Innovation Manager

Beam Suntory is Crafting the Spirits that Stir the World. Rooted in two centuries of family heritage, Beam Suntory has evolved into the world's third largest leading premium spirits company ... where each employee is treated like family and trusted with legacy. With our greatest assets - our premium spirits and our people - we're driving growth through impactful marketing, innovation and an entrepreneurial spirit. Beam Suntory is a place where you can come Unleash your Spirit by making an impact each and every day.

Innovation Manager  

What makes this a great opportunity?

As a world leader in premium spirits, Beam Suntory inspires human connections through our globally recognised portfolio of brands, including the iconic Jim Beam and Maker's Mark Bourbon brands, Canadian Club Whiskey, Suntory brands including highly admired Luxury Whiskey brands such as Yamazaki, Hakushu, Hibiki and Toki as well as Roku Gin, Haku Vodka and -196 premix.

Beam Suntory was created in 2014 by combining the world leader in bourbon and the pioneer in Japanese whisky to form a new company with a deep heritage, passion for quality, innovative spirit and vision of Growing for Good. Headquartered in New York, NY, Beam Suntory is a subsidiary of Suntory Holdings Limited of Japan. Our culture is anchored deeply in a set of core values, including our East-Meets-West Culture, Yatte Minahare spirit, Giving Back to Society, Delighting Consumers, responsibly and Embracing Diversity & Inclusion.

Role Responsibilities

RTD (Ready-To-Drink) / Refreshment is one of Beam Suntory’s global growth platforms and we have an ambition to develop the RTD business to US$3BN globally in 2030. Locally, RTD is the largest growth contributor to the Oceania business to 2030.

The Innovation Manager supports local development & coordination of Beam Suntory Oceania’s Innovation portfolio (predominantly RTD) in close partnership with Global key stakeholders (Suntory Global RTD Development team, Global Brand Houses such as Jim Beam, House of Suntory), local cross functional teams and our partners.

It is essential that the role works collaboratively with Marketing and Agency partners to deliver final product mix; with NPD Commercialization, Technical R&D, Quality Assurance to ensure that the project is delivered OTIF.  The role also works closely with the local Consumer Insights team and Category Management team to identify local consumer & shopper insights and customer sell in stories. As our Manufacturing & Distribution partner, Coca-Cola European Partners is essential in delivering and executing NPDs, and the role plays a critical role in influencing the BSI agenda with CCEP.

Role Responsibilities 

NPD PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT

• Support localization and development of RTD NPDs to support delivery of commercial goals
• Partner with Marketing teams and Global key stakeholders to ensure that RTD Innovation are delivered to serve the JTBD

R&D AND COMMERCIALIZATION PROCESS

• Collate required internal processes & approvals, ensure all information and documents are developed in a timely manner and to high quality, well thought out and prepared (e.g. gate documents, S2S internal documents) incorporating inputs from Commercialization, Category and Commercial Finance.
• Support Group Innovation Manager in management of technical NPD processes including liquid brief, product & packaging development, consumer researches, commercialization, GTM planning together with relevant expert functions
• To manage budget effectively including PO and tracking

INSIGHTS GENERATION

• Work closely with Category teams to build the customer sell-in insights and stories for successful NPD acceptance
• Deliver PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Action), NPD performance tracking, capture learnings (what worked, did not, what would we do differently from our launches) to build robust institutional knowledge for future innovation successes

LAUNCH & EXECUTION

• Partner with cross functional groups to ensure effective implementation of agreed plans, deliver innovation plans OTIF and within the budget
• For New to World NPDs, support Group Innovation Manager for briefing and development of launch activities (e.g. PR, BTL activities, Web site, Digital, SKU Vantage etc.) including support execution planning & coordination with Beam Suntory Shopper Activation, CCA NPC team, State interface

STAKEHOLDER MANAGEMENT

• Build collaborative, effective working relationships with cross-functional partners in Category, Shopper Activation, Commercial Finance, NPD commercialization, R&D, Supply and Logistics, Insights and Marketing teams.
• Build effective working relationships with our distributor partner, CCEP.
• Build the effective working relationship with Suntory GRD team, Global Brand Houses, APAC teams as appropriate
• Manage and inspire agency partners to deliver the best output

Qualifications & Experience

• 6+  years experience in a consumer marketing / brand management / innovation / consumer strategy development
• Research, Insights & Strategy development experience preferred
• Tertiary qualifications (preferably Commerce or Business with Marketing Major)
• Liquor / beverage industry experience is valued but not essential
• Good understanding of project management, NPD stage gate process

At Beam Suntory, people are our number one priority, and we believe our people grow together in diverse and inclusive environments where their unique insights, experiences and backgrounds are valued and respected. Beam Suntory is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, military veteran status and all other characteristics, attributes or choices protected by law. All recruitment and hiring decisions are based on an applicant’s skills and experience.