Global Head of Science & Technology

Job Description:

Location: Oud-beijerland
Segment: Mars Food & Nutrition
Reports To: Vice President, Global R&D – Mars Food & Nutrition

About Mars Food & Nutrition

At Mars Food & Nutrition, we are dedicated to our purpose: Better Food Today. A Better World Tomorrow. We are a segment of Mars, Incorporated, proud to produce some of the world's most beloved and iconic brands, including Ben's Original™, Dolmio®, Tasty Bite®, MasterFoods™, and Kevin’s Natural Foods. Our mission is to scale our global business by delivering foods that are Tasty, Accessible, and Healthy.

The Opportunity

We are seeking a visionary Global Head of Science & Technology (S&T) to join our executive R&D leadership team. In this role, you will be the primary bridge between cutting-edge scientific discovery and commercial business growth. You will shape and execute our global S&T strategy over a 1-to-5+ year horizon, translating complex science into scalable, proprietary technology platforms that deliver our short, medium, and long-term business objectives.

As a key member of the Mars Science Leadership Team (MSLT), you will also collaborate across our sister segments (such as Snacking and Petcare) to shape enterprise-wide scientific strategies and champion our future technical talent pipeline.

What are your key responsibilities?

• Drive the S&T Strategy: Define and execute a 1-5+ year technology roadmap that directly supports our business growth and scales our portfolio of Tasty, Accessible, and Healthy food solutions.
• Lead Pipeline & Scale-Up: Oversee the end-to-end S&T pipeline from proof-of-concept to commercial hand-off. Take operational ownership of our global R&D labs and pilot plant facilities to ensure seamless scale-up to global factories.
• Global Process Standardization: Govern global process specifications and partner with Global Engineering to standardize technologies across our global manufacturing sites.
• Pilot Plant & Scale-Up Governance: Provide operational leadership for global R&D labs and pilot facilities, ensuring safe and seamless technical scale-up.
• Open Innovation Ecosystem: Build strategic relationships with universities, research institutes, suppliers, and start-ups to accelerate proprietary scientific breakthroughs.
• IP Protection: Proactively safeguard and patent breakthrough technologies, securing our global freedom to operate.
• Inspire and Develop Talent: Build, mentor, and lead a high-performing, diverse global team of scientists and process engineers, preparing the capability pipeline for our future R&D needs.

What are we looking for?

• Education: Ph.D. or Master’s degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Chemical/Process Engineering, or a closely related scientific discipline.
• FMCG Track Record: 15+ years of progressive R&D leadership experience in a global fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) or food ingredients environment.
• Commercialization Success: Proven experience taking proprietary food technologies from early-stage discovery to successful, large-scale commercialization in complex global manufacturing environments.
• Travel: Ability to travel globally 20% to 30% of the time.
• Strategic & Business Acumen: You know how to translate scientific opportunities into clear growth strategies, balancing long-term exploratory pipelines with short-term business deliverables.
• Technical Mastery: You bring expertise and knowledge in food chemistry, scale-up methodologies, and advanced process engineering.
• Innovation Leadership: You create an environment that encourages creativity and experimentation, driving breakthrough innovation while managing execution excellence. You champion external collaboration and open innovation.
• Scientific Communication: You are a highly effective communicator who can build deep, strategic relationships with external research partners and easily explain complex science to non-technical business partners.
• People Leadership: You have a passion for mentoring and developing multidisciplinary teams, fostering a collaborative culture of scientific excellence and continuous learning

What can you expect from Mars?

• Work with diverse and talented associates, all guided by The Five Principles.
• Join a purpose driven company, where we’re striving to build the world we want tomorrow, today.
• A strong focus on learning and development support from day one, including access to our in-house Mars University.
• An industry competitive salary and benefits package, including company bonus.