Senior R&D Manager

Nomad Foods; Lowestoft; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading frozen food company in Lowestoft is seeking a Senior R&D Manager to lead their R&D team and innovation programs. The role requires a technical leader passionate about consumer-led design, capable of influencing cross-functional teams to deliver a validated innovation pipeline. The successful candidate will have experience in FMCG and a relevant technical degree. This position offers competitive compensation, including a company car and up to 25% bonus, alongside a robust benefits package.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Company car

Up to 25% bonus

Excellent benefits package

Qualifications

• Experience within FMCG in a technical role.
• People and programme leadership with successful delivery evidence.

Responsibilities

• Lead an end-to-end R&D team and program.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory policies.
• Deliver projects on time and within budget.

Skills

Technical leadership

Consumer-led design

Creativity

Influence and impact

Education

Technical qualifications degree level or equivalent

Job description

Senior R&D Manager – Lowestoft, Suffolk (Onsite, 4 days a week)

Competitive salary, company car, up to 25% bonus and excellent benefits package.

We have an excellent opportunity available for you to join our growing and dynamic RDQ Lowestoft team. In this role you will be leadership of an End-to-end R&D team & programme for part of a core Segment. Leads a single or multi-site team of developers, accountable for co‑creation of strategy, innovation pipeline & end-to‑end delivery (concept to production) of the R&D programme (NPD, EPD, F4G, ...), in Nomad factories and at selected Copackers within agreed budget & timescale. Influential business partner with senior colleagues in Marketing, Finance, Supply Chain & Procurement.

Responsibilities

Functional Leadership: Influence & impact on innovation strategy, Validated innovation pipeline to deliver growth targets for their MWBs &/or GPs, Regulatory & policy compliance of portfolio, Pro‑active in identifying cost saving & simplification opportunities.

People Leadership: Builds a performance culture, Develop future leaders and nurture technical talent, Maintain & develop relevant expertise.

Governance: Accurate & informative input to gate documents, Resource deployment based on priorities, RDQ input to facilitate manufacturing & sourcing decisions.

Design Leadership: Deep understanding of consumer needs (KCA & KPA translation) & preferences across multiple markets, Good understanding of relevant supply chains & technologies. Product & pack strategies for key products in their portfolio to ensure they remain relevant and maintain competitive advantage.

Operational Leadership: On time, in full execution of the technical programme, Delivery of programme within budget, Contingency planning to ensure no gap to plan.

About you

We need a technical leader who is passionate about consumer‑led design & the role of technology in delivering perfect products to our consumers. Creativity, drive and influence are critical to successful scale up, continuous improvement and trouble shooting. We need a Leader who can business partner with Marketing, Finance & Supply Chain stakeholders and influence to ensure a sufficient, validated & deliverable innovation pipeline that will delight the consumer & be efficient and cost‑effective to manufacture. Some of the must have experience are: Technical qualifications degree level, or equivalent; Experience within FMCG in a technical role; People and programme leadership with evidence of successful delivery.

What we can offer

We're on an exceptional adventure and offer a truly purpose led career and we aim to empower each employee and promote their personal growth all the while ensuring business needs are met now and into the future. An ambitious employer with recognised brands and growth potential. A culture where you feel part of a team, encouraged to make a difference. The potential to progress your career across different areas of the Nomad Foods Group.

Who are we

Headquartered in the UK, with revenues of €3.2 billion and operations in 22 key markets, Nomad Foods is Europe's leading frozen food company. We are a young company, founded only eight years ago, and built around a number of iconic brands (including Birds Eye, Findus and iglo and more recently Ledo and Frikom) that invented the frozen category 100 years ago and continue to set the bar for great taste, nutrition, convenience and affordability. Across everything we do, we are guided by our Purpose – Serving the World with Better Food – and how we can make a positive impact on our Performance, People and the Planet.

At Nomad Foods we're proud to represent the world we serve by hiring diverse talent. Our inclusive culture is all about what we can achieve together.