Sr. Scientist - Snacks Innovation - Golden Valley, MN

JOB OVERVIEW:

Join General Mills and be a key player in shaping the future of salty snacks! As a Senior Scientist and Team Lead within our Salty Snacks Business, you will lead projects to develop and launch exciting new snack products, leveraging your technical expertise and passion for innovation. This role offers a unique opportunity to combine hands-on experimentation with strategic leadership, influencing the direction of our salty snacks portfolio. We are looking for a candidate with experience in the salty snack industry, preferably with experience at a large CPG or another salty snack company.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Guide and collaborate with a team of scientists and technicians to develop new and improved salty snack products, from initial concept through successful commercialization.
• Translate consumer insights, market trends, and strategic business goals into technically feasible and innovative product solutions.
• Design, execute, and analyze experiments, pilot plant trials, and manufacturing runs to optimize product formulations and processes.
• Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams, including Marketing, Supply Chain, Operations, Quality, and Regulatory, to ensure seamless project execution.
• Utilize data-driven approaches and statistical tools to inform decision-making, optimize product performance, and solve technical challenges.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to team members, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement
• Shape future opportunities with that lens to create competitively advantaged solutions
• Ensure all product development activities comply with General Mills' quality standards, food safety regulations, and labeling requirements.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Chemical Engineering, Cereal Science, or a related technical field.
• 5+ years of experience in food product development, with a focus on salty snacks.
• Proven ability to lead and motivate a team of technical professionals.
• Strong understanding of snack food processing technologies (e.g., extrusion, frying, baking, seasoning application).
• Demonstrated experience in managing projects from concept to commercialization, including pilot plant and manufacturing trials.
• Excellent problem-solving, experimental design, and data analysis skills.
• Strong communication and presentation skills, with the ability to effectively convey technical information to both technical and non-technical audiences.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master's degree or PhD in a relevant field.
• Experience with large-scale commercialization of snack products.
• Familiarity with sensory evaluation methodologies and consumer testing.
• Experience using Design of Experiments (DOE) and statistical software packages.
• Prior experience working in a stage-gate product development process.
• Strategically integrate digital technologies and data-driven approaches to elevate team efficiency, decision-making, and overall product development lifecycle.

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS:

• Applicants for this position must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis, and General Mills will not sponsor applicants for this position for work visas.
• This role is located in Golden Valley, MN and will not consider remote applicants or international applications. General Mills will provide relocation to the candidate selected for this role as long as they meet the relocation assistance policy.

Salary Range

The salary range for this position is $93700.00 - $140700.00 / Annually. At General Mills we strive for each employee's pay at any point in their career to reflect their experiences performance and skills for their current role. The salary range for this role represents the numerous factors considered in the hiring decisions including, but not limited to, educations, skills, work experience, certifications, etc. As such, pay for the successful candidate(s) could fall anywhere within the stated range. Beyond base salary, General Mills offers a competitive Total Rewards package focusing on your overall well-being. We are proud to offer a foundation of health benefits, retirement and financial wellbeing, time off programs, wellbeing support and perks. Benefits may vary by role, country, region, union status, and other employment status factors. You may also be eligible to participate in an annual incentive program. An incentive award, if any, depends on various factors, including, individual and organizational performance.

Reasonable Accommodation Request

If you need to request an accommodation during the application or hiring process, please fill out our online accommodations request form by following this link: Accommodations Request.