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The International Wheat Yield Partnership (IWYP) is seeking an Assistant Director who is responsible for assisting the Director in the overall Program Management activities necessary to administer the Program and most importantly to coordinate the various scientific activities of the IWYP research and Translational Hub partners to ensure harmonization among groups and that goals and objectives are met as planned. Regular assessment of the Program science outputs and progress are an integral part of this position. The Assistant Director also serves as the lead for IWYP secretariat and communications activities, thus critical writing skills to develop clear and concise messages are an essential component. For more information about IWYP go IWYP.org.

 Responsibilities:

• Assist the Director in coordinating the IWYP Science Program by regularly interacting with IWYP Program scientists involved in IWYP Research Projects, Aligned Projects and Translational Hubs to collect information and timely reports to document and summarize scientific progress being made, including tracking milestones and deliverables. The Assistant Director will also collate and summarize deliverables to maintain updated versions of the IWYP Asset Catalogues and IWYP Trait List spreadsheet database. Maintaining awareness of the latest relevant advances in plant sciences via the literature, seminars, conferences, etc. is expected.
• Lead the interaction with IWYP private sector members by recruiting new members and maintaining regular communication for sharing of Program information and outputs. Major responsibilities include development of newsletters, regular meetings and other communications regarding scientific progress. A critical component is regularly gaining feedback from the private sector breeding programs for what traits and research outputs are deemed valuable, and what data and information they require for uptake into their product development pipelines. Responsibilities also include preparing and sending the annual member fee invoices and tracking the payments.
• Take the lead in identifying, recruiting and managing in-scope research projects and their PIs to join IWYP as Aligned Projects. This will involve in-depth critical analyses of the submitted science projects for scientific quality, potential impact and fit-to-purpose for IWYP criteria and goals. Analyses will be submitted to the Director and the Scientific Advisory Committee for final decision on accepting the project for IWYP.
• Maintain regular interaction with IWYP Translation Hub staff at CIMMYT to gain operational and technical details and needs of the Program. Advise CIMMYT staff and the IWYP Director by reviewing plans for the field activities including experimental design and measurements taken, tracking progress, and critically analyzing progress reports.
• Assist the Director to organize and conduct various international IWYP meetings including the Science and Executive Impact Board (SIEB), the Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC), and the annual IWYP Program Conference. During these meetings, the Assistant Director could be called on to present results and advise on technical aspects and progress of the various IWYP Program components.
• Serve as the IWYP Secretariat. Assist in documenting, preparing and publishing of the formal meeting papers and book for the SIEB meetings. Record and prepare drafts of the formal minutes and action lists for the SIEB and SAC meetings. Documents key items and actions from the IWYP Program Conference.
• Lead IWYP communication activities, which include responsibilities to:
  • Maintain and regularly update content on the IWYP website as the primary communication portal, including the shared drive on the private members space portal.
  • Devise and manage the social media needs of IWYP.
  • Write, develop graphics, prepare, publish and distribute the monthly IWYP Science Briefs.
  • Write, develop graphics, prepare, publish and distribute the IWYP Annual Report.
  • Prepare and give presentations at selected scientific conferences and professional meetings.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications:

• Ph.D. degree in plant genetics, plant breeding, molecular genetics, genomics or related field.
• Two years of related experience in a research or product development organization targeting the genetic improvement of crops, either in a public institution or private industry.
• Moderate to advanced knowledge of spreadsheet, word processing and database software.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication (oral and written), and problem-solving skills.
• High degree of self-initiative and ability to think and work independently.
• Ability to multi-task and work cooperatively with others in diverse groups around the world.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Ph.D. degree in plant genetics and/or plant breeding.
• Five plus years of related experience in a research or product development organization targeting the genetic improvement of crops, either in a public institution or private industry.
• Experience in wheat breeding, wheat genetics or wheat physiology.
• Experience and high proficiency in technical writing.
• Experience as part of a crop product development pipeline team.
• Experience in working with international collaborative scientific teams.
• Experience with actively managing social media accounts, e.g., Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook.
• Experience and proficiency in technical writing.
• Proficiency in desktop publishing would be highly beneficial.
• Experience and high proficiency in technical writing and graphical layout.

Other Requirements:

• Some domestic and international travel is required (less than 10%).
• Occasional work outside of normal business hours to meet critical timelines.
• This is a security-sensitive position. The individual in this position is required to handle Protected Health Information (PHI) as defined by HIPAA regulations. The individual is required to handle PHI in accordance with A&M System policy and is further required to complete HIPAA training as a condition of employment, within a reasonable time frame after the individual's employment, and on an as-needed basis thereafter.