Sr. Innovation Manager

<p>Welcome to Daiya Foods, where we are reimagining comfort foods that are irresistible and better for you. Today, as dairy-free food grows in popularity, that spirit of innovation continues to inspire our team. Our diverse portfolio of great tasting foods invites everyone to the table.</p> <p>Our dedication to minimizing environmental impact extends across our operations. We operate in a manufacturing facility and office that is LEED certified, embodying our commitment to sustainability through the leadership in energy and environmental design principles.</p> <p>Join our team of food-loving Daiyans, where our shared passion, vision, and ability to bring smiles to each other's faces fuel our journey of dairy-free exploration.</p> <p><strong>SUMMARY </strong></p> <p>The Sr. Manager, Innovation, is a key driver of Daiya’s growth agenda. Reporting to the Director of Innovation &amp; Insights, this role owns the end-to-end commercialization of our innovation pipeline - translating high-potential ideas into successful, consumer-centric product launches.&nbsp; This leader sets the commercial product agenda, aligns cross-functional stakeholders around clear priorities, and secures the organizational focus and resources required to win.&nbsp; Day-to-day, the Sr. Manager orchestrates cross-functional delivery with rigor and pace -&nbsp; shaping product development, packaging design, business cases,&nbsp; learning plans, and integrated go-to-market strategies to ensure every launch lands with impact.</p> <h3>JOB RESPONSIBILITIES</h3> <p><strong>Lead the Development of Innovation Projects</strong></p> <ul> <li>Build a forward-looking, multi-year pipeline of business-driving ideas and projects grounded in consumer insights, category dynamics, and market opportunities</li> <li>Partner with Insights &amp; Ideation to translate high-potential concepts into defined projects with clear priorities, success criteria, strategic objectives.</li> <li>Oversee projects through the stage-gate process, including establishing the scope of the project, and partnering with Project Management to ensure projects meet key milestones and objectives</li> <li>Lead and influence cross-functional teams to advance innovation with pace - providing direction on priorities and briefs, simplifying complex problems &amp; making decisions at critical project junctures</li> <li>Manage the learning plan and understand methodologies to deepen consumer understanding and derive new insights, optimize new launches, and validate project action standards</li> </ul> <p><strong>Lead the Commercialization &amp; Launch of New Platforms &amp; Products:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Oversee commercialization plans, including partnering with Sales team to develop winning strategies at the customer level and category level</li> <li>Parter with Insights, Category Management, and Business Development to create compelling sales stories that secure distribution on new launches</li> <li>Serving as key expert/resource for marketing, sales, and customers.</li> <li>Support &amp; participate in development of communications briefs on new launches, ensuring consumer insight and business and marketing objectives are accurately captured and addressed through integrated communication plan development</li> </ul> <p><strong>Deliver Business Results</strong></p> <ul> <li>Develop and manage a pipeline of projects that delivers against Innovation growth targets while strengthening brand equity and overall business performance.</li> <li>Own the P&amp;L for new launches, ensuring projects meet financial criteria for commercialization</li> <li>Manage the innovation budget with discipline - partnering closely with suppliers and internal teams to deliver learning plans on time &amp; on budget.</li> </ul> <p><strong>Leadership &amp; Development</strong></p> <ul> <li>Responsible for the leadership and development of 1 direct report</li> <li>Lead &amp; Inspire the Marketing department in delivering high performance, as a member of the Senior Marketing Leadership team</li> <li>Act as a steward for the Daiya brand and positively impact Daiya’s reputation directly with external partners, such as key retailers, buyers, brokers, and suppliers</li> </ul> <h3>EDUCATION &amp; EXPERIENCE</h3> <ul> <li>Bachelor’s degree in Business; MBA strongly preferred.</li> <li>Minimum 15+ years of progressive experience across brand management, innovation, product development, marketing, or general management, with a track record of delivering commercially successful launches and leading cross-functional teams.</li> <li>Demonstrated success launching new products into market, ideally within food &amp; beverage or consumer-facing categories</li> <li>Experience leading cross-functional teams and projects from inception to completion</li> <li>Strong understanding of Stage Gate or other structured innovation processes</li> <li>Familiarity with consumer insights &amp; research methodologies</li> </ul> <h3>RELATED SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE &amp; ABILITIES</h3> <ul> <li><strong>Strategic Thought Leadership:</strong> Unconstrained thinking &amp; Ability to see the big picture; You leverage your deep understanding of the marketplace, consumer, and customer dynamics to connect dots across disparate data points, and define clear innovation roadmaps that align with company objectives.</li> <li><strong>Insights &amp; Analytical Prowess: </strong>Interest in, and deep understanding of consumer, customer, and external forces that influence demand; You are adept at developing strategic &amp; sound business cases to support growth initiatives, and can develop learning plans to validate hypotheses and answer critical business questions</li> <li><strong>Executional Excellence</strong>: Strong project management and organizational skills; ability to juggle multiple priorities in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment. You maintain focus, manage timelines and budgets effectively, and deliver on what you promise.</li> <li><strong>Consumer-Centric Mindset:</strong> Passionate about understanding consumer needs and behaviors; ability to translate insights into meaningful innovation.</li> <li><strong>Collaborative Leadership</strong>: Skilled at building trust, influencing without authority, and working effectively across departments and with external partners. You bring people together to create exceptional outcomes.</li> <li><strong>Communication Skills:</strong> Strong written and verbal communicator, capable of crafting compelling narratives and presenting ideas with clarity and influence.</li> </ul> <h3>DAIYA’S CORE COMPETENCIES</h3> <ul> <li><strong>Emotional Intelligence</strong> – You possess the ability to manage emotions, as well as seek to understand the emotions of others around you.</li> <li><strong>Growth Mindset</strong> – You find opportunities and possibilities when challenged, embrace continuous learning, and constantly strive to grow and improve.</li> <li><strong>Effective Communication</strong> – You effectively listen, assess, and adjust your communication to align your intention and impact.</li> <li><strong>Collaboration</strong> – You work with and through others to create great results for Daiya.</li> <li><strong>Driving Results</strong> – You take the initiative to find solutions, deliver results, maintain focus, and drive accountability.</li> <li><strong>Service Excellence</strong> – You understand and serve the needs of others (Daiyans, consumers, and our communities)</li> </ul> <p>Daiya’s compensation offerings are based on a pay-for-performance philosophy. The pay range for this position is from&nbsp;<strong>$120,000–$140,000 annually</strong>; the base pay offered is based on market location and may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and internal equity. At Daiya, investing in our people is a top priority. We believe in building a flexible, hybrid model to make work-life harmony a reality. We strive to build diverse and high performing teams and empower continuous learning to grow and improve ourselves.</p> <ul> <li>3 weeks’ vacation</li> <li>Flex Days</li> <li>Extended health benefits</li> <li>Retirement savings matching program</li> <li>Flexible spending account</li> <li>Fun and creative environment</li> <li>On-site fitness studio</li> <li>Inspiring and innovative work</li> <li>Making people and the planet a healthier place</li> </ul> <p>At Daiya Foods, we are committed to fostering a diverse, inclusive, and equitable work environment, one in which employees can bring their whole selves to work everyday.&nbsp; We welcome and celebrate differences because we believe a multitude of perspectives fosters innovation and will help us achieve our vision.</p> <p>Daiya Foods is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE) and prohibits discrimination of any kind.&nbsp; We are committed to building a representative workforce and encourage applications reflecting diversity of sex, sexual orientation, gender identify or expression, racialization or ancestry, disability, religion, marital or family status, age and/or status as a First Nation, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person.&nbsp; We endeavor to recruit, develop, and retain the best talent from a diverse candidate pool and truly believe that diversity, equity, and inclusion among our team members is vital to our success as a company. &nbsp;We trust that in applying for a role with us you value this as well!</p> <p>Daiya Foods humbly acknowledges that the land on which we work, live, and play is the unceded traditional territory of the Coast Salish peoples, including the Tsleil-Waututh, Squamish, and Musqueam Nations. This connection to the land is not only a source of inspiration but also a guiding force in our journey towards greater environmental stewardship and community engagement.</p>