Technologist, Technical Support

Overview

Accountable for the day-to-day technical management of Lactalis’ customers, meeting their needs and expectations, whilst respecting the Group Quality Policy & objectives. Support the TAM in ensuring customers’ needs and expectations are met, in building strong relationships with them, providing excellent customer service and driving the customers’ technical agenda to improve performance.

Provide technical support to other functions within the company to retain current business and to gain new business, whilst ensuring food safety & quality is not compromised.

Reporting Line: Technical Account Manager (TAM)

Direct Reports: None

• Manage Own Label (OL) NPD – From agreed listing to launch & post launch
• Monitor the quality of the products ensuring they meet the specifications and QAS at all times
• Manage customers’ technical requirements: ensure updates & changes are tracked, interpreted, summarised and passed on to TAM for implementation
• Customers’ ethical / CSR requirements: updates, changes & requests passed on to colleagues responsible for these topics.
• Build strong and proactive relationships with customers; meeting expectations, requirements, requests and tasks by the deadlines set
• Manage customers’ technical websites (specifications, technical requirements, laboratory results, questionnaires, alerts etc…) ensuring they are up-to-date at all times
• Complete technical customers’ specifications (OL format, Customers’ format or Lactalis format), with all the relevant attachments required, ensuring they are up-to-date at all times.
• Organise customers’ audits & visits as per plan, attend (physically or remotely) and close the reports on time, with the support of the TAM if required
• Prepare and attend (physically or remotely) any routine customer meetings, follow up on the agreed actions until closed off
• Support TAM / Customer Technical Lead (CTL) – Head of Group technical projects & customer experience (HGC) (where applicable) for any tasks as and when required (NPD forms, samples forms etc…)

• Build strong & proactive relationships with Lactalis colleagues, Lactalis factories & divisions, co-manufacturers and depots ensuring the customer needs & expectations are met
• Support CTLs – HGC (where applicable) – with change of co-manufacturers and Group factories

• Manage branded NPD information and documentation: complete Internal specifications, NPD check-list, PIF, rework documentation etc…
• Check and comment on artworks and assets, to ensure they are legal in the UK and in line with specifications
• With the support of the CTL – HGC (where applicable), attend the NPD project meetings and ensure the products comply with food quality, safety and legal expectations.

• For allocated customer technical accounts, manage customer complaints: log, investigate, respond to the customer, assign costs and responsibilities, close off in a timely manner
• Cover for other members of the team as and when required
• Support the TAMs / CTLs – HGC (where applicable) for product withdrawals & recalls, as and when required

• Hold and release products from depot as and when required
• Release Camembert as per requirements
• Support the TAM with issues raised by depots (temperatures, wrong skus, labelling etc…) for OL and brands allocated as and when required
• Manage samples
• Complete organoleptic assessments on a variety of dairy products, mainly cheese, butter & cream
• Work in partnership with Business Units ensuring technical topics are embedded in any day-to-day work
• Gather 3rd party certificates & reports for all factories and distribute as necessary
• Take an active role in business cross-functional projects
• Take initiatives and propose new ways of working to be…