R&D Manager - Potato Variety Commercialization
- Rhinelander, WI
- $106,400-178,100 per year
- Permanent
- Full-time
Responsibilities
- Design and lead storage research trials to evaluate variety-specific performance across harvest timings, temperature regimes, and physiological conditions — including pressure bruise risk, sugar accumulation, and chip quality during long-term storage.
- Oversee operational execution of storage trials by coordinating intake, storage management, and weekly bin evaluations with partner farms and internal teams.
- Lead the North America Variety Qualification process, from trial design and seed volume planning through field and processing execution — including fresh and processed product evaluations, sample shipments for sensory and consumer testing, and coordination across cross-functional stakeholders to ensure alignment with commercial and R&D objectives.
- Serve as the point of contact for the Variety Qualification Committee, consolidating trial outcomes and driving data-based decisions for varietal advancement into the PepsiCo portfolio.
- Partner with internal teams — breeding, trait discovery, crop technology, quality, supply chain, processing, and commercial leads — to shape product profiles, guide trial design, and support varietal go-to-market messaging.
- Consolidate findings into annual reporting deliverables internal presentations, and variety review meetings, contributing to global knowledge sharing and decision-making.
- Analyze and share North America performance data across storage, agronomy, and processing.
- The expected compensation range for this position is between $106,400 - $178,100.
- Location, confirmed job-related skills, experience, and education will be considered in setting actual starting salary. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range during the hiring process.
- Bonus based on performance and eligibility target payout is 12% of annual salary paid out annually.
- Paid time off subject to eligibility, including paid parental leave, vacation, sick, and bereavement.
- In addition to salary, PepsiCo offers a comprehensive benefits package to support our employees and their families, subject to elections and eligibility: Medical, Dental, Vision, Disability, Health, and Dependent Care Reimbursement Accounts, Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Insurance (Accident, Group Legal, Life), Defined Contribution Retirement Plan.
- PhD (with
7 years industry experience) or in Agronomy, Crop Science, Plant Breeding, or a related field, with deep expertise in potato storage research and varietal performance evaluation. * Must have potato or onion storage research experience
- Proven experience designing and managing field and storage trials, capturing phenotypic and environmental data, and analyzing post-harvest quality attributes.
- Familiarity with commercial manufacturing environments and the ability to coordinate field-to-factory trial logistics.
- Excellent communication and presentation skills with the ability to engage growers, internal stakeholders, and senior leadership.
- Strong project leadership, team management, and organizational skills.
- Proficiency in data tools and reporting systems).
- Ability to travel ~20% domestically.