Sr. Innovation Manager

Role Purpose:

• Lead the commercialization and launch execution of innovation projects following Gate 3 approval, taking ownership once concepts and products have been validated and fully developed.
• The role is responsible for transforming innovation into successful market launches by orchestrating cross functional execution, ensuring organizational readiness and driving flawless commercialization.
• This position serves as the bridge between Innovation and the broader organization to bring ideas to life in market.
• This role owns activation, launch execution and market implementation while Product Innovation owns strategy, concept development and product creation.

Key Responsibilities:

Commercialization Leadership

• Develop commercialization plans and launch roadmaps aligned with Sales and Marketing
• Orchestrate cross functional execution across Marketing, Sales, Supply Chain, Operations, Finance and Innovation
• Ensure organizational readiness for launch
• Manage critical paths, milestones and dependencies
• Lead launch governance and execution tracking
• Escalate risks and remove barriers to execution

Launch Readiness & Market Activation

• Ensure innovation initiatives are ready for successful market implementation.
• Lead:

• Go to market readiness
• Customer launch coordination
• Commercial readiness alignment
• Inventory and operational readiness coordination
• Marketing and activation timeline integration
• Sales enablement support
• Internal communication and launch preparedness

Stage Gate Commercialization Ownership (Post G3)

• Gate 4: Commercialization planning and readiness
• Gate 5: Launch execution and market activation
• Gate 6: Post launch reviews and optimization
• Lead executive updates, launch reviews and governance meetings.

• 10 years in commercialization, operations, project leadership or innovation execution within food, beverage or CPG
• Proven experience scaling products from development into market
• Strong project management and cross functional leadership skills
• Experience operating within stage gate environments
• Strong understanding of manufacturing, supply chain and commercialization processes

Salary Range: 100-110k annually