Assistant Farm Manager

Pro Talent; KwaZulu-Natal; On-site; ZAR 180,000 - 300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

On-site housing

Job summary

Pro Talent is seeking an Assistant Farm Manager to support the Farm Manager across all operations and run the farm independently during short absences. The role covers administration, field tasks, irrigation, pest/spray compliance, and packhouse coordination.

Ideal candidates have 1–2 years in agriculture, a Diploma in Agriculture, English fluency, and a valid driver’s license. On-site housing may be available and daytime hours with peak-season flexibility.

Qualifications

• Education: Diploma or higher degree in Agriculture.
• Licensing: Valid driver's license.
• Languages: Professional fluency in English; local regional languages advantageous.
• Environment: Comfortable outdoors and greenhouse environments.
• Experience: 1–2 years of agricultural experience.
• Crop Protection: Exposure to pest/disease scouting and spray execution.
• Software: Basic spreadsheet proficiency; data entry with simple formulas a plus.
• Experience with nightshade/tomato production.
• Exposure to irrigation and fertigation systems.
• Experience with inventory control, invoicing, or general farm administration.

Responsibilities

• Recordkeeping: Maintain flawless daily records for harvesting, packing, sales, stock, spray applications, irrigation logs, and labour timesheets.
• Invoicing: Generate approximately one invoice daily using a standard spreadsheet template.
• Traceability: Ensure full product traceability from harvest through to final sale.
• Supervision: Coordinate daily crop tasks including pruning, trellising, scouting, and harvesting.
• Planning: Support weekly operational farm work plans.
• Environments: Oversee tasks across open-field and protected environment crops.
• Testing: Daily quality tests for drainage/runoff EC, leaf/petiole tests, soil probe readings; report trends.
• Execution: Run the scheduled irrigation plan and log all data.
• Strategy: Propose data-driven adjustments to irrigation and nutrient strategies for management approval.
• Scouting: Daily crop scouting for pest and disease pressure.
• Application: Implement spray programs safely and in accordance with regulations.
• Compliance: Maintain spray records and regulatory documentation.
• Team Leadership: Support day-to-day team supervision, task allocation, and productivity tracking.
• Logistics: Align daily harvest volumes with packhouse requirements and resolve dispatch discrepancies.

Skills

Recordkeeping

Irrigation management

Field supervision

English fluency

Data entry

Education

Diploma in Agriculture

Job description

Assistant Farm Manager

Position Overview

• Reporting Line: Reports to the Farm Manager
• Cross-functional Collaboration: Packhouse team, admin/finance, and sales/dispatch support
• Core Mission: This position supports the Farm Manager across all operational functions and requires the capability to run the farm independently during short management absences (up to 7 days).

Key Responsibilities

Administration & Data Accuracy (Core Focus)

• Recordkeeping: Maintain flawless daily records for harvesting, packing, sales, stock, spray applications, irrigation logs, and labour timesheets.
• Invoicing: Generate approximately one invoice daily using a standard spreadsheet template.
• Traceability: Ensure full product traceability from harvest through to final sale.

Crop & Field Operations

• Supervision: Coordinate daily crop tasks including pruning, trellising, scouting, and harvesting.
• Planning: Support the execution of weekly operational farm work plans.
• Environments: Oversee tasks across both open-field and protected environment/tunnel crops.

Irrigation & Fertigation Support

• Testing: Perform daily quality tests (drainage/runoff EC, leaf/petiole tests, soil probe readings) and report trends clearly.
• Execution: Run the scheduled irrigation plan and log all data.
• Strategy: Propose data-driven adjustments to irrigation and nutrient strategies for management approval.

Pest, Disease & Spray Compliance

• Scouting: Conduct daily crop scouting for early identification of pest and disease pressure.
• Application: Implement spray programs safely, responsibly, and in accordance with regulations.
• Compliance: Maintain comprehensive spray records and regulatory documentation.

Labor & Packhouse Coordination

• Team Leadership: Support day-to-day team supervision, task allocation, and productivity tracking.
• Logistics: Align daily harvest volumes with packhouse requirements and resolve dispatch discrepancies early.

90-Day Performance Expectations

• Admin Accuracy: Daily operational records kept up-to-date with less than 1% error rate.
• Invoicing: Turn around daily invoices on the same day with zero pricing or quantity errors.
• Testing Compliance: Achieve $100\%$ completion on daily EC, leaf/petiole, and soil probe logs.
• Operational Cover: Successfully manage full farm operations for up to 7 days in the Farm Manager's absence without missing critical tasks.

Job Requirements

• Education: Diploma or higher degree in Agriculture.
• Licensing: Valid driver's license.
• Languages: Professional fluency in English; proficiency in local regional languages is highly advantageous.
• Environment: Physically comfortable working outdoors and in greenhouse environments.
• Experience: 1-2 years of agricultural experience.
• Crop Protection: Practical exposure to pest/disease scouting and spray execution.
• Software: Basic spreadsheet proficiency (data entry, template usage; simple formulas a plus).
• Experience or exposure specific to nightshade/tomato production.
• Basic exposure to irrigation and fertigation systems.
• Experience with inventory control, invoicing, or general farm administration systems.

Compensation & Benefits

• Remuneration: Competitive market-related entry-level salary (commensurate with experience).
• Hours: Standard daytime hours (flexibility required during seasonal peak periods).
• Benefits: On-site housing accommodation is available if required.