Senior Culinary Innovation Leader

Inspire Brands, Inc.; Atlanta (GA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Inspire Brands, Inc. is seeking an experienced leader for Culinary Innovation and Product Development to drive menu strategy and commercialization across multiple brands.

You will coach teams, translate insights into differentiated products, and guide prototyping, testing, and vendor collaboration. You will engage with senior leaders to align on priorities, oversee multi-project execution, and champion a culture of creativity and accountability.

Qualifications

• Minimum 2 Year Degree with a concentration in Culinary Arts or related discipline
• Preferred 4 Year Degree with a concentration in Culinary Arts or related discipline
• 8+ years of progressive experience in culinary innovation, food science, product development, or related field
• Experience leading complex innovation programs from concept through commercialization
• Multi-unit restaurant, foodservice, or consumer packaged goods experience preferred
• Experience coaching team members and leading cross-functional initiatives
• Demonstrated ability to work with senior leaders and deliver business results
• Passion for food & culinary mastery and cross-functional collaboration
• Strategy and program development from idea to execution
• Strong organization and presentation skills with clear written and verbal communication
• Thrives in ambiguity and meets tight timelines with quality output
• Proficient in Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint)

Responsibilities

• Lead core menu, LTO, and product improvement initiatives from concept to commercialization
• Translate briefs, insights, and objectives into differentiated products
• Stay hands-on in the kitchen with prototyping, testing, and validation
• Guide vendors from concept to samples and commercialization
• Identify culinary trends and apply them to current and future work
• Champion differentiated products to strengthen brand position
• Coordinate multiple workstreams, set priorities, and manage timelines
• Drive commercialization readiness including specs, yields, and packaging
• Build alignment and ensure follow-through from development to launch
• Provide day-to-day leadership and coaching for the team
• Support workload planning across projects with the Director
• Serve as culinary and technical resource to solve challenges
• Foster creativity, accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement
• Identify opportunities to improve processes, tools, and ways of working
• Participate in annual planning, showcases, tastings, supplier sessions

Skills

Culinary innovation

Menu development

Vendor management

Cross-functional leadership

Prototyping

Strong communication

Strategic planning

Education

Minimum 2 Year Degree in Culinary Arts or related

Preferred 4 Year Degree in Culinary Arts or related

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Inspire Brands, Inc. is seeking an experienced leader for Culinary Innovation and Product Development to drive menu strategy and commercialization across multiple brands.

You will coach teams, translate insights into differentiated products, and guide prototyping, testing, and vendor collaboration. You will engage with senior leaders to align on priorities, oversee multi-project execution, and champion a culture of creativity and accountability.