SPECIFICATIONS TECHNOLOGIST (DAIRY MANUFACTURING)

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Specifications Technologist (Dairy Manufacturing)

Neg c £40,000 - 45,000 pa

Nantwich

DM/ST/NA

Fixed Term Contract

Dan Marshall

Some Specifications Technologists are brilliant at specifications.

Some understand the product, the customer and the whole journey between the two.

We’re looking for the second kind.

And if that’s you, there’s quite a lot here for you.

flexibility:

The role is based at the company’s dairy manufacturing site near Nantwich, but it can be hybrid and, for someone with the right experience who can hit the ground running, potentially even home-based.

money:

We’re not going to put an arbitrary salary or day rate on the advert and expect the right person to squeeze themselves into it. We’ve been asked to find an experienced person quickly, and the company is prepared to pay top market rates to make that happen.

So Tell Us What You’re Looking For.

And then there’s the job itself.

Because whilst specifications sit at the heart of this job, they don’t define the edges of it.

You’ll get exposure to customers. You’ll support Technical Account Management. You’ll be involved in product launches, artwork and packaging. You’ll work alongside Product Development, Procurement and Supply Chain. You’ll attend customer meetings, audits and site visits. You’ll see considerably more of the technical operation than the bit that happens on your screen.

And that’s probably the biggest attraction of the role.

If you’ve already learned how to manage specifications and retailer systems, this gives you the opportunity to start building on that knowledge.

You’ll learn more about how customers think. You’ll understand more about how products make the journey from development through to launch. You’ll see how technical decisions affect other departments – and how decisions elsewhere in the business eventually find their way back to Technical.

You’ll also get the opportunity to become more customer-facing. Not simply responding to an email asking for a specification, but answering technical questions, explaining information, attending meetings and representing the business when customers need technical expertise in the room.

You’ll work closely with the Technical Account Management function too, giving you exposure to a broader, more commercially aware side of Technical.

So, if you’re ambitious about where your technical career eventually takes you, there’s a lot here to get your teeth into.

What will you be responsible for?

There’s still a proper Specifications Technologist job to do. Here’s the standard stuff:

• You’ll create, manage and approve finished product specifications, making sure they’re accurate and meet both customer requirements and internal standards.
• You’ll prepare ingredient declarations, nutritional information and allergen data, including customer-specific formats.
• You’ll produce legally compliant pack copy and review and approve artwork, making sure what’s printed on the packaging is technically accurate, compliant and meets customer guidelines.
• You’ll maintain branded and own-label specifications through retailer web-based systems and keep product information and records accurate and up to date.
• You’ll also stay on top of food legislation, labelling regulations and retailer codes of practice.

Accuracy matters. A lot.

But the really interesting stuff tends to happen when everything isn’t quite as straightforward as the specification suggests…

That’s when you’ll be working with customers and colleagues to solve problems, answer technical queries and work out what needs to happen next.

You’ll collaborate with teams across the business on critical paths and product launches, contribute technical knowledge to new products and help identify improvements to manufacturing processes and product quality.

In short, you’ll have the opportunity to apply your technical knowledge across a much broader range of situations – from customer queries and product launches to artwork, compliance and continuous improvement.

What do you need to bring?

You’ll need previous experience in a Specifications or Technical role within food manufacturing, together with a good understanding of retailer specification systems, artwork systems and retailer codes of practice.

You’ll understand food science, manufacturing processes, food safety standards and the regulations surrounding the products and information you’re working with.

Some exposure to Technical Account Management would be useful.

And you’ll need to enjoy dealing with people.

Because although attention to detail is obviously important – specifications and packaging don’t offer much forgiveness for nearly right – this role needs somebody who can communicate just as confidently as they can scrutinise information; someone who can explain something technical without making it sound unnecessarily complicated; someone who’ll ask the question when something doesn’t make sense; someone who can work with customers and colleagues to get an answer rather than simply point out the problem.

And where could it take you?

We can’t promise you a particular job title in three years’ time. Frankly, we’d be suspicious of any recruitment advert that did.

This contract is initially for a minimum of six months, but who knows what could happen in the future?

What we can tell you is that this role gives you exposure beyond traditional specifications work:

• Meaningful customer interaction
• Technical Account Management
• Product launches
• Artwork approval and resolution
• Cross-functional projects
• Problem solving
• Continuous improvement
• Autonomy

And all of that experience is being gained within the Nantwich operation of a major international dairy business employing around 2,800 people and selling dairy products and ingredients around the world.

So, if you’re looking for a Specifications Technologist role because you want to continue being a Specifications Technologist, this could be a very good job.

But if you’re looking for one because you’re thinking about what comes after being a Specifications Technologist, it could be an even better one.

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