R&D Manager – (Bakery Chef)

Job Summary

We are looking for a highly motivated and hands-on R&D Manager – Bakery to lead product development and operational setup for Standard Bread.

This position will be responsible not only for developing and improving bakery products, but also for transforming recipes and product concepts into practical, scalable, and standardized store operations.

The ideal candidate should have strong knowledge of bread, bakery production, baking processes, kitchen equipment, store setup, operational workflow, and SOP development. We are looking for someone who is a fast learner, proactive, energetic, adaptable, and able to solve problems quickly in a fast-paced F&B environment.

The role requires close collaboration with Operations, Procurement, Marketing, Training, and Store teams to ensure that every product can be consistently executed across stores while maintaining quality, efficiency, and brand standards.

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Key Responsibilities

1. Product Research & Development

• Lead the research, development, testing, and improvement of bread, bakery products, and related menu items.
• Develop new products based on brand direction, customer trends, market opportunities, and operational feasibility.
• Improve existing recipes in terms of taste, texture, appearance, consistency, shelf life, cost, and production efficiency.
• Conduct product trials and testing before launching new products.
• Establish standardized recipes, ingredients, portion sizes, preparation methods, baking temperatures, baking times, and product specifications.
• Ensure products can be consistently reproduced across different stores and by different team members.
• Troubleshoot product quality and production issues and identify practical solutions.

2. Bakery & Store Setup

• Support new store openings and bakery setup from an R&D and operational perspective.
• Plan and recommend appropriate bakery equipment, tools, machinery, and production requirements.
• Work with relevant teams on equipment placement and workstation setup to ensure efficient store operations.
• Review kitchen and bakery layouts based on actual production requirements.
• Design practical operational flows, including receiving, storage, preparation, dough production, proofing, baking, finishing, display, and serving.
• Identify potential operational bottlenecks and recommend improvements before and after store opening.
• Ensure store setup supports productivity, food safety, product quality, and employee efficiency.

3. SOP & Operational Standards

• Develop and maintain clear Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all bakery products and production processes.
• Create recipe manuals, production guidelines, product specifications, quality standards, and operational procedures.
• Define critical control points for preparation, proofing, baking, cooling, storage, display, and product holding time.
• Establish standards that are easy for store employees to understand, follow, and execute consistently.
• Continuously review and improve SOPs based on actual store operations and business requirements.
• Ensure all product and production standards comply with food safety and hygiene requirements.

4. Product Commercialization & Store Implementation

• Convert R&D concepts into products that can be commercially executed at store level.
• Conduct store trials and evaluate whether new products can be produced efficiently during actual operations.
• Work closely with Operations to ensure new menu launches are operationally practical.
• Support product launches and monitor product quality after implementation.
• Visit stores to identify product, equipment, workflow, and production issues.
• Analyze operational feedback and continuously improve recipes, processes, and SOPs.
• Ensure consistent product quality across all Standard Bread locations.

5. Cost & Ingredient Management

• Work closely with Procurement and relevant departments to source ingredients, equipment, and bakery supplies.
• Evaluate ingredients based on quality, consistency, availability, cost, and suitability for production.
• Support recipe costing and food cost optimization without compromising product quality.
• Identify opportunities to reduce waste and improve production yield.
• Establish appropriate ingredient specifications and alternative ingredients where required.

6. Training & Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Train bakery teams, store employees, supervisors, and relevant Operations teams on new products and production standards.
• Conduct hands-on demonstrations and product training before new menu launches.
• Work closely with Operations, Procurement, Marketing, Training, Store Development, and Store teams.
• Communicate product requirements and technical information clearly to both management and operational teams.
• Support Operations during new store openings, menu launches, and major operational changes.

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Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Culinary Arts, Bakery & Pastry, Hospitality Management, or a related field.
• Strong professional experience in the F&B, bakery, café, restaurant, or food retail industry.
• Preferably 5+ years of relevant experience in bakery R&D, product development, bakery operations, or related functions, with experience in a supervisory or managerial role.
• Strong knowledge of bread and bakery production, including ingredients, dough preparation, fermentation, proofing, baking, cooling, storage, and quality control.
• Good understanding of commercial bakery equipment and production processes.
• Experience in new store setup, kitchen/bakery layout, equipment planning, or operational workflow design is highly preferred.
• Strong experience in developing recipes, product specifications, operational manuals, and SOPs.
• Able to understand the relationship between product quality, food cost, manpower, equipment, production capacity, and store operations.
• Experience in multi-store F&B, bakery chains, café chains, or restaurant chains will be an advantage.
• Good command of English communication, both written and spoken.
• Computer literacy and ability to prepare reports, SOPs, presentations, and product documentation.