SONIC · 1 day ago
Culinary Innovation Manager (Sonic)
Atlanta, GA
Full-time
Onsite
Mid Level
3+ years expSONIC is a multi-brand restaurant company that values creativity and innovation in its culinary offerings. The Culinary Innovation Manager will lead product development efforts, collaborating with cross-functional teams to create and launch new food and beverage concepts that align with consumer and operational goals.
Food and BeverageFood DeliveryFood TrucksRestaurantsSnack FoodTourismTravel
Responsibilities
Support the Product Innovation team and Director of Culinary in delivering against organizational and personal goals, objectives, and strategies
Work independently on development projects, with check-ins and guidance from supervisor as needed
Participate in the creation of new product development objectives while collaborating with cross functional teams including Category Management, Brand Experience, Operations, Procurement, Commercialization, Quality Assurance, and others as appropriate
Independently work with vendor partners to develop new products from gold-standard products to initial benchtop samples and through commercialization process. Own development of products
Make recommendations for improvements to current prototypes. Collaborate with cross-functional teams in the development and creation of product specifications on commercialized products with vendor partners, Commercialization Quality Assurance, and other teams as necessary
Lead product taste tests and new product showings
Present product improvement/change recommendations based on taste test results and/or feedback to Culinary Innovation leadership Partner with Procurement Team to develop accurate food & paper formulas
Plan and execute Product Showcase events to (and not limited to) SONIC Senior Management, Board of Directors, Franchise Community, Marketing Leadership, Shareholders & SONIC National Convention
Provide guidance and support to other product developers
Other duties assigned as needed
Qualification
Required
3-5 years' experience in a culinary or product development role required
Ability to think strategically, be detail oriented and respond quickly to business needs
Bring creativity to menu development and trend dives for the team
Excellent communication and presentation skills, especially the ability to explain difficult concepts and insights in applicable business terms
Ability to summarize insights into PowerPoint presentations in clear and understandable calls to action
Ability to collaborate and motivate across the operations, supply chain, field, and marketing teams
Self-starter with the ability to project manage and handle multiple assignments simultaneously and meet all desired deadlines
Strong leadership, sales support, project management and training skills
Understanding how to take products or programs through a development and testing process
Effective problem-solving skills and ability to listen and translate details accurately
Should possess an innate curiosity and growth mindset
Preferred
2 Year Degree Preferred - A culinary or Food related degree is preferred for this position
Experience in QSR culinary development highly preferred
Company
SONIC
SONIC, founded in 1953, is the largest drive-in restaurant brand in the United States, with more than 3,400 restaurants in 47 states
10001+ employees
H1B Sponsorship
SONIC has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (1)
2022 (1)
Funding
Current Stage
Public CompanyTotal Funding
unknown2018-09-25Acquired
1991-03-01IPO
Leadership Team
T
Ted R. Totts
CEO
Recent News
2025-10-27
Food Business News
2025-08-30
Company data provided by crunchbase