Marketing Contractor

OttoBauthentic; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 500 000 - 700 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading marketing firm seeks an experienced Marketing Contractor in Johannesburg to manage an innovation pipeline and create new product concepts. The ideal candidate has over 8 years in marketing, preferably in the QSR or hospitality industry, and possesses strong skills in consumer insights and cross-functional collaboration. This is a 1-year contract with potential for permanency.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in marketing, preferably in QSR or hospitality.
• Experience in managing innovation processes from idea to launch.

Responsibilities

• Lead the creation and management of an innovation pipeline.
• Translate consumer insights and food trends into new products.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams on innovation feasibility.
• Maintain documentation and communicate progress on innovations.

Skills

Consumer insights translation

Cross-functional collaboration

Creativity with analytical rigor

Innovation pipeline management

Market trends analysis

Education

Postgraduate qualification in Marketing or Business

Job description

The Marketing Contractor will lead the creation and management of an 18-month rolling innovation pipeline, driving a steady flow of new, consumer-validated product opportunities across key menu categories. This role will translate consumer insights and food trends into commercially viable concepts, aligning cross-functional teams to bring innovations from early idea to launch readiness.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Lead Innovation Pipeline Development through Concept Creation & Ideation:

• Build and manage an 18-month rolling innovation pipeline aligned with brand strategy and business priorities, ensuring a steady flow of high-potential product concepts
• Translate consumer insights and food trends into new product concepts across key menu categories, driving creative ideation and early-stage concept development

Cross-Functional Collaboration:

• Partner closely with NPD, Supply Chain, Finance, Consumer Insights, and Operations teams to evaluate feasibility, cost, and scalability and consumer validation of innovation ideas

Reporting & Pipeline Governance:

• Maintain documentation and communicate progress on the innovation pipeline, ensuring visibility of key milestones and decision points to leadership

COMPETENTIES/ABILITIES:

• Translate consumer insights and market trends into commercially viable product concepts, often navigating ambiguous or incomplete information
• Balance creativity with analytical rigor by assessing feasibility, cost, and scalability across multiple business functions
• Develop and adapt new processes or frameworks for innovation where existing approaches are limited, ensuring effective cross-functional alignment and decision-making
• Identify and prioritises new product opportunities, recommending concepts for advancement based on consumer validation, feasibility, and strategic fit
• Owns day-to-day decisions on innovation pipeline management, including which ideas progress through early-stage development, ensuring a balanced and forward-looking innovation flow
• Have innovation:
  • This role has direct responsibility for developing new product concepts and contributing to the end-to-end innovation process—from idea generation to consumer validation and commercialization readiness
  • It also plays a key role in refining and establishing new systems and frameworks for managing the innovation pipeline, ensuring a more consistent and efficient approach to bringing new products to market

EDUCATION / REQUIREMENTS:

• The role is a 1-year contract with possibilities of extended to permanent
• Postgraduate qualification with major in Marketing/Business related discipline
• 8 + years in marketing space within retail but preferably QSR (Quick Service Restaurant) / hospitality industry