Research and Development Manager // Bob's Red Mill

JOB DESCRIPTION 
Job Title: Research and Development Manager 
Reports to: Director of Product Innovation 
Department: Marketing 
Classification: Exempt; Salary 
Shift: 8-hour Day 

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Our success begins and ends with our people. We embrace diverse perspectives and value unique human experiences.  We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer that celebrates the diversity of the communities where we live and  do business. Applicants for our positions are considered without regard to race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, sexual  
orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, religion, military or veteran status, or any other  characteristics protected by law. 
Company Overview: At Bob’s Red Mill, we inspire joy with wholesome foods. Since 1978, we have been leading the  natural foods industry by providing our customers with good food that makes them feel great. Wholesome means  ensuring our food is of the highest quality, empowering and supporting our diverse group of employee owners,  respecting our planet, and bettering our communities. We believe that joy is for everyone. 
  
Purpose: To inspire joy with wholesome foods. 
Values: Respect, Teamwork, Accountability, Determination 
Position Overview: The Research & Development Manager will play a vital role in bringing Bob’s Red Mill products  to life and ensuring a best-in-class product experience in order to achieve our exponential growth and drive forward  our purpose of inspiring joy with wholesome foods. This position leads and is the voice of food science technology in  partnership with the Director of Innovation Marketing for the company, supporting the direction for the team,  establishing R&D processes, and helping to solve the unsolvable. This role will focus on developing new and  reformulated products from concept through commercialization. This role is cross-functional working closely with  Supply Chain, QA, Sustainability, Operations, Engineering, and Co-Manufacturers to help the company meet changing  consumer needs and create new revenue opportunities.  
Essential Job Functions: 
• Leads the Research & Development team in developing new products and product improvement initiatives,  including designing and developing against complex product development projects that have significant  impact on the business and strategic objectives. 
• Supports end-to-end product development program, product renovation, and cost reduction projects across  multiple product categories while considering important technical issues including food safety, shelf stability,  profitability, scalability, and sustainability.  
• Leads sensory and product development research to ensure delivery against key performance benchmarks  including category, competitive, brand, and concept product attributes. 
• Utilize consumer research to support decision making in new product and product improvement initiatives. • Create and maintain detailed project status reports, product specifications, production processes, plant trial  protocols, and other documentation.  
• Works in partnership with our Co-manufacturing Manager and Supply Chain teams to foster and maintain  relationships, support onboarding of all co-manufacturing partners and leads major initiatives that address  complex functional and technical issues.  
• Identify and evaluate primary (in-house) and secondary (co-manufacturer) manufacturing locations for specific  project needs, and support site assessments as needed. 
• Constantly tracks new functional or other new ingredient options for unique finished product attributes,  product improvement and cost reduction opportunities. 
• Identify cost saving opportunities, raw material consolidation/optimization, technical challenges, and  manufacturing efficiencies and work towards implementation through cross-functional collaboration with  respective departments. 
• Works collaboratively with Quality Assurance and Operations teams to ensure that all projects and activities  meet standards for GMP, HACCP, FSMA and other relevant food safety requirements.  
• Effectively builds relationships with other department leaders and team members to reach project goals.  • Complies with all company policies and procedures and operates all equipment in a safe and food-safe  manner. 
• Complies with Bob’s Red Mill food safety policies and procedures including adherence to FDA regulations  and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs). 
• Other tasks and duties as may be assigned. 
Supervisory Responsibilities: 
• This incumbent will have direct oversight of up to 3 individuals. 
• This position will report to the Director of Innovation Marketing. 
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:  
• Highly experienced food scientist with previous food manufacturing experience, strong relationship  management, project management and strategic thinking. 
• Experience with new product development, product renovation, quality assurance, regulatory compliance, and  scaling commercialization. Experience working with developing new products both in-house and with co manufacturers.  
• Experience managing teams and demonstrated ability to lead and develop a department and department staff  members. 
• Strong understanding of ingredient functionality, food safety and regulatory affairs in the USA. • Strong project management skills, including adeptness with organizing numerous projects simultaneously and  track record of consistently meeting critical deadlines 
• Ability to work effectively on a cross-functional team with direct communication, strong emotional  intelligence and respect 
• An exceptional degree of drive, resilience, and motivation to solve complex technical problems. Ability to  adapt to change and frequent realignment of priorities. 
• Excellent command of Microsoft Office Suite, including Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. Knowledge  of Microsoft 365, Google Sheets, Docs, Slides, and ESHA Genesis 
• Willing to travel up to 25% of the time domestically and occasionally internationally, as required by project  needs 
• Demonstrates Respect, Teamwork, Accountability, and Determination. 
Preferred:  
o Experience with Stage Gate project management processes 
o Quality assurance experience 
o Experience developing special products or pack sizes for club stores 
o Familiarity with Bob’s Red Mill product line 
o Interest in natural foods and healthy eating 
Qualifications:  
• B.S. or M.S in Food Science or related disciplines 
• 5+ years of food product development with commercialization experience across multiple technologies and  product types 
• Experience working with Operations, Quality Assurance, Supply Chain, Engineering, or Co-Manufacturing 
Physical Demands:  
• This position requires ability to sit for up to approximately 2 hours at a time. 
Work Environment: 
• The primary environment for this position is an office setting, with time spent in production facilities, labs and  test kitchens as needed. 
What you should know: Our success begins and ends with our people. We embrace diverse perspectives and value unique human experiences. We are proud to be  an equal opportunity employer that celebrates the diversity of the communities where we live and do business. Applicants for our positions are considered without  regard to race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, religion, military or veteran status, or any other  characteristics protected by law.