Senior Specialist, Innovation

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in United States.

📋 Description

• Direct structured discovery initiatives to identify unmet needs within food and animal safety laboratories, manufacturing environments, farms, and veterinary practices.

• Design, execute, and analyze voice-of-customer research, field observations, and stakeholder interviews.

• Convert qualitative and quantitative findings into need statements that specify users, contexts, and measurable success criteria.

• Evaluate unmet needs against strategic alignment, customer value, regulatory requirements, and core capabilities to inform portfolio prioritization.

• Create initial value hypotheses, adoption assumptions, and frameworks for problem identification.

• Generate, assess, and enhance concepts that encompass physical products, assays, instruments, digital tools, workflows, and service models.

• Collaborate with R&D, Engineering, Data Science, Quality, Regulatory, Commercial, Product Management, Operations, and digital teams.

• Develop and validate concepts through experiments, prototypes, pilots, and customer feedback loops.

• Define use cases, workflows, and system-level concepts that integrate hardware, consumables, software, and data.

• Contribute to invention disclosures and discussions regarding freedom-to-operate.

• Prepare concepts for advancement through Neogen’s innovation governance process by documenting evidence of desirability, feasibility, and viability.

• Assist with scale-up, validation, and preparation for launch.

• Identify risks related to adoption, workflow, training, and regulatory compliance, and propose mitigation strategies.

• Aid in the transition from innovation to development or commercialization while maintaining customer intent.

• Facilitate innovation workshops, ideation sessions, and decision-making reviews.

• Communicate insights, trade-offs, and recommendations to senior stakeholders.

• Contribute to the improvement of innovation processes, tools, and decision-making criteria.

• Support portfolio-level thinking and track learnings and outcomes from innovation initiatives.

• Advocate for customer-centered innovation practices and mentor project teams and junior contributors.

⛳️ Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Science, Engineering, Design, Business, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.

• Over 8 years of relevant professional experience in innovation, R&D, product development, product management, strategy, customer discovery, or a related technical or commercial role.

• Proven experience leading or assisting in customer discovery, voice-of-customer research, stakeholder interviews, observational research, or similar needs-finding activities.

• Familiarity with structured innovation methodologies such as Design Thinking, Jobs to Be Done, BioDesign, Lean Startup, Human-Centered Design, or similar frameworks.

• Experience in translating vague customer challenges into clear need statements, use cases, success criteria, value propositions, or preliminary business hypotheses.

• Background in supporting concept development and de-risking through prototypes, experiments, pilots, technical feasibility assessments, or customer feedback.

• Proficiency in facilitating workshops, synthesizing complex information, and influencing cross-functional stakeholders without direct authority.

• Experience in developing or contributing to business cases that consider customer value, strategic alignment, technical feasibility, adoption risk, market opportunity, or commercial viability.

• Ability to work across scientific, technical, regulatory, quality, commercial, operations, or digital/data functions.

• Experience in regulated environments where quality, validation, compliance, or customer workflow requirements impact business or product decisions.

• Willingness to travel up to 30% based on business and customer needs.

• Advanced degree in Science, Engineering, Business, Design, or a related field is preferred.

• Experience in food safety, animal health, diagnostics, life sciences, contract or central laboratories, agriculture, veterinary health, or another regulated technical market is preferred.

• Familiarity with product development, commercialization, portfolio management, or stage-gate/governance processes is preferred.

• Knowledge of digital solutions, data-enabled workflows, software-enabled products, automation, LIMS/connectivity, or digital transformation is preferred.

• Experience in developing solutions that integrate hardware, consumables, software, and data is preferred.

• Involvement in intellectual property activities, including invention disclosures or freedom-to-operate discussions, is preferred.

• Strong customer orientation and curiosity.

• Ability to navigate ambiguity and structure complex problems effectively.

• Excellent analytical, critical-thinking, and problem-solving abilities.

• Capability to translate scientific and technical information into clear business and customer insights.

• Strong facilitation, communication, and stakeholder management skills.

• Ability to influence without direct authority.

• Strong collaboration skills across both technical and non-technical functions.

• Capacity to balance customer needs, technical feasibility, business value, and risk.

• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities concurrently.

🏝️ Benefits

• Benefits commencing on Day One – Medical, dental, and vision coverage start on your first day of employment.

• 401(k) with company matching.

• Paid Time Off (PTO).

• Opportunities for career growth, including tools, training, and support for professional development.

• Engaging and meaningful work.

• A collaborative culture that emphasizes innovation, respect, teamwork, and continuous improvement.