Manager, R&D
Confirmed live in the last 24 hours
Chomps
Compensation
$115,000 - $120,000
Job Description
Who We Are
We’re Chomps, the fastest-growing meat snack brand in the U.S.* and we’re reimagining snacking. Our meat snacks are made using high-quality proteins, no sugar, and real ingredients – because we believe snacking should be simple, delicious, and convenient. Chomps can be found in over 30,000 stores nationwide with a strong e-commerce presence. Our mission is to inspire, educate, and fuel our community with accessible, real food that doesn’t compromise on taste.
Traits of a Chompian
If you’ve been called scrappy, resourceful, and persistent, then you might just be a Chompian. You’re a team player who’s self-motivated and action-oriented. You’re committed to delivering efficiency and accuracy, and you happen to be great at proactive cross-functional communication. You’re a critical thinker and a natural problem solver who enjoys details, research, and data. You take initiative and complete ownership of everything you do, and you’ll go the extra mile for your team, consumers, and audience. You’re hungry to learn with a passion to grow and improve every day. You also take a keen interest in health, fitness, and nutrition. Sound like you? Then we want to meat you.
What You Will Do
At Chomps, we’re building a team that takes ownership, moves quickly, and holds a high bar for product quality. As the Manager, R&D, you will lead key work across yield improvement, day-to-day support of the base business, and commercialization, owning projects that directly impact how our products are made and how they perform in market.
This role sits at the center of manufacturing, quality, and product execution, ensuring consistent performance across plants. Responsibilities include driving process improvements, leading plant trials and scale-ups, and providing hands-on technical support to our co-manufacturing partners. You will be expected to use data to inform decisions and prioritize work.
This role will also manage and develop a small team, helping set priorities, remove roadblocks, and keep projects moving forward.
This is a hands-on, fast-paced role. The right person is comfortable operating in ambiguity, working through plant-level challenges, and driving progress without a lot of structure.
Responsibilities
- Team Leadership:
- Manage and develop a small R&D team, setting clear priorities and expectations
- Provide coaching and support to help the team grow and take ownership of their work
- Ensure projects are progressing with strong accountability
- Commercialization and Plant Support:
- Lead commercialization efforts from bench to full-scale production
- Own plant trials and scale-ups to ensure consistent, repeatable outcomes
- Partner with manufacturing and procurement to meet targets for quality, cost, and scalability
- Base Business and Co-Manufacturing Support:
- Serve as a key R&D partner to co-manufacturers, supporting day-to-day production and troubleshooting
- Work closely with manufacturing and FSQA to maintain product quality and consistency across plants
- Be hands-on in solving issues, both remotely and on-site
- Yield and Cost Improvement:
- Identify and lead opportunities to improve yields, throughput, and reduce waste
- Partner cross-functionally to drive cost improvements while maintaining product quality
- Use data and plant learnings to inform decisions and prioritize work
- Quality and Continuous Improvement:
- Lead efforts to improve product quality, consistency, and performance across plants
- Identify root causes of issues and implement practical, scalable solutions
- Continuously look for ways to improve processes
- Cross-functional Collaboration:
- Work closely with manufacturing, FSQA, procurement, and marketing to align on priorities
- Communicate clearly on project status, risks, and decisions
- Act as a strong technical and operational voice in cross-functional discussions
- Documentation and Reporting:
- Maintain clear documentation of formulations, trials, and process changes
- Track project progress, plant learnings, and key performance metrics
- Keep teams aligned through clear, simple communication
Who You Are
- Bachelor’s or Master’s degr
