R & D Manager - Food Scientist - Baking Industry

Bimbo QSR Chicago LLC; Denver (CO); On-site; USD 114,000 - 149,000; Full time

Job summary

Bimbo QSR Chicago LLC in Denver, CO is hiring an R&D Manager to lead Innovation & Renovation initiatives for BQ US. You will oversee projects from ideation to launch, align with sales and culinary teams, and drive cost-saving improvements while ensuring regulatory compliance.

The role requires 5+ years in food industry R&D, bakery knowledge, and strong leadership capabilities. On-site position with collaboration across multiple functions to deliver strategic product developments.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in the food industry with R&D experience (bakery)
• Experience leading Innovation or Technical projects
• Knowledge of bakery operations and production equipment
• Regulatory affairs: basic knowledge of national and international food regulations
• Quality standards: HACCP, FSSC 22000, BRC basics

Responsibilities

• Implement I&R Strategy for the supported product categories
• Manage I&R portfolio through stage gate process with cross functional partners
• Prioritize resources to meet project demands and budget for staff
• Identify and implement process improvements for end-to-end execution of new product development and renovation projects
• Partner with stakeholders to share best practices and improve ways of working
• Lead development of innovation pipeline with sales, marketing and culinary teams
• Collaborate across functions to identify innovation opportunities and drive cost savings
• Support sustainability initiatives and ensure compliance with quality and regulatory standards

Skills

Leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Communication

Project management

Strategic thinking

Education

Bachelor's degree in food science, chemistry, or related field

Job description

Full Time Management Denver, CO, US

Salary Range: $114,200.00 To $148,500.00 Annually

The R&D Manager is the strategic partner to develop and execute the Innovation & Renovation business strategies for BQ US. They are key partner to BQ sales team for customer engagement and support. They lead direct reports to deliver Innovation & Renovation and improvement projects, and transfer knowledge to factories, while ensuring compliance with BQ Policies and standards, local regulatory and legislative requirements.

Location: on site - Denver CO

Key Job Responsibilities

• Implementation of I&R Strategy for the supported product categories for BQ US.
• Manage I&R portfolio through stage gate process. Proactively collaborate with cross functional partners to steer the project in accordance with Key Success Criteria for on time and in scope delivery.
• Prioritize resources to meet project demands across all streams of work allocation and budget for staff.
• Identify and implement process improvements to achieve speed and agility for flawless end-to-end (E2E) execution of new product development & renovation projects i.e. from product ideation to launch.
• Partner with internal and external stakeholders to share best practices and improve overall ways of working.
• Function as key partner to sales team for customer support and engagement. Participate and present in all key customer meeting to promote BQ product adoption.
• Lead development of innovation pipeline in collaboration with sales, marketing and culinary, proactively approaching customer needs in line with QSR consumer trends. Driving focus on core product categories as well Identifying new categories to grow BQ US business..
• Collaborate internally (across Bimbo) and externally to identify innovation opportunities related to ingredient, product and process to stretch BQ US capabilities and for generating efficiencies/cost savings. Take initiative to lead adoption of appropriate innovation, building business case and implementation plans in collaboration with cross functional partners (sales, finance, operations, quality, etc.).
• Support cost saving pipeline to deliver to BQ US cost saving KPIs.
• Ensure adherence to all products, processes, materials standards. Comply with BQ requirements (quality, regulatory, sustainability, etc) and external standards.
• Develop, coach, and lead direct reports within the R&D to enable execution of technical & business strategies.
• Responsible for identifying development opportunities for the team and supporting development plans. Develop the team as recognized subject matter experts for core categories of products.
• Provide support to factories in the areas of ingredient, recipe, and processing to ensure consistent production of high‑quality products for customers.
• Provide support with integration and start up of new facilities and new QSR lines.
• Lead and Support BQ sustainability initiatives in US; provide support to QSR Customer on defining their own initiative.
• Performs other duties as assigned by Senior Management.

Education/Certification:

Engineering/Bachelor's degree in food science, chemistry, or related field of science from an accredited college or university.

Experience:

• 5 years in the food industry with at least 3 years R&D experience in the food industry mainly bakery.
• Experience leading Innovation or Technical projects.
• Thorough knowledge of process, food technology and formulation of bakery products.
• Knowledge of bakery operations and production equipment.
• Regulatory affairs: basic knowledge about national and international food regulations of food and its processes.
• Quality Standards: basic knowledge of safety standards (HACCP, FSSC 22000, BRC) and their implications in food development and processing.

Qualifications and Skill:

• Ability to work in fast paced environment
• Leadership, collaboration and influencing skills.
• Communicate and coordinate effectively with internal and external organization verbally and in writing. Ability to interact with different countries and cultures.
• Work effectively in a general business environment.
• Good organizational and time management skills.
• Proactive and self‑motivated.
• Good English communication skills (both written and oral)