NPI Manager (Process Manager), NPI Manager (Process Manager)

Pilgrim's Europe; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Pilgrim's Europe is seeking an experienced NPI Manager to lead the New Product Introduction function at our Linton site, taking concepts from idea through trials and into a successful launch.

You will manage the NPI team, coordinate with Product Development, Commercial, Operations, Engineering and Quality, ensure stage-gate compliance, and drive efficiency, cost reduction and on-time launches.

Qualifications

• Experience managing customer relationships.
• Proven experience leading factory trials and product launches.
• Understanding of product costings and commercial considerations.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities with exceptional attention to detail.
• Knowledge of food manufacturing legislation, food safety standards, and product labelling requirements.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop the NPI team through stage-gate processes.
• Coordinate product trials, validations, and first production runs.
• Ensure technical validations, shelf-life, and documentation are completed.
• Drive launches through project management and critical path control.
• Support efficiency, yield, and cost improvement initiatives.
• Maintain food safety compliance (HACCP, safety standards).
• Travel to support customers, sites and projects.

Skills

Leadership

Project management

Stakeholder management

Analytical thinking

Communication

Process improvement

Education

Relevant food industry qualifications or significant industry experience

Degree in Food Science, Business, Marketing or equivalent

Tools

Excel

Word

PowerPoint

Microsoft Office

Job description

NPI Manager (Process Manager)

Are you passionate about bringing innovative food products to life and leading successful product launches?

We're looking for an experienced NPI Manager to lead our New Product Introduction function at our Linton site, taking commercially approved concepts from idea through trials and into successful launch. This is a fantastic opportunity to play a key role in driving innovation, operational excellence, and customer satisfaction within a fast-paced food manufacturing environment.

About The Role

As NPI Manager, you will lead and develop the NPI team, ensuring all products progress smoothly through the Pilgrim's Europe stage-gate process. Working closely with Product Development, Commercial, Operations, Engineering, Quality, and Customer teams, you will ensure products are delivered right first time, meeting all technical, quality, and commercial requirements.

You’ll be at the heart of innovation, helping to test, prove, and launch the products of tomorrow while identifying opportunities to improve manufacturing performance, profitability, and efficiency.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the New Product Introduction function and act as the site/category SME for NPI.
• Manage and develop the NPI team, ensuring workloads are effectively prioritised and balanced.
• Support innovation and product ideation activities.
• Contribute to feasibility assessments during product development stages.
• Build strong relationships with customers and act as a key point of contact where required.
• Coordinate product trials, factory validations, and first production runs.
• Ensure all technical validations, nutritional analysis, shelf-life verification, and process documentation are completed.
• Lead pre-launch meetings and ensure all launch milestones are achieved.
• Drive successful product launches through effective project management and critical path control.
• Support operational excellence initiatives including efficiency, yield, and cost improvement projects.
• Maintain compliance with food safety, HACCP, legislative, and health & safety requirements.
• Approve and maintain NPI-related controlled documentation.
• Support artwork approval processes and technical specification reviews where applicable.
• Deliver against business budgets and support customer value chain opportunities.
• Travel as required to support customers, sites, and projects.

Leadership & Development

• Conduct regular one-to-one meetings with direct reports.
• Coach and develop team members to maximise performance and potential.
• Identify training and development needs within the team.
• Drive employee engagement through meaningful action plans and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, and high performance.

About You

We're looking for a proactive and commercially minded leader with strong technical and project management expertise within food manufacturing.

Essential Experience & Skills

• Experience managing customer relationships.
• Proven experience leading factory trials and product launches.
• Understanding of product costings and commercial considerations.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities with exceptional attention to detail.
• Knowledge of food manufacturing legislation, food safety standards, and product labelling requirements.
• Strong organisational and workload management skills.
• Ability to build effective relationships with customers, suppliers, and cross-functional teams.
• Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office, particularly Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.
• Experience identifying and implementing cost-saving and continuous improvement opportunities.

Qualifications

Essential

• Relevant food industry qualifications and/or significant industry experience.

Desirable

• Degree in Food Science, Business, Marketing, or equivalent higher education qualification.

Why Join Us?

At Pilgrim's Europe, our values shape everything we do. We believe in:

• Availability - being open, responsive, and ready for new challenges.
• Humility - listening, learning, and respecting others.
• Discipline - delivering on our commitments.
• Sincerity - building trust through honesty and integrity.
• Simplicity - focusing on what matters most.
• Ownership & Determination - taking responsibility and achieving results.

If you're looking for an opportunity to lead innovation, influence product strategy, and play a vital role in bringing exciting new products to market, we'd love to hear from you.