R&D Manager - Product Development
Location: Open in Europe
Full-time
Job Purpose and Dimensions
* Lead the Dairy Product Development team and own the dairy segment product and project portfolio. Partner with Sales to deliver innovative, market‑ready solutions; drive cost‑out through raw material optimization, value engineering, and simplification; and ensure business continuity by qualifying alternatives and adapting to regulatory and compliance requirements.
* Ensure efficient resource allocation and project execution aligned to business objectives, balancing short‑, medium‑ and long‑term priorities.
* Manage internal and external partners, with a strong focus on customer needs.
* Business partner to the Meat & Dairy BU, leading dairy product development across yoghurt, desserts, processed cheese, soft cheese, and dairy specialties.
* Part of the Global Protein Growth category.
Key Responsibilities
* Technical Specification and Product Development Portfolio
o Own the project portfolio, contributing to profitable growth through innovation and sustainability, simplification, compliance and cost‑out initiatives aligned to the business strategy.
o Lead the execution of the approved R&D pipeline through the Stage‑Gate process, delivering to committed timelines and enabling strong cross‑functional teamwork across multiple functions and sites.
o Prioritise and allocate resources based on project complexity, value and strategic importance.
o Collaborate with cross‑functional teams to ensure successful delivery of key business initiatives.
o Actively contribute to global Protein technical portfolio leverage.
o Provide technical support for existing products.
o Lead the deployment of Global and BG R&D programmes, KPIs, processes and tools.
* Team and Culture
o Lead, coach and develop a high‑performing team.
o Cultivate a collaborative, innovative culture and ensure effective communication across regions, business units, functions and markets.
o Champion safety and customer focus.
o Drive process management and compliance.
* Intellectual Property Management
o Manage IP strategy and confidentiality agreements.
o Oversee the patent‑filing process in coordination with Legal.
o Protect company innovations from competitive threats.
Key Challenges
* Translate diverse customer needs into commercially viable packaging solutions, and respectfully decline requests that are not viable.
* Build and lead cross‑customer project teams to deliver high‑impact results (end‑to‑end processes, raw‑material simplification, BCP and portfolio management) across diverse regions and cultures.
* Balance short‑term and long‑term priorities through effective resource allocation and a strong drive for results.
Qualifications / Requirements
* Good scientific background, preferably Master’s Degree in chemistry, engineering, material science or equivalent.
* Minimum 5 years’ experience in people leadership within product development environment, preferably in a matrixed B2B.
* Project management experience in matrix organisation.
* Experience in innovation and competitiveness portfolio management, with strong data analytics understanding.
* Proven customer engagement and stakeholder management.
* Willingness to travel around 30% of time (primarily in Europe).
Specific Skills and Abilities
* Strong project and resource management skills.
* Ability to coach and mentor.
* Excellent interpersonal, negotiation and presentation skills.
* Solid understanding of market trends and customer dynamics.
* Strong business acumen and strategic mindset.
* Comfortable working in complex, matrixed organisations with global reach and interaction.
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