missionhiresSan Antonio, TX
Senior Manager, Research and Development – Tortilla - San Antonio, TX
$23,000 per year
Apply →Senior Manager, Research and Development – Tortilla - San Antonio, TX
Senior Manager, Research and Development – Tortilla - San Antonio, TX
missionhiresSan Antonio, TX
Apply for this role →yesterday
$23,000 per year
Mission Hires is seeking a Senior Manager, R&D – Tortilla to lead and scale our tortilla product development function. This people‑first leader will manage a team of scientists, own project prioritization and flow, and act as the primary technical and project contact across Sales, Category/Marketing, Operations, Quality, Purchasing, suppliers, and customers. The role blends hands‑on bakery/tortilla technical expertise with cross‑functional leadership, commercialization, and continuous improvement to deliver high‑quality, manufacturable products on time. This is a 5‑day, on‑site role in San Antonio with up to ~50% travel and a $23K bonus target.
Responsibilities:
- Lead, mentor, and develop a team of R&D scientists and coordinators; provide technical guidance and make critical decisions on feasibility, direction, and execution
- Own end-to-end product and process development from concept through commercialization for tortilla and grain-based products
- Evaluate, prioritize, and assign project requests based on capabilities, workload, and timelines; coordinate resources with other R&D leaders
- Track and ensure accurate, timely documentation of formulas, specs, and project records across internal systems
- Serve as the primary communication link among R&D, Sales, Marketing/Category, Operations, Quality, and Purchasing
- Conduct regular team and 1:1 check-ins; set goals, address challenges, give feedback, and drive next steps
- Develop professional development plans; foster a high-performance, growth-oriented team culture
- Participate in customer-facing planning sessions; assess feasibility, align on objectives, and lead follow-through to commercialization
- Provide hands‑on technical leadership in plant trials, process evaluations, troubleshooting, and continuous improvement
- Advance formulations, processing technologies, quality attributes, and specifications in collaboration with suppliers and internal partners
- Optimize existing products from bench to scale-up and through commercialization to improve quality, cost, and manufacturability
- Represent R&D in presentations to customers and industry groups; communicate progress and technical rationale effectively
- Conduct performance evaluations; oversee staffing decisions and role definition for direct reports
- Ensure adherence to GMPs and relevant industry standards in development and scale-up environments
- Perform other duties as assigned and travel as needed (up to ~50%) to plants, customers, and suppliers
Requirements:
- Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Baking Science, or related technical field (advanced degree preferred)10+ years of R&D and/or Technical Services experience in food manufacturing with strong, hands‑on commercial tortilla experience (must‑have baked products/tortillas)
- Proven leadership managing technical teams, including coaching, workload planning, and performance management
- Demonstrated success leading projects from concept through launch and commercialization
- Experience collaborating with customers, suppliers, co‑manufacturers, or assemblers to develop and commercialize new products
- Strong understanding of scientific principles in food product development and broad knowledge of food ingredients (grain-based expertise strongly preferred)
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office and related software tools; strong documentation discipline
- Excellent problem‑solving skills; ability to support plant teams with technical troubleshooting and process optimization
- Familiarity with food manufacturing environments and tortilla‑processing operations; working knowledge of GMPs and industry standards
- Strong awareness of emerging trends in food science, ingredient technology, and consumer preferences
- Exceptional written, verbal, and presentation skills; ability to translate between technical and commercial stakeholders
- Proven ability to manage complex, concurrent projects and competing timelines
- Ability to train and transfer knowledge to Operations and QA; effective cross‑functional collaboration
- Strong organizational, delegation, and priority‑setting skills; customer‑ and supplier‑facing professionalism
- Willingness to work on‑site 5 days/week in San Antonio and travel up to approximately 50% based on business needs
- Ability to occasionally lift up to 15 pounds and work in manufacturing environments with variable conditions
Also on the board Same function, level within a rung
Level
Manager
Salary
$23,000 per year
Location
San Antonio, TX
Occupation
Natural Sciences Managers
Industry
Tortilla Manufacturing
Posted
yesterday