Senior Group Leader, Industry - Plant Biology Institute

Join us at EIT:

At the Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT), we’re on a mission to translate scientific discovery into real world impact. We bring together visionary scientists, technologists, engineers, researchers, educators and innovators to tackle humanity’s greatest challenges in four transformative areas:

• Health, Medical Science & Generative Biology
• Food Security & Sustainable Agriculture
• Climate Change & Managing CO₂
• Artificial Intelligence & Robotics

This is ambitious work - work that demands curiosity, courage, and a relentless drive to make a difference. At EIT, you’ll join a community built on excellence, innovation, tenacity, trust, and collaboration, where bold ideas become real-world breakthroughs. Together, we push boundaries, embrace complexity, and create solutions to scale ideas from lab to society. Explore more at www.eit.org.

Welcome to the Plant Biology Institute:

The Plant Biology Institute, headed by Professor Steve Kelly, is a key part of the Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT) Oxford. The institute aims to develop impactful and commercially sustainable solutions for improving global food production and planetary health through pioneering plant science research.

The Plant Biology Institute will unite world-class researchers who are focused on expanding the frontiers of plant science. Our research is focused on enhancing our ability to feed the planet while simultaneously improving the climate and ecosystem outcomes of food production. By embedding cutting-edge plant science research within an organisation that is focused on solving global challenges at scale, we aim to accelerate the timeline from discovery to global impact.

Areas of exploration include:

• Improved plant productivity, both indoors and outside.
• Reduced reliance on inputs including water, fertilisers, pesticides, and herbicides.
• Novel decarbonised plant-based production platforms for food and medicines.
• Advanced technologies that speed up discovery and deployment in plants. 

Researchers will have access to state-of-the-art laboratory and plant growth facilities and have opportunities to collaborate with experts at the forefront of research on AI, automation, and generative biology across the EIT ecosystem. They will also work with global leaders in market development, commercialisation, and impact creation. The Plant Biology Institute has long-term substantial funding to support the unique scale and ambition of its vision.

Your Role:

EIT is seeking a visionary and accomplished Senior Group Leader, Industry to lead a transformative research programme at the forefront of plant biotechnology. This senior leadership role is integral to shaping a newly established and rapidly scaling Plant Biology Institute that aspires to become a global leader in delivering scientific breakthroughs with real-world impact. The successful candidate will establish and lead a world-class research programme working at the cutting edge of plant biotechnology, focused on advancing fundamental and applied science in photosynthesis, carbon assimilation, nitrogen fixation or other physiological process to enable a step change in the productivity and input requirements of modern agriculture. The Senior Group Leader will build and manage a high-performing, interdisciplinary team, develop cross-sector collaborations, and ensure research excellence is translated into commercial opportunities aligned with EIT’s mission of humane and sustainable innovation. This is a rare opportunity to define the scientific direction of a next-generation research hub addressing some of the planet’s most pressing challenges. 

Your Responsibilities:

Leadership

• Contribute to the development and expansion of a newly established plant science institute which will scale rapidly over the next 5 years to become a global leader in plant science research aimed at tackling humanity’s greatest challenges.
• Establish, lead, and continuously evolve a flagship research programme designed to increase the fundamental yield potential of major agricultural systems while decreasing unsustainable input requirements through a focus on biotechnological engineering of processes such as photosynthesis, carbon assimilation and biological nitrogen fixation in plants. The Senior Group Leader will both coach and oversee programmes led by Group Leaders within the Yield Productivity team while also leading their own independent research programme directly.
• To work with internal teams to define the path to impact for the research program. To design and execute research programs and to ensure that all research programs are value and purpose driven.
• To recruit and lead a top talent team of Group Leaders, research scientists, post docs and PhD candidates. To hire based on competency, experience and values. To manage based on clear performance targets and with accountability. To maintain a positive, engaged culture, in line with EIT Oxford values.
• To lead the Plant Biology Institute’s Scientific Leadership Team: working collaboratively with technical leaders and experts within PBI and across the EIT ecosystem to ensure that our team is imagining, focusing on and succeeding on the boldest and most productive potential questions in agriculture, in alignment with EIT’s mission.

Research designed for impact:

• Contribute to planning and communicating the scientific direction of the yield and photosynthesis and engineered plant nitrogen fixation programmes within the Plant Biology Institute.
• Direct the activities of the research group by supervising some projects personally and monitoring projects delegated to group members. You will be expected to provide the intellectual energy and independent thinking necessary to lead a programme of cutting-edge research and to shape the overall aims and success of the group.
• Ensure that the overall focus and output of the Yield Productivity team is aligned with the mission and strategy of the Plant Biology Institute and EIT more broadly.
• Drive rigorous experimental design, execution, and data interpretation, ensuring robust and reproducible scientific outcomes.
• Managing research program through stage gated milestones, with active, no/no-go decisions on based on validated research data. Designing research programmes to enable delivery requirements to be considered through development and implementation. Identifying pre-emptive decisions to enable future scale-up.
• Manage project resources - including personnel, equipment, and budgets - in coordination with the senior leadership team.
• Ensure research is conducted ethically and in compliance with EIT policy, regulatory guidance, and best scientific practice.
• To generate, maintain and manage collaborations with key teams across EIT Oxford and in the wider scientific and commercial ecosystem to accelerate the path to scientific discovery and impact. To maintain key stakeholder relationships.
• To work, where appropriate, with the translation team within EIT to translate the results of research into commercial opportunities consistent with EITs humane endeavours. To recognise and act on opportunities for the creation and protection of intellectual property.

Essential Skills, Qualifications & Experience:

• Leader of research group(s) within academia or industry.
• Recognised thought leader in their field with a record of leading the production of high-impact patents, partnerships, research consortia, speaking engagements and publications.
• Record of conceiving innovative and potentially transformative new research directions.
• Proven ability to build and drive high-performing, deliverable-oriented teams of PhDs/Post doctoral researchers and scientists.
• Experience delivering against long term strategic research programmes.
• Experience managing a large team of researchers and scientists.
• Project management, communication and resource allocation experience.
• Ability to build both internal and external relationships. Working collaboratively in with others outside of their discipline.

Our Benefits:

• Salary dependent on experience + travel allowance + bonus

• Enhanced holiday. Our annual leave allowance is 25 days plus 8 bank holidays and an additional 3 days between Christmas and New Year. You will also have the opportunity to purchase an additional 5 days annual leave in January and July.
• Pension - Employer contribution 7.5%, minimum employee contribution 5%
• Life Assurance.
• Income Protection
• Private Medical Insurance as standard for you, your partner and any dependents. Including hospital Cash Plan
• Employee discounts
• Electric car scheme
• Nursery Salary Sacrifice scheme
• Cycle to Work Scheme
• Family Planning
• Neurodiversity support including advise and assessments
• Coaching & Therapy services

What we offer:

• Newly constructed, state-of-the-art laboratories and growth facilities, core scientific and operational support, with substantial core funding.
• A collaborative research environment with highly skilled team working at the cutting edge of plant science to create commercially sustainable solutions that tackle humanities biggest challenges, including enabling sustainable agriculture and improving the climate and ecosystem outcomes of food production.
• Opportunities for professional development including publication, conferences, IP portfolio creation, spin-out generation, and leadership development.