Innovation Manager - Desserts

Premier Foods is a business in turnaround, making great progress.  We’re introducing innovative new products and changing how people cook and consume food.  Almost 95% of UK households have our products in their cupboards, and we have a burgeoning International business. We’re going places and it’s a great time to join us.

We're delighted to offer the opportunity for an experienced an experienced and ambitious innovation manager, with a track record of launching EPD / NPD to deliver our expansion plans to market

The post holder will work alongside the Innovation Controller in leading strategic NPD projects; delivering products to market on time with a sound business case, driving incremental growth in some of the UK’s most loved brands.

With a desirable brand portfolio spanning 5 brands including Ambrosia – a key brand in Premiers portfolio worth nearly £100m RSV, we have already successfully launched into Frozen with other equally ambitious plans to follow.

Key Accountabilities & Responsibilities 

• Keeping consumers at the heart – developing insight led, consumer centric innovation to step change growth.
• To lead key innovation projects through our commercial approval process based on well thought through consumer, category and shopper rationale supported by rigorous business cases to ensure maximum chance of in market success  
• To lead and inspire cross-functional teams (specifically R&D, Category Management, Revenue Growth Management and Sales) to facilitate successful innovation development
• Working closely with the brand teams to ensure all innovation is aligned to brand strategies and brings the Brand Vision to life
• To develop and validate stand-out packaging that brings concepts to life and promotes trial
• To create products that deliver long term, sustainable success with a distinct proposition and clear role in driving brand growth 

Minimum Requirements:

• Someone who can make an impact and can demonstrate delivering outstanding results in a fast moving dynamic environment
• Strong bias for action and high degree of personal accountability
• Strong experience of working cross-functionally and leading projects to successful in market delivery
• Experience of working with a broad spectrum of research tools (including market data, trends analysis and consumer qualitative programmes)
• A commercially and analytically aware individual (fluent in understanding and developing a P&L) who is comfortable creating  and presenting business cases in an organisation which will only invest on the back of sound quantitative evidence
• An instinctive marketer who places consumers at the heart of everything that they do
• Evidence of challenging convention, demonstrating good initiative and thinking ‘out of the box’
• Experience working within the Food and Beverage Industry an advantage