Principal Scientist

What makes this a great opportunity?

•    The spirits industry is an exciting, dynamic, and fast-paced business.  Suntory Global Spirits is a top player in the spirits business and focused on driving both category and brand growth. 
•    The Principal Scientist role is a key leader related to liquid innovation, optimization, quality and production of Suntory’s Global spirits portfolio, and provides broad exposure to operations, marketing/business teams, finance, sourcing and other internal and external partners, providing R&D support on cross functional teams globally.
•    This role will be instrumental in the building and development of our R&D capabilities in the region in support of our market growth in the region.  
•    This role is responsible for leading high-complexity, development related to the enhancement & expansion of product development capabilities, alongside cross-functional teams, to drive key strategic priorities. 
•    In this role, there is opportunity to provide global product development expertise, coaching & input into a variety of straight spirit & RTD category initiatives through the broader team.       

This position will report to the Senior Director Product Innovation and Technical Research within Global R&D. This role will work with cross-functional partners in the creation of innovative consumer and customer driven new products/platforms, quality improvements and cost savings, to drive SGS profitable growth and business success.  This is a technical leadership position providing broad exposure to operations, marketing/business teams, finance, sourcing and other internal and external partners, providing R&D support on cross functional teams especially in relation to Product Development of Ready-To-Drink products.   This position will serve as an internal expert on technical processes, procedures and ways of working within the global team.  

Role Responsibilities

•    Initiate and/or lead large global, regional, or cross-functional projects that pertain to the exploration, improvement, development or implementation of new or existing products and solutions, specifically providing leadership in various aspects of product development for formulated products.  
•    Build and maintain relationships across the organization, cutting across functional and location boundaries.  
•    Manage the Gemba Laboratory in Shanghai, collaborating with the global team on equipment, materials, and processes.   
•    Collaborate with external suppliers and develop concepts to extend product possibilities and identify, evaluate, and implement new enabling technologies and raw materials.  
•    Proactively seek, demonstrate, and share understanding of the alcohol and non-alcohol market. Effectively incorporate this learning into business plans to drive new idea and technology potential.  
•    Partner with the Global Center of Excellence in Kentucky, USA on project support and execution.
•    Participate actively in team building and broader SGS and external initiatives.  
•    Continuous improvement mindset and ability to learn from past projects and find ways to reduce complexity, utilize learnings, and increase efficiencies within the process.  
•    Serve as internal technical expert with broad technical & scientific knowledge.  High emphasis on coaching and mentoring other scientists and engineers, often leading team initiatives and complex experiments.   
•    Actively partner with external suppliers and development companies to extend possibilities and identify, evaluate and implement new technologies and raw materials.

Qualifications

•    Must be fluent in Mandarin and English (speak, read, write).  Understanding Japanese a plus.   
•    M.S Food Science or related field preferred with 6 years experience, or B.S. degree with 8+ years experience.  
•    Minimum 6 years work experience in food and/or beverage industry.  Experience in research initiatives and ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages or carbonated soft drinks preferred.  
•    Ability to develop strong cross -functional relationships within R&D as well as with Marketing, Supply Chain, Procurement, Engineering, etc. to drive strong collaboration and results. 
•    Culturally sensitive, with ability to work in a global multi-cultural & cross-functional organization, requiring ability to work effectively across cultures &/or time zones to accommodate global responsibilities.  
•    Must be able to taste limited quantities of alcoholic beverage samples in accordance with evaluation/research needs. 
•    Ability to travel globally to partner in project work with internal and external clients, as well as support implementation at Suntory Global Spirits facilities – travel approx. 10-30% globally to various SGS locations, vendors, etc. 
•    Must train in Kentucky, United States, for 30 days as soon as reasonably possible after beginning employment.  After training is completed, this role will be based in Shanghai, China.  
•    Physically fit for work primarily in a lab, pilot plant and manufacturing environments, which includes long periods of standing, moving, and carrying or lifting up to 20 kilograms.