R&D Lead - India

McCormick & Company; Sonipat; On-site; INR 4,500,000 - 7,000,000; Full time

Job summary

McCormick & Company in Haryana, India, seeks a Senior R&D Manager to lead the India R&D organization from concept to commercialization across Flavor Solutions, Consumer Retail and Export. You will translate business strategy into actionable R&D programs and build a high-performing team.

Based in Sonipat, you will drive innovation, collaboration, and regulatory compliance while partnering with global teams to deliver sustainable growth and competitive advantage.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of product development experience in the food industry.
• Experience in product development formulation and QA techniques.
• Experience leading product development and technical teams across multiple product categories (seasonings, coatings, condiments, gravies, sauces).
• Experience in multinational companies across geographies.
• Experience in commissioning, qualification and validation of a Greenfields manufacturing site preferred.
• Ability to lead and manage multi-cultural and multi-lingual teams across diverse portfolios/ categories.

Responsibilities

• Lead the India R&D team, driving product development from concept to commercialization and ensuring optimal resource deployment to support business growth.
• Lead and coordinate regional and global product development projects, collaborating effectively with international R&D teams across multiple business units.
• Drive cross-functional collaboration to deliver innovation and product development initiatives aligned with business priorities, customer requirements, and manufacturing capabilities.
• Ensure all R&D activities comply with applicable food safety, regulatory, ethical, environmental, health, and safety standards.
• Champion best-in-class R&D practices, fostering technical excellence, innovation, continuous improvement, and knowledge sharing.
• Build and maintain partnerships with key suppliers, external experts, and industry networks to accelerate innovation and leverage emerging ingredients, technologies, and market trends.

Skills

Product development

Food industry experience

Team leadership

Multinational experience

Greenfields site commissioning

Cross-cultural teams

Job description

Reporting to the India & SEA R&D Director, the Senior R&D Manager - India will lead the India R&D organization and drive innovation, product development, and technical excellence across the Flavor Solutions, Consumer Retail, and Export businesses.

This role is responsible for translating business strategy into a focused and actionable R&D agenda, delivering consumer- and customer-centric solutions, and leading projects from concept through commercialization. The Senior R&D Manager will oversee new product and process development, as well as the maintenance, improvement, and optimization of existing products to support business growth and operational excellence.

Based in Haryana, India, the role will also serve as a key member of the cross-functional India Site Leadership Team (IST), contributing to the effective and efficient operation of the Sonipat facility in alignment with the commercial business strategy.

In addition, the Senior R&D Manager will build, coach, and develop a high-performing R&D team, strengthening technical, culinary, and sensory capabilities across the organization. The role will foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, accountability, agility, and continuous improvement, enabling the India R&D team to deliver sustainable growth, competitive advantage, and strong business impact.

Key Responsibilities:

Product Development & Technical Leadership

• Lead the India R&D team, driving product development from concept to commercialization and ensuring optimal resource deployment to support business growth.
• Lead and coordinate regional and global product development projects, collaborating effectively with international R&D teams across multiple business units.
• Drive cross-functional collaboration to deliver innovation and product development initiatives aligned with business priorities, customer requirements, and manufacturing capabilities.
• Ensure all R&D activities comply with applicable food safety, regulatory, ethical, environmental, health, and safety standards.
• Champion best-in-class R&D practices, fostering technical excellence, innovation, continuous improvement, and effective knowledge sharing while maintaining confidentiality.
• Build and maintain strong partnerships with key suppliers, external experts, and industry networks to accelerate innovation and leverage emerging ingredients, technologies, and market trends.

People Management

• Lead the India R&D team, ensuring resources are effectively deployed across projects and priorities are aligned with regional and business objectives to deliver innovation, growth, and profitability.
• Foster a high-performing, collaborative culture by coaching, mentoring, and developing team members, driving excellence, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Build organizational capability through talent development, succession planning, and targeted technical and leadership development initiatives that strengthen the long-term effectiveness of the R&D function.
• Lead Product Development initiatives that support the Comprehensive Continuous Improvement (CCI) program, delivering margin enhancement through formula optimization and design to value (DTV), ingredient rationalization, process improvements, and value engineering without compromising product quality or customer acceptance.
• Drive continuous improvement of product development processes, tools, and ways of working to enhance speed, efficiency, quality, and commercialization success while supporting sustainable business growth and competitiveness.

Food Manufacturing Standards & Compliance

• Establish and maintain effective systems, processes, and governance to drive functional excellence and organizational effectiveness.
• Ensure full compliance with applicable legal and regulatory requirements, business ethics policies, food safety standards, and food manufacturing requirements across all R&D activities.
• Drive adherence to global, regional, and local policies, standards, and procedures, safeguarding proprietary information and intellectual property.
• Lead a strong safety culture within the India R&D team, ensuring compliance with all health, safety, and environmental policies, procedures, and regulatory requirements.
• Maintain accountability for team compliance, risk management, and the implementation of safe work practices to protect employees, products, and the business.

Desired Skills/ Qualifications:

• 10+ Years Product Development Experience in Food Industry.
• Extensive experience in product development formulation (food) and demonstrated experience in the associated Manufacturing and Quality Assurance Techniques.
• Experience in leading product development and technical teams across various product categories (seasonings, coatings, condiments, gravies, sauces).
• Experience in multinational companies working across multiple geographies.
• Experience in the commissioning, qualification and validation of a Greenfields manufacturing site preferred.
• Ability to lead and manage multi-cultural and multi-lingual teams across diverse portfolios/ categories.