Role overview

Halter is building livestock management technology that uses collars and machine learning to help farmers and graziers optimise their operations sustainably. This role establishes and leads a global field research operation that gathers ground-truth measurements—data collected directly on farms—to train and improve the machine learning models behind Halter’s products. You will expand the current small New Zealand-based team into a multi-country operation across three continents over the next twelve months.

Key responsibilities

Develop the strategy for ground-truth data collection by translating the machine learning roadmap into a concrete plan that specifies which measurements, farming systems and countries to prioritise and in what sequence.
Design and implement measurement protocols and quality standards that ensure consistency across all regions, so that data collected in one country is directly comparable to data from another.
Hire, train and lead Regional Data Operations Leads in New Zealand, Australia and the United States, building career pathways and establishing the culture of the field research function.
Plan and manage capacity, resources, equipment, farm partnerships and budgets to ensure the machine learning team always has the data it needs to progress.
Build and maintain relationships with host farmers and research partners including universities and research organisations.
Spend substantial time working on farms across all three regions to ensure the standards and processes you design remain practical and effective in real-world conditions.
Provide the authoritative voice within Halter on whether data quality is the root cause when models underperform.

Requirements

Proven experience building a field operations or analogous function from a small team to a larger, multi-site operation while maintaining data quality and integrity.
Demonstrated experience designing measurement protocols, quality checks and sampling methodologies, and managing the trade-offs between coverage, quality, cost and speed.
A track record running budgets and capacity plans, with the ability to make those constraints visible and transparent to stakeholders.
Experience collaborating with engineers and scientists, translating their technical needs into actionable plans that field teams can execute.
The credibility and interpersonal skills to build trust with farmers and earn their confidence.
Willingness to spend regular time on farms across New Zealand and make several trips per year to Australia and the United States.
A commitment to moving fast, owning outcomes, and recognising that delays in data collection delay benefits to farmers.

What makes this role worth considering

You will be building something that has never been built before: a global ground-truth operation for livestock and pasture measurement. There is no established playbook, which means you will define the standards and processes that shape how this function operates across multiple countries and continents. You will work alongside a team committed to solving meaningful, challenging problems in agriculture, backed by leading venture investors and working to transform an industry.