CIMMYT is seeking a Product Manager to strengthen demand-led product development and delivery for dryland crops in East and Southern Africa. This role ensures breeding pipelines translate into market-relevant, socially inclusive products validated with stakeholders and adopted at scale. You will provide end-to-end product leadership from product definition through late-stage validation to release and commercialization readiness for sorghum, pearl millet, and groundnut.
What You'll Do
- Work with Market Intelligence, Seed Systems, and value chain actors to understand and document drivers of variety replacement and adoption, and to inform product cycle strategy.
- Ensure Target Product Profiles (TPPs) are defined, validated, and supported by robust business cases, and are adopted and used by breeding teams to guide selection decisions.
- Ensure socially inclusive needs and circumstances, particularly of women and youth, are intentionally incorporated into target setting, product development, and market strategies.
- Manage advanced testing and ensure qualitative and quantitative data from on-farm trials and pertinent studies are available, organized, and fit-for-purpose for product advancement meetings.
- Support transparent, evidence-based germplasm advancement processes from late-stage testing through recommendation for release and commercialization.
- Promote good data practices and clear decision criteria aligned to TPPs, including documentation of trade-offs and risks.
- Coordinate with the Seed Systems unit and the seed industry to ensure complete seed production and multiplication information is available for products recommended for release.
- Support development of product dossiers and related materials required to inform release, licensing, and commercialization decisions with partners and national authorities.
- Facilitate structured feedback loops from farmers, seed companies, and other stakeholders back into product design and breeding priorities.
- Contribute to DCP and CGIAR product design and management modules, annual and multi-year work plan development, execution, and reporting.
- Manage and track budgets associated with product management and late-stage testing activities, in line with CIMMYT financial policies and donor requirements.
- Build capacity of CIMMYT colleagues and external partners in modern product management and delivery approaches for dryland crops.
- Contribute to refereed publications, project reports, knowledge products, and fundraising.
What We're Looking For
- MSc or higher in crop sciences, plant breeding, agricultural economics, seed science and technology, agronomy, or a related field.
- Agrobusiness experience in the commercial seed industry in Africa and/or demonstrated understanding of industry and value chain trends and developments.
- Working knowledge of product development principles, including understanding requirements for variety adoption and practical methods for marketing.
- Commitment to social inclusiveness, including awareness of the roles of women and youth in variety uptake and market participation.
- Cross-cultural and cross-functional team leadership and collaboration skills.
- Strong oral and written communication skills; able to translate technical information into decision-ready insights.
- Results focus, persistence and pragmatism; able to drive progress in multi-stakeholder environments.
- Team leadership, negotiation, conflict resolution, client orientation, critical thinking, design thinking, strategic thinking, problem solving.
Nice to Have
- Four or more years of experience in seed product management, marketing of seed hybrids/varieties, and/or business administration.
Team & Environment
Ensures strong communication and effective handover of candidate products across Market Intelligence, Breeding, and Seed Systems functions, and with external partners and industry.
Benefits & Compensation
- Internationally competitive salary
- Housing allowance
- Car
- Comprehensive health and life insurance
- Assistance for children’s education
- Paid vacation
- Annual home travel airfare
- Contribution to a retirement plan
- Generous assistance with relocation shipment
Work Mode
This is a local-country position based in Nairobi, Kenya.
CIMMYT is an equal opportunity employer. It fosters a multicultural work environment that values gender equality, teamwork, and respect for diversity. Women are encouraged to apply.
