Lead Application Scientist, Bakery Enzymes

Inspired by nature and distinguished by its world-class bioscience and microbiome capabilities, IFF's Health & Biosciences (H&B) division is a leading innovation partner for customers across a broad range of consumer product, industrial and agricultural sectors. H&B works closely with our customers to enhance products - and their processes - to deliver safer, healthier, and more sustainable solutions. Our Food Enzymes BU, part of the Health & Biosciences platform, passionately supports the Food Industry with a deep knowledge of enzyme solutions. Come join this creative and empowered company.
IFF is looking for a dynamic individual with a strong knowledge and experience within enzymes for the baking industry, as Lead Application Scientist, Bakery Enzymes, to support the continuous growth of Health & Bioscience business in North America. The Health & Biosciences division is a leader in the industrial biotechnology sector, and we develop innovative enzymes and bioproducts to improve performance and reduce the environmental impact of the food & beverage industry.

Role Focus:

• In this position as a Lead Application Scientist, you will serve our customers with technical support for bakery enzyme products together with colleagues from our global organization in IFF Health & Biosciences.
• You will be responsible for the development of solid technical knowledge of the entire bakery enzyme product portfolio to gain customer confidence and build rapport with customer stakeholders. You will also be responsible for giving feedback on how IFF’s bakery enzymes are performing in a large-scale setting.
• You will lead the local team of scientists, fostering a high-performance environment with strong engagement and collaboration.

How You Will Contribute:

• Provide bakery customers with on-site technical and operational support related to our functional ingredients and solutions with a specific focus on bakery enzymes. The customer base will be mainly industrial bakeries as well as blending houses.
• Lead a team of scientists, prioritizing their daily activities, addressing client priorities, and ensuring best practices in the execution of pilot trials.
• Provide technical support and prioritize the team’s work in close cooperation with the sales team, regional industry, including different customer facing activities such as customer visits/virtual calls, pilot plant and production trials as well as technical back up to our sales force.
• Explore and evaluate new business opportunities and identify key success factors to win business together with sales team and business lead.
• Participate in customer development projects as well as concepts and internal development projects.
• Lead requests for new enzyme development in the region, supporting technical documentation, marketing materials, presentations, post-launch support, invention disclosures, and patents.

What You Will Need to Be Successful:

• Bachelor’s degree or higher, preferably in bakery or food science. Candidates with an equivalent educational background and extensive hands-on experience in the bakery industry are also encouraged to apply.
• Minimum 13-16 years of experience in product development or a related function within a food ingredients supplier or the baking industry. A proven interest and knowledge in the specific field is required.
• Experience or competencies in the use of bakery enzymes will be considered a significant advantage.
• Experience with team & talent management is also a requirement.
• The ideal candidate should be customer-focused, open-minded, and able to thrive in a highly dynamic and complex matrix organization with cultural differences.
• Must have the ability to engage collaboratively with customer stakeholders, identify new business opportunities, and articulate value propositions at multiple levels within customer organizations.
• Should be an ambitious self-starter and results-oriented individual who takes initiative while prioritizing and managing multiple tasks using a structured approach.
• Ability to work independently as well as in teams, understanding the functioning of a large organization and the importance of achieving common business objectives.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills are required, along with good reporting and record-keeping skills.
• Travel will be required (20 – 40%).

We are a global leader in taste, scent, and nutrition, offering our customers a broader range of natural solutions and accelerating our growth strategy. At IFF, we believe that your uniqueness unleashes our potential. We value the diverse mosaic of the ethnicity, national origin, race, age, sex, or veteran status. We strive for an inclusive workplace that allows each of our colleagues to bring their authentic self to work regardless of their religion, gender identity & expression, sexual orientation, or disability.

Visit IFF.com/careers/workplace-diversity-and-inclusion to learn more