What are the responsibilities and job description for the Head of R&D and Innovation position at Jobleads-US?
Since 1920, our company has grown to become a beloved name, known for our innovative and high-quality donuts that delight taste buds of all ages. Today, Clyde's is a thriving, high-growth, 4th generation family-owned food manufacturer and a leading national supplier of donuts to the largest global retailers in mass grocery, convenience stores, and food service.
Key Responsibilities
- Shape the future of our product innovation strategy, drive cutting-edge research, oversee new product development, and improvement of existing products to ensure that our offerings meet/exceed customer expectations and requirements.
- Develop and lead a high-performing R&D team of food scientists and technicians fostering a culture of collaboration, responsiveness, and innovation.
- Manage the new product development lifecycle, including ideation, prototyping, sensory evaluation, and scale-up executing projects on time and on budget.
- Conduct regular product reviews and implement changes to formulations, processes, and packaging to improve product quality, shelf life, and cost efficiency.
- Collaborate with supply chain, production, and marketing teams to optimize production processes ensuring scalability, cost optimization, quality, and product integrity.
- Collaborate with quality assurance and regulatory teams to stay current on food safety regulations implementing updates to processes and documentation as required.
- Collaborate with project management team to drive state gate process execution. Prepare detailed project plans, drive project progress to hit deliverables and update key stakeholders on project status, challenges, and successes.
- Maintain plant floor organization and good housekeeping.
- Monitor, enforce, and comply with food safety/quality requirements and GMPs reporting issues to the Production Manager, Director of Food Safety or Director of Quality.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in food science, food technology, chemistry, or a related field.
- Minimum of 6-10 years of R&D leadership experience in food product development, preferably in the bakery or confectionery industry.
- Proven track record of successful product development and commercialization.
- In-depth knowledge of food safety regulations and quality assurance practices.
- Excellent project management and organizational abilities.
- D. in Food Science, Food Technology, Chemistry, or a related field.
- Experience in bakery and/or donut product development.
- Hands-on experience with scaling up recipes from bench-top to commercial production.
- Preferred: Proficiency in sensory evaluation techniques and consumer testing methodologies.
- Strong network within the bakery or confectionery industry.
- A passion for food. Enthusiastic about development, commercialization, and the customer experience.
