Who we are
Imagine working in a place where continuous improvement and innovation is celebrated and rewarded; where fast-paced, high-impact teams come together to positively drive results for one of the largest & most iconic brands in the world.
As the only rapidly growing retailer, you may know us as your friendly neighborhood store. You probably know our familiar name, have seen our pervasive logo, and have tried our highly sought-after products, such as Slurpee and Big Bite. "Brain Freeze" is a 7-Eleven registered trademark for our 53-year old Slurpee and with over 77,000 stores globally (more than any other retailer or food service provider), we sell over 14 million a month.
But there's a lot more to our story and much more left to be written. We are transforming our business, ensuring we are customer obsessed and digitally enabled to seamlessly link our brick and mortar stores with digital products and services.
At 7-Eleven the entrepreneurial spirit is in our DNA and has been ever since our inception 90+ years ago. It's what drove us to invent the convenience industry in 1927 by envisioning how a simple ice dock could provide household staples such as milk and eggs to better serve the needs of our customers.
Today we are redefining convenience and the customer experience in big ways...we are fundamentally changing our culture and we want talented, innovative, customer obsessed, and entrepreneurial people like you to come make history with us.
How we lead
At 7-Eleven we are guided by our Leadership Principles.
- Be Customer Obsessed
- Be Courageous with Your Point of View
- Challenge the Status Quo
- Act Like an Entrepreneur
- Have an "It Can Be Done" Attitude
- Do the Right Thing
- Be Accountable
Each principle has a defined set of behaviors which help guide the 7-Eleven team to Serve Customers and Support Stores.
About This Opportunity
JOB SUMMARY:
Working in a fast paced and dynamic environment, the Culinary Product Development Manager will be responsible for leading the innovation, development, and menu pipeline for Laredo Taco Company
KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITES:
- Lead front to end product development, testing and commercialization through the 7-Eleven business system by working closely with a cross functional team (QA, Engineering, Purchasing, Ops Development, Sensory, Packaging, Marketing, etc) utilizing 7-Eleven's MD Stage Gate Development Process
- Minimum of 3 years of experience in recipe development specifically for Mexican American QSR/Fast Casual Dining menus
- Identify high potential products/platforms to fill 1-2-year calendar pipeline for regional and national menus
- Develop strategies and timelines for product development projects; drive projects to ensure key milestones are met; identify contingency plans and assess risks.
- Experience in large scale product commercialization with manufacturer partners for all menu products including but not limited to proteins, sauces, salsa, toppings, tortillas and side items.
- Develop and foster supplier relationships to positively influence product development; use technical skills to outline development approach and guidelines.
- Manage nutritional labeling requests for Laredo Taco Company product launches.
- Develop recipe cards, job aids and training videos in partnership with L&D team for all new products and process launches in partnership with category and food operations design.
- Effectively communicate project details and strategies to groups to internal and external stakeholders, including presentations to executive level leadership and supplier partners.
- Specification development expertise for all ingredients/food products in TraceGains system.
- Utilize consumer insights and industry trends to identify high potential new product/platforms.
- Identify capabilities needed including equipment, packaging, ingredients, and longer-term innovation opportunities.
- Utilize food science principles and operational processes to troubleshoot product and process quality issues/areas for improvement.
- Regular travel (<30%) to markets, suppliers, 1st production runs, tradeshows etc.
EDUCATION: Bachelors/4 Yr Degree
YEARS OF RELEVANT WORK EXPERIENCE: 5+ years
YEARS OF MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE: NA
CERTIFICATIONS / LICENSES: BSc Food Science, Culinary Science
SPECIFIC KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS:
Product Development & Commercialization
Specification Development/Experience with TraceGains
Menu Development
Strong culinary skills
Foundational knowledge of quick serve restaurant operations