R&D Baker

Bay State Milling Job Description

Job Title: R&D Baker

Department: Research and Development

Location: Quincy, MA

Reports To: R&D Innovation Project Manager

FLSA Status: Exempt

Salary Range: $98,304 - $147,456 annual base salary, plus up to 10% annual bonus eligibility*

Travel Expectation: Up to 40% travel

WHO WE ARE:

Bay State Milling Company (BSM) is a growing 5th generation family-owned supplier of plant-based ingredients, including grains, flours, and mixes with unique nutritional, flavor, and functional attributes. Our goal is to be a leading supplier of plant-based ingredients for the next generation of foods in North America, and we are well on our way with some of the most innovative, nutrient dense whole-food ingredients available.

Our Research & Development (R&D) team occupies a state-of-the-art Innovation Center in Quincy, MA. In a modern, open, and collaborative environment, we develop, analyze, and apply our ingredients across a variety of food categories including commercial and artisan bread, pasta, pizza, tortillas, bars, sweet goods, snacks, and plant-based beverages. The R&D team is tasked with developing BSM’s future ingredients and applying those ingredients in finished foods. With a focus on growth, we foster personal development of the expanding Bay State Milling R&D team to meet the changing needs of the food system and consumers.

ABOUT THE ROLE:

The R&D Baker will serve as technical baking lead for our Specialty wheat flours including HealthSense® High Fiber Wheat Flour, High Performing Organic Wheat flour, and other new varietals to be developed and cultivated. They will play a key role in customer-focused product development projects and internal prototype creation, with a focus on highlighting the benefits of Specialty wheat flours. This role will be key to reaching traditional, premium, and artisan bakers, and facilitating relationships that enable BSM to deepen customer intimacy, understand the “voice of the customer”, and ultimately be the “first call” for product renovation and innovation. This role requires strong bakery expertise, in-lab scale formulation, pilot trials, plant scale-ups, and technical troubleshooting.

Working closely with BSM’s Business Units, the R&D Baker will support new and existing business by demonstrating the functional performance, sensory, and nutritional benefits of Specialty wheat flours in finished bakery applications. The role will also provide technical support through product development, commercialization, customer trials, and troubleshooting.

This role will report to the R&D Innovation Project Manager and will work closely with cross-functional team members, including Sales, Business Development, Technical Business Development, Marketing, and Quality Assurance. Success in this role will be measured by the delivery of technically sound, scalable bakery solutions; effective customer and plant trial support; clear, data-driven recommendations; strong cross-functional collaboration; and contributions to customer adoption and growth of Specialty wheat flour products.

This is an individual contributor role with no direct reports. The R&D Baker provides technical leadership for assigned projects, coordinates cross-functional work, and recommends formulation, scale-up, and commercialization decisions within established project and business requirements.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Develop and optimize bakery formulations in lab, pilot, and plant settings, highlighting Specialty wheat flour ingredients.
• Lead assigned R&D projects involving Specialty wheat flours and contribute technical baking expertise to related cross-functional initiatives. Typical projects to include:
  • Prototype development for trade shows and customer presentations.
  • Develop data-supported technical content for marketing and customer-facing materials that demonstrates the functional, sensory, and nutritional value propositions of Specialty wheat ingredients.
  • Competitive ingredient analysis.
  • Collaboration with sales and customers.
  • Commercialization at customer’s bakeries.
  • Collaboration with BSM flour mills and QA for flour optimization.
  • Providing data-driven insights, conclusions and recommendations to internal and external stakeholders to drive customer adoption and product improvement
• Collaborate with food scientists to develop prototypes that are commercially representative, scalable, and formulated with ancillary functional ingredients appropriate to the application.
• Understand the food science responsible for baking successes and failures.
• Build technical relationships with target customers, identify their bakery performance gaps, and develop solutions using Specialty wheat flours. Use renovation and innovation projects to support customer success and organic growth.
• Partner with Marketing, Business Development, and Technical Business Development to tailor customer strategies using an in-depth understanding of each bakery customer’s business needs, purchasing process, co-manufacturer relationships, decision-makers, and ways of working.
• Travel up to 40% of the time within the United States, with occasional international travel, to support customers, conduct plant trials, attend trade shows, and participate in educational conferences.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor’s degree in baking science, food science, cereal science, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of relevant education and bakery industry experience.
• Minimum 10 years of experience in the bakery industry, both in lab and plant settings.
• Experience working with an ingredient manufacturer, preferably involving wheat flour, specialty grains, or functional bakery ingredients, is preferred.
• Professional baking certification is preferred.
• Passion for the food industry and improving the food system through ingredient innovation
• Enjoys working with customers to identify and solve problems
• Creative and critical thinking skills
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to present technical findings, recommendations, and product benefits clearly to customers and internal cross-functional teams.
• Alignment with BSM’s core values of Integrity, Collaboration, Creativity, Quality, and Caring.

PHYSICAL DEMANDSThe physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; and talk or hear. The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, and climb or balance. The employee may occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, and ability to adjust focus.

*The posted salary range reflects the Company’s good-faith estimate of the base compensation for this role at the time of posting. Final compensation will be determined based on a variety of factors, including relevant experience, qualifications, skills, and internal equity.