Director, Research & Development - Beverage & Food

The posting, as Philz Coffee wrote it

At Philz, every product we create is an opportunity to deepen the experience our customers know and love. We’re looking for a Director of Research & Development - Beverage & Food to shape the future of our product portfolio and build the R&D capabilities that will support Philz as we grow. Bringing deep expertise in food science, ingredients, sensory, process development, and commercialization, this leader will help turn bold product ideas into high-quality, scalable experiences across beverages, food, and other customer-facing offerings. Partnering closely with Product Innovation, Operations, Supply Chain, and business leaders, the Director will establish the standards, processes, and discipline that allow Philz to innovate with rigor, move with agility, and protect the quality and consistency that define our brand.

This role is currently remote and must be based within the Greater Los Angeles area. Our teams will return to a hybrid office environment in Long Beach, CA in Q1 of 2027.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

Technical R&D Strategy & Partnership

• Direct Product Innovation to translate the long-term product portfolio strategy across beverages, food, and other customer-facing offerings into a R&D roadmap, identifying formulation, process, equipment, supplier, quality, and capability requirements needed to deliver it.
• Provide input on product-category opportunities and the Product Innovation pipeline, identifying feasibility, ingredient and technology opportunities, process and equipment requirements, supplier capabilities, quality risks, cost implications, and scalability constraints.
• Assess the health and complexity of the portfolio and recommend opportunities to improve product consistency, quality, cost, ingredient or process simplification, and operational scalability.
• Assess emerging consumer and category trends for their implications and identify science, ingredient, or process-led opportunities that may enable future innovation.
• Develop a multi-year technical R&D roadmap aligned to the Product Innovation portfolio roadmap, including technical research, quality improvements, supplier development, and process or equipment needs.

Research, Product Development & Commercialization

• Lead technical research and development once an opportunity or product brief is established by Product Innovation, from technical discovery through formulation, prototyping, sensory validation, pilot testing, scale-up, commercialization, and post-launch technical optimization.
• Direct formulation, recipe development, ingredient functionality, and process development for beverages and food, ensuring approved product concepts can be delivered safely, consistently, efficiently, and at the intended sensory quality across a multi-unit retail environment and by frontline store teams.
• Own commercialization, including final recipes and specifications, supplier and plant trials, process validation, shelf-life and quality validation, troubleshooting, technica

[…]
a collaborative working style that brings R&D, Product Innovation, Operations, Supply Chain, Quality, Brand, Marketing, Finance, and other partners together around a shared outcome.

• Excellent attention to detail without losing sight of the bigger picture; able to manage multiple priorities, identify risks early, and create practical paths forward.
• Strong technical judgment across formulation, recipe development, ingredient functionality, food safety, regulatory compliance, quality systems, process development, store execution, scale-up, commercialization, and troubleshooting, with particular strength translating technical solutions into simple, repeatable processes that can be consistently executed by frontline teams across a multi-unit retail environment.
• Ability to build simple, effective R&D ways of working and development tools that help Philz innovate with greater consistency and speed.
• Willing and able to travel moderately to support supplier work, trials, commercialization, store or market learning, and other business needs.
• Comfortable working safely across the environments where Philz products come to life, including offices, labs, supplier facilities, and manufacturing settings where noise and other occupational hazards may be present.

**Compensation & Benefits

A reasonable estimate of the annual salary for this role is $150,000 to $170,000. Please note that the salary will vary based on qualifications, previous experience, and work location.

When you join our team, we better your days through our benefits and support programs – we offer our team members medical, dental, and vision insurance, company-paid basic life insurance, optional family life insurance, 401(k) with company match, flexible spending accounts, commuter benefits, mental health support, holiday pay, Flexible Time Off & Sick Time, Team Member discounts, freebie drinks and discounted beans, fun Philz swag, opportunities for growth and advancement, and more!

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