Director, Innovation Strategy

The posting, as Kinder's wrote it

BUILT ON FLAVOR. FUELED BY PEOPLE.

What’s it like to work at Kinder’s? Well, there’s a lot of snacking and geeking out over what we all cooked over the weekend. Beyond that, there’s also plenty of hard work. Because we don’t just like flavor, we’re obsessed with it.

With over 100 products sold nationwide, we’re now a top-five brand in multiple flavor categories at Costco, Walmart, Whole Foods, and more. We’re not your typical CPG company. Privately held and founder-led, we like to think of ourselves as a pirate ship in a sea of cruise ships . Our crew is adventurous and fearless. We chart our own course and chase big ideas to make food unforgettable.

As we expand globally and approach $1 billion in revenue, we need more smart-and-scrappy, flavor-obsessed people to come aboard. If you’re looking for a place where you can see the real impact of your work... this is it! Every day, you’ll be part of a journey to add flavor to millions of meals and lives.

About The Role

The Director of Innovation Strategy at Kinder's will play a pivotal role in our efforts to continue delivering at market-leading speed as we grow. You will be responsible for supporting the development and continuous evolution of our innovation strategy, connecting organizational and brand priorities with market landscapes, consumer needs, customer priorities, brand permission, opportunity size, and organizational capabilities to shape our innovation pipeline, prioritization, and growth. You will also be a key partner to the broader leadership team in communicating innovation priorities, facilitating decision making, and framing implications across the organization.

This role requires a results-oriented leader with strong communication skills, project management discipline, analytical capabilities, and the ability to collaborate cross-functionally. In this role, you will report to the VP of Innovation to support the evaluation and execution of a broad range of strategic projects and initiatives.

Key Responsibilities

Long-Range Innovation Planning & Strategic Opportunities

• Lead the development and ongoing evolution of Kinder’s long-term innovation plan, translating enterprise and brand growth priorities into a focused set of strategic opportunities, platforms, and categories to explore
• Build and maintain market and category maps that identify consumer needs, emerging behaviors, competitive activity, and potential white space for Kinder’s
• Partner with Culinary, R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Commercialization, and other functions to understand current capabilities and constraints and identify new capabilities or investments required to unlock future growth
• Collaborate with Finance, Sales, and other partners to develop fit-for-purpose business cases for potential growth initiatives (including sizing, volume scenarios, and economic perspectives appropriate to the maturity of each opportunity)
• Serve as a trusted thought partner to the Innovation team and enterpri

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• We try to be good team members and good communicators, but we don’t live by hierarchy and structure – everyone is a difference maker here.
• We make a lot of decisions in the face of incomplete information – our team embraces ambiguity and tries to make good decisions fast rather than great decisions slow.
• We believe our job is to take smart risk, not to eliminate risk.
• We believe in growing our skills and becoming a better company with more managerial expertise, but we are an entrepreneurial company at heart.
• We aren’t trying to be average – we want to do exceptional things, and we are willing to work hard to achieve them.

BENEFITS THAT BRING MORE TO THE TABLE

We offer a range of total rewards that may include paid time off, 401k, bonus / incentive eligibility, equity grants, competitive health benefits, and other family-friendly benefits, including parental leave. Kinder’s benefits vary based on eligibility and can be reviewed in more detail during the interview process.

OUR RECIPE FOR BALANCE

We believe great culture starts with people. We’re a people-first company built on connection, collaboration, and balance. Most of our work happens in the office to spark creativity and community, but we also offer flexibility so team members have the autonomy to work outside the office when needed to support their work-life balance and personal commitments.

WHERE EVERY INGREDIENT MATTERS

Kinder's is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, ancestry, national origin, gender, citizenship, marital status, religion, age, disability, gender identity, results of genetic testing, veteran status, as well as any other legally-protected characteristic. If you have a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act or similar law, and you need any accommodation during the application process or to perform these job requirements, please reach out to us at careers@kinders.com