Culinary Developer

Designs, develops, maintains, and expands an innovative culinary repertoire. Acts as an ambassador to “Honoring Food”.

Role and Responsibilities

• Creates and delivers factory-friendly innovation that drives top & bottom line growth.
• Develops new products following product-brief guidelines, including specific customer requirements, costs, raw materials, production limitations, labor costs, etc.
• Collaborates with procurement, sales, process and operation teams to develop a quality product
• Works with sales team to introduce products or ideation to multiple sales channels, including Food Service, National Accounts and Retail channels.
• Supports marketing and sales support efforts with creative input
• Develops appropriate customer relationships and touchpoints with customer teams
• Builds strong relationships internally with stakeholders including: Sales/Process/Marketing/Production/Procurement/Finance/Quality Assurance/Regulatory
• Maintains accurate documentation on ideation/recipes
• Supports culture of innovation

LEVEL OF RESPONSIBILITY

• Works under general supervision. Makes decisions within clearly prescribed areas referring matters that fall outside that area to others.
• Builds concensus across functional areas.
• Advises customers on proper use of company products.
• Position is directly responsible for generating revenue within product line or territory.
• Ineffective actions could result in significant loss of time, resources and/or could have moderate impact on the organization’s public image. Decisions or actions have a significant impact on the organization. Errors are difficult to detect and may be difficult and/or costly to correct. Decisions may have a significant impact on resources and organizational effectiveness; funding, productivity, service, quality, security of assets or external relationships may be adversely affected., * Cross-trains other employees and answers questions from co-workers, but is not responsible for performance management., Kettle Cuisine takes the utmost pride in its people, products and reputation. Each employee is expected to understand and live our Core Values every day.
• Honor Food - We create and produce the best tasting, safest, all natural recipes that strive for perfection in every batch, from bench to kettle
• Honor Each Other - We seek to develop trusting, respectful and mutually rewarding relationships with all our team members and business partners
• Honor Development - We recognize and nurture each other’s talents, strengths and interests in order to further strengthen and grow our team
• Honor Innovation - We continually strive for creative and sustainable ways to achieve excellence

Do you have experience in Microsoft Outlook?, Do you have a Associate’s degree?, * Associate’s degree, or equivalent experience required

• Certification in Culinary Arts or Food Science required
• Requires three - five years in Product Development
• On-the-job training of 3-6 months.
• Must be proficient with MS Office programs, specifically Excel and Outlook, * High energy and passionate about food, product & brand
• Experience with a food manufacturer preferred
• Knowledge of the natural foods industry
• Excellent oral & written communication skills
• Customer-Centric thinker
• Professional and capable demeanor with customers and colleagues
• Creative culinary skills with commercial mindset
• Ability to prioritize multiple projects - highly organized
• Accuracy mindset - Keen attention to detail

Pulled from the full job description

• On-the-job training
• Opportunities for advancement, The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those a Development Chef encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.

Physical Demands/Efforts

• Work requires occasional physical exertion including some lifting of objects weighing up to 40 pounds
• Willing and able to stand for long periods of time

Mental & Visual Demands

• Work performed by this position requires considerable mental concentration to effectively execute complex tasks.
• Work requires continuous visual effort for extended periods of time.

Work Environment and Hazards

• Employee works in a manufacturing setting with frequent exposure to heat/cold, dust, or other factors that may require protective equiptment and still pose a hazard.
• This position has regular exposure to hazards that could result in significate injury and lengthy loss of time at work.
• 10-15% travel is required for this position. Travel may be out-of-state and occasionally require overnight stays.