The Director of Product Development is a founding, hands-on leader who owns Gummi World's product innovation pipeline from concept through commercialization. This role leads the development of great-tasting, consistently manufacturable dietary supplement and confectionery nutraceutical products — starch and starchless gummies, marshmallows, and other confectionery formats, with capsules and powders a plus — while building the processes, partnerships, and team that will scale with the company. This is a highly visible, customer-facing role: the ideal candidate is as comfortable running a flavor tasting or troubleshooting a batch on the floor as they are presenting to a client or leading a cross-functional strategy meeting. Success requires strong technical depth, sound business judgment, and the emotional intelligence to build trust with clients, suppliers, and internal teams alike.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Own the end-to-end product innovation process, from concept development through formulation, testing, and commercialization.
Lead formulation and development of starch and starchless gummies, marshmallows, and other confectionery formats (e.g., chews, jellies, pastilles), with capsules and powders a plus, ensuring products are delicious, safe, and consistently manufacturable at scale.
Be hands-on in the lab and on the production floor — running trials, troubleshooting batches, and working directly alongside R&D and manufacturing teams to solve real-time problems.
Serve as a primary technical and strategic point of contact for clients, building strong, trust-based relationships and clearly translating client needs into actionable development plans.
Lead product tastings and sensory evaluations, analyzing and recording results in a rigorous, data-driven manner to guide formulation decisions.
Collaborate closely with the Regulatory team on formulations and claim substantiation to ensure compliance and marketability.
Maintain and continuously build out the branded ingredient and raw material database, researching ingredients based on functional and physical properties.
Partner with Quality on new product specifications, change controls, and label initiation forms.
Scope and evaluate secondary contract manufacturers to match and scale existing formulations.
Forge and maintain relationships with key suppliers and the purchasing team to stay ahead of ingredient, technology, and packaging trends.
Guide and mentor junior R&D and product development team members as the team scales.
Bring a solutions-first, customer-facing mindset to every stage of development — identifying obstacles early and driving practical, timely resolutions.
Represent Gummi World's innovation capabilities in client and prospect meetings, building confidence and long-term partnerships.
Contribute to innovation, troubleshooting, and brainstorming for future platform growth in key consumer need-states.
Maintain professional and technical expertise through regulatory training, industry publications, professional networks, and relevant societies.
Support broader company growth initiatives, acting as a strategic partner to Business Development and executive leadership.
QUALIFICATIONS
Bachelor's degree (BA/BS) from a 4-year accredited institution in Food Science, Biology, Engineering, Chemistry, or a related field; advanced degree a plus.
8+ years of experience in R&D, Product Development, Manufacturing, and/or Quality Assurance within the food and/or supplement industry, including experience operating at a senior or leadership level.
Advanced, hands-on knowledge of confectionery formulation — starch and starchless gummies required; marshmallows and other confectionery formats (e.g., chews, jellies, pastilles) strongly preferred; capsules and powders a plus — with a proven track record developing clean-label, delicious products at commercial scale.
Demonstrated experience leading or building a product development function, including mentoring team members and establishing scalable processes.
Strong, demonstrated customer-facing experience — comfortable presenting to clients, understanding their needs, and translating those needs into technical solutions.
High emotional intelligence with excellent interpersonal skills; able to build trust quickly with clients, suppliers, manufacturers, and internal teams.
Strong analytical, written, and organizational skills, with the ability to manage complex technical information and multiple concurrent projects in a fast-paced environment.
Industry-leading understanding of ingredient functionality, product evaluation, health and nutrition, food manufacturing processes, microbiology, and quality assurance principles.
Demonstrated technical sales experience with a wide range of clients preferred.
A genuinely hands-on, solutions-oriented approach — willing to be in the lab, on the floor, and in front of the client as needed.
WORK ENVIRONMENT & PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS
Full-time, in-person role based at Gummi World's Chandler, AZ facility.
Regular time split between lab/R&D space, production floor, and office/administrative work.
Frequent client-facing interactions, including in-person meetings, tastings, and presentations.
Some travel may be required to support client visits, supplier meetings, or contract manufacturer evaluations.