Pyou Hong Kong Hiring! Full Time Research And Development Manager in Johor - Ricebowl

Pyou Hong Kong, an International Recruitment Agency is looking on behalf of our client, a leading European multinational agro-food group, for an R&D Manager, who will report to the Chief Operating Officer (Malaysia) with a dotted line to the Corporate R&D Director.

Location: Pasir Gudang, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

He/She will act as the main technical authority for the manufacturing plant, overseeing product development, formulation, and industrialization for the APAC region.

Responsibilities In detail, he/she has to:

• Manage the full R&D and Regulatory function of the Malaysia plant across chocolate, margarine, and UHT/VHT product portfolios;
• Coordinate, mentor, and develop a cross-functional technical team of approximately 12 professionals;
• Oversee end-to-end product development, formulation renewals, and industrialization from concept stage to commercial launch;
• Ensure full compliance with domestic and international food regulations across export markets, embedding Halal and Kosher certification standards into development processes;
• Act as the primary technical interface between cross-functional departments (Production, Quality, Sales, Supply Chain) and global headquarters;
• Spearhead value engineering, raw material rationalization, and recipe cost-optimization initiatives;
• Support the long-term innovation roadmap and present structured updates to the Global R&D leadership.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Chemistry, or a related discipline;
• Minimum 10 years of Food R&D experience within industrial manufacturing environments;
• Proven technical expertise in at least one of the following product categories in the APAC region: UHT/VHT, margarine, or chocolate;
• At least 2–3 years of people management experience, including coordinating a team of 5 to 12 employees;
• Sound understanding of international export food regulations, food safety standards, and certified production environments (Halal / Kosher);
• Professional fluency in written and spoken English;
• Strong technical acumen, result orientation, leadership, team-working, and proactivity;
• Willingness to relocate and establish in Johor Bahru (an indicative budget is available for relocation and accommodation).