R&D Manager, Pet Pilot Plant

Post Consumer Brands • Lakeville, MN

12h • Onsite

About The Position

This role oversees daily operations of the Post Consumer Brands Pet Food Pilot plant, ensuring people safety, food safety, quality, customer service, and efficiency. The Pilot Plant Manager is responsible for the safe, compliant, and efficient operation of the pilot plant, supporting product development, scale-up, and manufacturing readiness.
The position provides leadership, development, and support to technicians by empowering decision making, fostering learning, and driving continuous improvement. As a member of the Pet R&D leadership team, the role also helps shape the strategy and the technical pipeline to support business objectives.

Requirements

• Fundamental knowledge in food science and processing technologies.
• Strong collaboration skills and experience partnering internally and externally.
• Ability to effectively communicate, verbally and in writing, complex ideas to various stakeholders.
• Ability to thrive in a changing and fast-paced environment, managing multiple projects simultaneously.
• Job location is in Lakeville MN. Up to 25% Travel may be required.
• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, manufacturing, food science or equivalent experience.
• Prefer a minimum of 10 years of combined related experience with a preference in food processing / packaging.
• Previous supervisory experience required
• Strong knowledge of manufacturing systems and processes
• Strong knowledge of continuous improvement tools and techniques
• Able to build relationships and inspire others

Responsibilities

• Develop and lead a high performing team of technicians by setting clear expectations and ensuring adherence to company standards for personal safety, productivity, quality, food safety, sanitation, environmental compliance, and SQF requirements.
• Manage, prioritize, and coordinate pilot plant activities to meet business needs. Plan, organize, and schedule the work of technical personnel to ensure timely completion of testing and alignment with demand.
• Oversee pilot plant facilities, equipment, and systems to ensure they remain functional, sanitary, and safe while meeting all applicable regulatory and corporate requirements.
• Conduct GMP, safety, and pre‑operational audits to ensure compliance and readiness of facilities and processes.
• Effectively develop, scale up, and optimize and pilotplant processes, to emulate plant operations and co-man capabilities.
• Implement new operating procedures and recommend or execute equipment changes as required to support process improvements and business goals.
• Partner with R&D to refine current processes or explore new pilot-plant scale technologies, with the responsibility for initiating and executing capital project planning.
• Participate as a leader in Pet R&D to create and execute research plans
• Partners cross-functionally with Quality, Engineering, and Operations within project teams.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager