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Innovation Manager - Fruit (Fixed Term Contract)

So, what will I be doing?

At Yeo Valley, we're more than just an organic dairy company – we're a community rooted in the land, committed to sustainability, and passionate about producing quality food that nurtures people and planet. We're currently looking for an Innovation Manager - Fruit to join our Central Development team on a Fixed Term Contract (FTC) to cover maternity leave. This role will be based at our HQ offices in Blagdon, with regular visits to our Crewkerne site required as part of this role.

Under the direction of the Senior Innovation Manager, you will lead & manage, with the support of a Senior Development Technologist, the creation and development of insight led new and existing products in the yogurt, ice cream, and desserts categories for specific accounts.

You will collaborate and lead with cross functional teams to deliver cutting-edge, high-quality product concepts that are aligned with customer and business priorities.

This role requires the overall ability to be the interface of the development process with the customer and the internal functions to deliver products from Gate 0 to 3 approval (kitchen vs factory), and ensure a successful product handover to the Process Development teams. This requires expertise in recipe development and raw material capability alongside managing multiple critical paths.

This role is critical in shaping the future of the Yeo Valley Product Portfolio.

Your Key Responsibilities will include:

Coordination and management of critical paths aligned with stakeholders’ key dates and stages. Ability to identify, solve and communicate problems and resolutions internally and externally. Understanding the broader impacts across the department.
Liaise closely with Insight Manager to provide expertise in food and eating trends and recipe formulation through insight led NPD, food safaris and trawls.
To develop and maintain excellent customer relationships with defined retailers through a customer ‘intimate’ approach. Must be able to explain difficult or sensitive information and be willing to step in & support more junior team members in this area.
To work collaboratively with Process, Technical, Sourcing and Operations teams on new products, raw materials, packaging & factory processes.
To manage & track the costing from the signed off kitchen concept through to the 12-week post launch review.
To advise on design for manufacture, ensuring that all operational, supply chain and technical capabilities and limitations are understood, potential issues are identified early on, and workable solutions progressed collaboratively with the relevant team.
To present and discuss new concept and product ideas with the customer.
Working collaboratively with Commercial team to complete the Feasibility Gate and discuss with relevant stakeholders
Commercial acumen – cost recipes and ensure they meet the cost of goods targets agreed with Commercial. Ensure budgets are met and integrates with others to achieve department objectives.
Liaise with current and new suppliers to source new ingredients
Responsible for ensuring your product meets the most up to date policy and brands standards for each relevant customer
Leading, coaching, developing and where relevant influences Senior Development Technologists in delivering the customer development plans and is accountable for their performance and results.
Has overall accountability of the results and performance of their customer accounts with regards to NPD success and reaching targets/objectives.

The working hours for this FTC are 40 hours per week (Monday – Friday).

Sounds interesting, what do I need?

Essential:

Technical Skills - Expertise in product formulation & sensory analysis
Project Management - Experience in managing multiple product development projects simultaneously, with a focus on meeting deadlines and managing resources effectively
Knowledge of Ingredients - Strong understanding of the functional properties of yogurt, desserts & ice cream
Teamwork - Ability to work well with a collaborative, cross-functional team environment and lead in own area of expertise. Ability to encourage & lead within own team
Innovation Focus - Passion for staying ahead of trends & a desire to proactively explore innovative ingredients and product concepts
Problem solving – Excellent troubleshooting skills and ability to analyse complex technical challenges & implement solutions. Support & mentor team members to reach solutions
Communication - Excellent verbal & written communication skills with the ability to present ideas and data clearly to technical & non-technical stakeholders
The ability to travel around all our locations in the Southwest is essential due to multi-site locations

Qualifications:

Food qualification or previous food manufacturing or catering experience
Minimum of 5 years of post-graduate experience in a food NPD role, preferably within dairy, desserts or ice cream.Ideally have some people management experience

Desirable Skills:

Industry Knowledge - Strong knowledge of Brands, values & processes as adopted by the retailers.
Business Acumen - Strong commercial awareness with the ability to identify & maximise opportunities while minimising costs.

Personal Attributes:

Creativity Flair & Data relevance – Strong creative mindset and an ability to transform data and trends into ideas which are fit for consumers today & tomorrow
Detail-Oriented – Meticulous attention to detail in both product development and documentation
Adaptability - Able to work in a fast-paced environment and adjust to changing priorities & project timelines. Resilience and supporting others is key.
Analytical Thinker – Strong, analytical skills, capable of interpreting data to guide decision-making processes
Tenacious & “can do” attitude
Self-driven with a growth mindset & can use initiative
Desire and ability to influence & drive change
Hands on & practical approach to working
Good IT skills - Microsoft and database systems
Influential - Ability to pull cross functional teams in one direction with right level of data and detail to make decisions

Why should I join the family?

We’re independent, British and proud to be making the highest quality yogurts, desserts and ice cream under the Yeo Valley brand and for many of the UK’s major retailers. Operating from four dairies and two logistics centres in Somerset and Devon, we employ over 1700 staff and produce more than 25% of the UK’s packaged yogurt.

We’re sure you don’t need convincing, but there’s a whole host of benefits that we offer including:

competitive holiday allowance
non-contributory pension scheme
annual bonus (as part of the Employee Benefit Trust, based on company performance for the year)
life cover
healthcare cash back plan
cycle to work scheme
subsidised Yeo Valley products and services
preferential rates with our partners
learning and development opportunities; we’re committed to ensuring all of our employees have the chance to grow

Our closing dates are a guide for when the application window should close, although we may close the advert sooner if we can. So, we recommend you get your application in straight away – and don’t miss the opportunity to join us!

Unfortunately, we’re not able to provide employment sponsorship to candidates at this moment in time.

Please note that Yeo Valley do not accept speculative agency applications; we will only accept applications from preferred suppliers that have been submitted to us via our recruitment portal at the point of instruction.

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Job Description

Innovation Manager - Fruit (Fixed Term Contract)

So, what will I be doing?

Sounds interesting, what do I need?

Why should I join the family?

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