Technical Product Specialist

Dare Foods Limited•Cambridge, ON

3d•Onsite

About The Position

Made Better isn’t just a claim; it’s our Dare promise. Dare has been a proudly Canadian, family-owned company since 1889. Throughout our long history, we’ve created some of the most loved brands in the country including Bear Paws cookies, REALFRUIT gummies, Breton crackers, Melba Toast and many more. For over 130 years we had been located in the Kitchener area since the family’s original store opened in 1892. We are head quartered in Cambridge Ontario and we’ve expanded our roots far beyond. With manufacturing plants in North America and over 1400 employees, Dare is part of the fabric of Canada. At Dare our dedicated team works passionately to uphold our tradition of excellence, innovation and quality in every aspect of our operations. Our state-of-the-art facilities utilize advanced technology to ensure consistency and quality while meeting the evolving needs of our consumers and customers. Reporting to the Manager – Technical Services (Processing), the Technical Product Specialist is responsible for executing all technical workflows relating to ownership of a specific product category, or categories, within Dare Foods. This position is part of our Technical Services Team which is based at our Corporate Office in Cambridge, ON and will be responsible for overseeing projects and tasks across our entire North American manufacturing network with travel to the U.S. being required. In this role, you will be asked to take ownership of a designated product category, or categories, and provide overall governance and technical support spanning across four key areas of; Manufacturing Technical Support, Cost Reduction, Technical Innovation and General Integrated Supply Chain Support. You will leverage your skills to build strong cross-functional partnerships across the business in multiple key areas. Possessing the ability to think critically and utilize an analytical mindset is key to implementing science/theory alongside data analysis to drive your workflows to successful completion.

Requirements

Post-secondary degree or diploma in Food Science, Engineering or Supply Chain is required.
Minimum 3 years of experience in the food manufacturing industry within a similar or relevant role.
Demonstrated ability to work in cross-functional teams and projects within the food manufacturing industry.
Independent worker, able to work autonomously but comfortable working in a collaborative, team environment.
Demonstrated experience of food safety and manufacturing practices such as GMP and HACCP.
Strong interpersonal, written and verbal communication, and presentation skills.
Excellent analytical skills and attention to detail.
Creative problem solver with the ability to pivot quickly when required.
Meets milestones on-time and on-budget.
Proficiency in Microsoft Office as well as experience with Minitab or similar data analytics tools.
Passion for food, efficient manufacturing practices, and technical problem solving.

Nice To Haves

Lean Six Sigma Green Belt is preferred.
Demonstrated experience utilizing Lean Six Sigma tools within Continuous Improvement Projects or frameworks would be an asset.

Responsibilities

Lead a product category, or categories, overall business success from a technical standpoint, executing a variety of projects across our North American Manufacturing Network.
Ownership of the Commercialization process relating to your product(s), helping establish new product development within our Integrated Supply Chain Network.
Build and participate in delivering presentations monthly for a cross-functional food review process in which the objective is to inform and gain total business alignment on a variety of projects within the Department.
Lead all items relating to the Project Management process for your product(s) that require input from Technical Services including but not limited to; Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (PFMEA), Process/Value Stream Mapping, Cost and Product Spec Analysis etc.
Alongside the Manager – Technical Services, build and execute Technical Services priority projects relating to improving product Quality and food safety, commissioning and validation of equipment alongside Engineering, assessing and approving materials to build a strong supply chain with our Procurement Team.
Work to mitigate any material supply risks/disruptions raised by our Procurement Team and liaise with Marketing/Sales as required to gain overall business alignment on impacts to product(s).
Participate in Manufacturing review meetings on a regular basis pertaining to overall plant performance and Continuous Improvement review meetings to drive cost reduction targets.
Support our R&D Innovation Team with technical advice when requested relating to Plant processes and procedures.