Senior R&D Packaging Engineer

As an Sr. R&D Engineer will be responsible for driving packaging initiatives for General Mills products to enable our business to win in the marketplace. In this role, you will have the opportunity to leverage your strong technical, influence, and project management skills to support all types of projects – holistic margin management (HMM), innovation, and renovation. You will engage in pipeline idea generation, vetting, and commercialization of projects. You will partner cross-functionally and with External Supply Chain (ESC) facilities and key vendors to identify and drive execution of projects. The right candidate for this role will leverage strong innovation, technical problem-solving skills, and project leadership with a high bias for action and strategic mindset. The projects you manage in this role will provide you with technical depth and breadth, as well as team and cross-functional leadership. In this role you will have the opportunity to develop the ability to influence across organizations, advance technical possibilities, and develop leadership skills. You can expect to travel up to 10-15% of the time to any of our production or vendor facilities. KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES Leverage packaging knowledge to influence business strategies across a General Mills Operating Unit, Canada, and Convenience & Foodservice Segment. Identify, vet and test packaging HMM opportunities Vet and design innovative packaging formats to drive growth Capital project maintenance Set strategy for Omni channel and expansion of product distribution Manage and lead multiple technically complex projects: create technical plans, timelines, risk assessments, and mitigation plans; identify opportunities by challenging assumptions Coach and develop R&D developers on project execution Support ESC plant locations by identify/influencing improvements that increase efficiency Complete gPLM, PSA, Eclips, etc. activities MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS Bachelor’s Degree in Food Science, Engineering, or related field 5+ years of experience in packaging/process development Ability to manage multiple projects independently Ability to navigate a highly matrixed organization HMM experience; strong business acumen Ability to thrive in a business facing role Strong acumen in business processes – e.g. gPLM Ability to partner externally with supplier and manufacturing partners PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS 7+ years of experience in packaging/process development Experience working with ESC locations COMPANY OVERVIEW We exist to make food the world loves. But we do more than that. Our company is a place that prioritizes being a force for good, a place to expand learning, explore new perspectives and reimagine new possibilities, every day. We look for people who want to bring their best — bold thinkers with big hearts who challenge one other and grow together. Because becoming the undisputed leader in food means surrounding ourselves with people who are hungry for what’s next.