Innovation Operations Manager

BiOptimizers develops science-backed supplements and wellness tools. As a remote-first company, it seeks an experienced Innovation Operations Manager to lead the exploration and evaluation of new product and business opportunities beyond its core capsule and powder dietary supplements, and to manage the operations of new products through commercialization. The role handles novel, high-ambiguity concepts, with a focus on reaching defensible go/no-go decisions quickly. This is a fully remote position requiring US location and overlap with EST business hours.

Responsibilities

Identify, research, and investigate new innovation ideas and concepts to assess technical and commercial feasibility, including opportunities outside existing product formats and categories; Work closely with formulators and R&D teams to understand each innovation concept, its scientific underpinnings, and its technical requirements and constraints; Design and execute structured feasibility analyses covering technical viability, manufacturability, cost, regulatory considerations, timelines, and commercial potential; Identify, vet, and manage external partners such as vendors, contract manufacturers, labs, consultants, and specialists; Prepare RFQs and manage the quote and sample process with contract manufacturers; Synthesize findings into business cases and recommendations on whether a concept can be commercialized profitably or should be deemed unviable; Own project plans, timelines, budgets, milestones, and stakeholder communications across multiple concurrent innovation initiatives; Present findings, risks, and recommendations to leadership and cross-functional stakeholders; Serve as the single point of entry for innovation concepts, log every idea, run initial screens, and maintain a ranked, capacity-bound queue; Establish and enforce a phased stage-gate evaluation process with defined time and spend budgets, kill criteria, and formal gate reviews; Develop COGS build-ups, MOQ and landed-cost scenarios, pricing and margin models, break-even volumes, and required capital investment; Assess patent landscape and freedom-to-operate, ingredient regulatory status, label and claims substantiation, and regulatory considerations for products outside DSHEA; Coordinate sampling, pilot runs, scale-up trials, stability and shelf-life testing, sensory evaluation, analytical method development, and specification drafting; Carry greenlit concepts through first successful commercial production run and execute a formal handoff to the product and operations team; Document every concept evaluated, including shelved concepts, with findings, cost, reasons for decision, and conditions for revisiting; Set realistic expectations on timelines, cost, and resources, and formally negotiate any core-team time required by projects

Requirements

Minimum 7 years of demonstrated success as a project manager, ideally with exposure to product development, innovation, or new-category exploration; Experience in the dietary supplement, nutraceutical, food & beverage, CPG, or pharmaceutical industries; Extensive experience with R&D/formulation processes, manufacturing technical capabilities, and regulatory frameworks (e.g., FDA/DSHEA/cGMP); Strong background in ingredients and their technical use in dietary supplements; Hands-on experience with novel delivery formats (liposomal or encapsulation technologies, softgels, gummies or jellies, sprays, sachets, or functional beverages); Superb organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple projects and priorities simultaneously; Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate technical concepts for diverse audiences and influence stakeholders; Strong analytical skills to structure feasibility assessments, evaluate data, and build sound business cases; Fluency in project management tools (e.g., Asana, Monday.com, Smartsheet, MS Project, Jira, or similar); Comfort operating in ambiguity and driving clarity in early-stage, undefined projects; At least one novel or first-of-its-kind product, format, or process taken from early concept through commercial launch; Ability to deliver and defend unfavorable recommendations to senior stakeholders; Working financial literacy to build COGS build-ups, margin and break-even models, and business cases in Excel or Google Sheets; Technical reading ability to evaluate scientific literature, supplier technical packets, specifications, and certificates of analysis; Availability during US business hours with overlap with EST; US location required

Nice to have

Bachelor's degree in a relevant field (business, science, engineering, or related); PMP or equivalent certification; Experience commercializing an ingredient or raw material B2B (specification development, GRAS/NDI dossiers, tox and safety packages, ingredient customer support); Experience working outside of ingestibles (consumer hardware, devices, or wellness equipment), including sourcing, certification, and safety testing; Experience operating a formal stage-gate or phase-gate innovation process