R&D Chef Manager - Berkeley Culinary Center

R&D Chef Manager

The R&D Chef Manager serves as a key culinary partner and right hand to the Director of Culinary, Whitsons Culinary Group's Berkeley, IL facility. This role leads day-to-day culinary product development, operational support, and execution of customer samples. The R&DChef Manager translates culinary vision into production-ready recipes and ensures consistent, high-quality execution from concept through manufacturing.

Essential Functions, Responsibilities, and Duties

• Lead culinary product development — concepting, formulating, testing, and refining recipes from bench-top through kitchen trials to production-ready, scalable formulas, executing the culinary direction of Whitsons
• Responsible for creating new meals for ALL sectors that we serve (Education, Residential/Senior, Shelters, Food Service, Retail, Transportation)
• Own execution and quality of customer and sales sample requests, including client tastings and product presentations, as directed.
• Provide operational support on the plant floor — troubleshooting production issues, scaling recipes, and partnering with QA and Operations to ensure formulas are manufacturable at scale.
• Serve as a key deputy on culinary initiatives, representing culinary priorities and maintaining project momentum in the absence of their manager.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Sales, QA, Procurement, and Production to move products from concept to launch.
• Maintain accurate documentation and specifications for formulas, ensuring consistency across trials and production runs.
• Develop and cost recipes to meet target food cost and margin goals, balancing quality with budget guidelines.
• Ensure formulas comply with food safety and regulatory requirements (HACCP, FSMA, USDA/FDA), including writing product specifications and nutrition fact panels.
• Evaluate shelf-life and packaging considerations during recipe development.
• Source and evaluate ingredients, and build relationships with suppliers and vendors.
• Track culinary and flavor trends and competitive products, including attending trade shows and food exhibitions, to inform development priorities.
• Mentor and train junior culinary and kitchen staff.
• Perform other culinary and operational duties as assigned by the Director of Culinary.

Apply today and help us power a production line that fuels excellence — Enhancing Life One Meal at a Time™

This role offers a salary range of $75,000 – $90,000 annually, based on skills, experience, and location. Employees also receive a comprehensive benefits package including health, dental, vision, 401(k) with company match, and time off.

Required Qualifications and Competencies

• 5–10 years of progressive culinary or restaurant experience.
• Culinary degree from an accredited culinary program.
• Experience in food manufacturing and culinary R&D/product development strongly preferred.
• Working knowledge of recipe scaling, food safety standards, and large-scale production processes.
• Working knowledge of food safety and regulatory frameworks (HACCP, FSMA, SQF, USDA/FDA labeling requirements).
• ServSafe or equivalent food handler certification required; HACCP certification a plus.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects and timelines concurrently.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills across cross-functional teams.
• Ability to work on-site at the Berkeley, IL facility; occasional travel required for trade shows, supplier visits, or customer sites.

Work Environment and Other Details

Expected Hours of Work:

This is a full-time exempt position. Typical work hours are Monday–Friday, 7:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m., with additional hours as needed to meet business demands and production schedules. As an exempt position, it is expected that Team Member will devote whatever time necessary to accomplish the goals and responsibilities. This will often require extended work hours, evening, and/or weekend work.

Travel Requirements:

Periodic travel to production facilities, vendor sites, and industry events may be required.

Physical Demands of the Job:

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 accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the team member is frequently required to sit, stand, walk, talk, and hear; use hands and fingers to feel, handle, or operate objects, tools, or controls; and reach with hands and arms. The employee is occasionally required to lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and the ability to adjust focus.

Work Environment:

The work is performed primarily in an operational or facilities-based environment, with regular presence in active areas such as kitchens, production spaces, warehouses, loading docks, or administrative areas within the facility. The noise level in the work environment may vary and can range from moderate to occasionally high, depending on location and operational activity.

The job description does not constitute an employment agreement between the Company and employee and is subject to change by the Company as the needs of the Company and requirements of the job change. Employee's signature below constitutes an employee's understanding of the requirements, essential functions, and duties of the position.