Product Development & Quality Coordinator

ForceBrands; Illinois; On-site; USD 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

ForceBrands is seeking a hands-on Product Development & Quality Coordinator in Chicago, IL to support R&D execution and ongoing product quality. This role focuses on benchtop samples, documentation, and coordinating certifications in a fast-paced food company.

The ideal candidate has 3–5 years of food CPG experience, enjoys working directly with products, and can manage multiple projects against tight timelines. Travel to co-manufacturers may be required.

Qualifications

• 3–5 years of food or beverage product development, R&D or quality.
• Hands-on experience producing benchtop samples required.
• Experience in snacks or food CPG preferred.
• Familiar with quality processes and production data.

Responsibilities

• Produce benchtop samples in the R&D kitchen for tastings.
• Maintain R&D materials and inventory to support fast sample turnaround.
• Support full-scale production trials at co-manufacturers.
• Review quality data and product retains; escalate discrepancies.
• Monitor customer complaint data; communicate issues to partners and follow actions.
• Review complaint trends and flag patterns to operations.
• Maintain third-party certifications (Non-GMO, Organic/CCOF, Kosher).
• Coordinate annual certification renewals.
• Collaborate with internal operations and external facilities.
• Keep projects organized and on timeline.
• Travel periodically to co-manufacturing facilities for trials (≈2 trips/quarter).

Skills

Benchtop sampling

R&D execution

Quality systems

Documentation

Travel readiness

Job description

***This is NOT a Role with ForceBrands***

Product Development & Quality Coordinator

Location: Chicago, IL: Full-time, in-office

A growing food and snack company is seeking a hands‑on Product Development & Quality Coordinator to support R&D execution and ongoing product quality. This is an ideal opportunity for someone with 3–5 years of food CPG experience who enjoys working directly with products, creating benchtop samples and keeping detailed projects moving forward.

This role will spend approximately two‑thirds of its time supporting R&D and product development, with the remainder focused on quality processes and third‑party certifications. It is an execution‑focused position and will not be responsible for leading innovation strategy or independently developing new product concepts.

Responsibilities

• Produce benchtop samples in the company’s Chicago R&D kitchen, including preparing, seasoning and organizing products for internal and customer tastings
• Maintain R&D materials and inventory to support fast, consistent sample turnaround
• Support the preparation and execution of full‑scale production trials at third‑party manufacturing facilities
• Review quality data and product retains from production runs, identifying and escalating discrepancies or potential concerns
• Monitor customer complaint data, communicate issues to manufacturing partners and follow corrective actions through completion
• Review complaint trends by product, production batch and issue type, flagging patterns to the internal operations team
• Maintain third‑party certifications, including Non‑GMO Project, Organic/CCOF and Kosher
• Gather documentation and coordinate annual certification renewals
• Partner closely with internal operations leadership and quality teams at external production facilities
• Keep R&D, quality and certification projects organized and moving against established timelines
• Travel periodically to co‑manufacturing facilities for product trials, averaging approximately two trips per quarter

Qualifications

• 3–5 years of experience in food or beverage product development, R&D or quality
• Hands‑on experience producing benchtop samples is required
• Experience within snacks is strongly preferred; broader food CPG experience will also be considered
• Familiarity with quality processes and production data in a manufacturing or co‑manufacturing environment
• Experience supporting third‑party certifications such as Non‑GMO Project, Organic/CCOF or Kosher
• Comfortable communicating with external production and quality teams and following open issues through resolution
• Highly detail‑oriented, organized and deadline‑driven
• Able to balance recurring quality responsibilities with fast‑moving R&D projects
• Willing and able to travel periodically to production facilities
• Available to work full‑time from the company’s Chicago office

This is a strong opportunity for someone who wants broad exposure to both product development and quality within a growing, entrepreneurial food company.