Manager Innovation & Strategy

Foods people love. Brands people trust. And a career that nourishes your future like no other.

If you're driven by the passion to do something meaningful that changes lives, Nestle is the place for you. Nestle USA is one of seven operating companies that make up Nestle's presence in the United States. We're in 97% of American homes, and as the leading food and beverage company, our goals are to continue to deliver quality food and beverage products, strengthen our local communities, and reduce our environmental and climate impact.

We're determined to challenge the status quo and be better tomorrow than we are today. As individuals and teams, we embrace our entrepreneurial culture and have created a workplace where collaboration is essential, courage is rewarded, speed is expected, and agility is the norm to delight our consumers every single day. Here, you will find limitless opportunities to learn and advance your career and feel empowered to succeed in the workplace and beyond. Because our focus is not only on nourishing our customers, but also about enriching you.

This position is not eligible for Visa Sponsorship.

The objective of the role is to build the confidence and capability of NUSA Innovators in service of delivering robust, consumer-led winning Innovation pipelines for our beloved brands with the required speed necessary to win in the new reality.

The Innovation Manager supports the development of innovation pipelines across Nestle USA's strategic businesses. They collaborate with the Senior Manager of Innovation, responsible for designing, enhancing, and digitizing the front-end of innovation approach, and divisional teams to lead them through the entirety of the front-end approach. This includes identifying strategic opportunities, leading ideation and creation workshops to develop concepts and prototypes for a 5G pipeline.

Additionally, they will drive front-end projects that drive new innovations across various NUSA-categories, working closely with Innovation teams, Consumer & Marketplace Insights, Finance, TAG, and R&D to deliver profitable, high-growth pipelines.

Business Partnership
Innovation Co-Pilot

• Partner with divisions to develop 5G pipelines, including leading and facilitating innovation workshops to develop strategic opportunities, jobs to be done, ideas, concepts, and prototypes, through deploying & embedding the NUSA Innovation framework, powered by AI.
• Deliver consumer-led concepts ready for testing, ensuring technical and manufacturing feasibility
• Collaborate with R&D, Culinary, Packaging Design, and Digital COE to support prototype development
• Share successes, wins, and best practices with senior leadership

Training and Best Practice Deployment

• Lead the deployment of innovation training to upskill Marketing, CMI, and cross-functional teams across NUSA
• Organize and facilitate monthly Innovation Leadership Team meetings to share and embed best practices across divisions.

Core Platform Innovation
Front-End Innovation Lead

• Lead the development of above-category platforms by leveraging foresight, consumer insights, trends, and emerging needs.
• Identify relevant brands for these platforms and foster strong, collaborative relationships with divisional I&R partners and CMI leads to align innovation strategies, idea generation, and concept development.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams (Technical, R&D, Finance) and external experts to generate innovation concepts and select winning opportunities for testing and feasibility.
• Develop and manage new product and program handoffs to ensure smooth transitions for new product launch plans with established business partners.

FINANCIAL/STRATEGIC IMPACT: Achieving results from consumer testing that validate opportunities, meet sales thresholds, and demonstrate a path to profitability - ultimately demonstrating inclusion in business plans for launch.

REQUIREMENTS AND MINIMUM EDUCATION LEVEL:

• Bachelors degree required.
• MBA or Master's degree in Marketing is preferred.

EXPERIENCE:

• Have good working knowledge of CPG, preferably food as well as channel of trade customer base in Grocery, Mass and Club.
• 2-3 years previous Innovation experience required

SKILLS:

• Customer service orientation.
• Strong project management skills to ensure timeline & budgets are in line
• Thinks strategically.
• Strong communications skills, both oral and written.
• Strong judgment in decision-making.
• Ability to work with all levels of the organization.
• Possess good problem solving skills.

COMPETENCIES:
Functional Competencies:
Marketing Strategy - Identifies future consumer segments and white space opportunities for the brand that deliver against unmet consumer needs
Consumer Insight & Empathy - Goes beyond understanding consumers and what they do to why they do it
Innovation - Generates new ideas that demonstrate creative problem-solving and idea generation for his/her own brand and others
Nestle Leadership Framework Key Competencies: Results Focus, Insight, Know Yourself, Influence with Integrity

It is our business imperative to remain a very inclusive workplace.

To our veterans and separated service members, you're at the forefront of our minds as we recruit top talent to join Nestle. The skills you've gained while serving our country, such as flexibility, agility, and leadership, are much like the skills that will make you successful in this role. In addition, with our commitment to an inclusive work environment, we recognize the exceptional engagement and innovation displayed by individuals with disabilities. Nestle seeks such skilled and qualified individuals to share our mission where you'll join a cohort of others who have chosen to call Nestle home.

The Nestle Companies are an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer seeking diversity in qualified applicants for employment. All applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, gender, gender identity, age, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, perceived disability, medical condition, genetic information, veteran status, sexual orientation, or any other protected status, as defined by applicable law. Prior to the next step in the recruiting process, we welcome you to inform us confidentially if you may require any special accommodations in order to participate fully in our recruitment experience. Contact us at accommodations@nestle.com or please dial 711 and provide this number to the operator: 1-800-321-6467.

This position is not eligible for Visa Sponsorship.

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