Product Experience Researcher

Job Description

 As Product Experience (PX) Researchers, we represent the voice of the consumer within IFF and help to drive regional sales by implementing research designs and effectively managing resources to ensure we create optimal products people love. 

IFF PX NA Flavors is looking for a Product Experience Researcher II for the site in South Brunswick, NJ. Are you passionate about sensory, descriptive testing, and consumer insights and how they can impact product design, development, and create optimal products people love? 

As Product Experience Researcher, you will focus your activities on leading our descriptive panel and supporting commercial category-based projects. You will be responsible to lead discussions and ensure ongoing calibration among a group of trained descriptive panelists. In addition, you will guide and support sensory and consumer research activities and projects in alignment with business opportunities and corporate strategies. You will partner closely with the creation and design team with sensory and consumer insights that are directly relevant for the product design and formulation. You will also partner with commercial and marketing teams to ensure impactful customer engagement reactively and proactively. You will be the voice of the consumer. 

About You: 

To be successful in this role, you must have 5-7 years of experience in the field of sensory and consumer research, preferably in the food and beverage industry. You will have experience leading a descriptive panel and related data analysis techniques. You will also have experience in guiding and supporting customer projects and internal initiatives using sensory and consumer testing approaches. You are strategic and insightful while being pragmatic and results oriented. More than anything, you are passionate about the profession and want to make a difference. 
 

As a Product Experience Researcher II: 

• Lead our Descriptive Panel to ensure global best practices are being followed and maintaining the panel’s ongoing training and calibration. 
• Oversee the panel activities and ensure priorities are organized and structured in an optimal way to support projects as efficiently as possible. 
• Manage panel planning according to priorities. 
• Oversee and collaborate with the panel technician 
• Work with cross functional teams and effectively implement sensory & consumer insights methods for product formulation guidance for the creation of products people love by generating sensory and consumer data through: 
• Effective use of discriminative and descriptive sensory methods 
• Design quantitative consumer tests 
• Conduct qualitative consumer research (from creating moderator guides to moderating, assimilating results, and reporting) 
• Analyze sensory/descriptive and consumer data using statistical models; effectively translate raw data into insights and actionable recommendations that support the development and design of products. 
• Present findings to internal stakeholders and customers to guide development and showcase consumer understanding in the products developed. 
• Contribute to building expertise in sensory/descriptive and consumer methods and related statistics methods. 
• Collaborate with regional and global Product Experience Team. 

Job Requirements

Required Skills: 

• Degree and/or Masters in Sensory Science, Psychology, Neuroscience, Food Science or related area 
• Learning agility and drive for results, creativity and problem solving 
• Strong people skills and an effective team player 
• Able to work autonomously with minimal supervision by manager 
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English 
• High expertise level in qualitative and quantitative methodologies, and related data analysis; being at ease with statistical programs such as R, SPSS, JMP, and Xlstat 

Preferred Skills: 

• Advanced skills in descriptive testing methods and data analysis 
• Advanced skills in sensory and consumer methodologies and data analysis 
• Trained in qualitative research methods 
• Expertise in advance statistics 

Culture Principles:

• ACT AS AN OWNER – We take ownership and work with passion and integrity. Our teams are empowered to make decisions and help the entire organization thrive. 
• BE AGILE – We constantly push for progress and respond to the needs of our customers and the world with speed, skill, and creativity. 
• COLLABORATE AND WIN TOGETHER – Our bond with our customers and colleagues powers innovation and our shared success