Manager, JSK Process, GDI

Location(s):

Japan

City/Cities:

Tokyo

Travel Required:

00% - 25%

Relocation Provided:

No

Job Posting End Date:

March 27, 2026

Shift:

Job Description Summary:

​Location: Tokyo, Japan

Role Type: Individual Contributor

Immediate Manager: Director, Process, GDI

Please note: The selected candidate will need to be based in Tokyo, Japan. This is an Individual Contributor position.

Our APAC Innovation Centers sit at the heart of The Coca-Cola Company’s next chapter of growth. We are committed to transforming and evolving our organization and ambitions — bringing our people closer to the consumer, continuously raising the bar, and embracing digitalization to enable sustainable growth. We are looking for a highly driven individual contributor who thrives on ownership and impact, and who fuels the innovation pipeline with bold ideas that translate into real-world results. This role is not about maintaining the status quo; it is about challenging assumptions, unlocking opportunity, and personally driving valuable breakthrough innovation. You will apply deep process development expertise to lead ideas from concept to execution, contributing to a strong and diverse portfolio of meaningful innovation — accelerating growth and helping shape the future of the organization.

The Process Development Manager is a critical technical leader within the JSK Operating Unit, responsible for guiding the design, optimization, and commercialization of beverage processes that deliver superior quality, efficiency, and scalability. This role unlocks innovation by ensuring our future back and present forward product ideas can be manufactured reliably and cost effectively, both in the pilot plant and across bottling partner facilities.

Operating as an individual contributor with system wide influence, the Process Manager partners closely with global GDI, bottlers, suppliers, and cross functional teams to deploy the right technologies, troubleshoot challenges, accelerate commercialization, and strengthen digital and simulation capabilities for the future.

What You’ll Do for Us:

Process Innovation & Technical Leadership

• Provide expert guidance on process design from concept through commercialization, ensuring manufacturing feasibility, product stability, quality, and regulatory compliance.

• Translate future‑back innovation (new ingredients, formats, technologies) into clear process requirements and manufacturing pathways.

• Anticipate and solve complex technical barriers - formulation, mixing, thermal/aseptic processes, filling, CIP/SIP, and shelf‑life performance - to enable first‑time‑right launches.

• Identify opportunities to simplify, optimize, or modernize processes to enhance efficiency, sustainability, and product quality.

Commercialization & Bottler Support

• Act as the key technical interface between GDI and our bottling partners, ensuring the right process design, equipment capability, and validation steps are in place.

• Support scale‑up, line trials, commissioning, and troubleshooting to ensure smooth commercialization of new products and packaging formats.

• Provide clear, practical technical guidance to bottlers to ensure consistency, compliance, and high‑quality performance across the system.

Pilot Plant Strategy, Capability & Execution

• Support the Process Director in shaping the long‑term pilot plant strategy, capability roadmap, and technology investment priorities.

• Lead the technical aspects of pilot plant process design, trials, and scale‑up programs.

• Play a central role in CAPEX planning related to process technology, equipment upgrades, and layout optimization.

• Fully own pilot‑plant vendor and supplier management for project scopes (solution alignment, technical evaluation, negotiations, installation, commissioning, performance assessment).

Digitalization, Modelling & Simulation

• Lead the advancement of digital process capabilities, including virtual modelling, digital twins, line simulation, predictive analytics, and DOE‑driven process optimization.

• Apply digital tools to accelerate learning cycles, reduce trial costs, strengthen risk assessment, and improve decision quality.

• Help establish digital best practices and build foundational capability across the R&D technical community.

Troubleshooting & Operational Excellence

• Provide rapid, science‑based troubleshooting for manufacturing issues in bottler plants and the pilot plant - addressing material interactions, thermal processing, equipment performance, microbiology risks, and packaging - product compatibility.

• Create and maintain best‑practice libraries, troubleshooting databases, and process playbooks to strengthen operational excellence.

• Ensure all new processes incorporate strong EHS, GMP, and quality principles, even without direct EHS ownership.

Global Collaboration & System Connectivity

• Build deep connections with Atlanta Process team and other global process experts to ensure consistent standards, shared learning, and adoption of global best practices.

• Contribute to global technology platforms, knowledge sessions, and cross‑market collaboration forums.

• Bring outside‑in thinking from global networks, universities, OEMs, and technology partners to elevate our capability.

Capability Building & Influence Leadership (No Direct Reports)

• Enhance process capability across GDI and bottler teams through coaching, training, and knowledge sharing.

• Promote modern engineering practices, digital fluency, rigorous root‑cause analysis, and continuous improvement.

• Foster a culture of curiosity, high standards, technical discipline, and collaborative problem-solving.

What We’re Looking For:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree with 5–7 years of hands‑on experience in process development or engineering in the food & beverage industry.

• Strong expertise in beverage process design, thermal/aseptic processing, equipment selection, scale‑up, and commercialization.

• Experience with digitalization tools: process simulation, modelling, digital twins, data analytics, predictive modelling, DOE.

• Proven ability to troubleshoot manufacturing issues quickly and effectively using sound scientific principles.

• Strong collaboration and communication skills; ability to influence bottlers, suppliers, and cross-functional teams without authority.

• Language proficiency: Native or Business fluency in English & Japanese

• Ability to travel 5–30% based on project needs.

What We Can Do for You:

Purpose With Impact

• We take a purpose‑driven approach that empowers our people to protect the environment, strengthen the communities we serve, and deliver safe, high‑quality products every day. Your work will contribute directly to creating positive changes.

Global Collaboration & Learning

• You’ll be part of a globally connected organization where ideas, expertise, and innovation flow freely across regions. This environment enables you to learn from others, accelerate your growth, and contribute to solutions that scale worldwide.

A Community of Belonging

• We foster a culture where people feel safe, valued, and empowered to bring their best selves to work. We believe that diverse perspectives and an inclusive environment drive better outcomes—for our people and our business.

Competitive Rewards & Benefits

• We offer a comprehensive and competitive compensation and benefits package, with core benefits beginning on your first day. We are committed to supporting your wellbeing, growth, and long‑term success.

Candidate Attributes:

Critical to our growth is the development and recruitment of modern technical leaders who will demonstrate specific growth behaviours. The key candidate attributes we will be seeking are:

• Curious — Keep seeking, never settle.

Staying curious about what is outside, and two steps ahead inspires us to challenge the status quo. Having the courage to look and leap is the way we grow. Because asking “what if?” pushes us to the next level as people and as a company. 

• Empowered — Make it happen.

True empowerment is the result of taking responsibility. This means giving yourself permission to see it, say it and do it, and owning the outcomes. Because we move forward faster when we all take action. 

• Agile — Push for progress, not perfection.

There are very few overnight successes. Greatness is borne of many little victories (and failures). Share v 1.0, test it, and make it better. Then create the next version. Because the moment we think something is perfect, it will be obsolete. 

• Inclusive — Include, value, and trust each other.

We are smart alone but together we are genius. This means being inclusive, giving the benefit of the doubt and being responsible for each other. Because, for our company to thrive for the next 100+ years, smart is not enough. We need genius. 

Why Join Us?

• Impact at Scale: Shape products enjoyed by millions across diverse APAC markets.

• Global Connectivity: Access world-class technical expertise, innovation labs, and global R&D networks.

• Digital Future: Lead with next-gen tools — from AI-driven formulation insights to virtual product design.

• Creative Freedom: Drive innovation that blends science, consumer desire, and brand vision.

• Legacy: Be part of a team building the future of beverages, with agility, ambition, and excellence.

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.

• Commercially 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 Laboratory, Product Development, Quality Control (QC), Researching, Sensory Processing, Waterfall Model

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.