ABOUT THE PROJECT

The Navilahally Coffee Estate is a 250-acre operating plantation in the Western Ghats, Sakleshpur, Karnataka. It forms one of three pillars of a landmark development: the JW Marriott Plantation Resort & Residences a flagship hospitality asset developed by Prestige Hospitality Ventures Limited (PHVL). The plantation is a commercial, ecological and experiential operation, and the Plantation Manager will be its custodian, leader and public face.

This is not a conventional estate manager role. The successful candidate will lead a living landscape that simultaneously delivers commercial yield, ecological stewardship, community development and world-class guest experiences for guests of the JW Marriott hotel.

PURPOSE OF THE ROLE

To manage the Navinahalli plantation as a Centre of Excellence — integrating sustainability, best agricultural practices and optimum profitability — in a manner that creates an outstanding, authentic and educational experience for hotel guests while delivering meaningful benefit to the estate's workers and surrounding communities.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Commercial Plantation Operations

- Overall management of coffee, pepper, cocoa, arecanut and herb cultivation across 250 acres
- Implementation of organic and natural farming practices; organic certification attainment and renewal
- Yield optimisation through precision agronomy, soil health management and crop scheduling
- Management of wet and dry processing facilities, drying yards and bonded storage
- Small-batch production management for the Roastery's retail and guest take-away programme
- Plantation P&L; accountability: budgeting, capex management and profitability reporting to PHVL
- Market relationships and offtake arrangements for premium estate produce

2. Ecology, Hydrology & Wildlife

- Stewardship of the gravity-fed interconnected waterbody network — monitoring, balancing and maintenance
- Pisciculture programme management across estate lakes
- Elephant early-warning system (acoustic sensors, CCTV)



— operation and maintenance
- Elephant-grade fencing management with designated wildlife corridor preservation
- Reptile management programme and rapid-response coordination
- Biodiversity monitoring; liaison with Karnataka Forest Department and wildlife authorities
- Compliance with all environmental and water extraction statutory requirements

3. Infrastructure & Statutory Compliance

- Maintenance of 11km internal road and pathway network to all-weather standard
- Boundary fencing, CCTV surveillance and estate security management
- Landscape lighting programme — low-lux, controlled, ecologically sensitive
- Management and preservation of historical temple sites within estate boundaries
- Full compliance with Karnataka Plantation Labour Act, FSSAI, forest regulations and water permits
- Coordination with construction contractors (L&T;, K2K, MEP teams) during the active build phase

4. Labour, Welfare & Community Development

- Recruitment, training and retention of plantation workforce
- Labour colony management: housing standards, sanitation, community facilities
- Workforce welfare: medical access, crche, grievance redressal, mental health support
- Staff attire and guest-interaction training for all estate-facing workers
- Delivery of the CSR programme for adjoining villages: school support, medical camps, street lighting, water supply, crche
- Relationship management with village communities, panchayat leaders and district authorities

5. Guest Experience Curation

- Design and delivery of the plantation's guest experience programme — in close partnership with the hotel team
- Bean-to-cup journey, harvest participation, ecology walks, waterbody and pisciculture tours
- Cocoa and chocolatery trail; cooking and herb garden experiences; temple and heritage walks
- Sustainability masterclass for engaged guests — certifiable completion pathway
- Ensuring all guest interaction protocols are trained, maintained and consistently delivered across estate staff
- Continuous innovation in experience programming — level-progression model encouraging return visits

📌 Plantation Manager (Sakleshpura)
🏢 Prestige Group
📍 Sakleshpura