Sr Statistician

ConAgra Foods, Inc. (NYSE: CAG) is one of North America's leading packaged food companies, serving grocery retailers, as well as restaurants and foodservice establishments. The company employs more than 40,000 people and has annual revenues of $15 billion. ConAgra Foods offers dozens of famous brands such as: Healthy Choice, Van Camp's, Butterball, Armour, Parkay, Banquet, Hunt's, Peter Pan, Wesson, Marie Callender's, Slim Jim and Orville Redenbacher's.The ConAgra Foods culture supports strong, self-reliant leadership capable of working in an evolving and matrixed team environment. The down-to-earth, pragmatic environment is focused on results, and employees are passionate about making a difference.Responsible for Statistics Leadership of the ConAgra Foods Center for Research, Quality and Innovation (CRQI). Functions as part of the Sensory Insights Leadership team to determine strategies and actions plans for the Sensory Insights and Statistics (SIS) group. This person will interface and communicate with business teams on issues pertaining to statistical design and analysis, product optimization, consumer attitudes of ConAgra Foods products and food categories.Accountabilities
Lead the Statistics operations for ConAgra Foods, including:
Provide statistics support for the CRQI organization. Develop Experimental Design skills within the CRQI staff through training and hands-on experience.
Lead the Statistics and Experimental Design operations within the Sensory Insights
organization, including the incorporation of appropriate, advanced and state-of-the-art statistical techniques into product development efforts.
Create and maintain effective working relationships with CRQI product developers.
Develop and maintain a strong network of outside resources for Statistics.
Manage two statistics staff.Principle Challenges/Complexity
The position requires expertise in statistical analysis and experimental design, sensory science, consumer products research design and execution, and the interpretation and application of results.Lead the development and implementation of a company-wide Statistics program while also maintaining the delivery of Sensory Insights information to CRQI. Assure SIS meets the business needs of project and brand teams, while supporting the longer-range initiatives of the CRQI organization.Latitude and Dimensions
Cross-company responsibility for a Statistics training and development program, including supervision of Statistics employees. Use of expertise to identify test needs, select appropriate statistical design and test approach, and execute research. Communication to brand teams, senior and technical personnel of results and implications to product design resulting from Sensory Insights testing. Responsibility to develop and implement statistical methodology to meet business needs.Direct Reports:2 direct reports (1 Statistician, one statistics technologist)Knowledge, Training and Experience
BS in one of the following fields plus a minimum of 5-7 years relevant work experience required: Statistics, Biostatistics, Mathematical Psychology, Experimental Psychology or Food Science with a Sensory Science or Marketing Research emphasis. Studies should include principles of human behavior and testing, statistics and experimental design and sensory science.
MS in one of the above stated fields plus 3-5 years relevant work experience preferred.
Experience in a Consumer Packaged Goods company preferred.
Deep skill set in Statistics, Experimental Design and the use of statistical analysis software (Design Ease, Design Expert, SAS and JUMP) required.
Superior advocacy, training and collaboration skills.
Experience in the application of methods in sensory research, statistics and the basic tools of human measurement.
Ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously.
People management skills, both professional and support staff.Work Environment/Physical Demands
Position requires ability to balance short-term testing needs with longer-term training and development. Constant need to prioritize workload versus resources available while balancing the needs of multiple projects across the various project teams.
ConAgra Foods offers a competitive benefits package, including comprehensive medical, dental and vision plans; life insurance for yourself and your dependents; short-term and long-term disability plans; flexible spending accounts; 401(k) retirement savings plan and company paid pension plan. Additional benefits we offer include, but are not limited to, a stock purchase program; tuition reimbursement and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP).ConAgra Foods, Inc. is committed to the provision of equal employment for all qualified persons in all job classifications in recruitment, selection and promotion without regard to race, color, religion, age, national origin, gender, veteran status or disability or any other protected characteristics.
REQUIREMENTS
Please see Job Description