Head of Supply Chain Transformation

Life Scientific - Dublin, Ireland (Global Scope)

Reporting to Chief Operating Officer

About Life Scientific

Life Scientific operates at the heart of a $250 billion global crop protection market. Founded in 1996 on the campus of University College Dublin, we have built something genuinely rare: a science-led, asset-light business that reverse-engineers off-patent crop protection products - molecule for molecule - and achieves regulatory registration fast, across Europe and beyond.

Nearly thirty years of regulatory expertise. A portfolio of own-brand products sold in more than twenty markets. Backed by InVivo, Europe’s largest agricultural cooperative. Led by Nicola Mitchell, EY Entrepreneur of the Year.

We have grown from a contract research company to a business generating €120m in revenue today, with long-term ambitions that place us comfortably into the billions. We are entering the United States. We are entering our most ambitious chapter yet. And we need a supply chain that can take us there.

The Opportunity

Our supply chain supports a portfolio of 50 registered products across 19 markets, delivered through a virtual model - leveraging a network of external manufacturing and logistics partners rather than owned infrastructure.

We have grown revenue 123% over the past five years. But demand planning, sourcing, regulatory and commercial functions currently operate closer to parallel tracks than to one connected system. In your first quarter you will find each working off different numbers. As we scale into North America and pursue our revenue ambitions, that misalignment becomes the single largest constraint on margin and speed.

This role is the person who fixes that - and builds the operating model, the technology layer and the cross-functional relationships that turn supply chain into a genuine competitive advantage.

Supply chain sits inside pricing, launch and market-entry decisions at Life Scientific - not outside looking in, and not consulted after the fact. That is the mandate on offer.

Reporting Structure & Team

This role reports to the Chief Operating Officer and sits on the extended leadership team. You will inherit an experienced supply chain team and will be responsible for its ongoing development, structure and performance.

What You Will Do

Connect the System

• Design and implement an integrated supply chain operating model that ties external partners, internal functions and commercial decision-making into one coherent system - one set of numbers, one cadence, clear accountability

• Define processes, accountabilities and ways of working that scale with the business

• Establish robust change introduction governance covering any meaningful change to production, product specification, quality, toll manufacturers, co-formulants or packaging

Drive Cross-Functional Integration

• Act as the primary integrator across commercial, finance, regulatory and operations

• Ensure supply chain is embedded in pricing decisions, product launches, market entry and portfolio planning - not consulted after the fact

• Build the operating rhythms that make cross-functional alignment the default, not the exception

Build Demand Planning and Forward Visibility

• Build demand planning, scenario thinking and forward visibility so the business sees opportunity earlier and moves faster to capture it

• Establish a structured S&OP (Sales & Operations Planning) process that creates a regular cross-functional rhythm connecting commercial, supply and finance planning

Drive Margin Improvement

• Optimise suppliers, inventory, logistics and network decisions through supplier consolidation and renegotiation, formulation and packaging optimisation, logistics network design and working capital management

• Manage inventory as a working capital lever - ensuring stock supports commercial agility without tying up disproportionate capital

• Identify, quantify and capture margin improvement. You should be able to name the number and explain how you got there.

Build Sourcing Resilience

• Structure the supply network to withstand disruption - through dual sourcing, geographic diversification and supply continuity planning

• Proactively identify concentration risks across toll manufacturers, raw materials and logistics routes

• Build mitigation strategies before they become crises

Deliver on the Technology Programme

• Take an ERP and planning programme that is already underway and make it deliver - then build the data and tooling layer on top

• Identify and deploy AI and planning tools that meaningfully improve speed, precision and decision quality

• Build the data and KPI framework that drives genuine visibility and accountability across the supply chain

Strengthen External Partnerships

• In a virtual supply chain model, partner relationships are the supply chain

• Make Life Scientific the partner of choice for the toll manufacturers, formulators and logistics providers we depend on - turning those relationships into a genuine source of competitive advantage

Unlock Portfolio and Pipeline Value

• Work closely with commercial and regulatory teams to maximise returns on existing product assets through lifecycle thinking, cost-of-goods optimisation and active portfolio prioritisation

• Engage upstream at ideation and pipeline selection — bringing sourcing intelligence and supply feasibility into the conversation before commitments are made

Lead and Develop the Team

• Build on an experienced team - developing capability, commercial mindset and the ambition to scale with the business

What Success Looks Like at 12–18 Months

Within your first 12 to 18 months, you will have:

• Established a clear operating model connecting supply chain with commercial and finance functions

• Introduced a structured S&OP process with genuine cross-functional participation and a single set of agreed numbers

• Built demand planning and forward visibility that enables the business to move faster - particularly into the US market ramp

• Identified and begun capturing material margin improvement, including measurable improvement in landed cost and OTIF (On Time In Full) delivery performance - and you can name the number

• Assessed and begun addressing sourcing concentration risks across the supply network

• Put in place the data and KPI framework that drives visibility and accountability

• Stabilised and extended the ongoing ERP and planning programme, and begun building the data and tooling layer on top

• Built a supply chain team with clear direction, capability and commercial ambition

• Established a visible presence in portfolio and pipeline discussions from the earliest stages

• Built trusted, productive relationships with key internal stakeholders and external partners

What You Bring

Essential

• You have run a multi-market supply chain and taken material cost out of it - and you can name the number and explain how you did it

• Proven ability to work effectively across commercial, finance and operations functions, with credibility at senior leadership level

• Experience designing or running a structured S&OP process in a multi-market environment

• Experience with change introduction governance covering changes to toll manufacturers, co-formulants, packaging and product specification

• Experience managing inventory as a working capital lever with full visibility of cost, risk and shelf life

• Experience building sourcing resilience - dual sourcing, geographic diversification, supply continuity planning

• Experience building or developing a supply chain team

Desirable

• Experience operating in a virtual or asset-light supply chain model

• Background in a regulated manufacturing environment - agrochemicals, pharma, specialty chemicals, or any sector where sourcing is constrained by registrations, specifications and compliance, not just price and lead time

• Familiarity with supply chain technology, modern planning platforms and AI applications

• Experience contributing to portfolio optimisation and product lifecycle decisions

Mindset

Track record and mindset matter most. We are looking for someone who has genuinely transformed a supply chain, not just managed one - someone who thinks in margin, trade-offs and business impact, and who is energised by the prospect of building something that will compound in value long after the transformation phase is done.

Compensation and Package

We offer a competitive executive-level compensation package commensurate with the scope and seniority of this role, including base salary, annual bonus and benefits. Full details will be discussed with shortlisted candidates.

Why Join Life Scientific

We have built something rare: a science-led, asset-light, growth-stage business with a clear strategic runway, a strong shareholder base, and the discipline to execute. A business that has gone from a UCD campus start-up to a global operation in thirty years - and is now entering its most ambitious chapter.

Supply chain is the lever we have not yet fully pulled. This role sits at the centre of that shift - with direct impact on group profitability, commercial agility, operational resilience, and our ability to scale into new markets and new product lines.

The mandate is real. The backing is there. The runway is long.