Logo
Venjobs - Beta

Welcome 'Guest' to the Department of Viticulture & Enology Employment Bulletin Board

New Job Listings provided by the industry will be posted here for our students and alumni to view.

Additional Information for Job Seekers
Additional information for Job Posters or log-in

Return to Main List

Title Grower Relations Manager
Employer Foster's Wine Estates
Employment Location Napa Area
Company Description ABOUT FOSTER’S WINE ESTATES AMERICAS:
As a premium global beverage company conducting business across 150 countries, Foster's offers an exciting and diverse portfolio of career opportunities. Our people are innovative, passionate and energetic - working as one team with one high-performance culture.

Foster's is committed to creating an 'inspiring workplace' which attracts and retains highly skilled people. At Foster’s, we recognize and value employee diversity.
Don't let this great opportunity to work with a dynamic and energetic group of individuals pass you by, please apply now! EEO/AAP.

Type Full Time
Pay Scale Competitive
Employment Start Date 12/1/09
Job Description Primary Purpose of Role:

The Grower Relations Manager is accountable for efficiently sourcing grapes of the required type, grade and price from third parties and for managing, leading and developing the Grower Relations Representatives for all key grower regions. In addition, this role has significant operational responsibility through involvement in the initiation, development and review of grower contracts proposed by Grower Relations Representatives. This position has full responsibility for the Grower Relations Representatives.

Key Relationships
Internal
 Director, Technical Viticulture and Grower Relations
 Director, Outsource Management & Administration
 Director, Vineyard Operations
 Strategic Supply Chain Team
 Winemaking
 Production
 Technical Viticulture Department
 Legal
 Grower Liaison Officers
External
 Grower networks
 Industry connections
 Grower Associations
 Committees
 Technical Committees

Key Decision Making in this Role:
• Management of Grower Relations Representatives
• Coordinated management of grape supply to match requirement
• Ensure proper staffing, resourcing and management of grape intake
• Make appropriate decisions to meet operational and capital budget (Shared)
• Grape Supply Contract proposals are sound & meet company guidelines and requirements
• Calculation of Grower annual grape prices
• Grape Pricing Recommendation – (Shared)
• Ensure Grape Supply Data is entered into system accurately and in timely manner

Key Responsibilities/ Accountabilities:
1. Effective management of Grower Relations Representatives to lead and develop the GR team.
2. Ensure business relationships are developed with growers within all regions to identify potential sources of supply under both short and long term contract
3. Oversee negotiation of cost effective long-term contracts for grape supply with growers in line with requirements plan developed. Seek approval from Director TV & GR for all new contracts.
4. Oversee negotiation of cost effective open market purchases of grapes to address shortfalls in grape requirements that cannot be met from company vineyards, long-term contracts or outsourcing. Seek approval from Director TV & GR for all new contracts.
5. Review proposed new contracts, rollovers and annual purchases.
6. Monitor existing portfolio of grower contracts and address issues as necessary e.g. contract non-compliance and contract renegotiations
7. Provide support to growers through regular communication of FWEA requirements in terms of both volumes and quality and general industry trends
8. Ensure that FWEA has accurate forecasts of grower supply e.g. forecast yields, grades, spray usage
9. Assist growers to improve their efficiency and effectiveness through provision of advice on best practice in viticulture, increasing the likelihood of them meeting target yields/grades and their performance relative to other growers
10. Monitor grower performance from a regional perspective, in terms of volume, quality and reliability.
11. Co-ordinate feedback to growers on the performance of each vintage and their individual performance relative to other growers
12. Manage field assessments of grape quality in conjunction with winemakers
13. Coordinate timing of harvesting with individual growers and winemakers
14. Assist with the management of the annual operating budget for the Grower Relations Department
15. Ensure compliance with all laws, group policies and standards relating to the operations of winery sites.
16. Assist Director of TV & GR to develop company-wide contract grape sourcing strategy:
• Define optimal mix of owned versus purchased grapes
• Determine overall mix of long term & short term contracts and spot market purchases
• Define target contract sourcing requirements by grape type, grade and location.
• Define standard contract structures & terms – e.g. timeframes, quality specifications, delivery specifications, flexibility, information sharing, pricing standards. Do so, in conjunction with Group Legal.
16. Ensure that annual grape prices and grape payments are correctly calculated.
17. Assist with the development of mechanisms to measure and manage key risks and uncertainties e.g. fluctuations in grape demand, fluctuations in grape yields & extraction rates, exposure to market grape price fluctuations, ability to source grapes on the spot market
18. Develop measures for the performance of grower contracts relative to benchmarks (e.g. reported spot market prices).
19. Ensure compliance with all laws, group policies and standards relating to grower contracts.
20. Ensure that Growers meet requirements of Winemaking during vintage in terms of delivery schedule, specifications and volumes
21. Enhance brand development by contributing, from a viticulture perspective, to brand public relations and marketing activity

Key Challenges in Achieving Goal(s):
• Managing a third party relationship
• The major challenge for this role is managing the volatility of fruit requirement whilst maintaining effective relationships with growers.

Qualifications and Experience:

• Tertiary qualifications in viticulture or agri-business management or related disciplines
• Minimum 5 years experience in grower relations, viticulture or vineyard management.
• Highly effective leadership and employee management skills
• Excellent communication and conflict resolution
• Excellent Liaison and organisational skills
• Advanced computer skills, including Word, Excel and PowerPoint
• Conversational Spanish is an advantage

WORK ENVIRONMENT: The physical demands described below are representative to successfully perform the essential job functions. The following percentages are given in terms of an eight-hour workday. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Office related tasks include sitting at a desk for long durations, using computer based technology.
• Vineyard inspections will involve working outside in all weather conditions, exposure to extreme heat and cold in some cases.
• Long distance driving required to interact with growers and visit vineyards.
• Overnight travel may be required when sourcing and interacting with growers.
Contact Info TO APPLY:
If you are interested in this position please apply online. Go to http://searchjobs.fweacareers.com/ to submit your resume and please include your salary requirements.

No relocation assistance is available for this position. No recruiters or phone calls, please.


Contact Address 610 Airpark Road
Napa, CA 94558
Contact Website http://www.fweacareers.com
Return to Main List Help