Job Description
Job Description
Job Title: Culinary Director
Location: Office in Boulder, CO (must reside within commuting distance of office)
About Sterling-Rice Group (SRG):
Sterling-Rice Group (SRG) is a unique agency – equal parts creative and culinary, strategic and scientific. Based in beautiful Boulder, CO, we are a brand-building powerhouse of 80+ people working across strategy, innovation, design, advertising, media, and culinary development. We are independent, majority women-owned, and passionately committed to living well and giving back.
Our Culinary practice is central to our identity, blending world-class culinary expertise with insight-driven innovation. From foodservice to CPG, SRG Culinary lives at the forefront of helping brands imagine, develop, and launch the food of the future.
Position Description:
We’re seeking a Culinary Director to help guide and evolve the SRG Culinary practice. This individual will work directly with the Managing Director, Culinary to direct and manage departmental activities. This includes collaborating and co-leading projects with Innovation, Account, Design, Strategy + Insights, and other internal teams on a range of functions including culinary prototyping, menu design and development, commodity board culinary activities, and Consumer Packaged Goods near- and long-term product development.
The ideal candidate is a seasoned professional who brings a proactive mindset, a can-do attitude, natural curiosity, strong interpersonal awareness, and clear communication skills. They thrive in collaborative, team-oriented environments, approach problem solving with both creativity and structure, and bring the maturity and perspective needed to navigate complex challenges and drive results.
Additional Responsibilities:
- Provide culinary thought leadership across a range of constituencies, including internal teams, external contractors, clients, and client agents to best-represent SRG, SRG Culinary, and SRG client interests
- Present to and interact with clients of all types, representing SRG’s unique suite of services, ranging from early-stage ideation through commercialization and refinement
- Co-lead the culinary concept development and testing process at SRG by leveraging SRG Culinary’s strengths in formulation, rapid distillation, and presentation during the market and consumer research processes and beyond where applicable, tying that development from inception to downstream activities in foodservice or manufacturing
- Actively and thoughtfully lead a team of dedicated culinarians – both internal and contract-based – providing meaningful learning & development, guidance, and mentorship. Participate in discussions around project and departmental architecture to optimize deployment balance between staff and on-demand labor, near- and long-term
- Participate in SRG’s industry outreach at shows, conventions, symposia, and in the media, exemplifying SRG’s position as an industry leader in culinary
- Leverage SRG Culinary’s insights and guidance to support SRG’s ongoing culinary trend and insight process research, utilizing a suite of IP that is dedicated to those culinary trends and insights – micro/macro, geographic, sustainability-based, and otherwise
- Provide experience-based guidance during the development and continued elevation of SRG Culinary’s practice offerings
- Engage appropriately with clients to help establish and reinforce SRG’s culinary authority while maintaining departmental profitability within the agency’s overall practice
- Participate as warranted in business development activities such as the creation of capabilities presentations for prospective clients and scoping exercises designed to optimize SRG’s contribution to the development of its clients’ businesses
- Interact directly with the Managing Director, Culinary on carefully prioritizing culinary development activities, balancing strategic and tactical elements of the practice, and tracking departmental KPIs
Desired Skills + Requirements:
- 10+ years of experience, including a culinary role in a CPG/foodservice organization or a role at a CPG food development/innovation firm
- Holds a professional culinary degree, food science degree, and/or bachelor’s degree. An advanced degree is a plus
- Displays an insatiable passion for both foodservice and CPG and possesses national-level foodservice expertise and credibility
- Exhibits strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills that are supported by finely-tuned written and verbal communications
- Can work equally independently and collaboratively to accomplish work plan and organize work for self and others
- Leads with a client service orientation, driving engagements with a problem-solving mindset
- Can serve as a culinary and cross-departmental skill player
- Proven ability to contribute to client-ready project deliverables (including briefs, concepts, marketing plans, trend presentations)
- Ability to contribute to and lead kitchen engagements, including participating on teams of chefs for Front of House (demonstrations, cuttings) and Back of House (ideation, protocepting) experiences
- Accomplishes project goals outside of experience area
- Fosters greater SRG and specific SRG Culinary team cultures
At SRG, we are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace. We are an equal opportunity employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.