Category Head – Cotton - Hyderabad

Location: Hyderabad   •   Experience: Senior Level   •   Openings: 1
Apply on Gojobs

Job description

1. Job Details

Job Title: Category Head – Cotton
Job Location: Hyderabad
Work Model: WFO
Reporting To: Business Head

2. Candidate Expectations

  • Total Experience: 12–18 years
  • Relevant Experience: 8 years
  • Candidate Location: Hyderabad 
  • Skills – Mandatory: Category Management, P&L Management, Pricing, Forecasting, Portfolio Management, Market Intelligence, Go-to-Market, Leadership.
  • Candidate Industry: Agri-inputs, preferably seed businesses with cotton portfolio exposure.

3. Education and Certification

Qualification – Mandatory:
  • Bachelor's degree in Agriculture.
Good to Have:
  • MBA in Agri-Business, Marketing, or Strategy.

4. Detailed Job Description

Job Summary

The Category Head – Cotton will be responsible for the end-to-end strategy, performance, and profitability of the Cotton portfolio within the Bioseed business. The role involves driving category growth, competitive positioning, pricing governance, product lifecycle management, and cross-functional alignment to achieve sustainable market leadership and strong financial performance in the cotton segment.

Key Responsibilities

A. Category Strategy and Portfolio Leadership
  • Define and execute the long-term Cotton category strategy in alignment with business growth objectives.
  • Build and manage a differentiated and competitive cotton portfolio across regions and maturity segments.
  • Drive product lifecycle management, including launches, scaling, performance monitoring, and portfolio rationalization.
B. P&L Ownership and Financial Performance
  • Own the Annual Business Plan (ABP) for Cotton, including revenue, volume, and gross margin targets.
  • Monitor category profitability by hybrid and region and implement corrective actions where required.
  • Develop and govern pricing strategies aligned with competitive positioning and margin objectives.
C. Demand Planning and Supply Alignment
  • Drive accurate demand forecasting in collaboration with Sales and Supply Chain.
  • Align demand plans with production schedules to minimize stock-outs and excess inventory.
  • Monitor inventory health and optimize working capital within the category.
D. Go-to-Market and Commercial Strategy
  • Define product positioning, value propositions, and commercial strategies for cotton hybrids.
  • Partner with Sales and Marketing to design and execute product launches, campaigns, and farmer engagement initiatives.
  • Monitor and drive the execution of demand-generation activities.
  • Track market share trends, pricing realization, and channel performance.
E. Market Intelligence and Competitive Strategy
  • Monitor competitor portfolios, pricing dynamics, trait positioning, and regional market trends.
  • Identify growth opportunities, market gaps, and potential risks in the cotton segment.
  • Recommend portfolio, pricing, and promotional interventions based on analytics and field insights.
F. Cross-Functional Leadership and Team Development
  • Collaborate with R&D, Product Evaluation and Agronomy, Production, Processing, Quality Assurance, and Supply Chain teams to ensure pipeline-to-market alignment.
  • Provide category inputs for product advancement and commercialization decisions.
  • Lead and develop the Cotton category team, driving performance excellence and accountability.

5. Key Skills

Mandatory Key Skills: Category Management, P&L, Pricing, Forecasting, Portfolio Management, Commercialization, Analytics, Leadership.
Good to Have Skills: Agronomy, Product Development, Market Research, Strategy.

6. Other Specific Remarks

  • Industry Preference: Agri-inputs, preferably the seed industry.
  • Business Exposure: Experience managing complete crop portfolios and driving P&L accountability is essential.
  • Functional Exposure: Strong understanding of category strategy, commercial planning, pricing, product management, demand forecasting, and market development.