Production Director

The Director – Production job at Red Sea Global in Umluj puts one person in charge of growing and supplying plants at Botanica Red Sea, a 180-hectare nursery. Its annual capacity is 8 million plants, and the quality and availability of those plants, biosecurity, safety and the cost of production all sit with the post.

What the production director job in Umluj involves

Plants go to Red Sea Global’s own projects and to outside developers, so the post has to deliver at the cost Commercial assumed when it priced the work. Crops take years to mature, which means choices made now determine what is on hand anywhere from one to three years later. Water, soil, logistics and equipment belong to Nursery Operations, so the two directors plan together. Pests, disease and heat can wipe out stock, imported material can bring biosecurity breaches, and a forecast that changes after sowing disrupts the plan.

Responsibilities

• Builds growing, import and production schedules with the PMO from the approved demand plan
• Delivers production volumes, readiness dates, and germination and survival targets while keeping live plant inventory records accurate
• Checks the plant BOQs of every RSG and third-party project for stock, possible substitutes and lead times before Commercial commits, and agrees with the Director – Nursery Operations on a weekly schedule for readiness and dispatch
• Oversees the seed bank, indoor plants, flower and food crops, greenhouses and shade houses, and propagation by division, layering, grafting, cuttings and seed, and expands the native plant programme
• Owns the Biosecurity Protocol (inspection of incoming material, phytosanitary documents, quarantine, hygiene and traceability) and the IPM programme, steers the R&D roadmap, and ensures MEWA compliance with approved species only
• Answers for the direct cost budget of production and R&D (labour, materials, water, fuel, equipment, wastage), plans resources with the PMO, reports utilization and productivity weekly, and flags cost and delivery risks with proposed corrections as soon as they appear
• Leads the operatives, horticulturists, supervisors and managers of production and R&D, sets the standards for skills, training and supervision, and keeps field operations free of harm together with HSSE
• Applies and enforces Botanica and RSG policies, DoA and the ISO management systems (9001, 14001, 45001 and 37301), and leads improvement in cost, productivity and client value

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Engineering, Agriculture, Horticulture or Landscape Architecture
• Seven or more of those years spent running production at large scale with a team of 100 people or more
• Track record in irrigation management, biosecurity, native species and horticulture in arid climates
• A history of supplying plants, imported and specimen stock included, to large-scale landscape developments
• Planning production, controlling inventory and managing capacity for live product
• Measuring labour productivity, controlling cost and managing operational KPIs
• HSSE leadership in field operations, plus fluent English
• Expert-level plant propagation and nursery crop management, with advanced skills in sustainable-production R&D, IPM, biosecurity and HSE compliance

Preferred qualifications

• Master’s degree
• Arid-climate experience gained in KSA or the GCC
• Arabic

About Red Sea Global

Botanica belongs to the Red Sea Global group and provides sustainable greenery for the group’s destinations, while fitting new species in carefully alongside local flora. The nursery covers more than 1 million square meters, has produced over 5 million plants since 2020, and aims for 30 million by 2030.

How to apply

Applications go through the the application button below.