Sr. Director, Commercial Strategy

About Inari...

Inari is the SEEDesign™ company. We embrace the diversity and complexity of nature in every aspect of our business to drive innovation – to push the boundaries of what is possible. Through our unrivaled technology platform, Inari uses predictive design and advanced multiplex gene editing to develop step-change products. We are taking a nature positive approach to unlock the full potential of seed that will transform the food system. The results will lead to more productive acres delivering value creation for farmers and a more sustainable future for our planet.

Our success is dependent on great minds, collaborating to generate bright ideas and deliver exceptional outcomes.

We have over 270 employees, with research sites in Cambridge, MA (USA) and Ghent (Belgium), as well as a product development site in West Lafayette, IN (USA). We’ve deliberately built a team that brings diversity of thought to all aspects of our business, to generate new ideas, approaches, and ways of operating. And we've intentionally combined experience with potential, bringing agriculture industry experts with the desire to innovate together with bright minds from academia, human therapeutics, software, and consulting. If you want to be part of a diverse and inclusive team developing unique solutions to feed the world while protecting our planet’s natural resources, we’d love to hear from you!

About The Role....

As the Sr Director, Commercial Strategy, you will lead the efforts to identify and prioritize market opportunities across the USA and across the globe that will grow Inari in a scalable and sustainable way aligned to the Vision and Mission of Inari. Our crop focus is on corn, soybean and wheat for which the possibilities of our SEEDesign edits are nearly endless and must be prioritized to deliver on our promise to our stakeholders, including customers, investors, and consumers. This role will collaborate across nearly all functions of Inari. Utilizing great collaboration skills, market knowledge, strategic thinking, analytical aptitude and a desire for creating new value, this role will have a significant impact on the success of Inari.

This position may be based remotely or in our West Lafayette, Indiana location and reports to the SVP, Commercial.

As Senior Director, Commercial Strategy, you will…

• Drive alignment of project go to market strategy with technical capability and develop corresponding detailed launch plans
• Define project specifications and value proposition across crops and partner with the broader Commercial team for successful implementation and growth plan achievement as projects move to products
• Formalize product concepts and bring them to life as projects via the stage advancement process with a focus on (1) value creation and alignment to Inari Vision and Mission utilizing input from Product Concept Team, internal resources (Science, Product Development, Sales) and direct customer feedback
• Collaborate with FP&A function to establish approach, categories, requirements, and roadmap to develop P&Ls for crop categories
• Manage global product portfolio by identifying market introduction needs for new product launches with a focus on market development
• Lead the efforts to identify and prioritize
• Support and collaborate with IP and technical functions to define commercial value of IP ring fencing and white space opportunities
• Collaborate with FP&A and technical functions to establish financial thresholds cross crop categories and leverage on-going to define individual project financial KPIs and success criteria
• Partner with Project Management team to establish and optimize standard commercial deliverables for stage gate stages and decision gates
• Crop, geography, edit/trait and breeding technology product concepts
• Establishment of cradle to grave stage gate, partnering with Project Management, to manage and track each product concept as it moves to becoming a product
• Manage alignment of functions to achieve commercial success including alignment to QMS and stewardship to assure responsible use of products and technologies. Track key competition seed technologies by identifying risks, and opportunities
• Build the prioritization process and then lead across the crop teams with Leadership Team oversight the prioritization of product concepts, projects and products to develop based on alignment to strategy and value
• Crop strategy/direction across corn, soybeans and wheat aligned with the company’s long term strategic growth plans and translate those strategies into action plans, product roadmaps, and go to market/launch strategies, plans and deliverables
• Ensure achievement of financial KPI’s for the product concepts advanced to projects and then to products

You Bring…

• Working knowledge of product lifecycle management, portfolio management, and optimization
• Ability to effectively communicate with a diverse range of individuals and audiences
• Experience developing crop strategies and defining product concepts, with preference for experience to be global/multinational.
• Adaptability and enthusiasm for new challenges, innate curiosity, and a passion for learning
• Demonstrated strength in working and influencing across functions and teams. Ability to collaborate across Science, Product Development, and Commercial
• A collaborative mindset that is open to giving and receiving ideas, perspectives, and feedback
• 10+ years of commercial experience including key account management or complex deal negotiation in seeds or plant traits
• Creative and strategic thinking, willingness to be bold and take risks, and the ability to recognize and learn from failure
• Ability to work both independently and deliver on responsibilities within a highly collaborative environment
• A strong sense of purpose and drive to develop unique, high impact solutions
• Ability to travel as needed, including internationally
• Excellent time management and organizational skills

Bonus Qualifications…

• Previous experience in seed licensing very beneficial, though not required

FOR U.S. CANDIDATES: Please note that we use the resume you submit with your application during our background check process. To ensure an efficient and accurate background verification, we kindly ask that you carefully review and accurately represent your work history, education and other relevant information on your resume. Any discrepancies or inaccuracies found during the background check may impact your candidacy for the position.