Innovation Manager

Bimbo Bakeries USA•Chicago, IL

About The Position

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: $103,500 - $134,500 Annual Bonus Eligibility Comprehensive Benefits Package Paid Time Off 401k & Company Match Position Summary: The Innovation Manager for Away-From-Home (“AFH”) will play a critical role in enabling Bimbo Bakeries USA’s AFH growth by leading customer-led innovation that meets the needs of chefs, customers, and consumers. This role owns end-to-end innovation coordination across the full product lifecycle - from uncovering insights and identifying opportunities, to championing customer requirements and translating them into commercial business cases, to refining concepts and products through development, launch, and in-market delivery. The Innovation Manager serves as the central point of coordination between Sales, R&D, Quality Assurance, and the bakeries, ensuring innovation initiatives are delivered with speed and discipline.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required (Business, Marketing, Engineering, Food Science, or related field).
Minimum 5–7 years of experience in marketing, innovation, R&D or product management.
Experience working and influencing cross-functional teams.
Strong understanding of customer-led innovation, commercialization, innovation / R&D stage-gate processes, and consumer goods product development.
Proven ability to manage multiple initiatives simultaneously and drive execution.
Strong analytical, communication, and project management skills.
Ability to operate effectively in a complex, fast-moving organization.
Embodies Bimbo Bakeries USA’s values of integrity, teamwork, resiliency, and continuous improvement.

Nice To Haves

Prior experience in Foodservice or Away-From-Home is preferred but not required.

Responsibilities

Innovation Strategy and Pipeline Ownership: Own and manage the AFH innovation pipeline across channels and customers, ensuring innovation priorities are aligned to strategic growth opportunities.
End-to-End Innovation Lifecycle Management: Drive ownership across the full innovation lifecycle - from insight generation and opportunity identification, to translating customer needs into commercial concepts and business cases, through concept refinement, development, and launch.
Customer Opportunity Development: Support joint business planning by shaping product offerings and translating customer priorities and commercial opportunities into actionable innovation concepts and delivery timelines.
Trend Spotting and Market Research: Lead forward-looking trend spotting and market research to anticipate customer needs and inform joint business planning, customer plans and innovation pipeline.
Cross-Functional Collaboration: Act as the central coordinator across Sales, bakeries, R&D, and Quality to prioritize opportunities, assess feasibility, and support the commercialization and delivery of innovations to customers.