VP, Innovation & Product Development

Specific Key Responsibilities & Duties

 Innovation

• Lead the science of innovation, partnered with Marketing, to deliver blockbuster innovations and bring breakthrough ideas to market, measured quarterly through the company’s innovation scorecard.
• Bring scientific insight and the creative spark required to identify rare, high‑impact opportunities that drive growth.
• Identify new ingredients, emerging clinical research, and novel combinations that can unlock category‑defining products
• Identify and evaluate emerging trends, technologies, and ingredients to inform long-term innovation strategy.

• Foster strategic partnerships with ingredient suppliers and co-manufacturers.

• Help to activate, in collaboration with other cross-functional leaders, organization’s global innovation strategy, ensuring alignment with corporate objectives and values.
• Work with other cross-function leaders to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of companies processes that support innovation and new product introduction.
• Provide creative thought leadership to drive the end-to-end innovation lifecycle, from ideation and feasibility to formulation, launch and post-market evaluation and lifecycle management.
• Oversee the commercialization of products from third party contract manufacturers, ensuring critical milestones are met throughout the launch process

Product Development

•  Oversee the team that brings to life innovative concepts developed in conjunction with Sales and Marketing through our stage gate process to ensure technical feasibility
• Ensure best in class flavour/taste/sensory experience for relevant products through adoption of new technologies and competitor benchmarking
• Facilitate ongoing manufacturing support for new and existing formulations at all of our manufacturing sites
• Facilitate and discover cost savings opportunities through new/dual/alternate raw material sourcing

 Executive Leadership

• Provide strategic recommendations to the board and/or executive committee members based on knowledge and insight; influence corporate strategy and organizational direction
• Build, coach, and manage a high-performing multidisciplinary team
• Develop budgets, KPIs, and risk mitigation plans for the department.
• Influence across multiple teams and functions, collaborating closely with Legal, Quality, Marketing, Operations, and Commercial teams to ensure alignment on global growth objectives.
• Work collaboratively with other leaders within the organization to ensure company and department-wide goals and objectives are met.