Regional Beverage Innovation Lead (Non-coffee Category)

Position ResponsibilitiesThe Technical Operations Lead leads beverage innovation, product development, and R&D team capabilities while ensuring scalability, quality compliance, and commercial viability across regional markets.Beverage Innovation & Team LeadershipRapid NPD Cycle: Drive the end-to-end New Product Development (NPD) process, moving from consumer insights to outlet-ready launches at a "tech-startup" pace.Operational Scalability: Ensure every new beverage is "barista-proof" and operationally viable for high-volume retail environments.Talent Mentorship: Manage and upskill a team of junior R&D members, reviewing their formulations for sensory consistency and cost-performance alignment.Tech-Driven R&D: Utilize data from our mobile app and sales analytics to iterate on menu offerings and localized tastes.Strategic Sourcing & Supplier ManagementSupplier Technical Vetting: Lead the technical qualification of raw material suppliers (eg. cocoa, syrups, milk alternatives) to ensure they meet our high-quality benchmarks.Relationship Management: Build deep partnerships with vendors to ensure supply resilience and early access to innovative ingredients.Cost Engineering: Collaborate with Supply Chain to validate ingredient costs and optimize margins for regional scaling (e.g., Malaysia, Philippines)Quality & Compliance LiaisonStandardization: Translate complex R&D bench tests into simplified Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the Academy and Retail Operations teams.QA Alignment: Partner with the QA/QC and Halal departments to ensure all new ingredients and processes comply with food safety and regulatory standards.Root Cause Leadership: Lead investigations into product incidents or quality feedback from outlets, driving corrective actions (CAPA) with suppliers when necessary.Qualification and ExperiencesDegree in Food Science, Food Technology, Culinology or a related field.Experience: Minimum 5+ years in F&B R&D, ideally within a fast-paced retail chain or QSR environment (vs. purely FMCG).Leadership: At least 2 years in a senior or supervisory capacity, with a passion for coaching junior food scientists.Industry Savvy: Deep knowledge of the cafe-scene (or f&b), beverage sensory benchmarking, and ingredient functionality.Agility: Must be comfortable working in a tech-enabled, fast-growing company where priority shifts and rapid expansion are the norm.a Necessity, not a Luxury