With almost 20 years AgTech industry experience, Phil currently serves as the Director of Community Ecosystem Development for Crop Science at Bayer, based in St. Louis, MO. 

In this role, Phil works to develop, direct and administer Crop Science's holistic presence in key operating communities (e.g St. Louis) as well as in important business-collaboration communities around the globe. Additionally, Phil is responsible for developing and influencing academic partnership strategy and steering to enable data generation for the Crop Science R&D pipeline, product and cropping system decisions and enable faster grower adoption of innovations launched by BCS. 

Phil joined Bayer in 2006 and has held multiple leadership roles focused on delivering collaborative approaches to enable R&D and enhance the company’s position as a thought leader in open innovation and a partner of choice in agriculture. In his most recent role as Director of Open Innovation and Outreach, Phil and team have developed programs and relationships that have supported academics, startups and the development of external innovation ecosystems in support of Bayer’s R&D pipeline. In recognition of his contributions, Phil was appointed a Bayer Science Fellow in 2016.

Before joining Bayer, Phil trained as a Plant Cell Biologist, receiving his Ph.D. from the John Innes Centre in Norwich, U.K., and held post-doctoral positions at The University of Leeds and The University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, as well as a British Council Fellowship at the University of Heidelberg, Germany. A native of the U.K., Phil lives in St. Charles, Missouri, with his wife Amanda and their four children.