**Position Snapshot** **Business area: Nestlé Canada Inc.** **Job title: Sensory Team Lead** **Location: 25 Sheppard Ave W, North York, ON M2N 6S8** **Hybrid** **A little bit about us** While Nestlé is known for KitKat, Gerber, Nescafe, and Häagen-Dazs, our recipe for success comes down to one thing: our people. We strive to lead a people-focused culture that empowers employees to bring their authentic selves to work each day. There are 3,000+ members of Nestlé Canada celebrated for taking action using agility, courage, and trust to find solutions that benefit the business or greater good. We’re a team of changemakers, who are curious and challenge the status quo, that take risks that will help drive us forward. Our focus is not only on nourishing our customers, but also about enriching you. We know that empowerment leads to strong employee engagement, a great work culture, and motivated employees. **What to Expect:** The Sensory Team Lead will conduct and manage the sensory activities in the Head Office and manage the Sensory unit/group and facilities. They are responsible for supporting successful business outcomes through excellence in sensory evaluation. The Sensory Team Lead also seeks continuous improvement for the department through optimization of methodology and best practices while promoting the use of Sensory Evaluation in Innovation/Renovation and Product Quality Management. **A day in the life of a Sensory Team Lead** • Acts as a proactive partner to Technical Services and Marketing teams, ensuring consumer and sensory insights support to add value and influence project's success. • Play an active part in cross-functional project teams within Market/AG to provide guidance on choice and use of sensory evaluation methodologies and support to consumer testing methodologies. Responsible for timely delivery of sensory results to guide project decisions. • Promotes the use of Sensory and Consumer Research in innovation and renovation to advance consumer understanding and ensures projects, initiatives, and platform success. • Responsible to manage & lead expert sensory panel. Ensures panel proficiency in relevant categories and targets continuous improvement through panel performance and calibration activities • Defines clear and time-bounded sensory plans. Manage sensory studies: plan, design, then analyse and present results in-line with best practices, correlate with consumer research findings as required, and with impact to the cross-functional team. • Ensure collaboration with Sensory Team and external agencies in order to ensure lean and transparent execution. • Establishes/Guides sensory team objectives and development, builds and ensures group credibility • Ensures good integration, motivates and develops Sensory and Test Kitchen staff to ensure high-quality competencies within the unit • Allocates resources for sensory studies and ensure sufficient resources • Maintain and improve standard operating procedures (SOPs) for sensory testing, data analysis and reporting • Business facing lead responsible to connect department activities to business performance indicators • Provide Sensory support to evaluate and approve recipe changes related to OPEX initiatives, ensure supply activities and/or sensory defect investigation and elimination • Ensures compliance to sensory standards and methodology. provides guidance to team on outcomes and actions standards for sensory tests • Supports factory sensory team and may train the factory sensory analyst and assist them with all factories sensory evaluation activities and the implementation of In/Out test in factories. Providing support to compliance verification of sensory evaluation in factories **Role Requirements** • 5-7 years’ experience in a Sensory and Consumer Evaluation position, preferably in food or beverage company. • 1-2 years of team leadership or supervisory experience preferred. • University Degree in Food Science, Food Technology or equivalent, preferably with a major in Sensory Evaluation. • Strong expertise in discrimination, descriptive methods and working knowledge in consumer test methods. • Strong statistical knowledge applied in sensory and consumer research • Experience in recruiting, training and managing a sensory panel • Proficiency in experimental design and statistical analysis of sensory tests • Working knowledge of computers and of dedicated software for sensory and consumer data acquisition and/or analysis (Compusense, EyeQuestion etc.) • Proficiency in consumer test methodology & insights including preference mapping • Demonstrated competence in their specific field to support business requirements: Team member in a factory: Quality, Application Group or Team member in the quality department of the Market **Benefits** • Comprehensive total rewards benefits package including Health and Dental benefits that start on day one of employment • Company matched pension plan • Three weeks of Vacation and five personal days (Personal Paid Holidays) • Flexible and hybrid work arrangements • Excellent training and development programs as well as opportunities to grow within the company • Access to Educational Assistance & Tuition Reimbursement • Bonus eligibility • Gender affirmation benefits to ensure access to necessary care, resources, and coverage for gender-affirming procedures • Fertility Services and Surrogacy Medical Coverage to support the pursuit of a path to parenthood regardless of medical conditions, gender or sexual orientation • Adoption benefits to remove some of the financial barriers associated with adoption • Up to 50% off – Nespresso Coffee Machine, Capsules and accessories • Access to the Discount Company store with Nestlé, Nespresso, and Purina products (Located across various Nestle offices/sites) **What you need to know** We will be considering applicants as they apply, so please don’t delay in submitting your application. Nestlé Canada is an equal-opportunity employer committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. We welcome qualified applicants to bring their diverse and unique experiences as a result of their education, perspectives, culture, ethnicity, race, sex, gender identity and expression, nation of origin, age, languages spoken, veteran’s status, colour, religion, disability, sexual orientation and beliefs. If you are selected to participate in the recruitment process, please inform Human Resources of any accommodations you may require. Nestlé will work with you in an effort to ensure that you are able to fully participate in the process.