Sr. Scientist - Product Development - Premier Nutrition

Here's what all the hype is about: Premier Nutrition Company (PNC) is one of the fastest-growing companies in the convenient nutrition space showing clear leadership in the category of protein shakes and protein powders. We make the brands Premier Protein, Dymatize, and PowerBar, which is sold internationally, and we are part of our holding company, BellRing Brands (NYSE: BRBR).

We have a simple, yet powerful, formula for our success, which we’ve been nailing for over 15 years. We start off with an organization powered by our company purpose—Changing Lives with Good Energy. Then our purpose-driven people are given the support and autonomy to develop and grow. Next, we are super-intentional about designing a culture where everyone feels like they truly connect and belong, which is one of our five company core values. Purpose-driven, connected employees who are consistently mastering new skills deliver amazing business results. And winning companies with amazing people and thriving cultures attract and retain top talent, so the cycle becomes self-reinforcing or what we call our regenerative culture.

We don’t mind sharing our formula since, as people who we believe in the power of changing lives with good energy, we think the world would be a better place if more workplaces treated adults like adults and gave them the platform to do the best work of their lives—alongside some truly amazing colleagues. Why don’t more companies do this? It takes deep-in-your-bones conviction to your people, products, and purpose to pull it off. It also takes resisting the urge to try to control people, and instead trusting them to make the right decisions. The results of our vibrant culture speaks for themselves: We were certified as a Great Place to Work™ for the 8^th year-running in 2024. And we currently rank #2 on Fortune Magazine’s Best Workplaces in our category, and in the top 12 for each of the last 5 years.

We have a long list of ways we take care of our people, but here are some crowd-pleasers that our employees often say they love most: Year-round ½ day Fridays, in-office massages, free lunches & snacks, dogs in the office, month-long cultural and diversity celebrations, monthly over-the-top in-office events like bring your kids to work day, 6% 401k match after 1 year, as-needed sick leave, generous paid family leave regardless of gender, all positions bonus-eligible, company-wide volunteer days, company-matched charitable donations, no employee handbook, no dress code, coaching conversations instead of performance reviews, walking meetings, free exercise classes, and company-paid gym membership for Emeryville-based employees.

PNC seeks individuals who will flourish in this type of work environment and will add to our culture and help build this high-growth company for the next phase in our amazing journey. Does this sound like you? Then read on…#LI-hybrid

The role you’re interested in…

• Responsible for leading development of new products, complex projects and/or revitalizing core products over a broad portfolio- mainly Ready-To-Drink (RTD) format and Ready-To-Mix (RTM) formats, either as food or as supplements.
• Candidate has demonstrated ability and is well versed in applying scientific method and logic to the following: experimental design, formulation, lab/pilot plant work, and manufacturing process.
• Responsible for clearly analyzing data and knowledge to identify appropriate workstreams, with milestones, timing and deliverables for product development, aligned with business criteria.
• This position requires ability to apply principles of food science to solve industry relevant issues and then explain data and scientific principles to business functions.
• This position requires the ability to lead and move forward multiple projects at the same time that are at different stages of the development cycle and that are different types of development projects.

The work environment…

So, what’s it like to work here? If you’re based in the greater Bay Area, you’ll walk into our Emeryville office each Tuesday morning and start the in-person portion of our hybrid work week at our weekly all-company meeting and find close to 200 of your colleagues sitting on sofas, beanbag chairs, or the floor excitedly talking through the week ahead and watching a newer teammate tell their personal life and career journey followed by a quick update on any hot topics that might be relevant to the week ahead.

We are a dynamic, HYBRID workplace so every employee who lives within 100 miles of our offices is expected to come in each TUESDAY and WEDNESDAY. We aligned on those two common days way back in 2021 to be intentional about connecting in person for things like innovation, impromptu collaboration, having respectful challenges to get to better decisions, leadership role-modeling, and culture building. Great work cultures are built on stories about what great looks like in practice, and great stories on Zoom meetings are few and far between.  The expected pay scale for this role is $130k to $140k, which may vary based on relevant experience, qualifications, geographic area (if applicable), and internal equity for the role.

Our modern 50,000 sq. foot headquarters straddles the border of the cities of Emeryville, Oakland, and Berkeley, California with free onsite parking and many transportation options.

You’re excited about this opportunity because your time will be filled with…

Product development: 50-80%

· Provide and exercise technical expertise through the development of solutions for new and novel ingredients, product formulations, and undertaking technical and manufacturing challenges.

· Responsible for execution of all assigned projects and alignment with project scope, brief, processes, business standards and practices. Responsible for product compliance (food safety, ingredient usage, NLEA information, product claims) against internal and external standards (FDA, USDA, and third-party certification) through collaboration with regulatory, QA, marketing, and other parties.

· Ability to work efficiently with third party development parties and/or suppliers to develop formulations within tight timelines.

· Ensure successful scale-up to commercial production through collaboration with operations, QA, marketing and external co-mans by aligning on process capabilities and finished product specifications.

· Lead and provide technical updates on a variety of R&D projects, ensuring alignment throughout the course of project lifecycles. Capture learnings to generate IP (if relevant)

· Lead or support product development exploration (Building Blocks) and opportunities with new, novel ingredients or applications.

· Ability to reapply current formulations to new markets ensuring compliance against internal and external standards.

Technical Services Support: 20-50% of time

· Responsible for assigned technical services projects for current products- alternate sourcing for ingredients, provide formulation solutions for cost control/reduction and other continuous improvement initiatives.

· Provide and/or obtain technical expertise to solve problems on ingredients, formulations, processing, sensory and/or consumer testing.

· Identifies area for continuous improvement and assists in developing and implementing action plans.

· Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction when needed.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Education / Experience:

· BS in Food Science, Food Chemistry, Food Engineering or similar disciplines AND 7+ years of experience in the Food industry (CPG) within Food Product Development (dairy protein-based or RTD products).

· MS in Food Science, Food Chemistry, Food Engineering or similar disciplines AND 0 - 5+ years of experience in the Food industry (CPG) within Food Product Development (dairy protein-based or RTD products).

Key Skills:

· Critical thinking ability to explain complex technical subject matters to non-technical personnel.

· Strong technical curiosity and knowledge to solve complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement suitable solutions.

· Meticulous attention to detail, particularly about health, safety and hygiene

· Being a confident and independent worker with great communication skills

· Strong collaborative skills and ability to work well in teams

· Possess curiosity, creativity and alternative thinking to develop new innovative solutions

So, if after reading through this long list you’re thinking—I’m not sure I meet 100% of these requirements, should I still apply? YES—if you embody a growth mindset, see challenges as opportunities to develop, and find innovative ways to get the real work that matters done, you sound like our kind of candidate!

Select 5 Key Capabilities & Traits Important to Add to and Diversify your Current Team:

· Emotional intelligence

· Drive and own results

· Embody a strategic mindset

· Bring people along

· Creativity, exploration, & innovativeness

You will thrive here and may just do the best work of your life if…

· You want to be an integral part of our R&I journey towards product mastery while building a R&I environment of experimentation and knowledge sharing

· You can be flexible in your approach to formulation and R&I processes and abandon past practices if they don’t make sense or would lead to a poor outcome

· You are comfortable being natural, casual, open, and even a bit playful at work

· You don’t have a big ego and hate siloed thinking

· You like to get sh*t, I mean—stuff done

· You can be friendly, vulnerable, and self-deprecating in one moment, and deal with a challenging, delicate technical matter as a professional in the next

· You can do periods of focused, deep work on projects that drive the needle

This may not be your ideal next career move if…

· You like a lot of structure, rules, and uniformity

· You like hierarchy, and clear definitions of roles and scope of work

· You want to be surrounded by lots of processes, systems, governance, or policies and make a beautiful bureaucracy

· Dealing with ambiguity or experimentation is not your jam

· You try to resolve challenging interpersonal situations over instant messaging or passive aggression

· You like managing from your house with your camera off and demonstrating excellence through email

· You tend to chase whatever shiny object presents itself during the day instead of real results

If we haven’t convinced you to apply already, here are some of our favorite perks and benefits:

· Friday afternoons off year-round (and of course a hefty PTO package plus 11 holidays)

· 6% 401K match. Literally free money

· Hybrid work with an average of 2-3 days a week in the office for local folks

· All jobs are bonus-eligible

· Work-out time during work

· Free custom lunch twice a week. Plus, plenty of snacks and shakes.

· 2 weeks of work from anywhere time to move your Big Rocks

· Quarterly team building events/happy hours (city-wide scavenger hunt, bowling, ropes course, putt-putt)

· Bring your dog to work (3 days/week)

· Extended paid parental leave regardless of gender or familial make-up

We strive to create an equitable and inclusive environment to contribute to the success of our organization. Premier Nutrition provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, status as a covered veteran and any other category protected under applicable federal, state, provincial and local laws.