Designation: SENIOR EXECUTIVE
Location: India UTTAR PRADESH Noida
Group: DS Group
Entity: Dharampal Satyapal Foods Limited
SBU: DS FOODS
Department: PRODUCT AND TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT
Function: PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT LAB
Position: Deputy Manager / Senior executive – New Product Development (NPD)
Department: Research & Development (R&D) – Product & Process
Industry: FMCG – Confectionery
Experience: 4 – 6 Years
Location: Greater Noida
Job Summary
We are seeking a passionate and innovative NPD professional to drive the development of new confectionery products from concept to commercialization. The ideal candidate should have hands-on experience in product formulation, Pilot plant handling, process optimization, scale-up, and cross-functional project management within the confectionery or food industry.
Key Responsibilities
- New product development projects for confectionery products including hard boiled Candy, chewy candy, Toffees, Jellies and related categories.
- Develop new formulations and optimize existing products to improve quality, cost, and consumer appeal.
- Conduct laboratory trials, pilot-scale trials, and commercial production trials.
- Collaborate with Marketing, Procurement, Manufacturing, Quality, Packaging, and Supply Chain teams to ensure successful product launches.
- Evaluate new ingredients, flavors, colors, functional ingredients, and packaging materials.
- Ensure compliance with food safety regulations, FSSAI standards, and internal quality requirements.
- Prepare product specifications, process documents, SOPs, and technical reports.
- Conduct shelf-life studies, sensory evaluations, and stability testing.
- Support cost optimization and value engineering initiatives without compromising product quality.
- Resolve technical challenges during commercialization and post-launch support.
- Stay updated on market trends, emerging technologies, competitor products, and consumer preferences.
- Coordinate with ingredient and packaging suppliers for innovation opportunities.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Food Technology, Food Science, Dairy Technology, Biotechnology, Nutrition science or a related field.
- 4–6 years of experience in New Product Development within the confectionery, chocolate, sugar confectionery, bakery, or FMCG food industry.
- Strong understanding of confectionery processing technologies and ingredients.
- Experience in product commercialization and scale-up.
- Knowledge of food safety systems, GMP, HACCP, and FSSAI regulations.
- Willingness to travel up to 20% of the time of product trial and launch.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office and technical documentation.
Desired Skills
- Product formulation and recipe development
- Confectionery processing technologies
- Project management
- Sensory evaluation
- Process optimization
- Cost reduction/value engineering
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Root cause analysis
- Analytical and problem-solving skills
- Strong communication and presentation skills
Preferred Experience
- Experience in candies, toffees, eclairs, hard-boiled candies, jellies, or sugar confectionery.
- Exposure to confectionery manufacturing lines.
- Knowledge of ingredient functionality, flavors, sweeteners, hydrocolloids, emulsifiers, and food additives.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
- Successful launch of new products within agreed timelines.
- First-pass commercialization success rate.
- Product quality and consumer acceptance scores.
- Cost optimization achievements.
- Time-to-market reduction.
- Innovation pipeline contribution.
- Compliance with quality and regulatory standards.
Competencies
- Innovation mindset
- Consumer-centric thinking
- Attention to detail
- Leadership and ownership
- Collaboration and stakeholder management
- Decision-making under pressure
- Continuous improvement orientation
