Senior Specialist: Agriculture Horticulture at Land Bank Careers

MAIN PURPOSE OF THE JOB

• Manage and lead the specific commodity (Grains, Livestock or Horticulture) team and ensure mobilisation of expert agriculture industry economics support services across the Bank with particular emphasis on where there are either skills / competency shortages or where potential investments are either highly complex or high value. 
• Provide ongoing technical advice and knowledge/information sharing to the Bank’s team to ensure submission of high quality accurate applications through support when requested in terms of good governance and compliance to legislation and best practice within the Land Bank’s policies and guidelines.

Key Performance Areas    

• Manage and ensure Mobilisation of Specialist Skills into Business Case Viability
• Take lead in the development and execution of a project plan in the processing of applications.
• Manage and lead the commodity team in their area of speciality in order to provide expert agricultural support to the Bank to facilitate accurate and efficient structuring of appropriate financial solutions and feasible transactions.
• Application of appropriate project management principles in the determination of the development phase of the farming venture, conducting the required valuation of the entity’s assets crop inspection, determining the realisable assets value, calculation of the production value and related loan value.
• Manage and lead the collaboration with and support of other Bank divisions, conduct collateral management valuations in accordance with the relevant Land Bank policy and procedures.
• Agricultural Knowledge Database and Knowledge Sharing
• To manage and lead the team in order to ensure support with the collection, process, and packaging of information in order to determine, amongst others, the following:
• Market value of property
• Production costs
• Establishment costs
• Profit margins
• Ensure relevant and updated information for knowledge sharing as and when required
• Contribute information to the national agricultural specialists’ database
• To ensure knowledge transfer to the various Bank representatives in order to ensure skills transfer and empowerment in terms of technical context.
• Customer and Stakeholder Relationship Management
• Build, foster and maintain consistent, effective and strong relationships with all stakeholders in order to strengthen relationships with the potential to secure new business opportunities for the bank.
• Ensure that all stakeholders remain aware of the value of the Land Bank’s products, the processes and principles related to agricultural financing within the Land Bank environment.
• Stay up to date with provincial initiatives and developments and further strengthen the relationship to assess further business opportunities to promote long-term mutually beneficial relationships.

People Management

Performance Management

• Analyse the business plan to determine the applicable deliverables and targets
• Compile the Performance Management documentation in collaboration with the staff member in terms of:

Job Profile requirements

Key Performance Areas

• Personal Development Plan
• Conduct performance planning session and Track and monitor performance in accordance with performance contracts.

Capacity Planning

• Determine the human resource requirements, in accordance with the expected deliverables and current capacity
• Secure the human capital requirements to ensure that deliverables will be met in accordance with the expected targets
• Set and achieve employment equity targets.
• Minimise staff turnover
• Lead the department in such a manner as to foster innovation and technological excellence.

Preferred Minimum Education and Experience    

• Masters Level business Degree with Agriculture as base with project management experience
• Experience in Agricultural management and financial Extension Services - 7 years
• Experience in Agricultural businesses, a Co-op, or similar organisations, focusing on farm related financing - 7 years
• Project Management experience - 7 years

Critical Competencies    

• Microsoft Office
• Knowledge / Experience of financial and business analytical principles, tools and systems
• Farm Valuation Principles
• Agricultural Economics
• Risk Management Principles
• Lending / Credit Assessment Principles
• Financial and Business Acumen
• Project Management
• Additional Requirements    
• Knowledge/Experience of Agricultural Industry and commodities
• Knowledge of PFMA
• Knowledge of the National Credit Act, Company Law, Contract Law
• Knowledge of the Land Bank Act
• Extended hours as and when required
• Travel as and when required
• Needs to keep abreast with micro and macro agricultural economic trends

Closing Date    
2023/06/05