Head of Research & Development (Flavours)

Incumbent shall lead and manage a global team of senior/professionals and technical skilled experts in flavours, sensory and chemicals (flavours) teams in creating flavours and savoury innovations, drive innovation and creativity to assist stakeholders in enhancing existing product lines and in launching new cutting-edge product initiatives.

The role will lead the local and regional flavour teams in all related projects. Proactively developing new tools, technologies, profiles for the respective regional flavour team, manage and contribute to the formulation and development for projects. Drive innovation and creativity in enhancing existing product lines.

Responsibilities and Duties

• Manage and lead flavor creation initiatives to meet customers and internal project requirements
• Ability to identify potential risks, gaps etc. and develop creative solutions to address technical flavor issues.
• Proactively evaluate new raw materials and assess potential for future use in creating new flavors, partner with Operations business unit to solve potential manufacturing issues.
• Serve as a Technical expert in flavor creation techniques and provide meaningful input into category initiatives.
• Collaborate with internal and external customers to provide insightful partnership and leverage trusting relationships.
• Detailed knowledge of global R&D scope, projects, timelines, and deliverables scheduling
• Strong understanding of global capabilities, effective global network
• Defines gaps in portfolio and technologies to meet consumer needs
• Active involvement with R&D on regular basis for strategic initiatives
• Leads creative input on major regional and global projects
• Directs technology development and implementation in regional projects
• Manage and resolve key technical challenges with most appropriate resource
• Represents the business unit in senior projects to regional customer
• Strengthen ingredient and process knowledge, internally and externally.
• Understand competition capabilities, defines products gaps to category
• Ability to develops / propose customized training programs for Trainees, Juniors and Flavorists
• Any other ad-hoc tasks by Senior Management (representative/owner of business unit)

Qualifications & Requirements

• Bachelor's/Undergraduate Degree/Diploma in any science discipline, food engineering, food science, chemical engineering with at least 7 years relevant working experience as a hands-on Sensory Scientist / Panel Manager in the tobacco industry or related
• You are the technical expert to identify potential risks and develop creative solutions to address technical flavor issues.
• You are good in building strong customer relations and capable in leading sizeable technical projects that are either proactive or go to market (G2M). You possess flavor creation techniques with strong familiarity in tobacco/savory products market trends.
• You should be comfortable working in a B2B environment with a positive, self-driven or results oriented attitude. Strong teamwork, customer orientation, project management, effective time management skills with proven ability to oversee all assigned projects and meeting deadlines are highly desirable.
• Comfortable in leading and working with sensory panels
• Able to design suitable sensory test using relevant sensory methodologies to achieve project objective
• Able to analyse complex sensory data using statistical models and translate collected data effectively into recommendations to support the development and design of products
• Experience in working under tight deadlines independently in a fast-paced environment to achieve targets
• Able to maintain confidentiality for all work-related matters.
• Strong scientific proficiency that can be applied to projects
• Excellent level of liaison skills with high sense of proactivity.
• Good team-work skills actively involve colleagues across the business, builds the benefits of collaborative working.
• Innovative thinker, ability to provides speedy solutions and hands on.