Pastry Chef Assistant - Healthy Snacks

Job Location: ​Chicago​

Chicago, IL

Company description

Ferrero is a family-owned company with a truly progressive and global outlook and iconic brands such as Nutella®, Tic Tac®, Ferrero Rocher®, Raffaello®, Kinder Bueno® and Kinder Surprise®. As the love for our brands continues to grow, so too does our global reach. Represented in more than 50 countries, with products sold in more than 170, the Ferrero Group is loved by generations around the world. The secret to our global success? 40,000 dedicated employees who celebrate care and quality to craft a business, careers and brands we are proud of. Join us, and you could be one of them.

About the Role:

The Ferrero Innovation Center stands for breakthrough innovation in the world of bakery, cookies and healthier snacks such including energy and proteins bars. It’s a laboratory in which new products are invented, baked and tasted and where new ingredients and raw material are studied and combined to deliver a high-quality standards.

A place where a creative and scientific approach are the right way to realize innovative products.

The Innovation Center is in Chicago and consists of a small multicultural team, and it’s expanding!

Our team collaborate with all the Ferrero labs and plant in the world.

You will work on the development of new products and on the improvement of existing ones, in order to fully satisfy various internal needs/requirements, e.g. market, sensorial, qualitative, technological, etc.

This is a fully on-site position, 5 days a week.

Main Responsibilities:

LAB ACTIVITIES:

• Create and manufacture food products and ensure precise recipe instructions.
• Manufacture samplings required for tasting sessions and physical-chemical tests.
• Ensure the timely and efficient execution off all laboratory tests in accordance with the evolution of the projects.
• Record and analyze data.
• Present product results to colleagues
• Investigate and test new equipment and ingredients.
• Understand manufacturing processes for each food application (may require visiting factories)
• Perform analysis of products developed or used by competitors.

LABORATORY EQUIPMENT EVALUATION

• Perform the technological evolution of new laboratory equipment and evaluate the advantages related to their use, in order to propose investments in this regard.

PRODUCT INNOVATION AND DEVELOPMENT

• Participate in the development and execution of possible products and ideas for tasting and samplings.
• Contribute ideas and concepts to initiate or advance food projects.
• Develop, as warranted, food prototypes for the range of products based on the company’s food technology.

COMMUNICATION WITH INTERNAL STAKEHOLDERS

• Communicate with various internal stakeholders including the marketing team, product development team, technical performance team, and quality.

Who we are looking for:

• Culinary education or diploma/ training in Pastry and Baking
• Experience in pastry/chocolate/baking
• Experienced in making protein bars and bakery goods
• Ability to make use of new technologies / raw materials to create new flavors
• Curious and keen in exploring new ideas
• Willing to work with semi-industrial machineries in a laboratory environment for product creation
• Team spirited, creative, adaptable and flexible
• Multicultural sensitivity
• Proficiency in Spanish, Italian or French a plus

Compensation Data

The base salary range for this position is $68,322 - $91,096 annually. Actual compensation will be determined based on experience, qualifications, and other job-related factors permitted by law. This range represents the anticipated salary for this position at this time. In addition to base salary, we offer a comprehensive benefits package, including health insurance, retirement plans, paid time off, and other benefits. Learn more about our benefits at

How to be successful in the role and at Ferrero:

Consumers, quality and care are at the heart of everything we do. So, to be successful at Ferrero, you’ll need to be just as consumer and product centric as we are - dedicated to crafting brilliant results for consumers around the world.

Strong analytical mind, attention to details on one hand, and ability to cooperate with employees at all levels and great organisational skills on the other, would be key to success. Employee contribution and engagement at Ferrero is based on the individual, team and organisation dimension, so you should have the ability to work independently, as a part of the team and build good relations with stakeholders at all levels. Being flexible and dealing with a dynamic working environment as well as the ability to embed new knowledge and skills in existing competencies will definitely help you to become high performer here.

Diversity Statement

Ferrero is committed to building a diverse and inclusive culture in which all employees feel welcomed and appreciated and have the same opportunities. We believe all of our people are equally talented in their own way. In nurturing the curiosity and natural abilities of our employees, we provide them, generation after generation, the means to succeed personally and professionally, enabling them to craft their journey at Ferrero. The diversity of our talents is what makes our work environment multicultural, innovative and highly rewarding.

Ferrero N.A. provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics.