About The Kiwifruit Breeding Centre (KBC) Our vision at the Kiwifruit Breeding Centre is to deliver the world's most irresistible, healthy fruit. For Good. Through accelerated research, better fruit and better outcomes - for our people, our regions, our planet. The Kiwifruit Breeding Centre is a 50/50 joint venture between The New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research Limited and Zespri International. We work together to drive greater innovation in kiwifruit breeding and to create healthier, better tasting and more sustainability-focused varieties to create more value for Aotearoa, New Zealand. At KBC, we encourage the team to live by our K.I.W.I Values : K een – be positive, be proud and bring your best. I nitiative – have courage, get stuck in and enjoy your work. W aka – pull together, achieve more, faster and trust and be trusted. I ntegrity – respect each other, be open and honest and speak up. Responsibilities This varied role will see you: Provide assistance to the breeding operations team across the full range of routine operations, including propagation, sampling for DNA testing, planting, and vine & fruit evaluation. Lead routine tasks, ensuring efficiency in operational activities. Collect data at various stages of the kiwifruit growing process and be responsible for the data accuracy. Conduct field evaluations including flowering, fruit counts, components of yield and bud browning. Prepare and label seedlings for DNA testing. Assist with organising kiwifruit block plantings. Be involved in crossing and pollination, assisting with the control of pests and disease, as well as the monitoring of cool stores. At times, have responsibility for coordinating and managing a small team of casual staff to ensure all field, and/or nursery work, is completed to critical seasonal timeframes during peak periods. Qualifications and Experience To succeed in this position, you must: Have prior orchard hands-on experience. A relevant Science Degree is preferred but not a necessity. Be experienced in/possess knowledge of plants/horticulture and demonstrate a keen passion in the growing/primary industries. Demonstrate an understanding/experience within laboratory processes. Possess good data input skills and be able to review the data for accuracy. Be an excellent communicator, who can work well in both a team setting with a range of people, as well as on your own in an unsupervised setting. Be organised, with sound attention to detail with the ability to manage working with multiple tasks, whilst also demonstrating accountability and being open to feedback. Display sound problem-solving skills and the ability to think critically, whilst also being able to follow directions and pass them onto others, including supervising seasonal staff. Possess initiative and be innovative in your thinking. Be able to adapt to change, and at times, work under pressure in a fast-paced environment. Flexibility to work extra hours in peak times when/if required. Demonstrate a commitment to Health and Safety. Demonstrate integrity, trustworthiness, and reliability and able to build effective working relationships within the team. If you enjoy working in a fast-paced, fun, friendly, welcoming environment undertaking rewarding work, we'd love to hear from you. Please note: we will be reviewing applications on a rolling basis and may make an appointment before the closing date. We recommend applying as early as possible. #J-18808-Ljbffr