Project Manager New Product Development in Loves Park, Illinois at TH Foods, Inc.

Position Summary

As a change agent, the Project Manager - Innovation is responsible for acting as a business partner to key cross-functional partners in identifying, aligning, prioritizing, and commercializing innovation projects. The Project Manager will deliver tangible business results through deployment of project management techniques involving Operations, Packaging, Sales, Marketing, Procurement, R&D, Regulatory/Legal and Quality.

Essential Duties and Requirements:

• Support the senior Project Manager in coordinating B2C and B2B projects from ideation to close.
• Partner with key functional areas including: R&D, Marketing, Sales, Packaging Engineering, Procurement, Regulatory, Quality, Finance, Operations, Senior Leadership, and other key stakeholders to manage the product development process.
• Plan, monitor, and control project schedule throughout the project stage gate process of scoping, development, commercialization and closure phases.
• Collaborate with key stakeholders to address project changes and evaluate options including resource allocation and execution of timelines based on changing business needs and requirements.
• Coordinate documentation of customer requirements, business justification, product requirements, product specifications and other design inputs and design outputs to establish the project deliverables.
• Gathers project details from team members including scope, milestones, resources, and timeline for product enhancements, new product development and regulatory driven product changes.
• Manage and mitigate risks to reduce negative impact on deliverables, quality, due dates and cost.
• Facilitate resolution and drive consensus across project teams, and functional managers.
• Build teamwork within the project teams, and external partners (customers/ vendors) that impact the success of the project.
• Manage a SalesForce dashboard of key indicators of progress that can be referenced by team members and stakeholders.
• Facilitate cross-functional team meetings including planning and distributing agendas.
• Provide timely accurate reporting and documentation, post-launch analysis and review successes/failures, and share lessons learned.
• Other duties as required or assigned.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

This job has no supervisory responsibilities.

Qualifications:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Skills

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• 1-3 years’ experience in project coordination in the food industry or related field.
• Experience in project management software, Microsoft SharePoint, and Salesforce.
• Health/Specialty food background is preferred. Experience in a CPG (consumer packaged goods) company using a stage gate process is a plus.
• PMI/PMP certification or equivalent experience is a plus.
• Detail oriented
• Flexibility and adaptability
• Able to work with minimal supervision
• Capable of prioritizing workload to maximize team support
• Strong, general reasoning and analytical skills
• Ability to conduct customer presentations
• Ability to function in a fast-paced environment
• Ability to interact with all levels of the organization

Physical Demands:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, talk and hear. The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, and reach with hands and arms.

Work Environment

Works individually and must be a self-starter able to work with minimal supervision. Good business judgment and flexibility will be required to keep up with constantly changing needs of customers and brokers. This requires some travel (<20%). Will need excellent administrative and communicative skills to keep projects on track at the office, working remotely, or when traveling. This position requires occasional weekend work and regular workdays in excess of eight hours per day. Occasional lifting, bending, and carrying will be required due to shows and sample transport. The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.