Associate Manager, Scratch PD Business Support

Unilever • Englewood Cliffs, NJ

11d

About The Position

Scratch Cooking is a critical pillar within Unilever’s Nutrition business. It houses Knorr, one of Unilever’s 30 Power brands and it is the second largest global brand. Knorr serves millions of American and Canadian consumers daily, led by its purpose to provide accessible and affordable nutrition to the many. As a member of the Scratch Cooking R&D team, you will both lead and support the R&D activities required to deliver key Scratch Cooking initiatives and work with a cross-functional project team to deliver the brand’s business objectives. We are seeking an experienced individual contributor responsible for independent formulation development and technical delivery of Foods innovation, renovation, and business support for Knorr Cooking Aids and Mini-Meals projects. The role translates consumer, culinary, and business briefs into robust, scalable food formulations that meet quality, safety, nutrition, cost, and sustainability requirements. Additional responsibilities include ensuring business continuity and resilience through strategic product development initiatives. This includes managing alternate material qualifications, complexity reduction; and, core renovation projects to maintain and enhance our market position.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Food Engineering or a related field.
• Proven experience in product development.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously.
• Excellent communication and leadership skills.
• Strong track record of ability to work collaboratively with cross-functional teams.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in the consumer goods industry.
• Knowledge of foods formulation and ingredient functionality as well as regulatory compliance and cost-saving strategies.
• Computer literate
• Proficiency in data analysis and problem-solving.
• Highly collaborative spirit inspiring teamwork & collaboration
• Ability to identify opportunities for improvement
• A positive, can-do attitude and a balanced, calm approach to deliver projects in tight timelines

Responsibilities

• Independently leading food formulation development from concept through scale up and commercialization
• Design and execute formulation strategies, test protocols, and experimental plans
• Develop bench scale and pilot scale prototypes, conducting analytical, sensory, and shelf life testing
• Own technical decision making within projects, recommending formulation options based on data and risk assessment
• Lead or strongly influence factory trials and scale up, adjusting formulations and processes as needed
• Develop and approve raw material and finished product specifications
• Partner cross functionally with Marketing, CTI, Culinary, Supply Chain, Regulatory, Quality, and suppliers
• Support business continuity, renovation, cost savings, and complexity reduction initiatives
• Contribute technical expertise to troubleshooting and supply chain issues where formulation knowledge is critical
• Oversee the relaunch of products with no consumer-perceivable changes, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements and achieving cost savings.

Benefits

• Unilever employees are eligible to participate in our benefits plan. Should the employee choose to participate, they can choose from a range of benefits to include, but is not limited to, health insurance (including prescription drug, dental, and vision coverage), retirement savings benefits, life insurance and disability benefits, parental leave, sick leave, paid vacation and holidays, as well as access to numerous voluntary benefits. Any coverages for health insurance and retirement benefits will be in accordance with the terms and conditions of the applicable plans and associated governing plan documents.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 501-1,000 employees