Principal Scientist, Co-Drying & Dry Blending
**Job Description**
**General Purpose:**
Responsible for the development of co-dried and dry blended dairy/dairy flavors for for food and dairy industries from concept/opportunity through commercialization (at the customer). This person will be relied upon as an expert related to co-drying and dry blending including dairy science research, innovation, development, applications; relating to new product/solution development; but also, for formulation cost-out opportunities, process improvements, new technology scouting. Key driver of organic growth through monetization of the opportunity and innovation pipeline.
**Job Duties and Responsibilities:**
**Specific to Strategy:**
+ Research dairy science, food science and equipment for the purpose of innovating new technologies and the development of intellectual property (IP) for DFA
+ Develop new wet and dry dairy systems, dairy flavors, dairy emulsions and solutions using DFAs plethora of ingredient options and manufacturing capabilities
+ Utilizing DFAs expansive drying (and dry blending) network and capabilities to enhance the value of DFAs dried dairy products using a what can we do with what we have? mentality.
+ Work with engineering and process technology to continuously expand DFAs drying, dry blending, and agglomeration capabilities through discovery of new tech, equipment/process modification, and formulation
+ Reformulate products as appropriate to reduce cost including building least cost/flexible formulation models encompassing of the fluctuation commodity markets and raw material availability
+ Perform applications testing simulating the customers end-use to ensure the products developed exceed the customers expectations for taste, functionality, and nutrition
+ Utilize sensory science tools, available in the Innovation Center, to give data points to the customer demonstrating expectations are met/exceeded
+ Perform pilot plant testing to ensure a successful scale-up for DFA manufacturing and ultimately the end customer
+ Drive the commercialization of new products by partnering with the process technology team in the plants
+ Support the customer in scale up and commercialization to ensure DFA people and products are part of the scale up and launch
+ Effectively operate all pilot plant equipment required to properly scale-up and test in application
+ Develop effective concepts for benchtop sessions, in partnership with sales and marketing, to generate wins with customers
+ Support sales in determining customer needs, problems, insights, and strategy that would ultimately require a DFA solution
+ Proactively initiate action plans to develop the solutions and capabilities
+ Inspire and excite customers through demonstration of unique new products and applications that are relevant to their consumers
+ Partner with sales to understand customers future needs, their brands, and strategies to anticipate new areas of capability development and innovative ideas for end use categories
+ Provide technical and applications expertise to support the customer
+ Drive opportunities to commercialization internally and close with the customer
+ Co-create and effectively utilize the product lifecycle management (PLM) process and adhere to the Scientific Development Standards Process, including version control, development notes and documented learnings
+ Effectively utilize CRM (Salesforce.com) as a tool to manage status of the opportunities, project milestones in the pipeline and track KPIs related to the opportunity pipeline continually improving our R&D service to customers, ultimately leading to faster speed-to-market driving increased customer connectivity.
+ Collaborate with and influence technical sales, customer support and other stakeholders to solve for yes
+ Contribute to technical content and review presentations for sales and marketing
+ Provide effective, timely and relevant reporting to leadership
+ Apply strong knowledge of the DFAs capabilities including understanding the functional and technical aspects of the products and how DFAs capabilities differentiate us from others in the industry
+ Demonstrate a never stop learning mindset and influence others to adopt this mindset
+ The requirements herein are intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by employee, but is not a complete list of responsibilities, duties, and skills required. Other duties may be assigned as required
**Requirements**
**Minimum Requirements:**
**_Education and Experience_**
+ B.S. Degree in food, dairy or biological science related discipline
+ Masters or PHD desirable
+ 8+ years of industry experience in R&D
+ Proven career advancement in dairy flavors, natural, process and cheese sauces and products
+ Demonstrated staff leadership attributes or staff management experience
+ Proven successful track record in new product development with multiple examples of commercialized products/solutions directly or under your leadership
+ Desired areas of expertise:
+ Co-drying and dry blending combinations of dairy, dairy flavors, seasonings, flavors, colors, and other ingredients
+ Seasoning and flavor development
+ Agglomeration and instantization of powders
Dairy science **_Knowledge, Skills and Abilities_**
+ Food safety programs and food safety by design
+ Food regulatory & labeling laws including both: USDA & FDA
+ Strong leadership and team building abilities
+ Exceptional communication skills
+ Ability to solve complex customer demands and problems
+ Self-driven and committed to hands on work habits
+ Ability to initiate, drive and adapt to change
+ Ability to balance heavy workload and manage multiple tasks
+ Must have the ability and capability to interact and communicate with the most senior levels of the organization
+ Able to read, write, and speak English
**Travel:**
?15%-25% (1-2 times per quarter)
An Equal Opportunity Employer