Sr Scientist - Nutrition - Columbus, OH

Job description

Abbott is a global healthcare leader that helps people live more fully at all stages of life. Our portfolio of life-changing technologies spans the spectrum of healthcare, with leading businesses and products in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and branded generic medicines. Our 103,000 colleagues serve people in more than 160 countries.

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Primary Functions:

• Senior Product development position will focus on the research and development of innovative nutritional product formulations. 
• Product development efforts will typically involve the sourcing and evaluation of new ingredients; optimization of the physical, nutrient, and sensory properties of products, and manufacturing prototypes to support needed clinical trials.
• Core responsibilities are to develop nutritional products for commercial launch in global markets by creating new formulations which will deliver improvements to product claims, comply with regulatory requirements and/or reduce product cost.
• Independently lead the technical development of products of medium complexity and/or support the technical development of products of medium to high complexity.
• Plan, execute, and manage the development of prototypes in the lab, pilot plant and at production facilities. Maintain technical and experiment documentation.
• Interpret test results and develop conclusions and action plans.  Communicate through verbal updates and written reports. Act as lead product developer on cross-functional business teams including Marketing, Operations, Quality, Purchasing, Regulatory and Legal.  Lead project Technical Team meetings.
• Facilitate and foster the ideation of new product possibilities and/or product reformulations with an emphasis on establishing points of difference versus competitors, from a science-based nutrition innovation standpoint.
• Translate cutting edge science and technology into products that solve challenging feeding issues for patients by developing and launching new formulations with unique product claims   
• Proactively identify and communicate project issues, evaluate alternative approaches and recognize contingency plans.
• Embrace the organization's vision and strategy and collaboratively set project / program strategy by understanding the larger business context and creating role-appropriate strategies.

Skills/Experience Requirements

• Set Vision and Strategy:  Create research ideas to identify innovative technologies that offer new nutritional products.  Keep up-to-date with scientific literature and patent landscape.
• Innovate: Generate research data for publications and patent applications.
• Communicate: Communicate research results to scientists and effectively translate findings to non-scientists.
• Understand Competitive Landscape: Maintain up-to-date knowledge of competitors’ products, ingredients, features, and benefits; monitor educational events; understand implications of competitor activities to Abbott Nutrition.

Additional Skills/Expertise Requirements

• Outstanding background in science and/or engineering. Emphasis in food science, food engineering, chemistry, microbiology.
• Knowledge of formulation, processing and packaging aspects pertaining to liquid and powdered nutritional products, as well as their nutritional, physical, and sensory stability.
• Strong scientific curiosity and enjoy logical experimentation to create innovative products
• Display innovative thinking, open to sharing ideas and willing to continuously learn
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with desire and ability to work within a highly collaborative environment: work constructively, decisively, and collegially with external and internal customers, consumers, and key opinion leaders; closely collaborate with global teams and colleagues.
• Proven ability to work independently: proactive self-starter with strong project leadership, research, and publication/scientific writing skills.

Education:

• PhD in food science, chemistry, food engineering, nutrition, microbiology or closely related field with 3-7 years relevant experience.

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