Director, Product Development & Sensory

The Honey Baked Ham Company, LLC•Alpharetta, GA

About The Position

The Director, Product Development & Sensory, leads HBH’s product development function across our portfolio of proteins, frozen desserts, side dishes, and condiments. This role sets strategy, operational objectives and work plans for the product development team, drives new formulations, and identifies opportunities across current and future products — from initial concept through commercialization. The Director owns HBH’s internal and external sensory programs, ensures new and reformulated products meet specification, food safety, and regulatory labeling requirements, and serves as the organization’s key technical resource to Marketing, Customer Experience/Sales, Quality/Food Safety, Supply Chain, and Operations on product and process matters. The Director manages and develops a direct report and represents HBH’s technical capabilities with co-manufacturers, ingredient suppliers, and academic research partners.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Animal Science, Chemical Engineering, or a related field.
8+ years of progressive experience in R&D/product development in food manufacturing, with a demonstrated record of taking products from concept through commercialization.
Demonstrated experience managing or mentoring direct reports, with a track record of developing talent and driving team results.
Strong working knowledge of food formulation, food safety, food microbiology, and manufacturing/processing.
Experience designing and executing sensory and consumer testing programs (e.g., discrimination and descriptive methods, consumer validation).
Proven experience authoring and maintaining product specifications and establishing quality/control procedures.
Skilled in experimental design (DOE) and data analysis and interpretation.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to translate complex technical information for technical and non-technical audiences, including senior leadership and customers.
Ability to work collaboratively and influence stakeholders across functions and organizational levels.
Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment; strong problem-solving and prioritization skills with high attention to detail.
Ability to lift/move 50+ lbs. and work in manufacturing plant environments.
Willingness to travel up to 40%, dependent on plant trials, supplier/customer visits, and the event calendar.

Nice To Haves

Experience in Ready-to-Eat (RTE) protein or related categories (e.g., proteins, frozen desserts, side dishes, condiments).
HACCP certification; USDA experience.
Lean Six Sigma Green Belt/Black Belt certification preferred.
Working knowledge of HACCP/HARPC/FSMA, allergen control, and validation of critical control points.
Functional culinary knowledge, with the ability to translate culinary direction into an operationally feasible formula and process.
Familiarity with specification/PLM systems, ERP platforms (e.g., SAP), Minitab or equivalent statistical software, and standard collaboration tools (MS Office, Teams, SharePoint).
Extensive knowledge in one or more of: meat science, thermal processing, RTE proteins

Responsibilities

Defines strategy and leads product development in collaboration with our co-packers from concept through commercialization, creating products based on ingredient functionality, nutritional and consumer targets, claim substantiation, operational feasibility, and financial targets
Set operational objectives and work plans for the product development function; identify and prioritize innovation and margin-enhancement opportunities in line with marketing and business strategy
Design, execute, and document experiments — applying Design of Experiments (DOE) principles — to evaluate ingredient functionality, texture, palatability, and processing behavior, and to optimize formulations against cost, nutrition, and consumer-acceptance targets.
Author, own, and maintain raw material, work-in-process, and finished product specifications, and manage version control through the product life cycle.
Develop and communicate project timelines, costs, and risks to senior leadership; proactively surface changes that affect scope, cost, or timing.
Analyze data from plant trials, proximate/nutrient analyses, and shelf-life studies, and translate findings into clear, actionable recommendations.
Ensure costing for new and existing products is supported by accurate information before and after pricing decisions; participate in business and capacity planning to support supply chain needs.
Coordinate academic and industry research partnerships that support HBH’s technical roadmap.
Own and manage HBH’s internal and external sensory programs, including panel design, testing protocols, and sensory-provider/vendor relationships.
Develop sensory profiles for new and existing products; design and oversee difference and preference testing (e.g., triangle, duo-trio, 9-point hedonic, and JAR scale methods) to support formulation and claims decisions.
Prepare, label, and ship product samples for internal evaluation, external sensory panels, analytical testing, and trials, maintaining chain-of-custody and product integrity throughout.
Translate sensory and consumer-insight findings into formulation direction, working closely with Marketing and Operations on claims and positioning.
Ensure all new and reformulated products comply with HBH quality standards and applicable regulatory labeling and food safety requirements.
Partner with Food Safety/Quality Assurance to audit and evaluate co-manufacturer and vendor performance against HBH specifications.
Support the Assured Supply program by vetting new and alternative raw materials and suppliers in compliance with established quality assurance standards.
Manage, mentor, and develop direct report; identify development opportunities and build the team’s technical acumen through coaching and hands-on guidance.
Serve as the key technical subject-matter expert and liaison between HBH and Marketing, Operations, Supply Chain, and Quality/Food Safety on product and process matters.
Provide technical support to manufacturing and co-manufacturing sites for product batching, processing, and scale-up, including on-site support for trials and first productions.
Support continuous improvement efforts — SOP development and Lean/Six Sigma principles — in partnership with Operations and Quality.
Manage special projects as assigned by senior leadership.