Senior Manager, Technical Consumer Data… at The Coca-Cola… · Tokyo

Job Description Summary:

​Role Type: Individual Contributor

The Senior Manager, Technical Consumer Data Research (TCDR) reports to the Senior Director, Technical Consumer Data Research (TCDR), APAC and leads consumer research for Japan and South Korea Operating Unit (JSK OU) and Global Categories, delivering front end, consumer centric insights to drive a prioritized innovation pipeline across Product, Packaging, and Equipment for right first time, high impact outcomes. Organizationally, the TCDR function sits within the Innovation, Technology & Strategy team, ensuring strong integration of consumer insights into broader innovation and strategic decision-making processes. This role serves as a critical business partner shaping strategic, end-to-end consumer centric innovation learning plans and comprehensive research for the OU and Global categories whilst collaborating closely with Marketing, Human Insights, Local and Global Development & Innovation teams, within the innovation centers to deliver present-forward and future-back research strategies, that drive exceptional consumer experiences in alignment with consumer trends and our business strategies whilst delivering business growth.

What You’ll Do for Us:

• TCDR lead for the JSK OU and Global Categories, accountable for end-to-end delivery of research projects and initiatives, including robust cross-functional stakeholder engagement, governance, and alignment. Drives global TCDR community initiatives while standardizing and embedding best practices across markets and categories.
• Strategic business partner shaping and influencing the innovation pipeline for the OU and Global Categories and the broader global TCDR community. Aligns diverse cross-functional teams (SRA, HI, Marketing, GDI, PD, ITS, Strategy) to embed a consumer-first mindset and leverage deep business understanding to drive impactful, insight-led decisions.
• Owns and leads critical innovation research initiatives as a strategic, empowering consumer-centric, technical business partner, driving end-to-end TCDR research excellence with a “right-first time” mindset, and influencing decisions to deliver strong, measurable business outcomes.
• Translate business needs into an actionable sensory and consumer research plans. Build and lead end-to-end consumer research learning plans, with appropriate future forward consumer and sensory approaches and methodologies, utilizing digital capabilities, grounded in sound data & insights, to enable effective business decisions.
• Demonstrates deep functional expertise across TCDR disciplines, including sensory science, human behavioral science, consumer research, and advanced statistical and data science methodologies and sophisticated modeling techniques (e.g., AI, ML, LLMs, PLS regression) leveraging AI capability.
• Utilizes rigorous statistical methodologies and advanced analytical techniques to design studies, analyze data, and interpret results with precision; synthesize findings into robust, evidence-based conclusions and delivers clear, actionable technical and business recommendations to inform decision-making.
• Delivers data-driven strategic recommendations to inform business solutions, leveraging deep technical consumer research expertise and a strong understanding of the business and competitive landscape; defines insight-led solutions grounded in consumer needs, proactively identifies and mitigates technical risks, and communicates with clarity through compelling, data-driven storytelling to influence stakeholders and drive confident decision-making.
• Actively contributes to the GDI Global TCDR community, partnering on research-on-research initiatives to advance methodologies and strengthen functional capabilities.
• Champions external orientation and innovation, identifying, developing, and adopting new, agile research methodologies and data science approaches in collaboration with the Global TCDR Capabilities team, and scaling relevant solutions within the OU.
• Drive continuous improvement and innovation in TCDR practices, evolving best practices and methodologies while proactively exploring and implementing cutting-edge, AI-enabled tools to solve complex challenges and deliver competitive advantage.
• Global Beverage Category knowledge and understanding, with a trained palette for sensory evaluation thereof.

Data Analytics & Synthesis

• Perform advanced statistical analysis for sensory & consumer research, to include interpretation of research data outcomes, and application of appropriate methods (e.g., ANOVA, parametric/non‑parametric, modeling), adopting appropriate risk management.
• Proficient usage of Statistical software and tools such as JMP, SPSS, SAS, Python, R, SQL, Power BI, and Azure ML, parametric and non-parametric methods, ANOVA, factorial analysis, and modeling tools.
• Apply advanced analytics and statistical modeling to solve complex business problems.
• Translate data into clear, actionable insights that support business decision-making.
• Develop and adopt innovative, data-driven solutions to drive competitive advantage.
• Demonstrate hands-on experience applying analytics to real-world business challenges with measurable impact.

Technical Risk Management

• Skilled in identifying and assessing technical risks, developing strategies in working with the Global TCDR Capabilities team, mitigate these risks, and implementing proactive measures to ensure project continuity and system integrity.

Proactively Build category knowledge to support Present-Forward and Future-back Innovation pipeline and OU LRP business planning:

• Lead a multi-year category research strategy, generating critical product, sensory, and consumer insights to support global and local innovation while optimizing portfolio and identifying growth opportunities.
• Drive competitive benchmarking and insights, evaluating Product, Packaging, and Equipment to uncover drivers of consumer preference, market trends, and white space opportunities.
• Execute front-end exploration research, identifying key drivers of consumer choice and translating them into optimal sensory and consumer research experiences to strengthen early-stage front end innovation insights, drivers of liking, and uncover white space opportunities.

Technical Communication & Data Storytelling

• Translate strategic visions into actionable plans, using knowledge of current business processes and best practices.

• Communicate with clarity and precision by using data-driven storytelling to drive change, negotiate with stakeholders, and engage with target audiences.

• Delivers insightful reports and trend dashboards to thoroughly examine consumer behavior, turning data into practical insights and suggestions for the entire organization.

• Storytelling, frameworks, tools, and approaches to socializing our Technical Product Story.

Strategic Partner, Influencing & Stakeholder Management

• Acts as a strategic business partner, building and managing strong internal and external relationships (including suppliers, academia, and cross-functional teams) to advance organizational and innovation goals.
• Navigates and influences within a complex TCCC system, demonstrating strong leadership, stakeholder management, and communication skills to drive alignment and deliver measurable business impact.
• Partners cross-functionally with R&D, Marketing, and Human Insights, fostering collaboration to deliver consumer-centric solutions and accelerate category development.
• Lead the OU integrated global categories agenda of consumer research, serving as the key OU SME interface to GDI leadership while driving regional OU priorities across Product, Packaging, and Equipment through integrated consumer and sensory insights.

Qualifications & Requirements:

• Bachelor Science Degree or PhD, BSc /MSc / PhD from an accredited University in Food or Sensory Science, Engineering, Behavioral Psychology, or related field, and technical mastery of Sensory, Consumer, Applied Statistics and AI, Data Science, User Experience, to include science, methodologies, frameworks, and approaches, preferably within the food and beverage industry.
• 10+ years of experience within FMCG Beverage/Food Industry with proven relevant experience in Sensory and Consumer research, delivering consumer centric results working in a matrix FMCG organization including R&D, Marketing and Human Insight, translated into successful business impact.
• Proven expertise leading large‑scale global and regional consumer research programs

Desired Skills and Competencies:

Technical & Category: As the senior manager of TCDR JSK & Global Categories, to require an elevated level of understanding and proficiency of TCDR Sensory & Consumer Science methodologies and applied Statistics & AI experience and Beverage Category knowledge.

• Expertise of Consumer Centric Innovation Frameworks, Approaches and Future Planning.
• Expertise in TCDR sensory & consumer science methodologies & statistics
• Social & Human Behavior Science applied expertise, applicable for beverage industry of consumer insights.
• Understanding of Demand Space & Need States frameworks, Psychographic consumers, Synthetic personas, and cross-fertilization of such learnings thereof in partnership with HI.
• Digital, technology-driven, and modelling approach knowledge and application with experience of large-scale sensory and consumer data of success business outcomes, of significant ROI.
• Algorithm application for unstructured data, in building an agile approach for knowledge mining.
• Applied Statistic, Data Processing, NLP, ChatGPT, Gen AI etc.
• Visualizations and creative Storytelling, expert in Power BI.
• Global Beverage Category knowledge and understanding, with a trained palette for sensory evaluation thereof.

Human-Centered Design: Lead holistic research plans to address key questions for specific business research projects.

• Sensory Science & Consumer Science, User with a sound understanding of the underlying statistics.

• Social, behavioral human science

• Research Design Principles for qualitative and quantitative research.

• Foundations of technical risk management

• User experience

Technical Communication

• Strong written and oral communication skills to be able to simplify complex information in a concise format that is appropriate for the audience.
• This role communicates internally with the local and global GDI network, Global and Regional Category Marketing, and TI&SC teams. External communication with agencies, suppliers, and universities.
• Ability to apply technical knowledge to build credibility with both technical and non-technical audiences, influencing decision makers and benefiting customers or the Company.
• Storytelling and building concise business recommendations from data and insights.
• Advanced influencing skills.
• Use of AI in advanced communication techniques.
• Data Engineering, database development & understanding

Data Analytics & Synthesis of Structured and Unstructured data

• Excellent statistics and data analysis skills.
• Knowledge of AI and Machine Learning principles, demonstrating an eagerness to deepen understanding and apply these technologies effectively.
• Understand and work in data management tools (Azure) and proficiency in visualization (Power BI or other)

Business Partnerships: Work with multiple functions to execute project work (R&D, Marketing, HI, etc.)

• Serves as a trusted advisor , providing market, strategy, and operating environment insights to enable informed business decision-making.
• Builds and sustains strong internal and external partnerships, leveraging strategic guidance and market understanding to drive business performance.
• Demonstrates strong cross-functional influence , effectively engaging and aligning diverse stakeholders to achieve shared objectives.
• Develops talent through coaching and mentorship , fostering capability growth and a high-performing, collaborative culture.
• Apply strong critical thinking and problem-solving skills to address complex business challenges.
• Drives execution excellence, leveraging strong organizational capabilities to deliver priorities effectively.
• Builds and maintains a robust cross-functional network , strengthening alignment and connectivity across the organization.

Process Improvement

• Recommends more effective ways of working to execute and drive value.
• Bring the outside in, remain current with relevant scientific literature. Inspire self and the team with external resources.

Travel: Travel will fluctuate and is projected to be a maximum of 10% of the time.

What can help you to be successful in the role?

Growth Behavior:

• Growth Mindset: Demonstrates Curiosity. Welcomes failure as a learning opportunity.
• Smart Risk: Makes bold decisions/recommendations.
• Externally Focused: Understands the upstream and downstream implications of his/her work.
• Performance Driven & Accountable: Has high performance standards. Outperforms her/his peers.
• Fast/Agile: Removes barriers to move faster. Experiments and adapts. Thrives under pressure and fast pace.
• Empowered: Brings solutions instead of problems. Challenges the status quo. Has the courage to take an unpopular stance.

Leadership Behavior

• Act Like an Owner: Deliver results, creating value for our brands, our System, our customers and key stakeholders.
• Collaborate with the System, Customers and Key Stakeholders
• Develops Self and Others: Develop self and support others' development to achieve their full potential.
• Drive Innovation: Generate new or unique solutions and embrace new ideas that help sustain our business.

What We Can Do For You

• Career growth and development: Leveraging our boundaryless network, we provide access to educational platforms and provide coaching, mentoring and feedback, as a part of our Leadership & Development process.
• Diverse and inclusive culture: You’ll be embraced for who you are and empowered to use your voice to help others find theirs. We want to make our culture inevitable.
• International Experience: Become part of international projects and work along multicultural teams, through our global network.

Skills: Chemistry, Communication, Continual Improvement Process, Data Compilation, Environmental Science, Food Safety Management, Food Sciences, Food Technology, Green Solutions, Laboratory Testing, Leadership, Microbiology, Product Development, Quality Control (QC), Researching, Sensory Testing, Waterfall Model

Location(s): Japan

City/Cities: Tokyo

Travel Required: 00% - 25%

Relocation Provided: No

Job Posting End Date: July 17, 2026

Our Purpose and Growth Culture:

We are taking deliberate action to nurture an inclusive culture that is grounded in our company purpose, to refresh the world and make a difference. We act with a growth mindset, take an expansive approach to what’s possible and believe in continuous learning to improve our business and ourselves. We focus on four key behaviors – curious, empowered, inclusive and agile – and value how we work as much as what we achieve. We believe that our culture is one of the reasons our company continues to thrive after 130+ years. Visit Our Purpose and Vision to learn more about these behaviors and how you can bring them to life in your next role at Coca-Cola.