Mgr Technical Product Development & Optimization

The Hershey Company•Lower Swatara Township, PA

9d•Onsite

About The Position

The Manager, Protein Product Development leads the Protein Product Development team within Protein & Functional Snacking R&D, driving technical development and optimization across Hershey’s growing protein portfolio. This role translates consumer insights, business priorities, and market trends into technical strategies that deliver safe, compliant, manufacturable, and consumer-loved products. As a people leader, you will guide innovation from concept through commercialization while building team capability and advancing Hershey’s protein platform across formats including bars and powders.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree
Minimum 5+ years of progressive product development experience in food, beverage, or consumer packaged goods R&D preferred.
Proven experience leading technical programs and influencing cross-functional teams.
Demonstrated people leadership experience, including coaching, mentoring, and developing scientists and technical support staff.
Experience commercializing products from benchtop development through pilot plant and full-scale manufacturing.
Strong understanding of food safety, regulatory, and labeling requirements.
Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Chemical Engineering, Food Engineering, or a related technical discipline required.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree or other advanced degree preferred.
Strong expertise in protein-based product development, including protein ingredient functionality, texture optimization, shelf-life performance, and sensory quality.
Experience across multiple protein formats, including bars and powders.
Advanced experimental design, analytical problem solving, and data-driven decision-making skills.
Experience managing external partners, co-manufacturers, and ingredient suppliers.
Familiarity with stage-gate innovation processes and project management systems.
Excellent communication skills with the ability to translate complex technical concepts for diverse audiences and senior leadership.

Responsibilities

Lead the technical development of protein innovation and renovation projects from concept through commercialization.
Drive formulation, ingredient functionality, sensory optimization, process development, pilot trials, scale-up, and manufacturing startup activities.
Partner closely with Marketing, Consumer Insights, Manufacturing, Engineering, Procurement, Quality, and Regulatory teams to accelerate project execution and portfolio delivery.
Provide technical leadership, risk assessments, and recommendations to support stage-gate decisions and business prioritization.
Manage, coach, and develop a team of scientists and technical professionals, aligning resources across multiple programs and priorities.
Mentor team members in formulation, experimental design, and technical problem solving while supporting career growth and development.
Identify technical bottlenecks and capability gaps, implementing improvements that enhance product development speed, rigor, and efficiency.
Strengthen development processes, documentation practices, prototyping approaches, external partnerships, and cross-functional ways of working.
Build organizational capability by expanding expertise across protein technologies, ingredients, and product formats.