Director of New Product Development & Commercialization / Directress of New Product Development & Commercialization

Our Opportunity

Restaurant Brands International (RBI) is seeking a Director of New Product Development & Commercialization. This role will support culinary innovation, product localization, and product scalability through commercialization initiatives with suppliers across all international regions.

The successful candidate will provide technical support and expertise to the global Culinary, Quality, and Procurement teams to assist in executing strategies across RBI's brands, which include Burger King, Popeyes, Tim Hortons, and Firehouse Subs.

This position involves close collaboration with cross-functional teams, including Innovation, Marketing, Quality Assurance, Procurement, Operations, and Suppliers. The role translates culinary benchtop products into commercially viable, high-quality menu items that can be successfully executed across multiple markets.

Your Roles & Responsibilities

Product Commercialization

• Commercialize culinary products for new country entries (NCE’s), new product innovations, and core product improvements.
• Demonstrate expertise in ingredient functionality to support product quality, consistency, and operational efficiency.
• Attend trial production runs and assist suppliers in scale-up decision-making of RBI branded products.
• Assess supplier manufacturing readiness, process capability, and scale-up risks to ensure successful commercialization and execution.
• Complete statistical process control assessments and data analytics to support technical development of processing specifications.
• Identify process optimization opportunities to improve consistency, yield, quality, and cost performance.

Product Launch Execution

• Assist in executing the launch of new and existing menu items from concept through rollout across applicable regions.
• Collaborate with suppliers and internal teams to evaluate ingredient functionality, formulation adjustments, and manufacturing capabilities.
• Ensure products meet brand culinary expectations while remaining operationally executable in restaurant environments.

Supplier Collaboration & Culinary Insights

• Lead technical discussions with supplier leadership to drive continuous improvement in product quality, manufacturing capabilities, and cost efficiency.
• Collaborate with supplier culinary and R&D teams to explore new or alternative ingredients, processes, and product improvements.
• Lead specification development activities in conjunction with Quality Assurance and Procurement.

Cross-Functional Support

• Partner with Regional (EMEA, LAC, APAC) Innovation and Marketing teams to translate consumer insights into product development opportunities.
• Support Operations teams in validating preparation methods, equipment settings, and holding procedures.
• Collaborate with Procurement to evaluate sourcing options, supplier capabilities, ingredient substitutions, and specification impacts associated with commercialization projects.
• Support the development and refinement of ingredient specifications with Quality Assurance.
• Work together with Procurement and Quality Assurance to ensure that commercialization decisions support continuity of supply, cost objectives, and quality standards.

Project & Test Kitchen Support

• Assist in coordinating culinary testing, supplier engagement, and product validation.
• Support internal culinary demonstrations, product testing sessions, and innovation workshops.
• Track innovation and commercialization projects across multiple markets and brands.

Commercialization & Risk Management

• Identify technical, manufacturing, and supply chain risks associated with new product launches and develop mitigation plans.
• Support supplier validation and approval activities for new products and ingredients.
• Assist with dual sourcing and contingency planning initiatives where appropriate.

Your Skills & Experience

• Education in Food Science, Food Technology, Nutrition, or related fields.
• 10+ years of experience in food commercialization, food manufacturing, or QSR innovation, including demonstrated success in leading projects from concept to launch.
• Culinary foundation with a keen interest in food science, ingredient functionality, and product development.
• Proven ability to influence and align diverse stakeholders across internal functions, franchise organizations, and supplier partners.
• Familiarity with recipe development, product prototyping, and culinary testing methods.
• Understanding of food manufacturing or large-scale food service operations.
• Experience working directly with food manufacturers, co-packers, and ingredient suppliers to commercialize products at scale.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Excel, PowerPoint, Word).
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Passionate about global cuisines and emerging food trends.
• Fluent in English (written and spoken), with additional language skills in Spanish, French, German, or Portuguese considered a plus.
• Willingness to travel up to 40% of the time during certain periods.

Apply online using the form below. Only applications matching the job profile will be considered.