Senior Product Development Technologist

Summary and Purpose of Role
· Reporting directly to the Product Development Manager the Senior Product Development Technologist plays a crucial role in managing the development of new and existing products in line with the Product Development strategy from concept through to full scale launch for Branded and Own Label projects. · The Senior PD technologist is the driving force and owner of the Branded & Own Label Christmas portfolio and is a key point of contact within the business for this development.
Innovation ·
Lead the ideation and creation of new products & packaging from concept through to full scale launch for UK retail, Export and Food Service & B2B customers for both Own Label and branded portfolios. ·
Be a key voice within the ideation phase of innovation projects bringing thought-leadership regarding flavour, formats and concepts. ·
Have a finger on the pulse of emerging technologies, trends, and market disruptions for inspiration. ·
Ensure developmental standards are met in line with internal policies, regulatory requirements & customer codes of practice. ·
Testing and evaluating new raw materials with suppliers to meet briefs, assure contingency & cost save. ·
Complete accurate costing model for all relevant projects. ·
Create packaging briefs to tender to packaging suppliers. Work with suppliers to develop new packaging concepts. ·
Approval & sign off of cutter guides & artwork. ·
Prepare all relevant documentation & samples, as well as attend product submissions. ·
Work with the PLPM to create & manage project critical paths. ·
Create Christmas portfolio presentation. ·
Contribute to long-term PD strategy through blue sky innovation & supplier engagement.
Factory Upscale & Validation
·
Organise, execute and evaluate factory trials both internally & externally ensuring that products are robustly tested prior to product launch. ·
Attend packing trials at co-packers as required. ·
Attend 1st productions internally & at co-packers.
Management
·
Manage the Christmas related work flow of the Product Development
Process Administrator. ·
Develop the PDPA in line with Norseland’s SOAP objectives.
Hero the PD Process
·
Lead by example & ensure gated PD process is followed at all stages of PD projects. ·
Drive cross functional working at all stages of PD projects to ensure seamless, transparent, compliant, and documented input to the product development process. ·
Manage allocated tasks within PD process to ensure project timelines are met.
Food Safety & Audit Protocol ·
Ensure HACCP procedure is followed for all raw materials & factory trials. ·
Ensuring all relevant product files are kept up to date, in order and in an audit ready state, with full traceability of the developmental process. ·
Relationships
Work seamlessly with internal cross-functional teams to deliver PD projects. ·
Build strong working relationships external customers and suppliers. ·
Be the key point of contact internally for all Christmas development.
Market Understanding/Research : ·
Store visits, product safaris, food shows. ·
Conduct internal tastings on development recipes/ factory trial products. ·
Conduct benchmarking sessions both internally & externally.
Interpersonal Skills
Approachable, open and honest to all people at all levels
Providing a safe platform where people feel safe to share.
Provides constructive and positive feedback.
Where possible, we will involve people in decisions, that will impact on them and the wider team.
Takes a proactive approach in identifying teams strengths and development needs.
Acts as a role model for inspiring enabling and empowering staff. Actively promotes the business.
Be confident to be able to make unbiased decisions when the situation demands.
Identify team and individual challenges to create a positive change
Set clearly defined DRIVEN objectives for self and team, review them and be prepared to change based off business needs.
We identify errors and work as a team x-functionally to resolve them.