Position: Project Manager
Location: Chicago, IL, 60601
Duration: 10 Months
Job Type: Temporary Assignment
Work Type: Hybrid
Job Description:
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We’re seeking a highly collaborative and proactive Scrum Master/Project Manager to join our cross-functional agile pod focused on driving innovation and growth in the Disruptive Innovation team.
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In this role, you’ll be responsible for enabling and fit for purpose agile ways of working, removing barriers to progress, building timelines, and ensuring continuous delivery of high-impact solutions that are right-sized for our global innovation team.
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This role will be embedded within a tight-knit team of R&D, Packaging, Supply Chain, Marketing, Finance, and Strategy leads, all working together to bring the next big thing on innovation to the market—faster and smarter.
Key Responsibilities:
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Lead sprint planning, daily stand-ups, retrospectives, sprint reviews, and other agile rituals to keep the team focused, aligned, and on track.
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Partner with Project Owner and Marketing Lead to manage end-to-end innovation & commercialization process, from initial concept to successful market launch.
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Build and manage timeline of the project and product development; Align POD members on their commitments with the timelines to ensure on time delivery
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Coach the pod on agile principles, flex when needed and helping the team balance speed and structure while adapting quickly to feedback and new insights.
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Identify and resolve impediments that hinder progress—whether operational, organizational, or resource-related—to keep the initiatives moving forward.
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Tracking key agile metrics such as CSat, Maturity, Capacity of the team, reporting progress, and making adjustments as needed to ensure project success.
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Maintain clear documentation of sprint goals, backlog items, decisions, and velocity. Ensure the team and stakeholders have visibility into progress, risks, and timelines.
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Guide the team in retrospectives to continuously improve delivery and collaboration.
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Ensure alignment across all pod members, including R&D, Supply Chain, Finance, and Marketing, while fostering an environment of shared ownership and rapid iteration.
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Tailor agile workflows to reflect the unique physical product innovation characteristics —helping the team move quickly from insight to execution while navigating pack simplification, retail constraints, and test-and-learn launches.
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Help the team align on the highest-impact initiatives by working closely with the Pod Lead and cross-functional partners to manage and refine the product backlog.
Requirements:
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Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering, or related.
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MUST HAVE: 5+ years of experience as a Scrum Master or Project Management, in the Food&beverages industry.
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MUST HAVE: experience with physical product innovation in Food & Beverage with packaging projects, aligned with operations&manufacturing side: engineering, changing of machines, alignment with supply chain, etc.
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Strong knowledge of Agile/Scrum methodologies or proven experience in product development and commercialization
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Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment.
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Strong experience in building timelines for projects with uncertainty, that demands a lot of changes multiple times throughout the project.
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Excellent communication, facilitation, and conflict-resolution skills.
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Experience supporting test-and-learn innovation cycles or commercialization processes.
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Passion for team empowerment, iterative learning, and removing barriers to execution.
Must Haves:
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Food industry experience (non negotiable).
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Operations focused innovation project management background
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Commercialization process knowledge
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Agile project management experience (emphasis)
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Self-driven, proactive working style
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Strong communication & relationship building skills