Front-End Innovation Manager (m/f/d)

Nestle Operational Services Worldwide SA; Singen (Hohentwiel); Presencial; EUR 120.000 - 170.000; Jornada completa

Ventajas ofrecidas por este puesto de trabajo

Development plan

Individual onboarding plan

30 days vacation

Bike leasing program

Descripción de la vacante

Nestlé is seeking a strategic Front-End Innovation leader to steer a high‑quality portfolio of opportunity spaces and validated concepts within our Product Technology Center for Food in Singen, Germany.

You will drive opportunities from exploration to launch, lead FEI governance, and coordinate with R&D, business units and markets to maximize impact and value. Fluent English is required; German is a plus.

Formación

• Strong innovation and business acumen with growth opportunity identification.
• Experience shaping innovation portfolios and roadmaps across categories.
• Hands-on FEI expertise from framing opportunities to launch.
• Cross-functional leadership across R&D, commercial, operations and finance.
• Strategic thinking with prioritization across horizons and stakeholders.
• Ability to influence senior stakeholders and drive decisions.
• Proven capability to build and lead high-performing teams.
• External orientation to connect trends to opportunities.
• Proficiency with data/AI-enabled innovation for insights and speed.
• Clear storytelling translating insights into actions.

Responsabilidades

• Shape a strong innovation portfolio and pipeline aligned with business priorities.
• Guide opportunities from exploration through concept validation to launch.
• Define FEI priorities, governance and budget management for portfolio impact.
• Align Strategic Business Units and functions around shared priorities with evidence-based decisions.
• Lead strategic projects in opportunity framing, territory development and ideation.
• Develop and coach the FEI team and foster an agile, entrepreneurial culture.

Conocimientos

Innovation & business impact

Strategy & portfolio

FEI expertise

Cross-functional leadership

Strategic & portfolio thinking

Leadership through influence

Building high-performance teams

Spotting future opportunities

Accelerating innovation through data &

Communication

Language skills

Descripción del empleo

Welcome to the Home of Food at Nestlé! Together with 220 experts at our Nestlé Product Technology Centre for Food (NPTC Food), we are responsible for the innovation and renovation of culinary products. Every day, we embody the entrepreneurial mindset and transform science into technologies with the aim of delivering tasty and balanced meals with the highest levels of freshness and convenience.

Most important facts at a glance:

Location: Singen, Germany

Department: Research and Development

Working time: full-time

Contract: permanent

Start: as soon as possible

How you'll contribute and help us grow

• Shape a strong innovation portfolio and pipeline: Build and steer a high-quality portfolio of opportunity spaces, innovation territories and validated concepts aligned with business priorities
• Drive innovation forward: Guide opportunities from exploration through concept validation, ensuring strong learning, feasibility and concept quality, and enabling successful progression into the Idea-to-Launch pipeline, and multi region launches
• Set strategic direction and governance: Define Front-End Innovation (FEI) priorities and roadmaps, establish effective governance, lead portfolio reviews, and manage budgets, resources and investment choices to maximize portfolio impact and business value.
• Drive stakeholder alignment: Mobilize Strategic Business Units, Zone, Market, R&D, CMIA and relevant functions around shared priorities, clear accountabilities and timely, evidence-based decision-making.
• Stay hands-on in innovation development: Lead strategic projects and actively contribute to opportunity framing, territory development, ideation, concept creation and critical project decisions.
• Lead the FEI team and capability: Lead, coach and develop the FEI team; strengthen innovation capabilities, methodologies and ways of working; and foster an agile, entrepreneurial culture.

What will make you a great fit:

• Innovation & Business Impact: Strong innovation and business acumen, with an extensive track record of identifying growth opportunities, translating them into compelling consumer propositions, and delivering business impact through scalable innovation.
• Strategy & Portfolio: Strategic and operational innovation leadership within Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG), preferably food industry, with experience shaping innovation portfolios and roadmaps, balancing long-term innovation strategy with hands‑on delivery and business impact.
• FEI Expertise: Hands‑on FEI expertise, with a proven track record of leading opportunities end-to-end, from opportunity framing and innovation territories through ideation, concept creation, testing, validation and progression into the Idea-to-Launch pipeline, supported by a strong command of FEI methodologies, governance and stage‑gating.
• Cross-functional Leadership: Strong cross‑functional leadership with experience working across R&D, commercial, operations, finance and consumer insight functions.
• Strategic & Portfolio Thinking: Strategic and portfolio thinking, with the ability to prioritize across multiple horizons, categories and stakeholders.
• Leadership through Influence: Leadership through influence, with the confidence to align senior stakeholders, challenge constructively and turn ambiguity into action.
• Building High-Performance Teams: People leadership and coaching capability, with experience building high-performing teams and developing talent.
• Spotting Future Opportunities: External orientation and curiosity, connect consumer trends, market shifts, emerging technologies and innovation ecosystems to future business opportunities.
• Accelerating Innovation through Data & AI: Digital, data-driven and AI-enabled innovation, leveraging consumer signals, analytics and Generative AI to accelerate insight generation, learning and decision-making.
• Communication: Strategic storytelling and communication, with the ability to translate complex consumer, technology and business insights into compelling narratives that drive alignment, informed decisions and action.
• Language skills: Fluent English is required; German or another relevant language is an advantage.

Your benefits

• Development: With our annual development meetings with your manager, we find out where your professional journey can go.
• In good hands: To help you settle in quickly and learn everything you need to know right from the start, we'll create an individual onboarding plan for you.
• 30 days of vacation: Taking breaks and recharging is important. That's why everyone at Nestlé enjoys more vacation days than required by law.
• Ready to ride: Our bike leasing program makes it easy for you to get your new bicycle or e-bike and enjoy a more sustainable way of getting around.

Become part of something big

Nestlé offers endless possibilities for you. We are a leader in nutrition, health and wellness with our brands that are loved around the world. A real opportunity to positively impact the lives of millions. From breakfast to dinner, from medical nutrition to healthy snacks for four-legged friends, from sustainable farming to eco-friendly packaging. So much is already here, now make it even better. In a team of diverse characters learning with and from each other - be a force for good.