Product Development Chef

Want to help us bring happiness to the world? Want to join an ambitious and fast-growing global biscuits and confectionery business investing heavily in iconic global brands, infrastructure and people? Then this is the place for you.

As proud bakers and chocolatiers and custodians of iconic global brands, we don’t compromise on the quality of ingredients in our products or on the people we hire. We are looking for entrepreneurial spirits who share our passion for bringing happiness to our consumers and who embody our Winning Traits.

To succeed at pladis you need to be purpose-led, resilient and positive because we expect pace and agility, insist on collaboration and demand accountability. If that is your thing, then pladis offers global ambition, a clear Vision and roadmap for success, challenge, and unrivalled opportunities to learn and make an impact.

Our mission is to provide happiness with every bite to all our consumers. To us that means happiness for people every day, in what they eat and what they do.

The pladis story began when the families of McVitie’s, GODIVA and Ulker each started making the sweet and savoury treats they would later become famous for. The founders of these companies shared a secret; they knew how to create products that people loved. And this grew their brands into icons with large portfolios of sweet and savoury.

In 2016, Yildiz Holding embarked on a remarkable journey to transform its consumer food businesses and built a new global industry leader combining the businesses of Ulker and United Biscuits: and so pladis was born, combining hundreds of years of family brand heritage. Named after the ‘Pleiades’ constellation, a group of stars visible from anywhere on earth, pladis retains the values and beliefs of the entrepreneurs that built its brands; honesty, integrity, passion.

At heart, we are a family business, and we retain the honesty, integrity and trust instilled in our brands by their pioneering founders through our traits and behaviours. Our culture is unique – we have a large global footprint with the heart and soul of a start-up company. It’s this culture that distinguishes us from our competitors. We’re not afraid to try new things, to experiment and strive for the impossible. Sometimes we make mistakes (we’re human!) – and we use this to learn and push ourselves forward. That’s just who we are.

You’ll find pladis a phenomenal place to work. Everyone who works here is a member of the pladis global family. We pride ourselves on giving everyone the chance to succeed, and we value each individual’s contribution.

Why join our team?

Led by our regional Managing Directors, pladis operates as six regions across North America, UK & Ireland, Europe, Middle East and North Africa, Turkey, Central Asia and Romania, and Emerging Markets.

What will this role achieve?

Shaping the future of food innovation by translating global culinary trends and consumer needs into inspiring product experiences. Working alongside expert chefs, flavour specialists and sensory and R&D scientists, you'll create gold-standard concepts that delight consumers, strengthen our brands, unlock new opportunities and bring culinary excellence and culture to life across the business.

What will be your key results?

• Hands on in the kitchen working alongside our senior culinary chefs, flavour and application specialists to create gold standard culinary products to demonstrate winning product experiences and new innovation formats that can be applied to our product portfolio.
• Support development of new product experiences for sweet and savoury projects.
• Support compiling culinary and flavour trends reports, product and cuisine showcases, bringing culinary experiences & culture to life across the business.
• Other activities will include event planning, arranging product tastings, ordering samples, liaising with suppliers, attending factory trials, networking within the culinary and foodservice landscapes.
• Work with colleagues to ensure that product development facilities are maintained to a safe and hygienic standard and operate using lean principles. Drive for continuous improvement.

What do you need for this role?

• Relevant qualifications for the patisserie & bakery industry.
• Relevant food safety qualifications.
• Demonstrable passion for food, global cuisines and food trends awareness.
• Able to collaborate with strong communication skills across various groups.
• Creative, innovative individual with good organisation and attention to detail.
• Self-motivated, independent individual.
• A valid, full UK Driving License as role involves regular travel to various locations.
• Flexibility to learn on the job.
• Relevant IT skills, Microsoft Suite.
• Content creation & digital storytelling skills.

Successful Leadership at pladis

At pladis we believe that every colleague is a leader, regardless of their position, title or role in the organization. Our Leadership Success Model defines the leadership competencies and behaviours which enable us to deliver our business strategy, develop successful leaders and build a strong culture for pladis. The Leadership Success Model is divided into three elements, each with a different focus but ultimately working towards the same goal.

• Setting the agenda
• Taking others with you
• Doing it right

Ideal candidates will demonstrate well-developed skills in the following areas:

• Setting the Agenda by thinking strategically and focusing on innovation - Pladis is looking for a candidate who will be a strong problem solver and can handle complexity successfully, to see the big picture as well as to go into details where necessary. The ideal candidate finds the right balance between short-term priorities and long-term opportunities.
• Taking Others with them by championing collaboration and building an inclusive and high performing team - The successful candidate has demonstrated the ability to work as part of a global business with a strong culture. They will bring people together across boundaries to achieve results as a team and share best practices. Finally, they should be culturally sensitive and effective.
• Doing it Right by delivering the right results - The successful candidate will have driven successful transformation projects in a matrix organization with multiple stakeholders.

Our winning traits and behaviours

• Purpose-Led - Energized by our promise to deliver happiness to the world with every bite.
• Agile - Ever evolving, never satisfied and never standing still.
• Collaborative - Willing to work with others for mutual success.
• Resilient - Quick to adapt to change, fast learner and persistent in the face of setbacks.
• Positive - Self-motivated, optimistic, fearless, and inspiring.

Diversity and inclusion is central to everything we do and is reflected across our business. pladis brings together brands and people from around the globe – and this diversity is our phenomenal strength.

We’re an equal opportunities employer and believe in encouraging an inclusive environment where we celebrate diversity of thinking and respect everyone’s distinctive qualities and perspectives. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform key job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

pladis is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to hiring a diverse workforce. All openings will be filled based on qualifications without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, marital status, veteran status, disability, age, religion or any other classification protected by law.

We operate a strict Preferred Supplier List. If you are a recruitment agency and wish to submit candidates to be considered for this vacancy, you must have agreed to, and signed, our terms of business. We will not accept CVs from any other sources other than those currently on our PSL. We will not pay a fee for any candidate that has not been represented by a provider on our PSL.