Establish strategic direction for Ambient OEM R&D, defining and driving the strategy, targets, KPIs, and priorities to ensure effective customer development projects and a robust pipeline for new product development and value engineering.
Oversee all ongoing Business Unit R&D projects, stepping in as needed to align customer development resources in exceptional cases, in collaboration with customer development leads and commercial teams.
Develop and own the NPD R&D product roadmap; adjust roadmap targets and timings based on feedback from NPD lead, GIC, Ambient OEM commercial team, and Branded R&D.
Set and allocate the Ambient OEM R&D budget, ensuring efficient budget management and oversight.
Develop a forward-looking vision for OEM packaging with a focus on sustainability or cost competitiveness.
OEM R&D Excellence:
Partner with Category Customer Development Leads to ensure products meet customer requirements, including product specs, development timelines, and cost targets.
Collaborate with NPD leads to proactively create and launch new products that align with customer needs, cost objectives, and Ambient Branded BU R&D timelines.
Implement best practices in OEM R&D, such as optimized processes between commercial and R&D teams, and design customer brief templates for efficient communication.
Commercial Collaboration:
Ensure efficient coordination between project managers and R&D teams, streamlining processes through mapping, automation, and RAPIDs.
Enhance service levels to the commercial team by gathering feedback, identifying improvement areas, and collaborating with R&D leaders to implement solutions.
Maintain a clear, commercially aligned vision on high-impact value engineering opportunities.
Encourage NPD teams to gather market insights and test new product concepts in collaboration with commercial teams.
Promote global sharing of best practices and insights across R&D specialists.
Operational Collaboration:
Facilitate smooth coordination with plant teams throughout product development, ensuring on-time, on-spec delivery from samples to full production.
Work with plant and R&D leads to identify pain points in R&D and scale-up processes, finding effective solutions.
Encourage a "Right First Time" culture to boost productivity and efficiency, focusing on quality, cost, speed, and simplicity.
Lead programs aimed at reducing production costs.
Innovation Collaboration:
Collaborate closely with the Global Innovation Center (GIC) and Branded R&D teams to maintain a strong NPD R&D pipeline, sharing insights and fostering ongoing communication with innovation teams.
People and Leadership:
Inspire, lead, and challenge team members to meet or exceed Business Unit targets and objectives.
Foster a collaborative and positive working environment for the global Ambient OEM R&D team, driving a supportive culture within and across Thai Union teams.
Create a strong talent pipeline by attracting, developing, and retaining top talent, in partnership with HR.
Coach and support team members in daily tasks, identify high-potential talent, and work to enhance career development and performance management.
Foster a culture of continuous learning to improve team competencies.
Develop long-term talent planning and succession strategies for all levels within the R&D function.
Oversee people budget for the Ambient OEM R&D function in collaboration with HR.
Qualifications:
Skilled in leading and inspiring Ambient OEM R&D teams, building diverse, trust-centered leadership, and cultivating talent across regions and time zones.
Deep expertise in OEM R&D, with a strong foundation in process and project management.
Capable of identifying and analyzing complex issues, developing effective solutions, and crafting strategic, long-term plans.
Strong relationship management abilities, ensuring the needs of internal stakeholders (e.g., R&D and plant teams) are met across regions and product categories.
Excellent communicator, adept at delivering commercial and technical information to team members, as well as internal and external stakeholders.
Proven track record of creating and driving a vision for Ambient OEM categories, focusing on long-term growth and advancing sustainability in raw materials and packaging within the R&D function.
Strong interpersonal skills to promote a collaborative culture and facilitate effective cross-functional teamwork.
Experienced in managing large, geographically dispersed teams across multiple time zones.
Background in value engineering with a focus on optimizing production processes.
