Manager, Product Development

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Job Description Summary:

Please note: This is not a Remote role and will require the incumbent to be based either in Gurugram, India and follow a hybrid work schedule. This is an Individual Contributor role.

We are seeking an innovative and results-driven Manager to join our INSWA Global Development Initiative (GDI) team. The ideal candidate will possess strong expertise in juice and dairy product development, core R&D science, and digital dexterity. This role focuses on utilizing consumer and technology insights to deliver differentiated technologies and holistic product, packaging, and process solutions.

What You’ll Do for Us:

• Lead juice and dairy category product development for INSWA, ensuring projects meet quality, timing, and budget targets.

• Employ a 'design to value' and end-to-end (E2E) approach, incorporating sustainability, regulatory requirements, consumer preference, and supply chain considerations.

• Drive and build future innovation pipelines with the innovation network through a deep understanding of market and consumer trends.

• Use expertise in prototyping and stability tracking to ensure successful product designs.

• Leverage Technical Consumer Research (TCR) tools to drive product superiority.

• Ensure robust product validation and co-lead scale-up trials in bottler plants.

• Leverage digital tools to enhance work efficiency and improve pace of innovation.

• Communicate clearly and constructively with partners to deliver creative ideas, solutions, and project progress.

• Apply influencing skills to drive prioritization and resolve conflicts and challenges.

• Actively participate in global juice and dairy technical platforms.

• Understand Coca-Cola’s system dynamics from bottling to global supply chains to enable winning innovations.

• Translate consumer insights and technology trends into successful innovations.

• Align global pipelines with local market and consumer needs.

• Mentor junior Product Developers (PDs) and support their project management skills.

• Assist in resource allocation and develop the nutrition platform's technical capabilities

Qualifications & Requirements: 

• At least 5 years successful product development experience in the beverages industry or 4-6 years successful experience in related food industry.

• Bachelor's, Master’s, or Post-Graduate degree in food science, chemistry, or related field.

• Fluent in English, with proficiency in an additional language preferred.

• Willing to travel up to 20% annually.

Desired Skills and Competencies:

• Strong capability of beverage development, ingredient knowledge, and industry standards.

• Digital literacy: Advanced digital skills to employ data analytics, AI, and digital prototyping in innovation. Data integrity and cybersecurity awareness.

• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and project management abilities.

• Agility, resilience, and creativity to navigate new product development projects.

• Stakeholder management, innovation leadership and strategic decision making.

• Proficiency in statistical analysis and experimental design. 

• Proficiency to navigate within diverse ways of working. Embodying empathy and adeptness in conflict resolution.

• Commitment to sustainability and familiarity with science-based targets for eco-design and supply chain (e.g., tracking ingredient sourcing and lifecycle impacts, and foundational knowledge on circular economy).

What can help you to be successful in the role?

Growth Behavior:

• Growth Mindset: Demonstrates Curiosity. Welcomes failure as a learning opportunity.

• Smart Risk: Makes bold decisions/recommendations.

• Externally Focused: Understands the upstream and downstream implications of his/her work.

• Performance Driven & Accountable: Has high performance standards. Outperforms her/his peers.

• Fast/Agile: Removes barriers to move faster. Experiments and adapts. Thrives under pressure and fast pace.

• Empowered: Brings solutions instead of problems. Challenges the status quo. Has the courage to take an unpopular stance.

Leadership Behavior

• Act Like an Owner: Deliver results, creating value for our brands, our System, our customers and key stakeholders.

• Collaborate with the System, Customers and Key Stakeholders

• Develops Self and Others: Develop self and support others' development to achieve their full potential.

• Drive Innovation: Generate new or unique solutions and embrace new ideas that help sustain our business.

What We Can Do For You 

• Career growth and development: Leveraging our boundaryless network, we provide access to educational platforms and provide coaching, mentoring and feedback, as a part of our Leadership & Development process.

• Diverse and inclusive culture: You’ll be embraced for who you are and empowered to use your voice to help others find theirs. We want to make our culture inevitable.

• International Experience: Become part of international projects and work along multicultural teams, through our global network.

Skills:

Our Purpose and Growth Culture:

We are taking deliberate action to nurture an inclusive culture that is grounded in our company purpose, to refresh the world and make a difference. We act with a growth mindset, take an expansive approach to what’s possible and believe in continuous learning to improve our business and ourselves. We focus on four key behaviors – curious, empowered, inclusive and agile – and value how we work as much as what we achieve. We believe that our culture is one of the reasons our company continues to thrive after 130+ years. Visit Our Purpose and Vision to learn more about these behaviors and how you can bring them to life in your next role at Coca-Cola.