Marketing Innovation Project Manager

Here at LION, we don’t settle for ordinary. We're passionate about crafting exceptional brands that bring people together, spark conversations and create unforgettable moments. Our Marketing team shapes the brands people know and love today, while building what comes next.

 

We’re looking for a Marketing Innovation Project Manager (internal title is Innovation Project Manager) to join our Auckland Innovation team and help bring the next generation of beverage innovation to market.

Reporting to the Senior Innovation Manager, you’ll sit at the intersection of innovation, brand and commercialisation, leading projects from idea through to market and turning great thinking into successful launches.

 

This is a role for someone who can see both the project and the bigger picture. You’ll consider how innovation fits within the broader brand and portfolio, what will make it successful in market, and how we build the internal momentum and customer engagement needed for a great launch.

 

Working closely with our NPD partners and cross-functional teams, you’ll bring strong commercial thinking, critical thinking, and agility to keep projects moving and navigate complexity along the way.

 

You’ll join an established Innovation team with an exciting pipeline ahead and plenty of opportunity to make your mark.

 

A typical day might see you:

• Lead innovation projects through commercialisation and launch, bringing clarity and momentum to cross-functional teams.
• Partner with Brand, Category, RGM and NPD teams to turn innovation plans into successful market launches.
• Look beyond the individual project, considering how innovation fits within the broader brand, category and portfolio.
• Lead projects through our Stage & Gate process, driving quality decisions and proactively navigating risks.
• Shape strong launch and go-to-market plans, building internal excitement and supporting effective customer engagement.
• Champion the innovation pipeline for your category, communicating progress, opportunities and risks across the business.

 

What will make you successful:

• Experience across Brand, Marketing, Innovation or commercialisation, with exposure to end-to-end product launches.
• Experience within FMCG, with a strong understanding of how consumer products are brought to market.
• Strong project leadership skills and experience bringing cross-functional teams together.
• Critical and commercial thinking, with the ability to connect individual projects to the bigger brand and portfolio picture.
• Confident stakeholder management and influencing skills, with the ability to challenge thinking and drive decisions.
• An agile mindset and ability to work at pace and adapt as new information emerges.
• Exposure to Stage & Gate innovation processes would be valuable but isn’t essential.

 

You don’t need to tick every box. If you bring strong FMCG experience, great commercial instincts, and an appetite to learn, we’d love to hear from you. If you’re excited by turning great ideas into products people can find, buy and enjoy, come help shape what’s next at LION

We’re a certified B Corp, which means we care about people, planet and purpose—not just profit. We’re committed to diversity, equity and inclusion, and we celebrate the unique perspectives that help us grow and innovate. We intentionally embrace difference and cultivate belonging every day, whether through our investment in our Reconciliation journey through our Innovate RAP, our commitment to gender pay equity or providing progressive people policies.

If you need specific support or accessibility adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process, please let us know at talentacquisition@lionco.com so we can make sure that your recruitment process is fair and we enable you to shine. This includes tailored support for First Nations people, individuals with disabilities, those who are neurodivergent, and people who identify as transgender or gender diverse as we understand the unique challenges and concerns you may face.