Senior Project Manager
Lyons Magnus leads the food industry with creativity and innovation, crafting top-quality products across all manufacturing phases, from raw materials to marketing. With over 2,000 diverse items for industrial ingredient and food service sectors, Lyons caters to leading restaurant chains nationally and internationally.
About the role
The Senior Project Manager in the Commercial Operations Division (Commercialization Department) oversees the full product commercialization process—from inception to delivery—for custom and core products. This role manages new-item commercialization and ongoing project management for existing core-item sales, while supporting the sales organization on key global and chain accounts to drive sales growth. The position is preferably based at our Walton, Kentucky office.
Responsibilities
- Lead project management and alignment across all cross-functional departments for product development, commercialization, and continued supply.
- Serve as the project and commercial business lead for key customers (customer interface).
- Conduct new-item project review presentations and announcements.
- Provide weekly and monthly customer inventory and contract updates.
- Provide customer forecasts to Supply Chain and Production and authorize raw-material purchases for finished goods.
- Manage annual fruit and key raw-material purchases.
- Contribute to weekly meetings with meaningful updates, including assignments, results, and future planning.
- Update and direct internal departments on project details, timelines, and customer requirements.
- Communicate with ingredient and packaging suppliers as needed to support the business.
- Review customer follow-up details and take appropriate action to deliver solutions.
- Verify purchase-order placement of raw materials for commercialization.
- Align with the R&D team to keep projects on track and meet customer expectations.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in business administration, Project Management, Operations, or a related field.
- 5+ years of professional experience.
Skills
- Excellent project management with exceptional attention to detail.
- Ability to communicate clearly and concisely—orally, in writing, via virtual platforms (e.g., Zoom and Microsoft Teams), and in person—and to use those skills to influence outcomes.
- Ability to balance multiple priorities and meet deadlines.
- Ability to work both independently and as part of a team.
- Ability to influence others and collaborate to get things done in a timely manner.
- Ability to build trust and respect among peers, with an appreciation for strong working relationships.
- Proficiency in computer applications with analytical mindset, including Microsoft Office and CRM platforms—preferably Microsoft Dynamics AX, Salesforce, and Power BI.
- Confidence presenting projects and updates to leadership and cross-functional teams while driving projects forward.
- Strong interpersonal skills for engaging with the leadership of key customers.
- Ability to learn manufacturing processing technology (e.g., pasteurization, blending, and mixing).
- Ability to travel occasionally to Lyons manufacturing plants, customer meetings, and industry functions (30–40% travel required).
Preferred Qualifications
- 5+ years of experience in the food manufacturing industry supporting multi-unit commercial restaurant accounts or contract packaging accounts.
- Experience in project management, product commercialization, product planning, financial analysis, and/or supply chain management.
Benefits
- Health, Dental, and Life Insurance
- Long Term Disability
- Section 125 (Flexible Spending Account)
- 401(k) plan
Pay
$100,000–$130,000 annually + bonus
Schedule
- Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., with flexibility as needed.
- Occasional weekend work may be required.
Location
Walton, Kentucky. Primarily based in the Walton office. A hybrid/remote work arrangement may be considered for the right candidate.