Sales Agronomist w/PCA (Salinas, CA)

Investing in You, join a 100-year-old, family-owned leader in Ag – and grow with us!

Wilbur-Ellis invests heavily in our employees by offering skill development and training, competitive compensation and benefits, and a tradition of promoting from within for a broad range of career opportunities. And we foster a supportive, people-first work environment.

“We know the confidence gap can get in the way of meeting spectacular candidates, so please don’t hesitate to apply — we’d love to hear from you.”

Are you someone who thrives on interacting with growers, partnering with them to understand their needs, and helping them identify the best product for their farms?   Are you knowledgeable in the local area crops?  And do you thrive in an environment that puts people first and invests heavily in its team?  If you answered yes, then we want to hear from you!

General Purpose and Scope of Position:

Wilbur-Ellis is seeking a motivated and experienced Agricultural Sales Agronomist responsible for managing existing accounts and attracting new customers within a defined sales territory. This position will assist customers with the proper product selection and use of products based on specific agronomic needs. The Agricultural Sales Agronomist will maintain and develop profitable customer relationships while becoming the market leader within the defined sales geography.

Key Skills and Abilities Include:

• Ability to establish strong relationships with field personnel, peers, and customers
• Knowledge of agricultural production
• Ability to lead and influence
• Ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision
• Proficient with computers utilizing Microsoft Windows and Windows applications and ERP order entry systems
• Ability to travel by vehicle or commercial transportation to other branches, meeting locations, or customer farms
• Ability to work for long periods of time while standing
• Ability to bend, stoop, kneel, and lift up to 40 lbs. safely and easily

Key Personal Attributes Include:

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Agriculture or Business-related field is preferred
• Three to five years experience in the Agricultural industry (preferred)
• PCA License or the ability to obtain
• Good interpersonal and team-building skills with a positive attitude
• Excellent written and oral communication skills with the ability to communicate effectively with small and large groups
• Detailed and accurate
• Willingness to travel up to 25% of the time
• Physically able to endure outdoor climates including hot or cold weather extremes
• Willingness and desire to embrace technology to add value to service offerings for customers

Specific Responsibilities and Key Deliverables Include:

• Manage existing customer base
• Identify new key customers, understand their business, determine their needs, and develop plans and actions for sales territory growth
• Communicate with branch management the initiatives, objectives, strategies, and action plans
• Serve as point person to manage the support resources of the territory including value-added nutrition, branded products, seed, purchasing, and technology while overseeing the implementation and success of the plans and objectives in conjunction with branch personnel
• Responsible for sales territory budgeting, forecasting, and analysis
• Follow credit policies and manage risk for the company
• Develop annual business plans that optimize growth and profitability for the territory
• Implement marketing and sales plans
• Establish and meet sales goals
• Network with industry representatives to expand sales opportunities
• Build product and market knowledge to add understanding and credibility
• Support other team members to attain branch and performance goals
• Proactively seek and participate in available company-sponsored training to develop and advance skill set and knowledge base
• Become the primary contact between customers and Wilbur-Ellis Company including deliveries, forecasting, credit, complaint handling, custom application, etc.
• Present a professional image to our customers in all interactions (verbal, computer and face-to-face) through personal appearance and overall demeanor
• Perform all other duties as assigned by management in a professional and efficient manner

Compensation:

In compliance with all states and cities requiring transparency of pay, the base compensation for this position ranges from $66,560 - $87,480.  Note that salary may vary ba