Farm Operations Senior Lead
What started as a small garden in a vacant lot in this little inner-city neighborhood, quickly turned into the City of Dallas’ first urban farm. The original farm is 1.25 acres boldly situated in the South Dallas community of Bonton, an area ravaged by generational poverty, crime, and classified by the USDA as a food desert. In 2016, a local family, the Treffingers, were inspired by the mission of Bonton Farms and generously donated 20 acres of land located about 10 miles from the original farm. They loved it so much that when another 20 acre plot adjacent to the original one became available, they purchased it and donated it for further expansion of Bonton Farms. That 40 acre site is what we call "The Bonton Farms Extension". It happens to be one of the largest urban farms in the Unites States. In this unlikely setting, we are cultivating a sustainable and vibrant urban farm with the mission to restore lives, create jobs and ignite hope.
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
- Vision insurance
- Wellness resources
- 401(k)
- Dental insurance
Overview of Role:
The Senior Farm Lead are working leaders who execute Bonton Farms’ daily production plans and uphold quality, safety, and training standards. The Senior Farm Lead owns a site or major function (e.g., greenhouse/propagation, field production, or post-harvest/wash-pack), mentors Farm Leads, and acts as site lead when the Farm Manager is off-site.
Primary Responsibilities:
The Farm Operations Lead will evaluate, plan, organize, and oversee all aspects of farming, harvesting, and livestock operations. Additionally, they will play a key role in financial management, budgeting, and operational development.
Daily Operations
• Execute work plans: bed prep, seeding/transplanting, irrigation, cultivation, trellising, scouting, harvesting, wash/pack, and cold chain.
• Set up crews, assign tasks, monitor pace/quality, and adjust for weather and priorities; maintain clean, organized work areas.
• Senior level adds: Convert seasonal/weekly plans into daily schedules; rebalance labor across crews/sites; lead complex operations (propagation calendars, irrigation scheduling, IPM thresholds, harvest planning, pack-line flow).
Quality, Safety & Compliance
• Enforce produce safety/GAP SOPs (sanitation, lot tracking, temperature logs, FIFO); ensure PPE use and safe equipment operation.
• Conduct toolbox talks and routine safety observations; document and correct issues promptly.
• Senior level adds: Prepare areas and documentation for audits/inspections; lead corrective actions and coach Leads on compliance.
People Leadership & Coaching
• Provide task direction and on-the-job coaching to crew members, apprentices, and volunteers; model respectful, trauma-informed communication.
• Escalate performance/safety concerns to the Farm Manager with timely documentation.
• Senior level adds: Mentor Farm Leads; run start-of-shift huddles and end-of-day debriefs; provide input to 30–60–90 reviews.
Apprenticeship Program & People Program Partnership
• Deliver structured OJT using competency checklists and approved lesson plans; rotate apprentices to meet learning objectives.
• Record attendance, competency sign-offs, and incident/recognition notes in HRIS/LMS; coordinate with the People Program to address barriers (transportation, accommodations, readiness).
• Senior level adds: Validate competencies, recommend milestone wage progressions, participate in interviews/orientation, and co-facilitate micro-trainings (soft skills, job readiness).
Coordination & Communication
• Communicate status, issues, and supply needs; align harvest specs and delivery timing with Restaurant and Grocery Connect.
• Senior level adds: Manage inventory for seeds, amendments, packaging, sanitation, and PPE; submit timely reorders.
Equipment & Facilities
• Perform basic preventive maintenance; ensure tool accountability and safe storage.
• Senior level adds: Coordinate repairs and service with the Farm Manager/vendors; maintain maintenance logs.
Data & Reporting
• Maintain accurate daily logs (planting, inputs, harvest weights, culls/waste, labor hours, sanitation/temperature).
• Senior level adds: Produce weekly site/function summaries (yield vs. plan, quality holds, downtime, safety observations).
Other
• Support tours, classes, and volunteer events to provide safe, productive experiences.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.
• Perform farming duties as needed, including fieldwork, equipment operation, planting, and animal care.
Qualifications & Requirements
Required Skills & Experience
• Farm Lead (Level I): 2+ years hands-on experience in diversified vegetable/specialty crop or urban farm production; prior crew direction preferred.
• Senior Farm Lead (Level II): 3–5 years hands-on experience; 1+ year in a lead role; proficiency in at least three areas (propagation/greenhouse, irrigation design/scheduling, IPM scouting/response, harvest leadership, post-harvest/wash–pack management).
• Strong knowledge of crop production, livestock management, irrigation systems, and sustainable farming practices.
• Experience with farm budgeting, financial planning, and record-keeping.
• Ability to operate and maintain farm machinery, tools, and equipment.
• Prior leadership experience, with the ability to train, supervise, and manage farm teams.
• Proficiency in using basic accounting software and farm management tools.
• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to adapt to changing conditions.
• Commitment to safety regulations and best farming practices.
• Strong documentation habits; comfort with email, shared calendars, and simple spreadsheets/log apps.
• Valid driver’s license; ability to operate small tractors/implements and powered equipment.
Preferred Qualifications
• Bachelor's degree in Agriculture, Agribusiness, Farm Management, or a related field (or equivalent work experience).
• Knowledge of organic or regenerative farming techniques.
• Experience working with nonprofit organizations or community farms.
• Familiarity with marketing and distribution of farm products.
• Bilingual (English/Spanish)
Physical & Work Environment Requirements
• Ability to work outdoors in various weather conditions.
• Comfortable working with heavy equipment and machinery.
• Must be able to lift at least 50 lbs and perform physically demanding tasks.
• Willingness to work irregular hours, including early mornings, weekends, and holidays, as needed.
• Fundamental first aid skills (or willingness to undergo training).
Note: This job description is intended to outline the primary duties and responsibilities of the position; however, additional duties, responsibilities, and assignments may be required or assigned at any time based on business needs, operational priorities, or organizational necessity.
We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
Our Mission
Transform lives by disrupting systems of inequity, laying a foundation where change yields health, wholeness and opportunity as the norm.
Vision
The change in Bonton becomes the change in the World.
Core Principal
Our values are bathed in our Christian faith, born out of a passion for people and guide how we put them into action.
What is Bonton?
For the last 200 years, racial injustice and systemic oppression prevented opportunities in Bonton, a community in South Dallas, that were a given elsewhere. People here experienced higher rates of diabetes, stroke and cancer, and 48% of residents lived in poverty. Residents have been denied access to the seven human essentials that are necessary to survive and thrive - health & wellness, economic stability, safe and affordable housing, transportation, a sense of belonging, education and access to fair credit. Today, the community is transforming, and healing is coming from within.
Who We Are
Bonton Farms is on a mission is to transform lives by disrupting systems of inequity, laying a foundation where health, wholeness, and opportunity are the norm for all people. While many nonprofits work to solve one issue, Bonton Farms focuses on place-based interventions to build community capacity for long-term change. As the ecosystem of community resources improves, the neighbors in Bonton use these resources to build successful, self-sufficient lives, ultimately interrupting the impact of decades of disenfranchisement. Bonton Farms’ programs focus on the all of the seven human essentials that the community has been denied for so long. We invite you to come and join us in the transformation!
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