Job Introduction
As part of the Food team lead, to champion world class recipe design. To take full responsibility for all new food re-development, not limited to recipe development, new product process development and trials, through to launch and post-launch care up to 26-week review. Delivering consistent high quality recipes with effective due diligence.
Main Responsibilities
Key Responsibilities:
New Food Development
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Play a lead role in consistently delivering delicious food in accordance with our food and brand values.
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Create, manage & deliver to time on all critical paths for all NFD briefs
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Brief the chefs on new briefs, ensuring they have clear direction and understand the key timescales on the critical path
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Prioritise chef and process teams workloads to meet required brief deadlines
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Consider production implications for all food concepts and ensure the chefs take these into consideration when developing food.
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Own the sourcing of new raw materials to ensure we get raw material quality right at the beginning.
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Cost all NFD development ensuring it meets the margin targets and costs are signed off.
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Identify product benchmarks and taste against all relevant food concepts to ensure we are always developing best in class food.
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Taste food over its shelf-life from fresh / frozen ensuring consistent high quality at each stage of the product life
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Deliver professional food presentations that show detail of recipe, ingredients, cooking method & key rationale for launch etc.
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Directly feed into the Gatekeeping process with accurate data, costs and information for all projects, working with Head of Food and marketing to ensure projects get signed off, right first time.
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Support customer sell ins with product, product information packs and chef support to help land propositions with the trade
Process
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Attend NFD Meetings, leading communication of all NFD activity.
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Ensure pre & post trial/activity meetings are held with all relevant stakeholders, delivering clear outcomes, recommendations and actions with defined timelines.
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Ensure accurate team completion all trial reports detailing all yields, associated labour and relevant quality measures eg. Viscosity
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Effective due diligence – shelf-life testing, nutritional, cooking validations, trial reports, ensuring we are make delicious food safely for our consumers.
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Deliver ‘right first time’ process design in order for site teams to ‘make’ consistently and effectively
Communication
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Work hand in hand with EFD Manager to ensure site wide activities are managed effectively through the right forums.
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Manage regular and effective communication with wider site & central teams.
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Ensure collaborative working with the ops, technical and supply chain teams, particularly around trial and launch activities.
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Drive food engagement and a quality first approach with our production and technical teams and beyond.
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Deliver informative and accurate site handovers, ensuring post-launch success.
People
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Lead the team of 2 x Technologist, 2 x chef & 1 x kitchen assistant, to deliver the trial programme and improvement plans
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Work closely with EFD chef to deliver recipe development
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Conduct regular 1:1, appraisal & performance reviews with team. Building a high performing team.
Projects
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Work alone or as part of wider project teams to deliver to agreed goals
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PLR of all projects and activities
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Adhoc projects as required
The Ideal Candidate
Qualifications and Experience
- Proven experience managing others
- Minimum 5 years Process Management experience
- Strong experience with either NPD or EPD programmes
- Experience within grocery / chilled ready meals desirable
Key Skills
- A confident communicator who is informative and engaging
- Numerate with strong analytical skills
- Highly accurate and thorough
- Organised, able to manage and prioritise multiple tasks.
- Focused with excellent attention to detail.
- Good interpersonal skills.
- Strong commercial acumen
Key Attributes
- Passionate about great food.
- Positive ‘Can Do’ attitude.
- Full of drive & energy.
- Enjoys being part of a team.
- Creative and Innovative.
- Independent and proactive
- Comfortable in leading and implementing change
