**Job Description :** **About the Function:** Our Marketing team are creators, helping to build and nurture some of the world’s most loved brands. We craft amazing connections with people around the world to celebrate our brands’ legacies and reimagine them for the world today, and into the future. Everything we do is underpinned by a deep understanding of our consumers, behaviours, trends, and technologies. Using our genius and creativity, we unlock our brands’ uniqueness, understand their purpose, and put them at the heart of celebrations everywhere. Together, we’re celebrating diversity and challenging stereotypes through our advertising and marketing. Wherever your talents lie, from Design to Consumer Planning, you’ll be celebrated and supported in our inclusive culture. **About the role:** The Innovation Manager RTD is responsible for developing, managing, and championing all innovation and renovation strategies for the RTD category. This includes planning and executing new product development (NPD) and commercialization plans to ensure successful product launches and in-market sales performance. The role plays a critical part in driving Diageo’s growth within the RTD category by ensuring projects are delivered on time and meet business objectives. **Role Responsibilities:** **Innovation Strategy and Execution:** + Lead the development of innovation and renovation plans for the RTD category, ensuring alignment with business objectives and consumer insights. + Manage the end-to-end innovation process for RTD projects, from ideation to commercialization (Gates 1-6). + Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including Brand, Supply Chain, Technical, Finance, and Commercial, to deliver projects on time and within budget. **Commercialization and Market Success:** + Ensure all RTD NPDs are executed properly, with a focus on flawless market launches. + Develop robust go-to-market strategies in partnership with commercial and marketing teams to drive in-market sales performance. + Monitor post-launch performance to ensure objectives are met and apply learnings to future projects. **Stakeholder Management:** + Actively manage relationships with key stakeholders, providing updates and ensuring alignment throughout the innovation process. + Present gate papers and project updates to the Executive team, obtaining necessary approvals and support. + Serve as an escalation point for resolving issues that may arise during the innovation process. **Insights and Trends:** + Leverage consumer and market insights to inform RTD innovation strategies and identify growth opportunities. + Stay abreast of emerging trends in the RTD category to ensure Diageo remains competitive and forward-thinking. **Compliance and Governance:** + Ensure all RTD innovation activities comply with Diageo’s DMC, GAR, and CARM requirements. + Champion a culture of compliance and governance across the innovation team. **Qualifications and Experience Required** **Qualifications** + Appropriate suitable tertiary qualification – degree / diploma + Suitable Post Graduate Qualification is desirable **Experience / skills required:** + A minimum of 4- 5 years’ experience in brand marketing (innovation experience advantageous) + Proven experience managing end-to-end innovation projects and cross-functional collaboration. **Requirements for success in role** Ability to: + Grasp complexity of market (multiple channels, languages, cultural differences, norms and practices) + Influence people across all the levels in the organization + Balance multiple priorities and work to a series of tight deadlines + Make rapid decisions and respond quickly to organization change + Self-motivate + Work effectively with technology + Timely and successful launch of RTD NPDs, delivering against volume, profit, and market share objectives. + Effective collaboration with cross-functional teams to drive alignment and project success. + Robust go-to-market execution plans resulting in strong in-market sales performance. + Enhanced innovation pipeline for the RTD category, informed by insights and aligned with business goals. **Diversity statement:** Our purpose is to celebrate life, every day, everywhere. And creating an inclusive culture, where everyone feels valued and that they can belong, is a crucial part of this. We embrace diversity in the broadest possible sense. This means that you’ll be welcomed and celebrated for who you are just by being you. You’ll be part of and help build and champion an inclusive culture that celebrates people of different gender, ethnicity, ability, age, sexual orientation, social class, educational backgrounds, experiences, mindsets, and more. Our ambition is to create the best performing, most trusted and respected consumer products companies in the world. Join us and help transform our business as we take our brands to the next level and build new ones as part of shaping the next generation of celebrations for consumers around the world. Feel inspired? Then this may be the opportunity for you. _If you require a reasonable adjustment, please ensure that you capture this information when you submit your application._ **Worker Type :** Regular **Primary Location:** Waterfall **Additional Locations :** **Job Posting Start Date :** 2025-01-03 With over 200 brands sold in more than 180 countries, we’re the world’s leading premium drinks company. Every day, over 30,000 talented people come together at Diageo to create the magic behind our much-loved brands. From iconic names to innovative newcomers – the brands we’re building are rooted in culture and local communities. Our ambition is to be one of the best performing, most trusted and most respected consumer products companies in the world. Our founders, such as Arthur Guinness, John Walker, and Charles Tanqueray, were visionary entrepreneurs whose brilliant minds helped shape the alcohol industry. And through our people, their legacy lives on. Join us, and you’ll collaborate with talented people from all corners of the world. Together, you’ll innovate and push boundaries, shaping a more inclusive and sustainable future that we can all be proud of. With diversity at our core, we celebrate our people's unique passions, commitments and specialist skills. Because when varied voices, mindsets, and personalities come together, great ideas are born. In our supportive culture, your voice will be heard and you’ll be empowered to be you. Just bring your ambition, curiosity and ideas, and we’ll celebrate your work and help you reach your fullest potential. **DRINKiQ** What's your DRINKiQ? Take our quiz to understand how alcohol is made and explore the effects of drinking. You can discover everything you need to know at DRINKiQ (https://www.drinkiq.com/en-gb/)