Director, Dairy Fermentation & Product Innovation

Dairy Management Inc.; United States; On-site; USD 100,000 - 125,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health and welfare plans

401k with match (up to 10%)

Milk on tap at office

Convenient Chicago area location near/

Job summary

Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) in Rosemont, Illinois is seeking a Director of Product Research to lead fermentation and biotechnology initiatives, collaborating with universities, the U.S.

Dairy Export Council, and industry partners to advance product research and commercialization. The role emphasizes fermentation science, scale-up, IP work, and cross-functional leadership to identify commercial opportunities aligned with renovation and innovation strategies, with a focus on bridging lab work to

Qualifications

• PhD in Microbiology, Biotechnology, Biochemical Engineering, Food Science, Chemical Engineering, Synthetic Biology, Molecular Biology, or related field with 2–3 years of relevant experience.
• Relevant industry experience in R&D and commercialization of food or dairy products and ingredients.
• Strong collaboration, technical communication, and presentation skills; ability to work with diverse teams.

Responsibilities

• Design, execute, and analyze microbial fermentation experiments supporting ingredient, food, and biotechnology innovation initiatives
• Support development and optimization of fermentation processes including media optimization, process parameter evaluation, and scale-up activities
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams including food scientists, process engineers, analytical scientists, and external partners
• Perform data analysis, interpret experimental results, and communicate findings through technical reports and presentations
• Support characterization of fermentation-derived materials using analytical and microbiological methods
• Maintain accurate experimental records and contribute to intellectual property, publications, and technical documentation as appropriate
• Stay informed on emerging technologies and trends in precision fermentation, biotechnology, and sustainable food systems
• Assist in the development, management, and execution of plans to commercialize research derived from DMI-funded programs; work with university researchers to ensure scalability
• Actively engage in hands-on activities within pilot plants, including process optimization and recipe development, to facilitate research scalability and support commercialization
• Contribute to identifying partners for scaling research from benchtop to pilot production, collaborating to optimize processes and ingredients
• Collaborate with customers and DMI partners on ingredient scale-up and product launch initiatives

Skills

Collaboration

Technical communication

Presentation

Statistical analysis

Research design

Business acumen

Education

PhD in Microbiology

Job description

Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) in Rosemont, Illinois is seeking a Director of Product Research to lead fermentation and biotechnology initiatives, collaborating with universities, the U.S.

Dairy Export Council, and industry partners to advance product research and commercialization. The role emphasizes fermentation science, scale-up, IP work, and cross-functional leadership to identify commercial opportunities aligned with renovation and innovation strategies, with a focus on bridging lab work to