Director, Culinary Innovation

Now Brewing - director, Culinary Innovation! #ToBeAPartner

From the beginning, Starbucks set out to be a different kind of company. One that not only celebrated coffee and the rich tradition, but that also brought a feeling of connection. We are known for developing extraordinary leaders who share this passion and are guided by their service to others.

The Director of Culinary Innovation contributes to Starbucks success by leading the creation and advancement of innovative food products from concept through early-stage commercialization. This role owns the end-to-end product design process while setting a compelling long-term vision grounded in Starbucks business priorities. The job requires a leader that can seamlessly blend culinary art and food science with strong business acumen, human centered design and operational rigor.

As a trusted partner across the enterprise and with external suppliers, the director drives innovation that is desirable to customers, feasible to execute and commercially successful at scale.

As a director, Culinary Innovation, you will…

* Champion culinary excellence by translating trends, inspiration, and sensory intent into scalable product concepts.

* Oversee the product development process in the design phase and supports R&D (research & development) through development and commercialization, prioritizing and allocating work to meet business & brand goals.

* Build inclusive and high‑performing teams that maximize individual strengths and foster innovation.

Leadership and Team Building
- * Sets goals for a work group consisting of culinary leaders, product developers, and other support functions.

* Demonstrated ability to influence senior leaders, lead cross functional teams and successfully collaborate internally and externally.

* Inspire and coach partners to deliver their best work while building meaningful, long-term careers.

* Build inclusive and high‑performing teams that maximize individual strengths and foster innovation.

* Champion change and actively guide teams through ambiguity with clarity and confidence.

* Create accessible and equitable forums for collaboration, shared ownership, and multiple perspectives.

* Set an inspiring tone by modeling Starbucks mission, values, and expectations for how results are achieved.

* Partner closely with R&D, quality, packaging, regulatory, and operations to ensure products meet safety, regulatory, and manufacturing requirements.

* Partner with insights, sensory, marketing, and brand teams to design and interpret qualitative and quantitative consumer testing.

* Partner with cross functional teams to ensure readiness for pilots, regional tests, and early launches.

Business Acumen & Innovation
- * Balance creativity and rigor - pairing chef led intuition with data, science, and disciplined decision‑making.

* Set standards for culinary quality, flavor architecture, and overall product experience.

* Build and maintain trusted partnerships with strategic suppliers and external development partners.

* Co-create products with suppliers to unlock new ingredients, technologies, and processes while upholding Starbucks standards.

* Design supplier innovation pipelines to support both near-term launches and long‑term platform strategies.

* Lead hands-on benchtop development, including formulation, prototyping, ingredient selection, and process exploration.

* Guide iterative development through sensory evaluation, reformulation, and performance testing to unlock optimal outcomes.

* Translate consumer feedback and business insights into actionable culinary and technical refinements.

* Balance consumer desirability with cost, complexity, and operational feasibility.

* Oversee the product development process in the design phase and supports R&D through development and commercialization, prioritizing and allocating work to meet business & brand goals.

* Identify risks early and drive mitigation plans to support successful scale‑up.

We'd love to hear from people with:

* Bachelor's degree in Food Science, Nutrition, Culinary Arts, or related discipline

* 15+ years of leadership experience in culinary innovation, product development, or R&D within a multiunit,…