Research and Development Director (Bakery/Food Manufacturing)

Job Description

Research and Development Director (Bakery/Food Manufacturing)

Research and Development Director (Bakery/Food Manufacturing) – Dessert Holdings

Apply for the Research and Development Director (Bakery/Food Manufacturing) role at Dessert Holdings located in London, Ontario. This position focuses on delivering products that meet time, taste, functionality, quality, and cost expectations while driving new product development, continuous improvement projects, and design‑to‑value procurement opportunities.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage all necessary channels of communication to facilitate customer needs and create a culture of urgency within the R&D Department.


• Coach, mentor, and develop the R&D staff.


• Maintain high awareness of consumers, technical trends, and new developments in the food industry, with strong emphasis on baking.


• Collaborate cross‑functionally with Purchasing, Operations, and Marketing to execute scale‑up and long‑term planning.


• Act as a technical liaison between Sales and Customers.


• Work with the Purchasing Department on Vendor Approval and Sourcing Alternate Raw Materials.


• Identify and pursue Product Improvement Opportunities with short‑ and long‑term benefits including cost savings or efficiencies in operations.


• Provide guidance as the technical leader for solving processing and ingredient issues, evaluating current and future technologies for process improvements and cost savings.


• Facilitate cross‑functional teams (marketing, sales, R&D) to integrate technical and culinary strengths in product development, with strong consumer and customer focus.


• Execute a highly disciplined innovation process with a focus on commercial feasibility.

Qualifications And Requirements

• Bachelor of Science in Food Science, Food Engineering, Chemistry, or a related discipline.


• 10–15 years of product development or closely related experience in the food industry (bakery manufacturing), with at least 5 years of direct management of a large technical group.


• Experience setting annual budgets, tracking and controlling expenses, and overall financial management of a technical department consisting of both personnel and technical components.


• Academic food science knowledge with product development, new technology creation, and food manufacturing experience of bakery products.


• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite, especially SharePoint, Excel, and Word.


• Ability to read and write correspondence using technical/scientific terminology.


• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with all contacts inside and outside the company, with strong interpersonal and organizational skills.


• Proven experience with bakery or functional ingredients.


• Will require travel up to 25% of the time.

About Dessert Holdings

Dessert Holdings is a collection of premium dessert companies and brands including The Original Cakerie, Lawler’s Desserts, Atlanta Cheesecake Company, Steven Charles, Dianne’s Fine Desserts, Kenny’s Great Pies, and Willamette Valley Pie Company. The company is owned by Bain Capital, headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota, and employs more than 3,400 people across ten manufacturing facilities.

EEO Statement

Dessert Holdings and its related entities provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or any other characteristics protected by law.