Job Summary

Deliver industry-leading product innovation that drives traffic, revenue, and guest satisfaction. Champion consumer-inspired culinary experiences across existing menu, new LTOs, cost optimization, and procedures/operations. Culinary is the heartbeat of the Arby’s brand strategy & business – our equity is based on menu diversity that sets new standards for innovation in QSR.

Responsibilities:

Culinary innovation & product development, including core menu and LTO innovation. Partner with Category Management team throughout the innovation process, including concept/ideation, product development, in-market testing & commercialization for system launch

• Creative culinarian who inspires the team to push boundaries and strives to create the first in class, best in class and/or only products of target category offered in QSR

• Responsible for translating culinary briefs into product innovation that drives new guest acquisition and industry-leading guest satisfaction

• Work with Insights Team to conduct consumer/guest research to understand consumer needs & product optimization, including execution/preparation of product for testing

• Work with vendor partners to develop new products from concept to prototype, prototype to costed commercially viable sample, and through system commercialization process. 

• In touch with culinary trends and competitive innovation

• Participate & cook in key culinary events:  Inspire & Arby’s Board Meetings, Annual Franchise Conference, Arby’s Foundation, Executive Tastings, Arby’s Foundation  

Deliver consistent, high quality guest experiences across the system - ‘Get it done’ by working collaboratively with Marketing, Operations, commercialization (QA) & Supply Chain leaders to align strategy and ensure excellence in execution

• Strong program management, operational discipline, and cross functional collaboration to deliver innovation that is consumer-led, financially attractive and executable at scale

• New product launch readiness – raw material/formula specifications, new product yield, confirm QA & regulatory / legal approval, establish scalable procedures & validate supplier readiness for system roll-out

• Partner with Operations: i) develop training materials to deliver consistent restaurant-level execution, ii) test and refine back/front of house process and procedures, iii) select equipment to improve guest experience and launch new products, iv) improve and optimize packaging to enhance guest satisfaction and reduce cost

• Work with Supply Chain (Arby’s Co-op and Inspire) to manage supplier relationships, define sourcing strategy and negotiate cost

Other duties as assigned

Requirements:

• 2-Year Degree Concentration in Culinary Arts or Food Science / Food Technology / closely related scientific discipline

• 4-Year Degree Concentration in Culinary Arts or Food Science / Food Technology / closely related scientific discipline

• 5+ Years of experience culinary product development & menu strategy

• Experience preferred: Multi-unit Restaurant Chain

• Passion for Food & Culinary mastery – creative menu development, food products, cost, manufacturing, restaurant operations and equipment

• Collaboration – demonstrated ability to work with other functions and external vendors to build trust & deliver results  

• Strategy & program development – ability to take idea to execution, managing multiple priorities and functional engagement

• Strong organization and presentation skills – balance multiple priorities, keep timelines & records, clearly written & verbal communication

• Thrives in ambiguity – ability to multi-task with minimal direct supervision. Move quickly on tight timelines while maintaining strong work product & quality standards

• Proficient in Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint)

 

Inspire is a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 33,000 Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC restaurants worldwide.

We’re made up of some of the world’s most iconic restaurant brands, but we’re much more than just a restaurant company. We’re a team of hundreds of thousands who individually and collectively are changing the way people eat, drink, and gather around the table. We know that food is much more than a staple—it’s an experience. At Inspire, that’s our purpose: to ignite and nourish flavorful experiences.