Product Developer

M&S Food is changing, and fast! We are undergoing one of the biggest transformations in retailing today to build a bigger, better, fresher food business.

From Percy Pig to the freshest M&S Select Farms produce, we grow, source, and develop our own products to give our customers family-ready food that's unbeatable on flavour and innovation.

We need motivated people who are ready to bring their whole self to work and give it their all in a fast-paced team committed to being the best. After all, this is not just food… This is M&S Food.

This is not just and job this a M&S Product Developer job! This role is to direct and deliver commercial product development in line with Category Plans and Food Business strategy. You will deliver all product launches with impact, on time and to the agreed quality.

Key Accountabilities and measure

• Keep up to date with trends in foods and lifestyle, packaging and ingredients
• Understanding and ability to clearly articulate good, better, best tiering where relevant with clear product values against each tier in line with the M&S product strategy
• Input into category strategy with your Head of Product, Trading Manager, Brand Marketing, Technologist and Buyer.
• Identify commercial product development opportunities within own area of responsibility
• Interpret internal and external sources of data and customer insight to deliver product proposition plans,
• Clearly articulate product requirements and work in partnership with relevant supply base colleagues to deliver ‘best in class’ innovative products.
• Follow Stage and Gate development process, running projects to ensure critical path targets are met, communicating with partners.
• Lead on product quality standards setting the benchmark for the industry, identifying relevant benchmarks and centres of excellence.
• Write packaging design briefs in collaboration with key partners capturing external benchmarks, relevant customer and market insight
• Continually supervise performance of new product development in the marketplace and agree appropriate action with category team
• Sees opportunities to bring on board new suppliers to deliver market leading innovation, ensuring protection for M&S development through relevant legal documents and agreements.
• Deliver accurate product and category information relating to product and project requirements in a timely manner to multi-channel teams.

You have an active interest in food, culinary trends and food development and the ability to apply culinary knowledge and skills to product development. You have the ability to demonstrate commercial acumen. You are highly organised at leading projects. You are able to Influence and present effectively with a positive and self-motivated mind set. You are able to analyse and interpret market and customer data.

M&S is ready to push boundaries to lead the retail industry into a greener, speedier, more inspiring digital era. That’s why we’re revolutionising how we work and offering our most exciting opportunities yet. There’s never been a better time to be part of our team. Marks & Spencer aims to be an inclusive organisation, trusted and admired by our colleagues, customers and suppliers. Join us and make an immediate impact.

We are committed to an active Inclusion, Diversity and Equal Opportunities Policy, which starts with our recruitment and selection process, and we are happy to talk flexible working.

If you consider yourself to require reasonable adjustments to any part of our recruitment process, we invite you to share those requirements with us when completing your application. We will make every effort to ensure your needs are met to provide a fair and transparent process of assessment.