Principle Scientist Product Development – Gum and Mints

at  Mars

JOB DESCRIPTION:

This role is a Senior Technical leader in R&D within the Europe R&D organization supporting our Gum and Mints product portfolio. The role provides strategic, technical and project management leadership to support the Gum and Mints Cell for the European region. This will include partnership with the Global DS2 and Science and Technology teams in aligning strategy and delivering key programs in the region.
The role requires strong technical understanding, problem-solving, strategic agility, and persuasion to successfully navigate very complex projects with strong interdependencies to each other in order to deliver the Regional Strategy for Gum and Mints. The role will heavily interact with the Gum and Mints R&D lead (Sr Manager) to build the product development strategy to support the gum portfolio of the future. The role will support growth, value leadership, supply security and freedom to operate projects and will be required to represent these projects in key business forums.
The role will be a key to keeping communication lines open between global teams, the regional cell, and the Gum Factories, so all parties are clear on changes happening, how interdependencies are being managed and the strategic importance of a strong delivery.
The role will also take responsibility for supporting and coaching other product developers in the team for gum and mints and will play an active role in building capability in the team.

• Strategic thinking to define the best route forward on projects and how to manage interdependencies.
• Key communicator between Global, Regional, and Factory teams to align priorities and strategy and enable execution.
• The Leadership of large-scale and complex Growth, Value Leadership and Supply Security Projects as well as supporting freedom to operate projects.
• Role model Design thinking methodologies to scope, define and learn when solving business challenges
• Mentor and Coach Scientists on technical project work as well as decision quality and persuade MLCs.
• Develop, optimize and embed ways of working that are required to deliver DS1 innovation, VL and Supply security and feed into Global ways of working with DS2-led activations in the region.
• Understand and influence of relevant S&OP+ Steps/Feeder meetings.
• Build internal and external network to allow a broad context for problem-solving.
• Bring tech awareness and savvy to build digital capabilities into the product development team.