Senior Sensory Scientist

Role Mission

This role is responsible for using and creating sensory consumer and analytical methods to guide innovation product development and maintaining high quality of our liquids. The Sr. Sensory Scientist will be a key partner using experience to identify trends, drive creative solutions to business challenges, design and lead testing plans with scientific rigor, create actionable recommendations, and report those results. They will collaborate with R&D, Marketing, Consumer Insights, Operations, and other internal and external partners on new products, processes, quality improvements and cost savings to drive Suntory Global Spirits profitable growth and business success. 
 

What makes this a great opportunity?

•    The alcohol beverage industry is an exciting, dynamic, and fast-paced business. Suntory Global Spirits is a top player in the industry and focused on driving both category and brand growth. 
•    The Sr. Sensory Scientist role is an influencer in liquid innovation, optimization, quality, and production across Suntory Global Spirits (SGS) portfolio, including Distilled Spirits and Ready-to-Drink beverages.
•    They will build a network across the global organization have an impactful within a short period of time as well as partner on long term research initiatives.

Role Responsibilities

•    Exhibits intellectual curiosity and develops creative solutions to solve for business and research objectives.
•    Works effectively in cross functional relationships and with external research suppliers.
•    Demonstrates high level of accountability and self-direction.
•    Ability to manage multiple projects concurrently.
•    Team Player with ability to work in a highly collaborative and fast-paced environment.
•    Leads custom sensory and consumer product research across a wide range of techniques, including descriptive analysis, consumer quantitative, and qualitative through all stages: design, execution, analysis and recommendation.
•    Excellent analysis of data and translation to findings for broad audiences.
•    Creates actionable recommendations for innovation product development and quality.
•    Experience creating or using designs of experiments and drivers of liking research.
•    Strong verbal and written communication skills, including timely follow-up and commitment to deliverables, and openness to give and receive feedback.
•    Stays up to date on new approaches and best practices within sensory and consumer research.

Qualifications

•    Bachelor’s degree Food Science, Statistics, Psychology, or related field, Master’s degree with emphasis in Sensory Science preferred
•    Minimum 6 years (4 years with Master’s degree) in Sensory and consumer research experience across a wide range of research techniques. 
•    Experience in alcoholic beverages, distilled spirits, ready to drink alcoholic, and non-alcoholic beverages a plus.
•    Proficient skills in planning and performing experiments, data collection, analysis, and interpretation.  
•    Strong verbal and written communication skills, including timely follow-up and commitment to deliverables, and openness to give and receive feedback.   
•    Desire to help build and maintain a diverse, equitable, and inclusive culture within Global R&D and broader Beam Suntory.
•    Ability to travel domestically and globally for research and project work – travel approx. 10-30%, with most to Kentucky operations and Chicago/NYC corporate offices. 
•    Physically fit for work primarily in a lab, pilot plant, and manufacturing environments, which could include long periods of standing, moving, and carrying or lifting up to 50 pounds.
•    Must be able to taste limited quantities of alcoholic beverage samples in accordance with research needs.