Staff Scientist, Salty R&D

Why Hershey: At The Hershey Company, our culture is rooted in purpose and inspired by Milton Hershey’s enduring vision that business should create opportunity for others. Through our commitment to corporate philanthropy, we create positive impact by supporting communities, helping children thrive, and operating as a business for good. This includes our deep and long standing partnership with Milton Hershey School, where we invest in education, workforce readiness, and hands on engagement to help students succeed beyond the classroom. Supported by strategic grantmaking, product donations, cross brand collaboration, and strong employee volunteerism, Hershey offers a place to work where making a difference—locally and globally—is part of how we do business every day. About The Hershey Company

The Hershey Company is an industry-leading snacks company known for making more moments of goodness through its iconic brands. With a strong portfolio across chocolate, confectionery, and salty snacks, Hershey delights consumers every day. Our beloved brands include Hershey’s, Reese’s, KitKat®, Dots Pretzels, Lesser Evil, Jolly Rancher, Twizzlers, Ice Breakers, and more. At Hershey, we are committed to making a meaningful difference in the communities where we live, work, and do business. This commitment originated with our founder, Milton Hershey, and continues to shape who we are today. Guided by our employee value proposition, Lead Today. Create Tomorrow, we empower our people to drive impact now while shaping what comes next. Our One Hershey mindset brings teams together across functions, geographies, and businesses, enabling us to operate with speed, collaboration, and shared purpose. The Hershey Company is proud to be recognized as a top employer in the United States, reflecting our commitment to our people, culture, and purpose How will you fit in the big picture?

Reporting to the Sr. Manager, Salty R&D and based at the Hershey Technical Center in Hershey, PA, the Staff Scientist, Salty R&D will provide technical leadership for medium to high complexity product development initiatives across the Hershey Salty Snacks portfolio. This role operates with a high level of autonomy, partnering cross-functionally to deliver innovation, renovation, and maintenance projects from concept through commercialization. The successful candidate will leverage strong scientific expertise, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills to develop next-generation baked and salty snack products while supporting key brands across the Dot’s and filled pretzel platforms. What will you do?

Lead product development projects from concept through commercialization, partnering with Marketing, suppliers, Manufacturing, Engineering, QRC, Project Management, and Innovation teams. Drive development of next-generation baked and salty snack products through formulation, process development, and scale-up.Identify and evaluate emerging ingredients, technologies, and industry trends through supplier engagement and industry events. Design, execute, document, and communicate research related to salty snack formulation and baking processes.Analyze technical and consumer data to generate actionable insights and recommendations. Provide technical expertise supporting innovation, renovation, and maintenance initiatives across the Salty Snacks portfolio. Support product and research data accuracy and enrichment within S4 and other Hershey systems. Mentor junior scientists and provide technical guidance to Manufacturing and cross-functional partners. Build and leverage relationships with suppliers, consultants, and industry experts to accelerate business results. Travel domestically up to 25-30% as required.

Minimum Education & Requirements

5+ years of relevant experience in food science, product development, or related technical disciplines. This aligns with Hershey’s job level guidance requiring 5+ years of relevant experience for