**Innovation Director** **Department:** Chemical - Operations **Job Status** : Full Time **FLSA Status:** Salary Exempt **Reports To:** Senior Vice President of Operations **Work Schedule:** Varies **Amount of Travel Required:** 25-40% **Positions Supervised:** Yes **WHO YOU ARE:** Join our dynamic team as an Innovation Director and lead the way in shaping the future of innovation! We are seeking a visionary leader to drive our research and development efforts, bringing cutting-edge solutions to the forefront of our industry. As the Innovation Director, you will lead strategic initiatives to enhance food safety standards, mitigate contamination risks, and implement innovative solutions for pathogen detection and control by spearheading cross-functional projects, leverage emerging technologies, and establish best practices to safeguard all stages of the food production and distribution process from pathogen contamination. If you are eager to push the boundaries of what is possible and ready to make a significant impact, apply now and be at the helm of innovation with us! **WHO WE ARE:** + Leader in food safety solutions for both contract sanitation and chemistry in the food processing industry. + Over 10,000 dedicated team members across North America. + Corporate headquarters in Atlanta, GA with team members working in over 250 plants throughout North America. + Over 50+ years of experience in creating long-lasting partnerships. **OUR MISSION:** We protect the food supply by eliminating risks so families everywhere can eat without fear. + **Protect What Matters:** We are in service of safety at every step, ensuring the health of everyone is central to all we do – from plant team members to consumers.? + **Deliver On Our Promises?:** We speak honestly and are dedicated to doing the right thing by upholding ethical standards and following through on our commitments to our teams, our customers, and our business.? + **Win as a Team?:** We believe in the power of collaboration, uniting our diverse strengths while working hand-in-hand with our team members and customers to unlock potential and achieve stronger results together.? + **Advance a Safer Future?:** We are committed to innovating more effective, sustainable, and cost-efficient food safety solutions to develop a safer world for all.? **WHAT YOU WILL DO:** This role will be responsible for satisfactory execution and implementation, including but not limited to the following: · Develop and implement a comprehensive innovation strategy to improve food safety and pathogen control across the organization. Identify opportunities for innovation and work closely with R&D, Engineering, Sales, Marketing, Customer Technical Service, and Operations teams to enhance food safety protocols. Your team is approximately 15 people and growing. A field service and support team of nearly 90 exists to drive commercialization and customer technical support. · **Technology and Process Innovation:** Research and implement advanced technologies for pathogen detection, risk assessment, and contamination prevention. Build a sound intellectual property strategy that adds value to Safe Foods Chemical Innovations (“SFCI”) in all 3 phases of our innovation focus – chemistry, equipment/application, and advanced process control. Stay updated on cutting-edge advancements in food safety technologies, such as rapid microbial testing, blockchain traceability, and AI-powered quality control. · **Regulatory Compliance:** Ensure compliance with all federal, state, and local food safety regulations and industry standards (e.g., FDA, USDA, HACCP). Oversee audits, inspections, and risk assessments to identify gaps and maintain compliance. · **Cross-functional Collaboration:** Partner with cross-functional teams, including Product Development, Supply Chain, Operations, and Quality Assurance, to develop and implement initiatives for pathogen control and food safety improvements. · **Continuous Improvement:** Establish a culture of continuous improvement by identifying and implementing best practices for food safety management. Lead initiatives for root-cause analysis, corrective actions, and preventive measures. · **Training and Development:** Drive and support training programs focused on food safety and pathogen control for team members at all levels. Foster a culture of accountability and awareness around food safety. · **Data and Reporting:** Develop and maintain metrics and KPIs to track the effectiveness of food safety initiatives. Present insights and actionable recommendations to senior leadership. · **Stakeholder Engagement:** Build and maintain relationships with external stakeholders, including regulatory bodies, research institutions, and industry partners, to stay informed on industry trends and best practices. · **Commercialization:** Develop and implement an innovation program that is customer-centric. This requires close collaboration with sales and technical service teams to identify customer issues, develop executable solutions, and monetize the solutions in the marketplace. Collaboration ensures that new products are not just innovative but relevant with benefits that resonate with the targeted customers. · **Marketing:** Work with marketing to help identify and communicate technical features or unique formulations that distinguish our products, creating a compelling story for marketing to share with consumers. Collaborate to translate technical information into consumer-friendly language, making it easier for marketing to communicate complex science in an engaging way. · **Testing:** Advance our applications lab to assist our customers in making informed decisions to enhance their food safety programs. Perform needed validations of new food safety interventions, including evaluations of the efficacy and efficiency of existing systems and those in our innovation pipeline. Provide, as part of commercialization, customer-site evaluations / analyses of existing and new technologies. · Other duties as assigned. **YOUR MUST HAVES:** + Must be 18 years of age or older. + Bachelor’s degree or higher in related fields -- engineering, chemistry, biology, microbiology, etc. + Understanding of how automation, AI, and machine learning can enhance pathogen detection, tracking, and process efficiency. + Proficiency with statistical and analytical tools (e.g., R, Python, JMP) to support data-driven decision-making and continuous improvement. + Ability to develop and drive long-term innovation strategies that align with the company’s goals and anticipate future challenges in food safety. + Demonstrated experience collaborating effectively with departments like Product Development, Operations, Quality, and Marketing to ensure cohesive, market-ready solutions. + Strong people management skills, with experience building and leading high-performance, cross-functional teams focused on innovation and continuous improvement. + Proven ability to manage multiple complex projects simultaneously, ensuring timely completion within budget. + Ability to translate complex scientific information into accessible, actionable insights for non-technical audiences, including customers, marketing, and regulatory bodies. + Ability to cultivate relationships with regulatory agencies, industry experts, research institutions, and technology vendors to stay informed about new developments and best practices. + Curiosity and drive to identify, evaluate, and implement novel solutions in food safety and pathogen control. + Meticulous approach to safety standards, compliance, and quality, ensuring that all solutions meet the highest safety requirements. + Ability to work in a fast-paced, dynamic environment, staying responsive to evolving challenges in food safety. **WHAT WE PREFER YOU HAVE:** + A Ph.D. in Microbiology, Engineering, Chemistry or Food Science. + Experience in chemical and/or equipment manufacturing. + Experience in product formulation, registration of products, and patent filings. + Expertise in microbial detection methods, pathogen identification, contamination control, and emerging technologies (e.g., rapid microbial testing, PCR, NGS). + Strong presentation and public-speaking skills, with experience in representing the company at industry conferences, seminars, and customer-facing events. + Familiarity with emerging pathogens, contaminants, and risk factors in the food industry. + Experience with advanced tools and methodologies, including machine learning, IoT, blockchain for traceability, and data analysis techniques for pathogen tracking. **OUR ENVIRONMENT:** This position involves work in an office and laboratory setting with travel to other SFCI and customer locations. Periodically exposed to such elements as noise, intermittent standing, walking, pushing, carrying, or lifting. **WHAT WE OFFER:** + Medical, Dental, & Vision Insurance + Basic Life Insurance + Short Term Disability + Company Paid Long-Term Disability + 401k Retirement Plan + Paid Holidays + Paid Vacation + Paid Sick Time + Employee Assistance Program (“EAP”) + Training & Development Opportunities Safe Foods, a Division of Fortrex is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, creed, sex, gender, gender identity, national origin, citizenship status, uniform service member status, veteran status, age, genetic information, disability, or any other protected status, in accordance with all applicable federal state, and local laws. Safe Foods is committed to complying with the laws protecting qualified individuals with disabilities. Safe Foods will provide a reasonable accommodation for any known physical or mental disability of a qualified individual with a disability to the extent required by law, provided the requested accommodation does not create an undue hardship for the Company and/or does not pose a direct threat to the health or safety of others in the workplace and/or to the individual. If a team member requires an accommodation, they must notify the site manager or the Corporate Human Resources Department. If an applicant requires an accommodation, they must notify the hiring manager and/or the Recruiter hiring for the position. **YOUR NEXT STEPS:** APPLY! All applications will be reviewed, and qualified candidates will be contacted to continue into the interview process. If you feel like you are a good fit for this position, APPLY! If you want to be a part of a large organization that treats you like family, APPLY NOW!