Food Innovation Manager Jobs in Illinois (NOW HIRING)

Job Description
Position Summary
The Manager, Innovation Insights will report to Director, Innovation Insights and is responsible for identifying and applying consumer insights that help shape a compelling, consumer-led innovation pipeline. This role partners closely with Innovation, Brand, R&D, Strategy, and cross-functional teams to uncover unmet needs, emerging behaviors, and whitespace opportunities that can be translated into growth platforms, concepts, and actionable recommendations. The Manager serves as a strategic partner and voice of the consumer throughout the innovation process, leading learning plans, synthesizing multiple sources of information, and connecting insights to business decisions. This person should be equally comfortable with rigorous research execution and broader strategic thinking, helping the organization move from data and observations to clear innovation choices.
Responsibilities
• Lead innovation-focused learning plans grounded in business priorities, portfolio strategy, and brand ambitions.
• Design, manage, and synthesize qualitative and quantitative research to support early-stage exploration, concept development, product optimization, packaging, and go-to-market decisions.
• Identify unmet consumer needs, tensions, motivations, and emerging behaviors that can unlock new product, format, flavor, occasion, and experience opportunities.
• Translate insights from primary research, syndicated data, cultural and category trends, and internal learning into clear, story-driven recommendations.
• Partner closely with Innovation, Brand Marketing, R&D, Strategy, and cross-functional teams to shape innovation territories, briefs, concepts, and prioritization decisions.
• Help define and evaluate whitespace opportunities and future-forward platforms that support long-term portfolio growth.
• Bring a strong external perspective by staying current on category trends, consumer shifts, culture, and innovation best practices.
• Influence stakeholders by clearly articulating what the business should do, not just what the research says.
• Ensure insights work is connected across projects and shared in ways that build organizational learning and stronger decision-making.
• Manage multiple projects and external vendor partners with strong attention to quality, timing, budgets, and business impact.
• Contribute to research best practices and help the team stay ahead of the evolving research landscape, including the thoughtful application of AI-enabled tools and approaches.
Minimum Qualifications
• Bachelor's degree in marketing, business, psychology, sociology, or a related field.
• 6+ years of consumer insights, innovation insights, market research, or strategy experience, preferably within CPG or beverage alcohol.
• Experience with a broad set of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, including concept development, innovation screening, product testing, packaging research, and strategic exploratory work.
• Demonstrated ability to synthesize disparate information sources into actionable insights and strategic recommendations.
• Strong communication, storytelling, and presentation skills with the ability to influence cross-functional partners.
• Experience managing external research partners and multiple projects simultaneously.
• Strong analytical thinking, curiosity, and comfort navigating ambiguity.
• Ability to connect consumer understanding to business strategy and innovation decisions.
• Proficiency in PowerPoint and Excel.
• Willingness to travel as needed.
Preferred Qualifications
• MBA or other advanced degree.
• Client-side insights experience supporting innovation, brand strategy, or portfolio strategy for iconic brands.
• Experience in beverage alcohol or broader food and beverage categories.
• Familiarity with syndicated data sources and trend/cultural intelligence tools.
• Passion for innovation, consumer behavior, and translating emerging opportunities into business action.
Location
Chicago, Illinois
Additional Locations
Job Type
Full time
Job Area
Marketing
The salary range for this role is:
$113,500.00 - $177,600.00
This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. Our compensation is based on cost of labor. For remote locations or positions open to multiple locations, the pay range may reflect several US geographic markets, including the lowest geographic market minimum to the highest geographic market maximum. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range, and the range may be modified in the future. An employee's pay position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, the prevailing minimum wage for the location, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, seniority, geographic location, performance, shift, travel requirements, sales or revenue-based metrics, any collective bargaining agreements, and business or organizational needs. At Constellation Brands, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at the high end of the range for their role, and compensation decisions are dependent upon the facts and circumstances of each position and candidate. We offer comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, medical/dental/vision insurance, 401(k), and any other benefits to eligible employees.
Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, or any other form of compensation that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company's sole discretion, consistent with the law.
Equal Opportunity
Constellation Brands is committed to a continuing program of equal employment opportunity. All persons have equal employment opportunities with Constellation Brands, regardless of their sex, race, color, age, religion, creed, sexual orientation, national origin or citizenship, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition (cancer or genetic characteristics), marital status, gender (including gender identity or gender expression), familial status, military or veteran status, genetic information, pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related conditions (or any other group or category within the framework of the applicable discrimination laws and regulations).