsibilities of this role, Seed Production Innovation North America Research Corn Work Lead, are to:

• Serve as the primary intake point and strategic liaison for NA Corn business challenges, ensuring priorities and needs are clearly defined and translated into business outcomes. Partner with stakeholders to articulate business requirements in clear, value-driven terms and convert them into actionable priorities for Seed Production Innovation (SPI);
• Define success criteria, including expected deliverables, business impact, timelines, and measurable outcomes;
• Ensure all work is aligned with NA and SPI strategic priorities, balancing business impact, urgency, risk, and resource availability;
• Prioritize initiatives based on their potential to improve yield, quality, cost efficiency, and pipeline advancement;
• Maintain a focused, outcome-driven portfolio of NA Corn initiatives, ensuring resources are allocated effectively to achieve intended business results;
• Evaluate the feasibility of proposed work and ensure plans are appropriately scoped, prioritized, and resourced;
• Establish and maintain accountability for delivery of defined outcomes while tracking progress against commitments;
• Proactively identify and remove barriers that may impact execution or delivery;
• Lead the development and implementation of business performance metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) to identify improvement opportunities and support data-driven decision making;
• Monitor portfolio performance, assess business impact, and drive continuous improvement initiatives across the work portfolio;
• Mobilize and coordinate regional Corn work teams to address prioritized business challenges;
• Collaborate closely with Innovation Work Leads on complex, cross-regional, or strategically initiatives requiring broader alignment and specialized expertise;
• Foster effective cross-functional collaboration to accelerate problem solving and outcome delivery;
• Provide end-to-end visibility of North America Corn priorities, progress, risks, and outcomes across all relevant stakeholders;
• Serve as the single point of accountability for portfolio transparency and business communication;
• Oversee stakeholder engagement and communications to ensure alignment, clarity, and effective decision support across teams and leadership;
• Partner with Regional Work Leads and Home Leads to support budget planning, forecasting, and execution;
• Provide insights, recommendations, and resource optimization strategies to maximize return on investment and ensure effective use of budget resources.

WHO YOU ARE

Bayer seeks an incumbent who possesses the following:

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Agronomy, Plant Breeding, Agricultural Research, or Ag Technical field;
• Excellent communication – oral, written, under diverse circumstances and audiences;
• Outstanding Project Management and change management skills;
• History of successful project delivery and technical group management;
• Results driven and capacity to influence within a matrixed organization and across functions;
• Technical and domain expertise in seed corn production systems and pipeline development;
• Strategic thinking and problem-solving ability;
• Capable of translating business needs into measurable outcomes.

Preferred Qualifications

• History of successful project delivery and technical group management preferably in a technology environment;
• 10+ years of Seed Industry Experience;
• Master’s degree in Agronomy, Plant Breeding, Agricultural Research, or Ag Technical field;.

This posting will be available for application until at least September 10, 2026.

Domestic relocation may be offered for this role.

Employees can expect to be paid a salary between $154,320.00 to $231,480.00. Additional compensation may include a bonus or commission (if relevant). Additional benefits include health care, vision, dental, retirement, PTO, sick leave, etc. This salary range is merely an estimate and may vary based on an applicant’s location, market data/ranges, an applicant’s skills and prior relevant experience, certain degrees and certifications, and other relevant factors.

Bayer is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Disabled/Veterans

Bayer is committed to providing access and reasonable accommodations in its application process for individuals with disabilities and encourages applicants with disabilities to request any needed accommodation(s) using the contact information below.

Equal Opportunity Employer Statement: Notice for U.S. Visitors: All information on this site is subject to compliance with local rule and regulations as they may vary from time to time and across different geographies, including, without limitation, U.S. Executive Orders.

Bayer is an E-Verify Employer.

To all recruitment agencies: Bayer does not accept unsolicited third party resumes.

Location

Location: United States : Missouri : Creve Coeur || United States : Illinois : Farmer City || United States : Illinois : Residence Based || United States : Illinois : Waterman || United States : Indiana : Residence Based || United States : Iowa : Huxley || United States : Iowa : Residence Based || United States : Michigan : Constantine || United States : Michigan : Residence Based || United States : Missouri : Residence Based || United States : Nebraska : Residence Based || United States : Nebraska : Waco

Division

Crop Science

Reference Code

879952

Contact Us

Email: [e-mail]