Senior Manager, US FMB Innovation

At Suntory Global Spirits, we craft spirits of the highest quality and deliver brilliant experiences to people around the world. Suntory Global Spirits has evolved into the world's third largest leading premium spirits company ... where each employee is treated like family and trusted with legacy. With our greatest assets - our premium spirits and our people - we're driving growth through impactful marketing, innovation and an entrepreneurial spirit. Suntory Global Spirits is a place where you can come Unleash your Spirit by making an impact each and every day.

Suntory Global Spirits inspires human connections, memorable stories and family legacies by Crafting the Spirits that Stir the World. Rooted in two centuries of family heritage, Suntory Global Spirits has evolved into the world's third largest premium spirits company... where each employee is treated like family and trusted to be custodians of our world-class portfolio of brands steeped in legacy. With our greatest assets - our premium spirits and our people - we're driving growth through impactful marketing, innovation and an entrepreneurial spirit.

Position Location: New York / Chicago

What makes this a great opportunity?

• The alc/bev industry is an exciting, dynamic, and fast-paced business.  Suntory Global Spirits is a top player in the spirits business and focused on becoming a top player within the Ready to Drink category, capturing new consumers and occasions not currently being serviced by our full bottle strength spirit brands in our key markets
• This individual will serve as an integral part of the North America’s RTD innovation team to drive growth in an exciting category will have the opportunity to shape Suntory Global Spirits’s long-term ambitions in the Ready to Drink Space in the US
• Opportunity to work on an exciting, priority category – to set and implement brand strategies in conjunction with cross-functionals (R&D, Finance, Consumer Insights, etc.), and to partner with sales / commercial teams to ensure execution of strategies and tactics
• Serve as lead brand steward in developing plans to extend Suntory Global Spirits’s presence in the Flavored Malt Beverage space in the US
• This individual reports directly to Head of Innovation, Global RTD

Role Responsibilities 

• Develop and maintain a multi-year Flavored Malt Beverage (FMB) innovation strategy and pipeline, identifying priority consumer needs, occasions, demand spaces, formats, price tiers and propositions required to drive incremental portfolio growth
• Lead a broad variety of Ready to Drink innovation projects focused on the FMB segment including planning and prioritizing resources to execute agreed upon timelines
• Lead development of FMB’s including concept development, brand identity, positioning, and in-market asset development for all consumer touchpoints
• Manage a cross functional team to deliver projects efficiently and effectively, from initial ideation, through concept development, liquid and packaging design, to commercialization in market
• Work closely with key marketing and consumer insights partners to inspire and facilitate development of products that target emerging and unmet consumer needs
• Direct and influence the R&D product and packaging teams to develop excellence in taste delivery and pack presentation
• Monitor consumer trends in needs, occasions, flavors and drink experiences, and recommend activities and projects to maintain our position within the Beverage Alcohol industry
• Lead post-launch performance reviews to identify drivers of success and failure, recommend optimization, expansion or discontinuation, and systematically feed learnings into future innovation.
• Champion innovation excellence by continuously improving tools, processes, decision criteria and ways of working to increase innovation quality, speed, learning and commercial success

Qualifications & Experience

• 7 years Consumer Marketing or Brand innovation experience or a similar amount of solid experience in a related field
• Experience in Flavored Malt Beverages, Beer, or RTD required
• BA required, (MBA preferred). Up to 20% travel•    Excellent interpersonal skills, with ability to communicate effectively in a multicultural, cross functional organization and a strong ability to develop and foster internal and external partnerships.
• Self-starter, flexible and comfortable working in unstructured environment, and able to manage multiple priorities effortlessly.
• Passionate and determined, committed to delivering projects on-time and above expectations
• Demonstrated experience in working across and up, within the organization, gaining credibility amongst peers, managers and other commercial leadership.
• Resourceful, with a problem-solving attitude and willingness to think creatively to reach resolutions
• Collaborative and able to build bridges across cross-functional teams and geographies; more specifically strong communicator, active listening skills, ability to listen for feedback and validate and address concerns; and excellent influencing and presentation skills

Salary Range: $155,000-$165,000, along with an annual bonus, 401K match, profit sharing, and medical and wellness benefits. The salary range is commensurate with the candidate’s location, experience, and skillset. The range will vary if outside of the NY Location.

While relocation, immigration, and/or tax compliance support are not guaranteed, we may offer assistance to successful candidates depending on factors such as role requirements in accordance with company guidelines.

At Suntory Global Spirits, people are our number one priority, and we believe our people grow together in diverse and inclusive environments where their unique insights, experiences and backgrounds are valued and respected. Suntory Global Spirits is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, military veteran status and all other characteristics, attributes or choices protected by law. All recruitment and hiring decisions are based on an applicant’s skills and experience.