Job Opportunity for Agricultural Projects Practice Director at South Pole in New Delhi

South Pole is an energetic, global company offering comprehensive sustainability solutions and services. With offices spanning all continents across the globe, we strive to create a sustainable society and economy that positively impacts our climate, ecosystems and developing communities. With our solutions, we inspire and enable our customers to create value from sustainability-related activities.

Our Project Sourcing team works hand in hand with project owners and developers, active in the carbon markets and renewable energy space, to identify, negotiate and contract new emission reduction projects. By acquiring new projects within our portfolio, we ensure that South Pole always has the right mix of carbon credits available to meet the demands of our clients. If you’re an ambitious and dynamic sustainability professional with a strong passion to make a real difference in the fight against climate change, this position may be right for you!

Job Summary: 

This role aims to lead South Pole’s Agricultural practice across the whole Carbon
Projects unit. Reporting to the Director, Global Project Sourcing, in this leadership
role, you are accountable for overseeing the Agricultural projects acquisition and
implementation work and the consulting work South Pole offers to its customers. In addition, you will define, own and deliver the agricultural project’s strategy. You will develop and continually update South Pole’s vision for the practice in alignment with the Climate Projects Business Line’s overall strategy and our Agricultural Value Chain’s (AVC) strategy. Through your vision and leadership, you will inspire our multifaceted teams worldwide to source and secure world-class carbon emission reduction projects, advisory mandates and investment opportunities that powerfully impact the communities around them and the climate action movement

Main tasks & responsibilities:

Define, own, communicate and deliver on the Global Agriculture strategy in the area of agriculture and closely align with the organization’s global goals and objectives 
Serve as an expert advisor or board member for regional agricultural project-related activities within the Climate Projects team, both in the global South and in target industrialized countries like the EU, Australia and the US 
Establish business performance targets and metrics, and be accountable for the overall performance of the Agricultural practice 
Contribute to the global annual strategy, planning and budgeting processes of the project sourcing team, the AVC team and other teams such as the innovation and investment team from the agricultural practice perspective 
Oversee and take accountability for all agricultural practice deliverables for all the company’s relevant environmental market products such as carbon credits and potentially other units 
Structure long term, complex and strategic partnerships and deals with project owners and other stakeholders to meet the yearly and quarterly goals of the agricultural sourcing practice 
Maintain and develop a network of suppliers, distribution partners, communities, land or concessions owners and similar partners Partner closely with other functions, particularly with the global Carbon Portfolio, the Project Development teams and our Project account managers, to optimize existing large deals management and the structuring of new ones; participate in coordination activities with non-Climate Projects teams such as AVC or Funds and Platforms
Gather market intelligence and identify industry trends in the agricultural practice Serve as a subject expert when required in client meetings, exhibitions and other corporate events and represent South Pole in different forums on the topic of agriculture and environmental markets 
Drive innovation and entrepreneurship through leadership and decisive action within the agricultural practice, including assessing potential agricultural projects-related equity investments for consideration by the investment board and proposing potential corporate innovations to the investment board
Supporting and empowering staff from regional teams and hiring additional high-performing team members to be added to the regional teams. Work closely with colleagues across the organization to empower matrixed teams that deliver on our vision of climate action for all.

Requirements:

Essential 

University degree in Agriculture, Forestry, Natural Resource Management, Environmental Sciences, Business or other relevant disciplines 
Extensive work experience, including several years of experience in business development roles within the sustainability sector, specifically in the topics of agriculture, voluntary carbon markets, grouped or programmatic projects and similar topics. 
Deep knowledge and expertise in carbon emission projects and standards and investments into such projects, especially agricultural projects. 
Know-how of global corporate best practices related to climate strategies, such as the Science Based Targets Initiative, Net Zero pledges 
Experience in establishing clear performance targets and metrics, with a proven track record of meeting or exceeding challenging targets 
Strategic mindset, with the ability to establish a compelling vision for our Sourcing function 
Strong business acumen, with the ability to structure and negotiate deals that are commercially sound and profitable for South Pole 
Outstanding interpersonal, communication and collaboration skills to partner effectively with key internal and external stakeholders 
Strong quantitative skills and the ability to use data and metrics to inform decisions 
Outstanding leadership skills, with the ability to inspire action and get the best out of people 
Desirable 

Experience in scaling up a fast-growing organization in the context of a highly competitive market environment 
Experience in pipeline development, CRM and similar tools 
Experience in NBS projects such as silvopastoral, agroforestry or similar systems.

What we offer:

At South Pole, we care about our employees as much as we care about the planet. South Pole is not just an employer, we are a Team. South Pole does not just offer people a job, we offer you a career. By joining our team, you will find strong purpose and deep meaning in everything you do. You will have the chance to make a real difference for our clients and for the planet, working alongside a passionate team of like-minded colleagues, while building your knowledge/skills and developing your career in a fun, dynamic, international and fast-growing organisation. 

We’re a planet of 7.5 billion unique and different people. We all have a contribution to make and South Pole is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, national origin, marital status or disability. Our recruitment is decided on the basis of qualifications, merit and business need.