We’re looking forward to filling a few key roles and completing our fantastic team for the 2023 growing season. Now in our eleventh year in operation, we have the experience, infrastructure, and scale to grow and market a wide variety of high quality fresh-cut flowers across the seasons. See below for the job openings we’re hiring for, with detailed descriptions and information about the position, and if you think this interesting and rewarding work may be for you, please apply!
Tiny Hearts Farm 2023 Job Openings:
Overview of Management Track Positions
(Please read this first if you’re interested in a manager position)
Assistant Field Manager/Equipment Operator
Non-discrimination policy: We do not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of our activities or operations.
Job Description: Field and Harvest Crew
Field and harvest crew members participate in all aspects of producing the highest quality cut flowers, from seeding and transplanting to harvesting and bouquet-making.
The Job:
- Planting – transplanting in the field and greenhouses, by hand and tractor; direct seeding
- Cultivation – by hand, hoe, and mechanical cultivation
- Maintain plantings – trellising, pinching, irrigation set-up, etc.
- Harvest – maintain highest quality and consistency standards, apply proper post-harvest handling techniques
- Pack-out – assist with bouquet-making and processing daily orders
- Maintenance – keep tools maintained and work areas clean; wash harvest buckets
Requirements:
- Minimum one full-season on a flower (preferred) or vegetable farm, or other fast-paced work environment such as a busy restaurant
- Can work outdoors in any weather conditions with gusto and a good attitude
- Can bend, kneel, lift, squat, and reach repetitively, and can physically and mentally handle repetitive tasks
- Meticulous attention to detail and can maintain consistent high quality outcomes
- Self-motivated to jump on tasks, work independently, and show leadership in a group
- Reliable, hard-working, timely, and can respectfully receive and offer feedback
Schedule and Compensation:
- 5 days/week (Monday – Friday) preferred; alternative schedules will be considered
- 8am – 4pm work days (9 am start during the coldest months) with some flexibility required, as well as rotating half-days on weekends during spring and early summer
- This position is seasonal and ends at Thanksgiving. Year-round work is available for dedicated employees, with unpaid time off during the holidays
- Starting pay is $15/hr. Field and harvest crew members are offered a bonus of $2/hr for being on time and working their complete shift, every day, as scheduled
- Full-time employees are eligible for 5 days paid time off per year (after completion of 2 months work).
- Employees are welcome to take flowers home, attend our workshops and classes for free, and receive an employee discount at our flower shop.
- Opportunities for exploring special interest areas are available – floral design, tractor operation, greenhouse management, etc. Field and harvest crew employees demonstrating active interest will be strong candidates for management track positions.
Overview of Management Track Positions
We have several managerial positions open for the 2022 and 2023 seasons.
A manager at Tiny Hearts Farm is a specialist team member – one who leads and performs the work of, and takes responsibility for, a clearly defined management area. When not performing duties specific to the management area, the manager works with the rest of the farm team towards the farm’s goal of producing the highest-quality cut flowers.
Rather than hire people directly into managerial roles, we hire into a ‘management track’ position. This is beneficial for several reasons:
- You learn the ropes of the farm, get to know your new co-workers and our work culture, without the pressure of being responsible for a management area right away.
- Learn if the role you’re interested in is the right fit. Some people find new or better-fitting areas of interest once they’ve experienced other roles on the farm.
- We can consider people with different experience levels for managerial positions. Experienced people may become managers very quickly, and less experienced people may still apply and be trained toward the position.
Managers at Tiny Hearts Farm are:
- Hard workers, naturally
- Skilled, no-nonsense communicators
- Serious about responsibility
- Proactive about finishing a job or fixing a problem, even if it’s quitting time
- Leaders in their given area while maintaining the team’s cooperative spirit
- Able to evaluate and re-evaluate for efficiencies
- Problem solvers, both independently and with the team
- Self-motivated learners, comfortable with not having all the answers
- Loves a good challenge!
Schedule and Compensation:
- 5 days/week (Monday – Friday) preferred, alternative schedules will be considered. Year-round employment, with a reduced winter work schedule and opportunity for time off. (note: flower shop manager keeps different hours)
- 8 am – 4 pm work days (9 am start during the coldest months) with some flexibility required depending on the managerial position, as well as rotating half days on weekends in spring and early summer
- Starting pay for a management track position is $18/hr. Once an employee demonstrates an ability to effectively oversee their specified area of management, they can expect a promotion, along with a wage between $20 – $25 hourly.
- Full-time management-track employees are eligible for 5 days paid time-off the first year (after completion of first 2 months work).
- All employees are welcome to take flowers home, attend our workshops and classes for free, and receive an employee discount at our flower shop.
Job Description: Flower Shop Manager
The flower shop manager is the public representative of our farm. They’re responsible for creating a warm and inviting atmosphere at our beautiful Hillsdale shop, managing all aspects of selling our wares, designing arrangements with our flowers, and creating a lovely customer experience.
See the Overview of Management Track Positions to learn what the core duties and responsibilities of a manager are, the qualities most suitable to management positions, and for schedule and compensation information.
The Job:
- Receive customers in a warm and professional manner; ensure positive customer interactions; educate customers about the unique nature of our farm-based shop
- Beautifully stage the shop and flower displays
- Take and track flower orders, manage pick-ups and deliveries of flower orders
- Make bouquets and arrangements on-the-spot for walk-in customers, as well as for pre-ordered pickups and deliveries; manage order deadlines; understand and execute the Tiny Hearts design aesthetic
- Create wedding florals for pick-up orders, such as bridal bouquets, flower crowns, centerpieces, etc.
- Order flowers from the farm each week to keep fully stocked for walk-ins and have color palettes on hand for delivery arrangements, wedding pieces, etc
- Communicate regularly with the farm’s harvest and pack-out managers regarding flower availability, color palettes, and incoming orders
- Assist with shop merchandising, including ordering, pricing, and staging merchandise
- Maintain the shop, including keeping it clean (bathroom and basement as well), clear of clutter, cleaning display vessels and shop flower buckets, taking care of indoor plants
- Provide day-to-day maintenance of outdoor gardens and planters, such as watering, weeding, and deadheading. Assists with seasonal change-over of outdoor decor
- Possibility of assisting farm team in harvests, field and greenhouse work, etc
Requirements:
- Proven amazing customer service and communication skills
- Extensive experience in farm-based floral design strongly preferred; willing to train the right designer or visual artist who has less experience with local, seasonal flowers but is a quick and self-motivated learner
- Ability to manage time and shifting priorities to meet order deadlines
- Able to quickly and repeatedly carry heavy buckets, go up and down stairs with bulky items, and perform detailed work requiring small motor skills
- Reliable, timely, trustworthy, and committed
Schedule and Compensation:
- Required work days/times are Thursdays – Saturdays from 9 – 5 and Sundays from 9 – 1, plus an early week team meeting (which can be joined by phone or zoom.) Additional hours to create full-time work are possible.
- The flower shop is currently open seasonally but we are excited to open year-round with the addition of a great shop manager to our team
- Pay scale for this position starts at $18/hour or more commensurate with customer service and floral design experience.
- Full-time employees are eligible for 5 days paid time-off (after completion of first 2 months work)
- All employees are welcome to take flowers home, attend our workshops and classes for free, and receive an employee discount at our flower shop.
Job Description: Harvest Manager
The harvest manager leads all aspects of harvest including; reviewing orders, creating cut-lists, and overseeing the harvest team to deliver flowers to the pack-out crew on time.
See the Overview of Management Track Positions to learn what the core duties and responsibilities of a manager are, the qualities most suitable to management positions, and for schedule and compensation information.
The Job:
- Lead the harvest crew in daily harvests of flowers while maintaining the highest quality and consistency standards
- Pull orders from our online ordering system to create weekly and daily harvest lists
- Work closely with the management team to create harvest lists for our varied sales outlets. Remain responsive and able to adjust to incoming orders as needed and deliver flowers to the pack-out crew ahead of order deadlines.
- Know the harvest stage, height, bunch size, and harvest technique for 40+ different crops, and communicate these clearly and regularly to the harvest crew.
- Choreograph people and vehicle flows so teams moves from crop to crop, and flowers move from field to barn, efficiently and without pause
- Ensure harvest tools are clean, maintained, and returned after harvest, and that harvest buckets are washed and ready
- Notice and communicate field issues (ie readiness of crops, pest or disease issues) to the farm manager
- Participate in pack-out, planting, and other field tasks when not actively managing harvest activities.
Requirements:
- Minimum one full season working on a fast-paced flower (preferred) or veg farm
- Working knowledge of flower variety names and flower handling technique
- Excellent interpersonal skills; able to give respectful and straightforward feedback, and to encourage and rally a team
- Visually-oriented: a great eye for color, ability to see small detail and quality differences
- Ability to maintain, and help a team maintain, a consistently high quality standard across a long and varied growing season
- Quick learner with an ability to distill lots of information into organized documents.
- Experience with Google sheets and/or eCommerce platforms preferred
Job Description: Pack-Out Manager
The pack-out manager is responsible for receiving flowers from the field and seeing they are packed and shipped to their intended destination on time while maintaining the highest quality standards.
See the Overview of Management Track Positions to learn what the core duties and responsibilities of a manager are, the qualities most suitable to management positions, and for schedule and compensation information.
The Job:
- Organize many orders and manage multiple deadlines per day while remaining aware and prepared for upcoming orders
- Monitor the online ordering system for incoming orders and communicate new orders and deadlines to the harvest manager
- Receive flowers from the field and apply proper post-harvest treatments as necessary
- Pack orders appropriately for varied sales outlets
- Work directly with the harvest manager to maintain the highest level of quality control.
- Manage employees assisting with pack out, oversee and take part in bouquet-making
- Follow a triple-check system to ensure that orders are fulfilled correctly with no mistakes
- Work with the delivery driver to ensure that deliveries go out on time and that complete orders make it to their intended destination.
- Organize cooler inventories daily and oversees what goes in and what comes out
- The pack-out manager may play a role in floral design for delivery orders and weddings if desired, and with proper training.
- Participate in harvests, planting, and other field tasks when not actively managing pack-out
Requirements:
- Minimum of one full season working on a fast-paced cut flower (preferred) or veg farm
- Working knowledge of flower variety names and flower handling technique
- Excellent time management and organizational skills
- Ability to keep focused and unflustered in a fast-paced, often distracting environment, and to quickly adapt to changing deadlines and priorities
- Meticulously detailed and accurate, able to maintain a consistently high quality standard
- Floral design experience or visual arts training is preferred but not required
Job Description: Assistant Field Manager / Equipment Operator
The assistant field manager works closely with the head farmer in setting priorities and attends to day-to-day management of fields and crops.
See the Overview of Management Track Positions to learn what the core duties and responsibilities of a manager are, the qualities most suitable to management positions, and for schedule and compensation information.
The Job:
- Prepares fields for annual and perennial plantings of crops using tractor-mounted implements
- Leads a team to prepare greenhouse beds for plantings using walk-behind tractor and hand-scale tools, and to transplant and maintain crops
- Assures a timely flow of greenhouse-grown seedlings to the production fields and leads a team to transplant mechanically in accordance with provided field maps
- Maintains annual and perennial plantings: timely cultivation (hoes, hand-weeding, and mechanical implements), trellising, disease control, etc
- Ensures timely direct sowing of flower crops
- Installs, repairs, and runs irrigation as needed
- Assists in planting and care of winter greenhouse crops, both in-ground and crate grown
- Occasional care of seedlings, etc in the propagation greenhouse
- Attends to minor equipment maintenance issues; inspects equipment regularly and reports any issues which need attention
Requirements:
- Minimum two full seasons experience working on a fast-paced production farm
- Strong experience and interest in all facets of growing, including plant and soil health
- Experience safely operating tractors, and using pull-behind and PTO-powered implements (disc, flail mower, transplanter, etc.) strongly preferred
- Ability to connect and disconnect implements to a three point hitch
- Experience using farm-scale irrigation equipment
- Can load and unload freight deliveries and transport bulk materials around the farm.
- Excellent interpersonal skills, ability to encourage and rally a team
Application Form
If you’re interested in joining us for the 2022 growing season please fill out the following form, including a brief cover letter, upload your resume and provide two professional references.
