Head of Farm Operations

The Company & Position Vida Plena started in Lisbon in 2018, in restaurants, where we learned that every detail of a great experience matters. A few years in, we wanted to go further back down that chain: to grow and craft something ourselves, from the soil up.

The Company & Position Vida Plena started in Lisbon in 2018, in restaurants, where we learned that every detail of a great experience matters. A few years in, we wanted to go further back down that chain: to grow and craft something ourselves, from the soil up. We're doing something that's never been done in Portugal: farming a drought-resistant species new to this country, using organic and regenerative practices, in a region where summer lingers for nine months.

The goal is our own signature spirit, cultivated and distilled entirely on our land in Alentejo not a take on something that already exists, but something genuinely new, shaped by the place it grows in. We're three sites in: Mosqueirão, Redondo, Comporta, and a new large land to be prepared for 2027, working towards :100 hectares under cultivation by 2030, with our first harvest at the end of 2029. Outcomes are proven and it's real progress.

But we're at the point where the operation needs more than momentum and a stretched team needs someone who can bring it structure, foresight, and a steady hand.

The Role & Responsibilities You will own the strategic planning behind our multi-site farming operations: infrastructure and plantation implementation, production and harvest planning, team management, and budgets, ensuring the successful foundation for each planting and harvesting cycle

Farm Systems & Infrastructure

Overseeing the technical management and implementation of all farm infrastructure (irrigation systems, pump systems, greenhouses, warehouses, roads, and storage), including third-party delivery.

Plan and manage plant-adapted irrigation and fertigation systems at scale; ensure monitoring, maintenance, and repairs across all sites

Coordinate the full scope of site-specific land design and plantation implementation, aligned with both the species and regenerative requirements.

Establish nursery infrastructure and oversee supplier collaborations, build-out, and expansion

Planting, Production & Harvest

Coordinate plant arrivals, logistics, and nursery/field SOPs; plan planting and supply timelines with the team, greenhouse and suppliers

Support the team in building a 6-year crop cycle calendar and develop harvest forecasts from planting cohorts and growth KPIs

Lead harvest and replanting plans for young plants propagated from mother plants (from 2028)

Manage harvest timing, execution, and post-harvest transport to the distillery

Own quality control and contamination protocols across all stages, from incoming plant material through post-harvest

Team & Suppliers

Build and structure the farm team (permanent and seasonal); recruit, onboard, and set operational workflows and accountability structures

Source and quality-vet equipment, machinery, and materials; build the supplier network and secure proposals and contracts

Budget, Data & Expansion

Develop and manage farm budgets across the crop cycle, tracking labour, material, equipment, and utility costs in real time and keeping spend within approved limits

Conduct investment analyses for major expansions or purchases; support accounting with cost control, stock tracking, and invoicing

Collect and analyse production data (yields, costs, timelines, KPIs); train the team on efficiency and plant-health metrics; prepare monthly reports for leadership

Own farm expansion planning and facility needs, driving performance against volume, cost, quality, and timeline targets, and lead continuous improvement through documented best practices while ensuring regulatory compliance

Core Requirements

Proactive problem-solver: you spot what's coming before it becomes a problem and find a way to solve it

Strong project management: comfortable building and running multi-site plans, timelines, and priorities without losing the details

Technical farm management: min 8 years of experience with farm management, ideally at scale (100+ hectares), with a solid grasp of infrastructure, irrigation, and crop planning

Perennial crop experience: you think in multi-year cycles, not single-season turnarounds

Farm and nursery set-up: experience building plantations, infrastructure, and nursery/greenhouse operations from scratch, and improving existing ones within timelines and cost controls

Budget and financial fluency: confident owning a multi-year budget cycle, tracking costs, building forecasts, and making the case for major CAPEX

Strong communicator: equally at ease leading an on-site team, coordinating with founders and consultants, negotiating, and representing the farm to suppliers and