R&D Product Specialist - 1 Year FTC
Job Description
The R&D Category Brand Maintenance Team (Coffee & Tea) is responsible for the design, specification and commercialization of products that meet consumer-driven design targets for the category.
The R&D Product Specialist (brand maintenance) reports into the R&D Category Brand Maintenance Manager. They are responsible for delivery & maintenance of product portfolio solutions across all coffee & tea categories - including whole beans, roast and instant coffee, plant or milk-based powder mixes, various capsule product for machines, as well as tea.
The R&D Product specialist has a specific focus to deliver R&D deliverables in Adaptation (expansion and optimisation) projects. The role leads or supports the execution of projects up to implementation and they are the key knowledge holders in their field. The specialist is consulted by other R&D members for brand maintenance projects and by other JDE employees in case of operational issues.
The role is responsible for building and maintaining the network with local and global Marketing. The role offers immediate opportunity to work closely with cross-functional experts in various fields such as supply chain, manufacturing, procurement, finance, as well as technical, sustainability and consumer science/sensory experts within wider R&D.
Responsibilities / Key activities
- Contributes to the realisation of the business strategy through deployment of strategic product portfolio.
- Proposes the technical product architecture for adaptation projects - growth, cost out, sourcing changes and capacity upgrades.
- Offers and identifies opportunities to innovate and optimize processing capabilities and performance.
- Delivers day to day performance and programmes within the network.
- Is part of the team that communicates and supports best practice portfolio deployment into local applications and executes delivery of product specifications.
- Reports to Brand Maintenance manager on a weekly basis.
Qualifications
- BSc/MSc qualification in Food Science/Technology or Chemical Engineering or equivalent vocational experience within R&D department in FMCG company.
- Previous Product development experience
- Experience with writing product specifications.
- Strong project management experience within an R&D role
- Experience in a R&D specialist position ideally within FMCG
- Demonstrable problem-solving skills within a similar role
Additional Information
*Known Internally as Brand Maintenance*
For more than 265 years, JACOBS DOUWE EGBERTS (JDE) is inspired by its belief that it’s amazing what can happen over a cup of coffee or tea. We are fuelled by our purpose of unleashing the possibilities of coffee and tea to create a better future. Today, our coffee & tea portfolio is available in more than 100developed and emerging markets, through a portfolio of over 50 brands that collectively cover the entire category landscape led by leading household names such as L’OR, Jacobs, Senseo, Tassimo, Douwe Egberts, Old Town, Super, Pickwick and Moccona.
JDE is part of JDE Peet’s, the world’s largest pure-play coffee and tea company, headquartered in The Netherlands.
What’s it like to work at JDE?
We are proud of our passionate, driven associates that challenge the status quo and pursue mastery in everything they do. Our goal is simple and ambitious –JDE: A coffee & tea for every cup.
At JDE, we're Made to Stand Out. Every day we are progressive in outlook, ambitious in nature, resourceful in action and decisive in approach, bringing coffee and tea moments to everyone around the world.