PLANTING MANAGER
About The Role
The Planting Manager is a full-time, Gisborne-based position supporting LeaderBrand’s vegetable production operation by leading the safe, efficient and accurate execution of transplanting activities across our crops.
This is a pivotal role in crop establishment, ensuring plants are handled correctly, blocks are prepared to standard, and labour and machinery are coordinated to deliver transplanting activity to plan and specification. Working closely with farm management, crop production, nursery, irrigation and groundwork teams, you’ll help ensure every crop is set up for success from nursery handover through to early field establishment.
As Planting Manager, you’ll be right where the action is, overseeing daily transplanting operations, driving performance, supporting quality outcomes, and helping ensure LeaderBrand produce is grown to the highest standard.
You’ll plan and execute transplanting programmes, maintain strong quality control during crop establishment, ensure health, safety and food safety compliance, and lead teams and machinery in a fast-paced, hands-on environment. Strong communication, attention to detail, and a focus on continuous improvement will be key to success in this role, as you work collaboratively across teams to deliver consistent, high-quality outcomes.
About You
You bring a strong mix of hands-on experience and practical knowledge in horticulture or agriculture, with a solid understanding of crop establishment and field operations. Whether through formal study or on-the-job learning, you’re confident working with machinery, managing transplanting activities, and understanding what good looks like in the field.
Ideally, you’ll have:
- Relevant tertiary qualification in Agriculture, Horticulture, Crop Production or related field preferred; practical experience will also be strongly considered.
- 5+ years’ experience in field operations, transplanting, planting, crop establishment or machinery-based horticultural operations.
- Strong knowledge of farming systems, crop establishment, machinery, irrigation, field conditions and equipment.
- Understanding of environmental, food safety and compliance requirements.
- Class 1 New Zealand driver licence.
- Forklift licence (OSH or equivalent).
- Tractor operation experience and relevant machinery competency.
- WTR endorsement, Class 2 licence or other relevant heavy vehicle/farm machinery licences.
- Experience with GPS-guided machinery, precision agriculture tools or farm data platforms.
- Competence in basic machinery maintenance and troubleshooting.
- Familiarity with health & safety systems, pre-starts, incident reporting and contractor management.
- First Aid certification.
You’re a practical, solutions-focused leader who enjoys being out in the field and close to the action. You can make confident decisions, solve problems as they arise, and keep operations moving under changing conditions.
You’ll also bring:
- Confident decision-maker with strong practical problem-solving ability and resourcefulness.
- Detail-focused with the ability to identify transplanting quality, plant handling and establishment issues early.
- Effective communication and leadership skills for working with staff, managers, contractors and external stakeholders.
- Strong time management, prioritisation and ability to perform under seasonal pressure.
- Collaborative team player able to guide staff and contribute to a positive work environment.
- Outcome-driven, using sound judgement to support crop establishment, productivity and business success.
- Adaptable, open to variety and comfortable managing changing priorities, weather impacts and operational constraints.
About LeaderBrand
At LeaderBrand, we’re passionate about evolving fresh food for a healthier world. As a proud family-owned business, our goal is to be New Zealand’s most innovative and consistent fresh food producer. We farm across three key growing regions, process and pack in state-of-the-art post-harvest facilities, and are supported by a nationwide sales team delivering fresh produce to every corner of Aotearoa. Our 400+ people are central to our success. We’re always on the lookout for new talent with energy, passion, and a drive to learn – people excited to help shape the future of fresh food.
Gisborne is the heart of our business and the place where LeaderBrand was founded more than 50 years ago. Over that time, LeaderBrand has become integral to the story of our community, with the next generations of those who started with us returning to shape the future alongside us. We also have farms in Pukekohe and Chertsey.
We have a strong vision for the future of our business, our people, and our industry. We’re constantly pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. Our continuous improvement mindset grounds us as one of New Zealand’s leading horticultural businesses. We seek, harness, and develop the best people, technology, land, and machinery to shape the future of food.
