Director of Research and Development

Traditional Medicinals is a leading herbal tea company committed to promoting health and wellness through the power of traditional herbal remedies. With a legacy of over four decades, we blend ancient herbal wisdom with modern science to create high-quality, effective organic herbal teas, lozenges and capsules that cater to a variety of health needs.

SUMMARY

Traditional Medicinals is seeking a dynamic and experienced Director of Research and Development to lead our highly-skilled and passionate team in developing cutting-edge herbal products. As the Director of R&D, you will be responsible for driving our research initiatives, ensuring the highest quality standards, and developing innovative new products that align with our commitment to herbal wellness, sustainability and social good. 

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Team Leadership:

• Build an engaging, positive and impactful R&D team while creating a culture of best practice, transparency and accountability.
• Lead and manage a staff of 8 reports; set annual objectives of the department and individuals; prioritize projects and initiatives. monitor progress against the milestones and objectives.
• Conduct annual performance reviews; provide timely feedback on performance; support professional development and career pathing.
• Conduct staff meetings to ensure understanding and alignment on shared projects, priorities and resources along with company strategy and business needs; encourage idea sharing, versatile perspectives, and collective wisdom.  
• Update senior management on progress, challenges, and recommendations for continuous improvement.
• Oversee the organization and management of R&D resources, files and workspace, including the herbal library, lab, and substantiation documents.

Product Development and Improvements:

• Lead all aspects of the product formulation, process development and technical transfer of new and existing products from ideation through commercialization.
• Oversee the formulation of efficacious products that deliver the desired claims/benefits and sensory experience with targeted shelf life and align with formulation philosophy; oversee margins meet targets and ingredients are sustainably sourced and align with company’s purpose and ingredient guidelines; ensure product design for efficient manufacturing.
• Identify opportunities to improve consumer experience, efficacy, manufacturing efficiency, and/or margin.
• Effectively troubleshoot and solve manufacturing challenges in partnership with Engineering, Quality, and co-mans; recommend formula, ingredient or equipment modifications to improve functionality, runnability and operating efficiency.
• Oversee the designing and performing of stability testing, sensory evaluation, pilot manufacturing runs and other relevant studies required to assess quality and performance of new and in market products.
• Collaborate with Quality team, external labs and ingredient suppliers to lead the development and effective application of test methods, including strength assay, identification to ensure herbal ingredients meet pharmacopeial standards and regulatory requirements.
• Collaborate with Innovation, Marketing and Sales to ideate and update product pipeline and evolve innovation strategy.
• Lead the team in the ideation of new product concepts in collaboration with Innovation and Marketing.
• Collaborate with Sourcing and Procurement to identify ingredient options for formulations that meet timeline, quality, sensory, and costing targets.
• Foster and maintain collaborative relationships with suppliers and co-mans to support product development.
• Evaluate product sustainable packaging options, ensuring technical requirements for performance are met.

Project Management:

• Create and manage project timelines, budgets, and resources to ensure successful execution of project milestones and deliverables on time.
• Allocate R&D resources to projects and initiatives; prioritize R&D activities to deliver time-efficient, quality output.
• Develop and iterate as necessary R&D processes and workflows.

Quality and Regulatory Compliance:

• Stay updated on industry regulations, legislation, trends, and supply chain challenges.
• Collaborate with Legal and Regulatory to ensure product claims are substantiated prior to product launch and formulations are compliant with regulatory requirements.
• Collaborate with Quality to develop and revise ingredient and finished product specifications.

Herbal Education:

• Plan and execute the Plant Wisdom Academy curriculum, Traditional Medicinals’ internal education program, along with other educational offerings to staff, retailers and practitioners.
• Execute the R&D portion of company’s thought leadership strategy in the herbal industry which includes publications in scientific journals and presentations by team members at conferences along with participation in industry relevant boards and committees.

Supervisory/Budget:

• Supervision of Staff: This person will supervise a eight team individuals, including scientists, food technologist, lab technician & lab assistant.
• Budgetary Responsibilities: Develop the department’s budget; manage on-going expenses and forecasts; elevate potential concerns to finance team and upper management.

REQUIREMENTS

Experience/Education:

• 10+ years of progressive responsibility in research and product development in food, dietary supplements or pharmaceuticals. 
• 5+ years people management experience with demonstrated ability to manage a performing team
• BS in Food Science, Botany, Pharmacognosy, Chemistry, Phytochemistry or a related field. Advanced degree - MS, PhD, ND and/or MBA preferred.
• An established demonstrable network with R&D leaders / organizations in academia, vendors and industry associations a plus
• Strong knowledge of food and/or pharma manufacturing processes, GMPs and product/process validation a plus
• Thorough knowledge of FDA regulations for dietary supplements a plus.

Knowledge/Abilities/Skills:

• Strong understanding of natural products science, food science and manufacturing; herbal knowledge preferred
• Understanding of domestic GMP requirements for dietary supplements, food and OTC
• Sensory evaluation expertise
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills including listening skills
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively in cross functional team environment
• Analytical, project management and risk management skills
• Budget planning and management
• Strong business acumen and decision making skills
• Open-minded, candid, flexible, solution-oriented mindset
• Empathetic, high emotional IQ and effective interpersonal skills
• Ability to be transparent in communication, provide honest, timely feedback
• Shares wins and failures openly and sees the former as a valuable learning opportunity
• Growth mindset with desire to lead by example

Travel Requirements:

• Up to 5%
  

Office Hours/Location:

• This position is based in Rohnert Park, CA. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 – 5:00 pm. This is a hybrid role offering the flexibility to occasionally work remotely. Expected in-offices days are Monday through Friday. Subject to change.
• Remote candidates will not be considered for this role.

Physical/Mental Requirements:

• The 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 and talk or hear. The employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; reach with hands and arms; and stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 10 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision.

COMPENSATION

• Compensation range is $160,000 - $210,000 per year
• Compensation is determined based on non-discriminatory, business-related factors, including but not limited to, training, experience, education and/or professional certifications, geographic location, and market data.

Traditional Medicinals, Inc. and its subsidiaries are proud equal-opportunity employers.  We wholeheartedly embrace authenticity, diversity, and people's differences. We acknowledge, celebrate, and support individuality to the great advantage of our consumers, our stakeholders, our products, and the planet.  We are committed to building an inclusive workplace for all our people.

We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, pregnancy, genetic information, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other status protected under federal, state, or local law.