Senior Product Developer at RCL Foods

Job Description    
Minimum Requirements    

• Minimum 3 year Qualification in Culinary arts / Qualified Chef
• Minimum of 2 years’ experience as a PD within the Speciality team unless prior
• experience externally warrants seniority
• Numerical and verbal aptitude, strong communicator.
• Intermediate computer skills (especially excel and word)
• A valid driving license.
• Minimum of 2 years culinary experience within an established food manufacturing
• Experience working with a multi-cultural team.
• Positive and enthusiastic attitude.
• Able to work efficiently under pressure
• Able to overcome product failure

Duties & Responsibilities    
Purpose of the role

• Identify possible new products. This involves brainstorming ideas, discussing the
• product’s requirements, and determining market and overall feasibility for a
• particular product concept.
• Keep their ‘ears on the ground’ and speak with people, read magazines, read food
• blogs and watch food shows, all in an effort to understand which food products
• people enjoy, and where market gaps are.
• Discover who’s going to buy the product and ways to make it unique. Use surveys
• and other research tools to focus the product concept and target goals, such as what
• market gap it will fill.
• Define the key elements of the new food product, such as the format, size, taste,
• colour, texture and consistency.
• Develop the new food product, including the recipe, sourcing of ingredients, shelf
• life, packaging & manufacturing processes. Developing a new food product involves
• assembling and presenting samples of the product to an external customer.
• Construct and manage all own trial CPA’s
• Manage Kitchen Assistant work schedules and project allocations
• Duties and reponsibilities:
• Research & Market Analysis
• Identify market niches and opportunities into which existing products could be
• adapted and new products developed.
• Continuously research food trend to stay ahead of consumer trends.
• Evaluate the success of new products in their markets.
• Do a Product Trend analysis presentation once a quarter
• Development
• Formulation of new recipes and improvement of existing recipes and packaging.
• Recommend new products and work with the NPD team to transform food concepts
• into viable products, This involves brainstorming ideas, discussing the product’s
• requirements, and determining market and overall feasibility for a particular product
• concept
• Conduct taste panels for proposed new products and document results
• Prepare reports and recommendations based on new food product trials.
• Coordinate shelf life studies with the NPD Process Technologist.
• Ensure that potential new products can be manufactured profitability.
• Service Management
• Liaise with suppliers to ensure that RCL Foods is aware of new ingredients coming on
• to the market
• Present new products to customers

KPI’s

• Achievement of SIA targets
• Rate of new product development
• Efficacy of the product transition from kitchen to factory and launch.
• Customer satisfaction & relationship

Internal

• Enjoy working in a team setting with other functional areas e.g. Operations,
• Commercial, QA Teams, Supply Chain
• Explain ideas and get other department’s buy-in into new products and processes.
• Train all staff involved in the production of new products developed

External

• Communication with Woolworths on a daily basis. Travel to Woolworths Head
• Office to present samples and attend meetings minimum 3 times a month.
• National QSR Customers
• Ingredient & Packaging Suppliers
• Interact with customers to find new and novel market opportunities for products