R&D Section Manager, Food Sensory

Land O'Lakes•Arden Hills, MN

2d•Onsite

About The Position

Land O'Lakes is seeking a sensory science leader to lead the Food Sensory team in the Dairy Foods R&D organization. The role advances sensory science as a strategic business capability while developing a high-performing team of scientists and technical professionals. The manager will bring scientific expertise and people leadership to strengthen sensory science’s impact on innovation, product development, consumer experience, manufacturing and product quality, and business decision-making across the Dairy Foods portfolio. The position leads and develops sensory scientists, technologists, sensory panel leaders, and support personnel; establishes an inclusive, accountable team culture; and builds succession and individual development plans. It serves as a central connector for sensory science with R&D, Marketing Research, Product Development, Quality, Manufacturing, and Packaging. In partnership with the Foundational Sciences R&D Director, the manager sets the technical direction and long-term strategy for sensory science. The role champions best-in-class methods and statistical approaches, advances capabilities through research and external partnerships, and ensures sensory insights inform product and business decisions. It also manages sensory portfolio priorities and resources, improves project intake and execution, and establishes governance and workflows for integrating sensory and analytical data and deploying sensory software and data tools. The role is based in Arden Hills, Minnesota, with four days per week in the office when not traveling. The work environment includes offices, laboratories, pilot plants, and manufacturing environments. Estimated travel is 10–20%. The salary range is $142,160–$213,240.

Requirements

PhD or Master's degree in Sensory Science, Food Science, Flavor Chemistry, or a related scientific discipline.
Minimum 15 years of sensory science experience in the food, beverage, ingredient, flavor, fragrance, or consumer packaged goods industry.
Minimum 7 years of experience leading technical teams and developing scientific talent.
Expertise across descriptive analysis, discrimination testing, consumer research, sensory statistics, predictive model development, and sensory interpretation.
Proven record of influencing product development and business decisions through science-based insights.
Strong understanding of food systems, flavor perception, consumer behavior, and sensory methodologies.
Exceptional ability to build relationships and influence decisions across R&D, Marketing, Operations, Quality, and executive leadership.

Responsibilities

Lead, coach, and develop sensory scientists, technologists, sensory panel leaders, and support personnel.
Create an engaging, inclusive, high-accountability culture that promotes collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement.
Build succession plans and individual development plans to strengthen organizational capability.
Connect sensory science with internal and cross-functional partners, maintain strong working connections, clarify roles and responsibilities, and hold teams accountable.
Establish the technical direction and long-term strategy for sensory science in Dairy Foods R&D with the Foundational Sciences R&D Director.
Promote adoption of best-in-class sensory methodologies and statistical approaches, and follow emerging technologies.
Advance sensory science capabilities through focused research, external partnerships, and thought leadership.
Serve as Dairy Foods’ primary expert and champion for sensory science.
Ensure sensory insights influence formulation decisions, commercialization strategies, product quality, and consumer acceptance.
Translate scientific findings into actionable recommendations for senior leaders and business partners.
Prioritize and allocate resources across the sensory portfolio, balancing near-term business needs with long-term capability development.
Improve project intake, execution, and knowledge management, and use team resources efficiently while maintaining scientific rigor.
Establish governance for sensory and analytical data interoperability, including shared identifiers, metadata standards, controlled lexicon conventions, and data quality checks.
Partner with analytical teams to operationalize sensory-chemistry correlation workflows, such as linking volatile profiles or analytical markers to sensory attributes and consumer response.
Oversee deployment and consistent use of sensory software and data tools, and develop reusable analytics to reduce cycle time.