Calendar Insights & Product Development Support

Calendar and Innovation/Product Development:

Drive ongoing innovation process for the KFC brand by developing and independently managing custom quantitative and/or qualitative research to identify new product innovation opportunities and set conceptual priorities for food development team.
Partner with food innovation team providing consumer guidance for quarterly creative kitchens with food vendors and KFC leadership team.
Support food innovation and calendar teams on sensory testing. Design new product & core product improvement learning plans comprehensive of consumer preference and difference testing. Partnering with food innovation and calendar teams to ensure testing is executed.

Promotional Insights Leader for KFC:

Execute the consumer research agenda to validate KFC's promotional calendar initiatives with minimal supervision.
Provide consumer insights leadership in cross functional teams through development and execution of consumer learning plans for calendar initiatives to amplify top-line growth based on in-market risk.
Independently manage external partners in execution of quantitative research to support the national calendar and promotional testing (Ex: product naming, pricing, positioning, product development, advertising, and in-store testing).
Deliver databased assessments for promotions which reconcile business results vs. assumptions and provide recommendations to improve the execution of future windows.

Advertising Insights Leader for KFCC:

Influence and inform consumer insights for promotion briefs.
Lead all research for advertising to inform creative and strengthen advertising responsiveness.
Deliver learnings on the drivers of advertising effectiveness to enable stronger creative, creative briefs, and media planning.

QSR Category Insights Leader for KFCC:

Collaborate with Marketing cross-functional team to establish clear objectives, goals, and strategies for measuring marketing effectiveness.
Communicate insights, findings, and recommendations in a clear and concise manner to drive data-driven decision-making and marketing optimization.
Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including marketing, analytics, finance, and operations, to ensure alignment and integration of marketing effectiveness initiatives with overall business goals.

Miscellaneous Research Projects:

Responsibilities will include additional research as required including but not limited to Multicultural Research, foundational consumer deep dives or ideation sessions 1-2/yr.

Must be willing and able to travel, approximately 20%.

Working Relationships:

Core members of the KFC marketing team and Marketing Leadership Team
Cross-functional teams & directors (Food Innovation, Finance, Operations, Packaging, etc.)
National Marketing Subcommittee Franchisees
Research agencies/vendor partners

Knowledge and Skill Required:

Bachelor's degree from an accredited 4-year university in Marketing, Marketing Research, or Social Sciences.

5+ years of relevant work experience with Bachelor's, 3+ years with Master's.
Experience in a Consumer Insights or Market Intelligence position for a consumer products company ($500M+ in size) preferred.

Excellent oral and written communication skills to engage and align cross-functional stakeholders; ability to present effectively to senior leaders.
Strong analytical skills to interpret data and form action-able recommendations.
Comfort with utilizing secondary data sources (Circana, Numerator, Trends, etc.)
Exceptional project management capabilities, including driving great outcomes in a fast-paced environment.
Steadfast ability to act as the key person-to-contact in interactions with downstream stakeholders, including franchisees and customers.

Relentless in the pursuit of excellence and maintaining high standards.
Resourceful and adaptive in ambiguous situations with a proven ability to operate "in the grey."
Resilient in the face of obstacles and persistent in driving towards results.
Thrive in a collaborative environment.

What's in it for you:

Play a pivotal role in driving data-informed decisions that directly impact marketing campaigns, menu innovation, and customer experience initiatives.
Collaborate with and influence senior leadership and franchisees, ensuring that the voice of the customer remains central to KFC's growth and strategic direction.
Leverage cutting-edge research and insights tools to uncover opportunities and craft strategies that set industry benchmarks for customer experience.

Job Identification: 4553

Posting Date: 12/12/2025, 06:00 PM

Degree Level: Bachelor's Degree

Job Schedule: Full time

Locations: Plano, TX, United States (Hybrid)

Manager, Consumer Insights at KFC