Agronomist to crop production manager
An agronomist already meets 41% of what the crop production manager role asks for. The move turns on 16 required skills not yet in the profile.
69.2/ 100
1 How much of what a crop production manager is expected to do is already part of an agronomist’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the crop production manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A crop production manager role treats 14 of its required skills as things an agronomist already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- crop production principles
- cultivate crops for biomass
- ecology
- environmental legislation in agriculture and forestry
- fertilisation principles
- manage agricultural staff
What stands in the way is 16 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 21 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A crop production manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an agronomist background worth leading with.
- already held cultivate crops for biomass handling and moving
- already held manage crop rotation handling and moving
- already held bioeconomy natural sciences, mathematics and statistics
- already held types of storage facilities information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held irrigation systems agriculture, forestry, fisheries and veterinary
- already held use agricultural information systems and databases information skills
All 21 carried skills, including the 14 the crop production manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 39 missing skills fall into 11 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn ensure soil fertility required
- still to learn monitor fields required
- still to learn store crops required
- still to learn store products required
- still to learn maintain storage facilities required
- optional, not held apply alternate wetting and drying techniques optional
- optional, not held apply sustainable tillage techniques optional
- optional, not held grow plants optional
- optional, not held harvest crop optional
- optional, not held irrigate soil optional
- optional, not held maintain plant health optional
- optional, not held maintain plant soil nutrition optional
- optional, not held prepare planting area optional
- optional, not held propagate plants optional
- still to learn agroforestry required
- still to learn technical equipment for crop production required
- still to learn agronomical production principles required
- optional, not held conservation agriculture optional
- optional, not held e-agriculture optional
- optional, not held watering principles optional
- still to learn assign duties to agriculture workers required
- still to learn manage production enterprise required
- optional, not held manage agritourism activities optional
- optional, not held optimise production optional
- still to learn operate agricultural machinery required
- optional, not held execute fertilisation optional
- optional, not held perform on-farm product processing optional
- optional, not held prepare equipment for harvest optional
- still to learn health and safety regulations required
- optional, not held agritourism optional
- still to learn execute disease and pest control activities required
5 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a crop production manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 agroforestry study this
- 02 assign duties to agriculture workers practise this
- 03 ensure soil fertility practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 21 skills that carry over
- already held crop production principles knowledge
- already held cultivate crops for biomass skill
- already held ecology knowledge
- already held environmental legislation in agriculture and forestry knowledge
- already held fertilisation principles knowledge
- already held manage agricultural staff skill
- already held manage crop production skill
- already held manage crop rotation skill
- already held pest control in plants knowledge
- already held plant disease control knowledge
- already held plant harvest methods knowledge
- already held soil structure knowledge
- already held supervise hygiene procedures in agricultural settings skill
- already held types of storage facilities knowledge
- already held agroecology knowledge
- already held agronomy knowledge
- already held bioeconomy knowledge
- already held irrigation systems knowledge
- already held organic farming knowledge
- already held plant propagation knowledge
- already held use agricultural information systems and databases skill
The 5 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn leadership principles required
- still to learn maintain technical equipment required
- still to learn plant species required
- optional, not held present the farm facilities optional
- optional, not held promote farm products optional
- optional, not held provide agri-touristic services optional
- optional, not held manage contracts optional
- optional, not held project management principles optional
23 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held apply alternate wetting and drying techniques optional
- optional, not held apply sustainable tillage techniques optional
- optional, not held conservation agriculture optional
- optional, not held e-agriculture optional
- optional, not held execute fertilisation optional
- optional, not held grow plants optional
- optional, not held harvest crop optional
- optional, not held irrigate soil optional
- optional, not held maintain plant health optional
- optional, not held maintain plant soil nutrition optional
- optional, not held manage agritourism activities optional
- optional, not held optimise production optional
- optional, not held perform on-farm product processing optional
- optional, not held prepare equipment for harvest optional
- optional, not held prepare planting area optional
- optional, not held present the farm facilities optional
- optional, not held promote farm products optional
- optional, not held propagate plants optional
- optional, not held provide agri-touristic services optional
- optional, not held watering principles optional
- optional, not held agritourism optional
- optional, not held manage contracts optional
- optional, not held project management principles optional
60 held skills the crop production manager role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role European pesticide legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role accept own accountability skill
- not needed by the target role advise on crop diseases skill
- not needed by the target role advise on fertiliser and herbicide skill
- not needed by the target role advise on soil and water protection skill
- not needed by the target role agricultural equipment knowledge
- not needed by the target role analyse samples of food and beverages skill
- not needed by the target role apply horticultural standards and practices skill
- not needed by the target role apply safety procedures in laboratory skill
- not needed by the target role archive scientific documentation skill
- not needed by the target role assess crop damage skill
- not needed by the target role biological chemistry knowledge
- not needed by the target role biology knowledge
- not needed by the target role budgetary principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role climate smart agriculture knowledge
- not needed by the target role collect samples for analysis skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
- not needed by the target role comply with agricultural code of practice skill
- not needed by the target role consult with business clients skill
- not needed by the target role consultation methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role create crop protection plans skill
- not needed by the target role create solutions to problems skill
- not needed by the target role develop irrigation strategies skill
- not needed by the target role develop personal skills skill
- not needed by the target role develop scientific research protocols skill
- not needed by the target role develop scientific theories skill
- not needed by the target role environmental legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role execute analytical mathematical calculations skill
- not needed by the target role gather experimental data skill
- not needed by the target role genetic engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role horticulture principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role keep task records skill
- not needed by the target role laboratory techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role liaise with crop growers skill
- not needed by the target role livestock feeding knowledge
- not needed by the target role livestock species knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain laboratory equipment skill
- not needed by the target role maintain plants' growth skill
- not needed by the target role make decisions regarding plant propagation skill
- not needed by the target role manage farm supplies skill
20 further entries not listed here
11 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn agroforestry required
- still to learn plant species required
- still to learn technical equipment for crop production required
- still to learn agronomical production principles required
- still to learn health and safety regulations required
- still to learn leadership principles required
- optional, not held conservation agriculture optional
- optional, not held e-agriculture optional
- optional, not held watering principles optional
- optional, not held agritourism optional
- optional, not held project management principles optional
Common questions about this move
Can an agronomist become a crop production manager?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An agronomist already covers 41% of what a crop production manager is expected to do: 21 skills carry over, 14 of which the crop production manager role treats as required.
What skills does an agronomist need to become a crop production manager?
16 required skills are missing, plus 23 optional ones. They fall into 11 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by handling and moving. The single most important is agroforestry.
How hard is the move from agronomist to crop production manager?
Its learning distance is 69.2 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.