POSITION DESCRIPTION:

The Department of Animal Biosciences within the Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) at the University of Guelph is seeking an outstanding tenure-track or tenured candidate for the prestigious Bill and Lynne Gray Chair in Advanced Poultry Technology Management at the Assistant or Associate Professor rank. This position is made possible by a generous $3.5 million gift from the William and Lynne Gray Foundation and L.H. Gray & Son Limited, aimed at advancing innovation and sustainability in the Canadian poultry and egg sector. The anticipated start date for this appointment is a mutually agreed-upon date in 2025.

Qualifications:

• The successful candidate will have a PhD in Animal Science, Engineering or a related field, with expertise in technologies and tools for monitoring and managing poultry on farms.
• The successful candidate could possess an academic background from a range of animal-science disciplines (e.g., ethology, nutrition, genetics/genomics, or physiology) and species (e.g., dairy cattle, swine, and/or poultry), with additional experience and training in data science or engineering.
• A strong record of accomplishment for developing innovative technologies is highly desirable. This may include patents, licenses, or other intellectural property related to agricultural technology, particularly in poultry management or precision farming systems.
• The successful candidate will have the ability to teach and mentor students at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Evidence of effective teaching experience is beneficial.
• The successful candidate will have: strong communication skills and the ability to engage effectively with industry stakeholders; interact with faculty, staff, and students including those of different demographic, ethnic, gender, and cultural backgrounds; mentor and advise graduate students for their academic success; develop innovative instructional approaches; and have a commitment to on‐going professional development

• Lead and conduct cutting-edge research in advanced poultry technology management, harnessing expertise from diverse fields including mechanical, electrical, environmental, software and chemical engineering to revolutionize poultry housing and management practices.
• Secure research funds and manage the awarded funds to support cutting-edge research initiatives.
• Create, develop and implement innovative technologies and systems for sustainable and profitable poultry and egg production, leveraging precision farming, automation, robotics, data analytics, artificial intelligence, sensor technologies, computer vision, human dimensions, and other relevant cutting-edge approaches.
• Publish scholarly articles in high-impact journals relevant to the field.
• Collaborate with other faculty and researchers at the University of Guelph (e.g., Engineering, Computer Science, Economics, etc.) to address problems related to monitoring and management of poultry at the level of the animal in commercial production systems.
• Work closely with the Ontario Poultry Research Centre in Elora, contributing to its planning and operations.
• Recruit, supervise, and mentor graduate students in their research programs.
• Instruct students in undergraduate and graduate classroom settings.
• Engage with industry partners to translate research findings into practical applications.

Qualifications:

• The successful candidate will have a PhD in Animal Science, Engineering or a related field, with expertise in technologies and tools for monitoring and managing poultry on farms.
• The successful candidate could possess an academic background from a range of animal-science disciplines (e.g., ethology, nutrition, genetics/genomics, or physiology) and species (e.g., dairy cattle, swine, and/or poultry), with additional experience and training in data science or engineering.
• A strong record of accomplishment for developing innovative technologies is highly desirable. This may include patents, licenses, or other intellectural property related to agricultural technology, particularly in poultry management or precision farming systems.
• The successful candidate will have the ability to teach and mentor students at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Evidence of effective teaching experience is beneficial.
• The successful candidate will have: strong communication skills and the ability to engage effectively with industry stakeholders; interact with faculty, staff, and students including those of different demographic, ethnic, gender, and cultural backgrounds; mentor and advise graduate students for their academic success; develop innovative instructional approaches; and have a commitment to on‐going professional development.