Senior Manager Innovation

Have you ever enjoyed Arnold®, Brownberry® or Oroweat® bread? A Thomas’® English muffin or bagel? Or perhaps snacked on a Sara Lee®, Entenmann’s® or Marinela® cake or donut? If the answer is yes, then you know Bimbo Bakeries USA! More than 20,000 associates in bakeries, sales centers, offices and on sales routes work to ensure our consumers have the freshest products at every meal. In addition to competitive pay and benefits, we provide a safe and inclusive work environment that appreciates diversity, promotes development and allows our associates to be their authentic selves. #LI-SO1  Come join the largest baking company in the world and our family of 20,000 associates nationwide! Top Reasons to Work at Bimbo Bakeries USA: Salary Range: $105,100 - $147,100 Annual Bonus Eligibility Comprehensive Benefits Package Paid Time Off 401k & Company Match Position Summary: Innovation plays a key role to remain competitive in the market and positioning ourselves for further growth. To focus on our efforts, our Innovation team will work closely with our Brand Teams, R&D, Technical Services and Sales teams to support the goals and strategies of our branded businesses. The Senior Manager of Innovation position will support our Breakfast Innovation team and will play a key role in filling our future innovation pipeline.  The person in this position will be responsible for leading the innovation effort for the category which will include understanding our business objectives, defining the work, developing consumer insights to ideate new products and then shepherd those new ideas through a product development process.  This team member will lead their projects with cross functional teams through testing and commercialization. This individual will need to demonstrate consumer empathy, as well as excellent team work, communication skills, organization, and project management skills. Exposure to a variety of market research techniques and experience in data analysis are also important. We are looking for candidates who are passionate about food and food trends and who enjoy the work of creating new things. Key Job Responsibilities: Lead further out innovation efforts by collaborating with the Category leadership to create a vision for innovation that includes an expanded product footprint. Mine trend and consumer data to map where the consumer is going and generate compelling product ideas that meet their needs.  Systematically evaluate ideas to select high potential opportunities for further testing and/or feasibility analysis Collaborate with internal research partner to design innovation testing (concept, prototype, in-store etc.) to best prove out innovation viability with consumers Work with Category Leadership to prioritize the future innovation plan. Develop strong, collaborative relationships with cross-functional teams (Brand Teams, Operations, Sales, R&D) to ensure collaboration and alignment of direction at all stages of development and launch. Use information, logic, and sound business judgment to develop new products and categories. Have project management skills to shepherd projects through execution and experience with annual business planning. Prepare persuasive sales and internal communication materials. Work collaboratively with agency and research partners. Must be agile in creating and reading data analysis to generate business insights. Develop and manage new product and program handoffs (process and materials) to ensure a smooth transition of new product launch activities throughout the development process. Leadership Competencies: Demonstrates Self-awareness: Use a combination of feedback and reflection to gain productive insight into personal strengths and weaknesses.  Collaborates: Build partnerships and work collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives.  Action oriented: Take on new opportunities and tough challenges with a sense of urgency, high energy, and enthusiasm.  Understands the business: Understands the business and organizational environment and shows interest in adapting to their culture and ways of working. Education and Work History: Bachelor's degree in marketing, Innovation or a related field. MBA preferred. 7 plus years of experience, CPG preferred. A combination of education, training and experience that results in demonstrated competency to perform the work may be substituted Computer skills and proficiency with MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Ability to learn and be proficient at other analytical tools and data sources. Experience with syndicated data such as IRI or Nielsen. Previous experience in an innovation role is a plus. Experience with consumer research and concept/prototype testing is a plus. Ability and willingness to travel 15% of the time (post COVID). Proficiency in Spanish is a plus. The physical and mental demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an associate to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be requested to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions . Bimbo Bakeries USA is an equal opportunity employer with a policy that provides equal employment opportunity for applicants and employees regardless of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, veteran status, any other classification protected by law. It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.