Head – New Product Development – GO DESi Bengaluru Karnataka

About the Job – Head – New Product Development – GO DESi Bengaluru Karnataka  – Food Technology Jobs in Food Industry

1. New Product Development & Innovation Strategy

• Develop & Execute NPD Roadmap: Create and manage a robust product roadmap aligned with business strategy, market trends, and growth targets. Balance short-term launches (seasonal, tactical) with long-term innovation (platform development, category expansion).
• Identify Market Opportunities: Conduct market research, consumer trend analysis, and competitive intelligence to identify unmet consumer needs and growth opportunities in traditional sweets, healthy snacks, functional foods, and adjacent categories.
• Concept Development: Lead ideation workshops, evaluate new product concepts, and prioritize NPD projects based on strategic fit, commercial potential, technical feasibility, and risk assessment.

2. Product Formulation & Technical Development

• Formulation & Recipe Development: Lead or oversee development of product formulations, recipes, and process specifications that meet consumer taste/texture expectations, cost targets, and regulatory requirements. Work with food technologists and R&D specialists.
• Process Optimization: Identify optimal manufacturing processes, ingredient combinations, and processing parameters that ensure product consistency, quality, shelf stability, and manufacturability at scale.
• Cost Management: Develop products within target cost parameters; identify cost-reduction opportunities through ingredient sourcing, process efficiency, and packaging optimization; achieve 15-20% cost reduction targets where applicable.
• Quality & Compliance: Ensure all products meet FSSAI/food safety standards, HACCP protocols, GMP requirements, and internal quality standards. Obtain required certifications (FSSC 22000, organic, etc.).

3.  Testing, Validation & Consumer Insight

• Sensory & Consumer Testing: Lead consumer tests, focus groups, taste panels, and quantitative surveys to validate product concepts and inform product improvements. Ensure product resonates with target consumers.
• Shelf-Life & Stability Testing: Oversee accelerated shelf-life studies, microbial testing, and quality checks to ensure products maintain quality throughout the intended shelf life.
• Nutritional Validation: For functional/health-positioned products, ensure nutritional claims are substantiated, validated by third parties, and compliant with regulations (FSSAI, NIN guidelines).

4.Packaging & Go-to-Market Development

• Packaging Strategy: Define packaging requirements (material, size, design, messaging) that support product positioning, protect product quality, and align with consumer expectations and regulatory requirements.
• Launch Readiness: Develop comprehensive go-to-market plans including launch timeline, channel strategy, trade support, consumer marketing, and sales enablement. Coordinate with internal teams on launch execution.
• Product Documentation: Maintain comprehensive product documentation (formulations, process specs, SOP, allergen declarations, nutritional facts) for regulatory, quality, and training purposes.

5. Team Leadership & Capability Building

• Lead NPD Team: Manage and mentor a team of food technologists, product developers, and support staff. Set clear objectives, provide coaching, and foster a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.
• Capability Development: Identify knowledge gaps; drive training and skill development in food science, process technology, consumer research, and product innovation.

Requirments:

• Mandatory: Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Chemical Engineering, or related discipline
• Preferred: Master’s degree in Food Technology, Dairy Technology, or Food Business Management
• Minimum 8-10 years of experience in NPD/R&D/Product Development in FMCG food industry
• Minimum 5+ years in a leadership/management role overseeing NPD teams and projects
• Successfully launched 8+ consumer food products from concept to market
• Managed P&L for NPD products; achieved margin and growth targets
• Experience with product scaling from pilot to full manufacturing scale
• Experience navigating food safety, regulatory compliance, and FSSAI approvals

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About the company –

At GO DESi, our purpose is to make DESi ‘POP’ular. We want to make regional DESi products relevant and accessible to customers, while ensuring quality & authenticity.

We want to reinvigorate the ‘desi foods’ category by overcoming the barriers faced by it, and widening its appeal and reach. In the process, we are also building a sustainable brand that becomes a beacon for non-zero-sum capitalism, where all stakeholders win.

We work directly with farmers, SHGs and other rural businesses enabling them to scale and capture a large proportion of consumer value in rural India.

GO DESi is backed by Rukam Capital, Roots Ventures and DSG consumer partners. It was also a part of the Upaya Agri cohort, Wadhwani Foundation’s FMCG scale-up programme, and incubated at IIM Bangalore.