Research & Development Technician

Who We Are

Helena Agri-Enterprises, LLC is a leading full-service agronomic solutions provider that's been in business since 1957. Our first location was in West Helena, Arkansas hence the name "Helena". We now have close to 450+ locations nationwide and over 6,000 employees. Our corporate office is located in Collierville, Tennessee, a suburb outside of Memphis. Year after year we rank at the top nationally for volume and sales in our industry.

There are many facets to our company including product development, sales, operations, precision technology and manufacturing, just to name a few.

The Research and Development (R&D) Technician plays an important role in the application, evaluation and development of cutting‑edge technologies in our agriculture and specialty markets. Helena is also developing and implementing the use of precision ag tools, such as drones and imagery for research and development purposes. You will work in an assigned territory with a variety of crops making applications of crop protection (herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, nematicides) and crop production (fertilizers, bioscience, biologicals) products.

This includes working with various seeds and crops for new trait development, tolerance to pesticides for nutrient use, efficiency and drought stress‑tolerance.

In this role, you will regularly interface with cross‑functional Helena teams in our Western Business Unit, as well as major ag industry manufacturers in crop production and crop protection industries.

• Sets up studies at Helena owned facilities and/or grower’s fields.
• Makes applications of crop protection products, crop production products and various seeds and crops at locations throughout assigned territory.
• Evaluates products for their efficacy and performance, crop safety, yield and quality.
• Performs study maintenance for cleanliness and preparation for field day activities.
• Maintains and cleans Helena’s R&D facilities to help with efficiency and output of operations.
• Collects, enters and evaluates data from tests in specialized software designed for research and development.
• Calibrates scientific and commercial equipment for precision application.
• Performs equipment maintenance such as making simple repairs to small engines and spray equipment.
• Operates light, medium and heavy equipment for various agricultural operations.
• Prepares reports and materials for field days and other demonstrations.
• May be required to operate a company vehicle.
• Provides excellent customer service to all internal and external customers.
• Other work-related duties as assigned by leader.
• Regular and reliable attendance is required.
• Follows all company policies and procedures.

• Associate’s degree in an agricultural related field is required.
• Bachelor’s degree is preferred.
• One year of related work experience is required.

• Mechanical skills including the ability to make simple repairs to small engines and other spray equipment.
• Detail oriented.
• Valid U.S. driver’s license is required to drive a company vehicle. Must be able to meet all company requirements to drive a Helena vehicle.
• Computer skills including working knowledge of Microsoft Office are required.
• Ability to read, write and speak in English is required.
• Communicating in Spanish is a valuable skill at Helena.

Pay rate is 21-24.50/hour.

Successful completion of a drug test and background check is required for all positions at Helena.

At Helena, safety is our highest priority. We seek out extensive safety measures and put them in place to minimize exposure to anything that could be potentially harmful to our employees. The work environment for this position will be in an office setting and outdoors in all types of weather conditions with exposure to outdoor elements. When working outdoors and possibly around moving equipment/mechanical parts, you could be exposed to fumes, airborne particles, chemical and biological hazards, vibrations and a risk of electrical shock.

This position requires you to use your hands for many different tasks and to talk, hear, walk, stand…