Product Development Lead

Position Overview

We are looking for a Product Development Lead to join our corporate Marketing team at ALBAIK Food Systems Co. in Jeddah, Makkah, Saudi Arabia. This role will lead the creation and enhancement of food products and menus from initial ideas through to market launch. The goal is to transform brand strategies and customer insights into profitable and scalable offerings, ensuring consistent quality and operational feasibility in various markets.

Key Responsibilities

• Formulate and uphold the menu strategy, prioritize categories, and evaluate the product portfolio by leveraging customer, market, commercial, and operational data.
• Set and sustain menu standards alongside structured workflows for new product launches, menu alterations, detailed product specifications, and thorough documentation.
• Oversee the innovation pipeline while developing product concepts and business cases, handling recipe creation and prototyping collaboratively.
• Lead testing phases including sensory, consumer acceptance, quality, shelf-life, cost, and restaurant usability tests, applying feedback to improve products pre-launch.
• Coordinate launches over multiple markets, manage launch plans, assess readiness, ensure supply availability, develop training materials, and execute pilot tests.
• Support regional menu adaptations and assess local product proposals, maintaining brand integrity, quality standards, and food safety.
• Collaborate closely with Operations, Supply Chain, Quality and Food Safety, Finance, Procurement, and regional teams to meet targets on product costs, margins, availability, speed of service, and customer value.
• Monitor metrics after launch including sales, product mix, margins, customer feedback, quality, and operational effectiveness, recommending refinements as needed.
• Design and conduct training sessions on product development methodologies, menu standards, and new product launch procedures.
• Identify risks concerning product, suppliers, regulations, allergens, food safety, supply capacity, and execution, mitigating these prior to launch.
• Lead cross-functional projects, oversee schedules and priorities, tackle challenges, and communicate updates and outcomes to stakeholders.
• Track milestones in development, innovation progress, launch preparations, adherence to standards, regional review times, and training impact.

Qualifications and Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Culinary Arts, Hospitality Management, Business, Marketing, or a comparable discipline. Postgraduate qualifications are an advantage.
• Over 10 years of experience in product development, menu management, culinary innovation, or category management, preferably within QSR, food service, hospitality, or FMCG sectors.
• Proven leadership in cross-functional product development and market launches, covering concept to rollout and post-launch evaluation.
• Comprehensive knowledge of structured product development processes, sensory and consumer testing, recipe development, product specifications, and shelf-life evaluations.
• Expertise in food cost analysis, menu engineering, business case formulation, and assessing product profitability.
• Familiarity with restaurant operations, supplier partnerships, food safety protocols, allergen management, and applicable regulations.
• Strong project management capabilities, enabling coordination of multiple projects, priorities, and stakeholders across diverse markets.
• Strategic mindset with creativity and commercial acumen to translate market and customer insights into viable product opportunities.
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, communication, presentation, and training skills, with keen attention to detail and quality.