Case study
HZPC
Managing Director
Opportunity
This was an exciting and influential opportunity to lead HZPC UK — a high-performing organisation at the forefront of world-class R&D, agricultural innovation, and commercial impact within the global potato sector. The Managing Director would supervise and control all strategic and business aspects in the UK, taking full responsibility for shaping its direction and delivering a clear vision for continued success.
Serving as a key member of the EMENA Management Team, the successful candidate would play a pivotal role in connecting the UK business with HZPC’s global network. The role required an individual capable of inspiring and empowering the UK team, building a strong cohort of functional leaders, and ensuring excellence across commercial, operational, and technical functions. This was a rare opportunity to combine strategic leadership with hands-on commercial influence, driving innovation and growth in a business that sits at the intersection of science, agriculture, and global food supply.
Eden proved to be a highly professional and insightful partner, delivering a well-structured search process that resulted in a strong shortlist and an excellent Managing Director aligned with HZPC UK’s ambitions.
Peter Ton, COO, Royal HZPC Group
Our approach
Working closely with HZPC’s international leadership team, Eden developed a targeted search strategy to identify candidates with the leadership capability, technical expertise, and commercial acumen required to lead the UK organisation.
The search process began with detailed market mapping across seed potato breeding businesses, the wider seed sector, and both the seed and ware potato industries. This ensured coverage of candidates with direct technical expertise as well as those with broader commercial and operational leadership experience within the agricultural supply chain.
Our approach prioritised individuals who combined strong leadership and stakeholder management capabilities with deep sector knowledge and financial oversight experience. We sought candidates capable of operating effectively within a global organisation while maintaining strong relationships with growers, partners, and customers across the UK potato supply chain.
The results
Eden’s search process resulted in a strong shortlist of candidates representing a range of expertise across seed potato breeding, the wider seed sector, and the broader potato industry.
Shortlisted candidates participated in a comprehensive interview process that included engagement with the European leadership team and the opportunity to visit HZPC’s UK operations. This ensured a thorough mutual understanding of both the strategic ambitions of the organisation and the operational realities of the business.
The successful candidate brought direct experience in potato seed breeding, including strong relationships with growers and deep technical sector knowledge. Combined with proven leadership capability and commercial expertise across the supply chain, they demonstrated the ability to lead teams effectively while delivering sustainable growth and innovation for the UK business.