Associate Director, R&D - Consumer Experience

All Posting Locations: Warrendale, PA, US

Job Functions: Research & Development

Date Published: February 12, 2026

Ref#: R-100202

Remote, Hybrid or Onsite: Hybrid

ABOUT THE ROLE

Job Description

Associate Director, R&D – Consumer Experience

Job Purpose

As the Associate Director, NA R&D – Consumer Experience, you are accountable for consumer experience performance, business impact, and delivery across assigned categories and business units (BUs) within the North American Zone (NAZ). You lead how consumer needs, value curves, and experience trade-offs are defined, governed, and activated across renovation and innovation programs. This role owns category-level consumer experience (CX) roadmaps, value curves, gate knowledge, and key CX business metrics, and leads a team of Senior Managers and Consumer Experience scientists responsible for portfolios of brands. The Group Lead serves as the primary CX business partner to Category R&D, Brand, and BU leadership.

Essential Functions & Responsibilities

• Own the consumer experience strategy for assigned categories and business units.

• Define and maintain value curves, experience principles, and category consumer truths.

• Govern experience trade-offs (e.g., cost vs. convenience, nutrition vs. indulgence, prep vs. performance) across the portfolio.

• Own CX performance metrics for assigned categories and BUs, including:

o Consumer experience targets

o Project readiness and gate quality

o Innovation and renovation success indicators

• Lead CX programs and initiatives tied to business growth, renovation, and innovation priorities.

• Represent CX in portfolio, platform, and investment prioritization discussions.

• Own consumer experience gate requirements for renovation and innovation programs.

• Ensure projects enter and exit gates with:

o Clear consumer problem statements

o Validated experience hypotheses

o Defined success criteria

• Hold teams accountable for CX rigor, learning quality, and readiness.

• Serve as the consumer experience leader for Category and BU leadership teams.

• Partner closely with:

o R&D platform and technical leaders

o Marketing

o Sensory

o Insights & Analytics

• Ensure teams operate from a single consumer truth across all programs.

• Lead and develop two Senior Managers, Consumer Experience, who own CX execution for their respective BU portfolios.

• Ensure consistency of methods, learning plans, insight quality, and stakeholder experience across portfolios.

• Coach leaders on business impact, value-curve trade-offs, stakeholder influence, and decision framing.

• Maintain category-specific value curves, experience frameworks, and usage & occasion models.

• Drive continuous improvement based on in-market performance, competitive benchmarking, and consumer feedback.

People Management Responsibilities

• Team (salaried): 2 direct reports, 9 total team responsibility.

Expected Experience & Required Skills

• Bachelor's, Master's or PhD in Science (e.g., Engineering, Industrial Design, etc.) or Consumer Psychology disciplines with 10+ years of progressive experience in consumer research, UX design, product innovation or related disciplines, including direct exposure to product development and commercialization

• 3 to 5+ years leading brands, categories, or portfolios in a matrixed environment.

• Experience owning category or portfolio-level consumer strategy, gate or development governance, and value curves or experience frameworks.

• Proven people leadership, including leading senior individual contributors or managers.

• Strong ability to influence R&D, Brand, Marketing, and Sensory partners.

• Deep understanding of food product development and commercialization.

• Strong business, storytelling, and executive communication skills.

• Ability to communicate insights and recommendations using standard business tools and platforms.

• Travel required based on project and business needs, typically up to 10 to 15%.

Work Environment & Schedule

This position operates primarily in a hybrid work environment and is based at the Kraft Heinz R&D Innovation Center in Glenview, IL. Our hybrid model provides flexibility based on business needs, allowing employees to work virtually up to two days per week, with an expectation to work on-site at least three days per week at the Glenview Innovation Center.

Physical Requirements

Physical demands include but not limited to

• List the job’s physical requirements. (Mental requirements are not needed.)

This job description is not designed to cover or contain all duties or responsibilities that are required of the role. Duties or responsibilities may change or be added with or without notice.

Our Total Rewards philosophy is to provide a meaningful and flexible spectrum of programs that equitably support our diverse workforce and their families and complement Kraft Heinz’ strategy and values.

New Hire Base Salary Range:

$164,200.00 – $205,200.00

Bonus: This position is eligible for a performance-based bonus as provided by the plan terms and governing documents.

The compensation offered will take into account internal equity and may vary depending on the candidate's geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors

Benefits: Coverage for employees (and their eligible dependents) through affordable access to healthcare, protection, and saving for the future, we offer plans tailored to meet you and your family’s needs. Coverage for benefits will be in accordance with the terms and conditions of the applicable plans and associated governing plan documents.

Wellbeing: We offer events, resources, and learning opportunities that inspire a physical, social, emotional, and financial well-being lifestyle for our employees and their families.

You’ll be able to participate in a variety of benefits and wellbeing programs that may vary by role, country, region, union status, and other employment status factors, for example:

• Physical – Medical, Prescription Drug, Dental, Vision, Screenings/Assessments

• Social – Paid Time Off, Company Holidays, Leave of Absence, Flexible Work Arrangements, Recognition, Training

• Emotional – Employee Assistance Program , Wellbeing Programs, Family Support Programs

• Financial – 401k, Life, Accidental Death & Dismemberment, Disability

Location(s)

Heinz Innovation Center

Kraft Heinz is an Equal Opportunity Employer – Underrepresented Ethnic Minority Groups/Women/Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity and other protected classes. In order to ensure reasonable accommodation for protected individuals, applicants that require accommodation in the job application process may contact [email protected] for assistance.

R&D AT KRAFT HEINZ

THE
CREATORS

Our Research and Development team creates high-quality products that push the boundaries of what’s possible. Innovation is what gets us up in the morning!

Whether you want to develop your technical skills or grow as a people manager, there’s a place for you here to advance your career.