Tissue Culture Technician Team Lead

At Cronos Group, we hire talented people who thrive on solving difficult problems and give them the opportunity to hone new skills and approaches. If you want to play a part in shaping an innovative industry and help build a historically significant company, we want to meet you.

The Tissue Culture Technician Team Lead will play a key role in supporting the tissue culture program at Cronos Group by coordinating daily operations and ensuring smooth workflow within the tissue culture team. This role includes overseeing and scheduling team activities, maintaining accurate records, and supporting administrative functions such as inventory tracking and documentation. The Team Lead will also be responsible for training and mentoring staff, monitoring protocol compliance, and ensuring adherence to quality standards. In addition to coordination duties, the role involves hands-on tasks such as preparing media, transplanting plantlets, monitoring cultures, and transferring cultures to new vessels, along with other duties as assigned.

This position is based out of Stayner, Ontario.

What you’ll be doing:

- Lead a team of Tissue Culture Technicians, providing day-to-day direction, training, mentorship, and performance oversight.
- Oversee scheduling, task delegation, and coordination of workflow to meet operational and project timelines.
- Prepare and maintain accurate shipping documentation and records related to the transfer, distribution, or receipt of tissue culture materials, in compliance with internal protocols and applicable regulations.
- Coordinate and maintain inventory of supplies, equipment, and consumables; ensure timely ordering and proper documentation.
- Maintain detailed and compliant records of tissue culture activities, including genotypic tracking, batch logs, and procedural documentation.
- Foster a collaborative and positive work environment, promoting effective teamwork and problem-solving.
- Ensure adherence to all safety protocols and guidelines, including proper handling and disposal of hazardous materials.
- Prepare and sterilize tissue culture media using aseptic techniques and standardized protocols.
- Transplant plantlets into appropriate media or growth substrates and monitor developmental progress.
- Produce and/or maintain a diverse and unique genetic palette of tissue cultures for research and production needs.
- Clean and sterilize tissue culture vessels, tools, and equipment to maintain sterile work conditions.
- Actively participate in tissue culture-related meetings and discussions, providing input on methods, troubleshooting, and innovations.
- Support ongoing research initiatives by executing experimental procedures and documenting findings as required.
- Perform other duties as assigned to support the broader organizational and departmental goals.

Your Environment: (for production specific roles only)
- Work environment can be warm and humid, like a greenhouse environment
- Standing & walking for long periods of time
- Frequent bending, kneeling, and reaching
- Ability to perform a series of repetitive operations requiring manual dexterity and visual acuity
- Working in a controlled laboratory environment which will require use of appropriate PPE including gloves, lab coats or Tyvek suits, and safety glasses
- Might be required to work overtime and weekends as required

You’ll need to have:

- Graduates from a B.Sc. program in Horticulture, Plant Agriculture, Plant Biology, Ecology, Botany, Plant Pathology preferred
- 3+ years’ experience in managing people and coordinating schedules and tasks to meet timelines required
- 2+ years’ experience in plant and/or horticultural science, involvement in R&D projects is an asset
- Possess strong communication, interpersonal and influencing skills to drive decision-making and effectively work with internal stakeholders
- Scientific curiosity, personal drive and networking abilities to find breakthrough technologies, product improvements and leading methods
- Attention to detail and accuracy in documentation and data analysis
- Effective communication skills, both verbal and written, to interact with team members, researchers, and management
- Proficient in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PowerPoint