Chief Product Officer / VP of Product

Chief Product Officer / VP of Product

Location: This role is based out of our office in Cambridge, MA. Remote candidates are welcome to apply, with an expectation of relocation within the first two years.

Target Start Date: January 2027

About

Robigo is crop protection without compromise. Powered by our proprietary ARGO™ platform, Robigo engineers biological solutions that outperform synthetic chemistries, giving growers the tools they need to protect their livelihoods and build a more resilient food system.

Position Overview

This executive will drive the development and translation of discovery-stage microbial candidates to commercially successful solutions. Reporting to the CEO, this cross-functional leadership role suits someone with deep biological crop protection product expertise who thrives at the intersection of strategy and execution in a regulated, fast-moving startup. You'll partner closely with commercial, regulatory, and technical teams to deliver breakthrough products. You’ll be equally comfortable defining a multi-year product vision, owning the minutiae required to execute it, and spending time on-farm ensuring Robigo's products integrate into grower workflows. Ultimately, you'll ensure our products are compelling, launch on schedule, and demonstrate value to growers and the market.

This is not a 9-to-5 role. We move fast, we strive for excellence, and we expect the same from you.

Responsibilities

Product Strategy: Implement a repeatable product development process and lifecycle management discipline, grounded in empirical evidence, market insights, and grower feedback. Establish the framework for evaluating product efficacy to guide investment and prioritization decisions.

Platform & Execution: Lead product development from first field demonstration through launch and post-launch iteration, building repeatable playbooks that reduce development effort. Oversee product optimization, formulation, and manufacturing across crop protection categories, ensuring regulatory and quality compliance. Lead field research and claims substantiation, partnering with Regulatory and Quality on registrations and documentation.

Customer & Market Leadership: Engage regularly with growers, commercial partners, and CROs to understand on-farm workflows and identify competitive differentiation. Translate scientific findings into compelling product positioning and launch materials. Partner with the CEO and CBO on go-to-market strategy, and represent Robigo as a thought leader externally.

Cross-Functional & Organizational Leadership: Build and lead a high-performing team spanning product, field trials, data science, manufacturing, and regulatory. Translate grower needs into roadmap decisions and manage departmental budgets and innovation investments. Operate comfortably at the board level, turning product strategy and pipeline progress into a narrative executives can act on.

Values & Working Style

Ownership Mindset & Strong Collaborator: You build systems that help people and teams perform at their best, and partner effectively across executives and cross-functional teams.

Business Fluency: You can discuss field trial design, asset valuation, regulatory strategy, and competitive dynamics with senior leaders, and you contribute in rooms where the conversation is about business, not just product.

Comfort With Ambiguity: You are highly adaptable, fast-moving, and solution-oriented. You bring structured thinking to early-stage environments where the scope is unclear and the playbook doesn’t exist yet.

Qualifications & Requirements

15+ years in agriculture biotechnology R&D, product development, or innovation within crop protection and biologicals.

Demonstrated success stewarding products from early discovery through post-launch iteration, with deep understanding of grower behavior and adoption drivers.

Proven experience collaborating with commercial and marketing teams on product strategy, positioning, claims, and launches.

Experience managing external manufacturing, CROs, and academic partnerships.

Exceptional communication skills across technical and non-technical audiences. Able to build credibility with farmers, sales reps, strategic partners, and technical experts alike.

Experience leveraging data analytics or AI-enabled tools within the product development process.

Why this role matters now

Robigo is entering the phase where commercializing our first products, and building repeatable systems for the pipeline behind them, is critical. This role will define and execute our product development strategy, working closely with the CEO, CBO, and cross-functional teams to bring Robigo's first products to market and build a world-class product development organization.

Compensation & Benefits

Salary to be commensurate based on experience, skills, and fit. Role is eligible for equity compensation.

Benefits

4% 401K Match

Medical - 100% coverage via United Health

Dental - 100% coverage via BCBS

Unlimited PTO within reason

Holidays: All federal holidays + week between Christmas and New Years

How to Apply

Submit your CV to grow@robigo.bio .

Please include a short description of why this position is interesting to you; no formal cover letter necessary.

Please indicate your estimated availability to start.

Robigo, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer and Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, veteran status, genetic information, ethnicity, or any other characteristic protected by law.