Product Technologist

Job Description

Brakes are currently recruiting for a Product Technologist to join the team on a full time, permanent basis. The role is based at our Ashford office and reports to the Senior Technical Manager. It will be your responsibility to provide support to the technical managers in delivering effective supplier management, product compliance, and due diligence.

This role is offering a hybrid working contract, with 1 day per week minimum in our Ashford , Kent office for Team Collaboration, so you must be in a commutable distance and open to travel.

Key Accountabilities & Responsibilities:

Supplier maintenance:

• Issue and review performance scorecards
• Monitor GFSI status, responding to changes and maintaining data
• Monitor supplier SEDEX membership status, review risk reports and audit outcomes
• Ensure supplier and site contacts are up to date in relevant systems
• Monitor supplier and site (non-GFSI) certification status that may impact on chain of custody or product claims
• Monitor and report on audit status

Product maintenance:

• Ensure routine specification reviews are completed
• Review specifications to pack copy generation stage
• Undertake product quality assessments
• Review artwork proofs
• Issue and review product scorecards to verify policy compliance

Certification maintenance:

• Ensure certified product lists are maintained
• Complete mass balance exercises for certified ranges
• Provide certified product data for customer reporting
• Complete internal certified claim validations

Other key activities:

• Support complaint and rejection investigation with suppliers, as necessary
• Flexibility to support multiple categories on stratygic projects, as necessary
• Gather product or ingredient data from suppliers in support of customer requests, policy adherence development etc.
• Support technical managers with specification and artwork progression, as necessary
• Step in to Pprovide first line cover for technical managers in responding to category team and supplier queries, where relevant.
• Operate and maintain number of systems organisation uses and maintain data within
• Attend product review panels where required.
• Attend supplier visits where required
• Support TM in resolving issues as they arise.
• Support TM in delivering specific projects as they arise.

About you:

You are a food passionate with a desire to get the things right for the customers - from data provision to food safety, quality & integrity. The ideal candidate will have a FSQM technical background, and have a good understanding of food manufacturing, storage & distribution, due diligence process and importance of data accuracy. Relevant degree in Food Science/Technology or similar is desirable but candidates with other relevant experience are also welcome to apply. You will be placed in a multi-category Technical team, however your day to day interaction will be working collaboratively with a number different functions across organisation and as such openness and good communication skills are essential. You can multi-task and adjust easily to ever changing circumstances and communication styles. Your decisions are fact based, and you are not shy to reach out to wider teams for any advice or solutions to get the task over the line. You are process driven. Attention to detail and analytical skills are your strength and you can piece together different aspects quickly & effectively. Prioritisation skills are key to be successful in this role.

Success in this role will enable progression through the technical function over time for the right candidate.

What you’ll receive:

• A competitive salary
• Generous holiday allowance, with option to purchase 5 additional holiday days
• Pension scheme
• Hybrid working contract
• Huge discounts on all sorts of lovely food and award-winning products through our staff shop
• Discounts on shopping and earn cashback on purchases through a dedicated discounts app.
• Recognition awards and Incentives
• Career progression opportunities - being part of Sysco, the world’s leading foodservice business, opens up a world of possibility