Bake Crafters
Overview
Summary of Position: The Senior Director of Research and Development is a high-impact leadership role responsible for driving the company’s R&D and Innovation strategy across all categories, with a primary focus on Pizza and an additional emphasis on Frozen Breakfast. Reporting directly to the Chief Growth Officer, this leader works in real time to deliver near-term Pizza wins across all sales channels while advancing long-term Innovation platforms that secure sustainable growth. This role oversees the technical design and execution of the R&D and Innovation pipeline, ensuring new product development is insights-driven, operationally feasible, and commercially successful. While the Director, Category Management – Pizza provides category insights, customer alignment, and market strategy, the Senior Director of R&D leads the product creation, technical feasibility, and commercialization. Together, the two roles ensure the Pizza portfolio is both market-relevant and technically executable.
Direct Reports:
Director of R&D, Pizza Technician, Frozen Breakfast Technician
Key Responsibilities
R&D and Innovation Leadership
In partnership with the Director, Category Management – Pizza, co-define the company-wide R&D and Innovation strategy, balancing near-term Pizza growth with long-term category development.
Lead the technical design, development, and execution of new products across Pizza, Frozen Breakfast, and emerging categories.
Build and manage the Innovation pipeline, ensuring projects are technically feasible, scalable, and aligned with customer needs.
Drive breakthrough ideation and product design while ensuring alignment with commercial strategies provided by Category Management.
Champion a culture of curiosity, agility, and Innovation excellence across R&D and technical teams.
Product Development & Commercialization Oversight
Own the product development process from benchtop to commercialization, ensuring speed-to-market and technical feasibility.
Partner with Category Management to prioritize near-term Pizza launches that deliver measurable commercial wins.
Ensure compliance with USDA, state-specific requirements, and regulatory standards.
Translate consumer and customer insights into differentiated, technically viable product solutions.
Cross-Functional Leadership
Collaborate with Category Management to align Innovation with market trends, customer needs, and pricing strategies.
Strategic Growth Impact
Deliver near-term Pizza growth through Innovation-driven launches, while also developing long-term whitespace platforms.
Track and manage Innovation KPIs such as ROI, pipeline health, technical success rate, and speed-to-market.
Monitor competitive activity and emerging technologies to anticipate and develop technical capabilities that support future category growth.
Qualifications
Education and Experience:
Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Engineering, Business, Marketing, or related field required; MBA preferred.
10+ years of progressive experience in food R&D, Innovation, or product development, with strong exposure to frozen or bakery categories.
Proven track record of delivering near-term commercialization wins and building sustained Innovation pipelines across multiple channels.
Preferred: Experience working for PE-backed or growth-driven, fast-paced companies.
Skills & Competencies:
Visionary leader with ability to drive near-term commercial wins while advancing long-term technical strategy.
Strong business acumen with deep understanding of product development, commercialization, and technical feasibility.
Excellent collaboration skills with proven ability to work cross-functionally, particularly with Category Management, Sales, and Marketing.
Data-driven decision-maker with strong analytical, technical, and trend-forecasting capabilities.
Success Measures
Measurable growth in Pizza revenue and share through near-term wins across sales channels.
Growth in Frozen Breakfast and other categories driven by long-term Innovation initiatives.
Percentage of company revenue from new products launched.
ROI, profitability, and technical success rate of the Innovation pipeline.
Cross-functional alignment and efficiency in bringing new products to market at scale.
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Direct Reports:
Director of R&D, Pizza Technician, Frozen Breakfast Technician
Key Responsibilities
R&D and Innovation Leadership
In partnership with the Director, Category Management – Pizza, co-define the company-wide R&D and Innovation strategy, balancing near-term Pizza growth with long-term category development.
Lead the technical design, development, and execution of new products across Pizza, Frozen Breakfast, and emerging categories.
Build and manage the Innovation pipeline, ensuring projects are technically feasible, scalable, and aligned with customer needs.
Drive breakthrough ideation and product design while ensuring alignment with commercial strategies provided by Category Management.
Champion a culture of curiosity, agility, and Innovation excellence across R&D and technical teams.
Product Development & Commercialization Oversight
Own the product development process from benchtop to commercialization, ensuring speed-to-market and technical feasibility.
Partner with Category Management to prioritize near-term Pizza launches that deliver measurable commercial wins.
Ensure compliance with USDA, state-specific requirements, and regulatory standards.
Translate consumer and customer insights into differentiated, technically viable product solutions.
Cross-Functional Leadership
Collaborate with Category Management to align Innovation with market trends, customer needs, and pricing strategies.
Strategic Growth Impact
Deliver near-term Pizza growth through Innovation-driven launches, while also developing long-term whitespace platforms.
Track and manage Innovation KPIs such as ROI, pipeline health, technical success rate, and speed-to-market.
Monitor competitive activity and emerging technologies to anticipate and develop technical capabilities that support future category growth.
Qualifications
Education and Experience:
Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Engineering, Business, Marketing, or related field required; MBA preferred.
10+ years of progressive experience in food R&D, Innovation, or product development, with strong exposure to frozen or bakery categories.
Proven track record of delivering near-term commercialization wins and building sustained Innovation pipelines across multiple channels.
Preferred: Experience working for PE-backed or growth-driven, fast-paced companies.
Skills & Competencies:
Visionary leader with ability to drive near-term commercial wins while advancing long-term technical strategy.
Strong business acumen with deep understanding of product development, commercialization, and technical feasibility.
Excellent collaboration skills with proven ability to work cross-functionally, particularly with Category Management, Sales, and Marketing.
Data-driven decision-maker with strong analytical, technical, and trend-forecasting capabilities.
Success Measures
Measurable growth in Pizza revenue and share through near-term wins across sales channels.
Growth in Frozen Breakfast and other categories driven by long-term Innovation initiatives.
Percentage of company revenue from new products launched.
ROI, profitability, and technical success rate of the Innovation pipeline.
Cross-functional alignment and efficiency in bringing new products to market at scale.
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