What are the responsibilities and job description for the Associate Innovation Manager position at Beyond Meat?
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
At Beyond Meat, we started with simple questions. Why do you need an animal to create meat? Why can’t you build meat directly from plants? Thus, we make plant-based meats that allow families to eat more, not less, of the traditional dishes they love while feeling great about the health, sustainability, and animal welfare benefits of plant protein. Our goal is to bring exciting change to the plate—and Beyond.
OVERVIEW
At Beyond Meat, we are focused on raising the bar on talent. We are dedicated to shaping an inclusive culture that drives excellence, innovation, and results by enabling talent acceleration and development, engagement, and the employee experience.
As an Associate Innovation Manager you will be mainly responsible for project management of new innovations and renovations within the EMEA region.
You will be responsible for contributing to the conceptualization, initiation, development, evaluation and follow-through for new product development and improvements in line with Beyond Meat’s guiding principles. You will collaborate with internal and external partners to ensure the parameters of the product development time-line, budget and schedule are followed with attention to detail in execution.
We are looking for an ambitious Associate Innovation Manager professional, with a can-do mentality and the ability to multitask in a highly energetic entrepreneurial environment. An independent self-starter who has experience working in an international organization. We are looking for professionals that have an affinity with this new world of food and are a strong team player with a result driven attitude.
TASKS, DUTIES, & GENERAL RESPONSIBILITIES
● Lead innovation projects in a stage-gate product development process, within a cross-functional steering team.
● Renovation of existing product which is informed by strict product-development guardrails.
● Prepare and lead project meetings with departments, following the process and ensure project is on track.
● Lead roll out of packaging and implementation of updates for multi-country roll out within EMEA.
● Support sell-in of new products to retailers with insights, analytics, and development of sales and marketing decks and other materials.
● Partner with R&D team and other relevant cross-functional partners to develop and refine messaging for new products.
● Own and update master Q&A documents (in Smart Sheets) with new product Q&A information.
● Create consumer, category, and competitive analytics that guide innovation and renovation efforts and also evaluate product-launch performance and optimization of tactics.
● Conduct consumer research, including design, development, planning, and (in some cases) first-hand execution of focus groups, surveys, and in-home use tests aimed at gaining insights into innovation opportunities and new product development performance and optimization of tactics.
● Work with other members of the marketing team to inform go-to-market launch plans for new products.
QUALIFICATIONS
● Bachelor’s or Masters degree in Food Technology or related studies.
● Minimum of 2 to 3 years of relevant innovation and/ or product manager experience.
● Strong project management skills
● Experience in a R&D product development role is a plus.
● Knowledge of consumer behavior and attitudes related to food.
● Demonstrated consumer-led mindset, while also being able to understand other stakeholders’ perspectives (shopper, retail partner, BYMT management, etc.).
● Strong communication skills: must be able to develop strong working relationships, communicate effectively and comfortable giving presentations – languages: Dutch and English.
● Flexible team player with the ability to communicate with various team members.
● Detail-oriented, organized, and able to juggle multiple tasks in a timely manner, with minimal supervision.
● Interest in data-driven decision-making, and ability to problem-solve with or without perfect metrics.
● Strong analytical capabilities—advanced Excel required, proficiency using Smart Sheet is a plus.
● Comfortable with analyzing and presenting consumption data.
WORK ENVIRONMENT
● Amsterdam office combined with remote work
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Beyond Meat is an equal employment opportunity employer. Candidates are considered for employment without regard to race, creed, color, national origin, age, sex, religion, ancestry, veteran status, marital status, gender identify, sexual orientation, national origin, liability for military service, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. If you are interested in learning the status of your application, please note you will be contacted directly by the appropriate human resources contact person if you are selected for further consideration. Beyond Meat reserves the right to defer or close a vacancy at any time.
Please note that Beyond Meat has adopted a COVID-19 vaccination policy to safeguard the health and well-being of our employees. All U.S. employees who (a) physically enter a Beyond Meat facility in the United States, (b) represent Beyond Meat at work-related events, including but not limited to trade shows and product demonstrations, or (c) physically enter customer or potential customer sites in connection with their work for Beyond Meat must take all necessary steps to be Fully Vaccinated as a condition of employment, unless a reasonable accommodation is approved.
