Sr. Research And Development Manager

Position: Senior R&D Manager

Location: North Carolina | On-Site

We are partnering with an established food and beverage manufacturer in North Carolina, to identify a Senior R&D Manager. This is an exciting opportunity for a hands-on, collaborative leader who can oversee a talented technical team, drive commercialization projects from concept through launch, and help shape the future of the organization’s R&D function.

Must have experience in yogurt and/or cultured dairy. They are particularly interested in candidates with experience in yogurt, sour cream, cream cheese, whipped cream, or other refrigerated dairy products.

The Opportunity

This role will lead a team of six R&D Scientists, overseeing day-to-day execution while partnering closely with the Director of R&D on broader department initiatives. You will play a critical role in ensuring projects move forward efficiently, developing technical talent, and serving as a trusted resource for both the team and cross-functional partners.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a team of R&D and Commercialization Scientists, providing coaching, mentorship, and technical guidance.
• Oversee product development and commercialization projects from concept through full-scale manufacturing and launch.
• Manage project priorities, timelines, and resources across multiple initiatives.
• Provide technical leadership in formulation, scale-up, manufacturing troubleshooting, and root cause investigations.
• Partner with Operations, Quality, Engineering, Sales, Supply Chain, and Procurement to ensure successful commercialization.
• Support plant trials, process validations, first production runs, and manufacturing start-up activities.
• Build strong customer relationships and support customer innovation initiatives and technical presentations.
• Identify opportunities to improve processes, develop talent, and strengthen the overall R&D organization.

Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Dairy Science, Chemical Engineering, Food Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• 8–12 years of progressive experience in food and beverage product development and commercialization.
• Proven experience leading and developing technical teams.
• Strong experience taking products from concept through commercialization and full-scale manufacturing.
• Direct experience with yogurt and/or cultured dairy products is highly desired and a key priority.
• Experience with dairy beverages, sour cream, cream cheese, whipped cream, refrigerated dairy, or shelf-stable beverages is also valuable.
• Strong technical understanding of food formulation, manufacturing processes, scale-up, and troubleshooting.
• Ability to coach scientists through complex technical challenges and guide root cause investigations.
• Demonstrated success managing multiple projects and competing priorities.
• Strong cross-functional communication and collaboration skills.
• Willingness to provide occasional manufacturing support outside normal business hours.