A wonderful new opening has arisen within an instantly recognizable brand in the QSR segment of the Innovation Manager covering the Middle East and Pakistan region.
The role is to ensure a continuous pipeline of relevant new product list ideas.
Basic tasks:
• Develop 3+ year product innovation pipeline for the region to support marketing calendar based on Business & AOP strategy.
• Innovate with existing and new components in systems to provide continuous product innovation
• Explore new food market trends and consumer cult followers to develop breakthrough ideas and concepts
• Partnering with suppliers on key innovation ideas and market updates
• Inspiring local teams across the country in the region with new and distinctive product ideas.
• Directly manages and takes responsibility for all food products presenting new product ideas to the public, including leadership, franchisee and global
• Support the exploration and evaluation of consumer research – in the market.
• Leverage consumer insights and trends to develop successful new products and cult innovations.
• Lead the internal innovation process involving multiple functions and partners.
• Organizing market explorations and food safaris to constantly inspire new innovations
• Visualize new product concepts and architectures.
• Participate in major NPD meetings and cross functionally tastings.
• Continuously network and communicate with global NPD teams to inspire global innovation and knowledge transfer for the region.
The ideal candidate:
• At least 8 years of experience in product innovation and thinking.
• Affiliation with culinary organizations with a minimum of culinary training. Chef experience is a plus.
• Added experience in Catering, Food Service NPD or QSR is an added advantage.
• Experience in leading new product thinking and concept creation sessions.
• Strong technical culinary skills with the ability to filter through consumer needs and trends.
• The ability to think creatively to achieve miraculous results
• Confidence, presence and personal motivation balanced with humility and the ability to excel in a team-based approach to innovation while maintaining perspective and building followers
• Flexibility, flexibility, the ability to deal with ambiguity, welcome and embrace change while respecting the value of tradition
• Ability to manage deadlines well and handle a dynamic work environment
Inspire Selection is an award winning recruitment agency, headquartered in Dubai that hires across the Middle East region. We employ highly knowledgeable professional consultants who are experts in connecting the right people with the right opportunities. Our reputation is built on our honesty, integrity and ability to find candidates of the highest caliber across our niche sectors. As a result, we are recruitment partners for a wide range of organizations – from pioneering companies to smaller local businesses. The sectors we cover include human resources, administration, finance, accounting, law, sales and marketing including digital marketing, information technology, oil/gas/energy, engineering, procurement, manufacturing, and higher education.