An exciting opportunity to work with a new company at the cutting edge of farmer-led research, to share ideas with some of the some of the most forward-thinking farmers in the UK and to help spearhead Agriculture’s Fourth Revolution.
Website: http://bofin.org.uk/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bofinfarmers
About us
BOFIN was founded by Tom Allen-Stevens in 2020 to bring together farmers who carry out their own on-farm trials, seeking a more scientific way to progress farm practice.
The network now has over 300 members (67% of whom are farmers) and is running a number of projects with a range of collaborators below:
- Slug-resistant wheat with John Innes Centre and Harper Adams University
- Harvest weed-seed control with Redekop and NIAB
- Soil fungal communities with the Crop Science Centre
We are just about to start some further exciting research projects as farmer-led innovation moves on apace.
What is the role?
Engaging and bringing together our community of farmers lies at the heart of what we do here at BOFIN. With the increase in participation and projects, we are now looking for a keen and enthusiastic person to join and help our members get the full value from the critical role they play in agricultural innovation.
As Community Manager you will have the opportunity to liaise with our 300 BOFIN members, especially the farmers connected through online BOFIN platforms (social media accounts as well as dedicated platforms such as Trinity GFP and Farm-PEP) and through direct mail.
One of our latest projects has BOFIN members taking part in what’s believed to be the first ever field trial of wheat to see if it’s resistant to slugs, and we’re looking to promote this exciting trial across our online platforms to engage farmers and circulate the latest updates.
We are looking for someone who understands the significance of these projects, and can harness the passion of farming into posts, videos and tweets to engage not only our members, but the larger audience.
There is real scope for networking and collaborative opportunities with BOFIN, including site visits to farms and assisting with press liaison. This will also involve sending out press releases and managing responses and requests.
You will have the opportunity to represent BOFIN and attend events, promoting our recent projects and engaging stakeholders. You will need to be knowledgeable about agriculture, particularly British farming, and be able to convey this to the public.
Knowledge of on-farm research is desirable, but not essential – it’s more important to demonstrate a yearning to learn, an ability to take on board new ideas and an enthusiasm to pass these on to others.
Most importantly, you will be an enthusiastic and eager individual with excellent organisational skills who is able to co-ordinate the farming and digital world. You should be able to work in isolation, but be open to opportunities to travel for events, meetings, farm visits and more.
You should be able to manage multiple tasks and short deadlines, as well as look at long-term project plans and bring fresh, new ideas to the team. You’ll need to be familiar with Office 365 basic tools and social media platforms, if you have photography or audio/video content-creating experience this is desirable.
Specifications
Responsibilities:
Please note we are hiring for multiple roles, so if you feel like you can contribute to some but not all, we still encourage you to apply.
- Liaising with BOFIN members through online platforms and through direct mail.
- Co-ordination and management of BOFIN’s social media presence, including promotion of events, projects, and up-to-date news.
- Steer and stimulate discussion on social media with the overall goals being to drive members towards dedicated platforms (such as Trinity GFP and Farm-PEP) and to bridge the knowledge gap between scientists and farmers.
- Assisting with the organisation of workshops including contacting suppliers, venue planning, organising invites and co-ordinating responses and fulfilling guest needs.
- Assist at organising webinars, sending invites through Zoom platform and co-ordinating responses.
- Assist with press liaison, send out press releases, manage replies and requests, maintain press lists.
- Interview farmers and other BOFIN members for content over multiple platforms, co-ordinating interviews with the assistance of managing director.
- Represent BOFIN and attend events, promoting recent projects and engaging stakeholders and the wider press.
- Providing administration support to managing director – including but not limited to sending out email correspondence, managing the BOFIN website (using WordPress) and keeping member details up to date as well as managing BOFIN members data from contact details to project history.
- Liaising with BOFIN farmers and scientists on project protocols, basic technical support and project management.
- Co-ordinating with a design studio for design of leaflets, case studies and BOFIN material.
Essential skills:
- You must be able to demonstrate a good working knowledge of the farming industry.
- You should have excellent communication skills and be happy talking to farmers, press, scientists and the wider general public.
- You should be organised, reliable, committed and understand the importance of deadlines.
- You must be proficient in basic Office 365 tools including (but not limited to) Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
- You must be knowledgeable in popular social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Linked In and Instagram.
- You must be able to work in isolation on tasks.
Desirable skills:
- A good understanding of managing content on specialist community platforms, such as Farm-PEP and Trinity GFP.
- Content creator management and social media management.
- Experience running workshops or planning events.
- Technical skills – such as experience in WordPress or similar, or low code website management.
- Project management experience.
Benefits
- Competitive salary (up to £45,000 p/a depending on skills, experience and availability).
- Multiple roles available – community manager, social media co-ordinator and assistant to managing director depending on availability.
- Flexible working hours.
- Hybrid working available – can work from home with occasional travel required. BOFIN is based at Faringdon, Oxfordshire.
If you would like to apply, please send your CV with a covering letter to Tom Allen-Stevens (tom@bofin.org.uk) by 7 February 2023.
