RD Manager

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the RD team responsible for product development and improvement across multiple restaurant brands.
• Set RD priorities, project timelines, resources and development standards in alignment with business objectives.
• Lead new product development from consumer/market insight through concept, formulation, validation, commercialization and launch.
• Work closely with senior management, Chefs, Marketing and Operations to establish product direction and priorities.
• Lead complex product/process/quality problems and coordinate cross-functional teams to identify root causes and implement solutions.
• Make technical and commercial decisions balancing product quality, food cost, operational complexity, scalability and consumer expectations.
• Review and approve recipes, specifications, SOPs, shelf-life validation and product standards.
• Establish systems and standards for recipe development, testing, validation, documentation and commercialization.
• Lead ingredient and supplier development together with Procurement and QA.
• Monitor and improve food cost, product consistency and operational efficiency across brands.
• Conduct regular store visits and establish mechanisms to identify recurring product and process problems.
• Manage communication between RD, Chefs, Marketing, Operations, QA, Procurement and suppliers.
• Manage, coach and develop RD team members; assign projects according to capability and workload.
• Set performance objectives and evaluate team performance.
• Build team capability in food science, culinary development, market trends, problem solving and commercial thinking.
• Support major marketing campaigns, product launches, photoshoots and events when technical/product expertise is required.
• Continuously monitor food trends, technologies, ingredients and competitors to identify innovation opportunities

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Culinary Science or a related field.
• Typically 7+ years of relevant experience, with significant experience in food R&D, product development or restaurant/food manufacturing.
• Previous experience managing people, projects or cross-functional teams.
• Strong technical knowledge of food formulation, processing, shelf life, food safety and commercial food development.
• Strong understanding of restaurant operations, consumer trends, menu strategy and food economics.
• Strong leadership, decision-making and problem-solving capabilities.
• Ability to manage multiple projects across different restaurant brands simultaneously.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Able to develop people and build a high-performing RD team.
• Strong commercial mindset with the ability to balance quality, consumer experience, operational feasibility, speed and cost.