Agthia Group — one of the UAE’s most recognized and respected food and beverage companies, trusted by millions of consumers across the GCC with a portfolio of iconic brands — is actively seeking an experienced and visionary Product Development Manager for a full-time, permanent R&D leadership role at its Al Wathba, Abu Dhabi facility. This senior role leads the company’s entire product development strategy — managing the R&D team, driving innovation from concept through commercialization, building and maintaining the NPD pipeline, and combining scientific expertise with commercial P&L acumen. The role requires a Master’s degree in Food Science or Food Technology and a minimum of 8 years of experience, including at least 2 years in a leadership capacity within the beverage manufacturing industry.
About Agthia Group — Leading UAE Food & Beverage Company, Abu Dhabi
Company: Agthia Group — one of the UAE’s most established and respected food and beverage companies, with a strong presence across the GCC and a portfolio of trusted consumer brands
Location: Al Wathba, Abu Dhabi — Agthia’s primary food and beverage manufacturing hub in the UAE capital
Department: R&D — Product Development, reporting to senior leadership with full accountability for NPD strategy and innovation pipeline
Category Focus: Beverage manufacturing — with strong background in beverage operations, formulation and new product commercialization specifically required
Mandate: Lead product development strategy, manage the R&D team and drive innovation from concept through commercial launch with full P&L awareness
Why This Product Development Manager Role at Agthia Is a Premier UAE Career in 2026
Top UAE Food & Beverage Brand: Agthia Group is among the UAE’s most recognized food and beverage companies — a Product Development Manager credential here carries exceptional career value across the GCC FMCG and food innovation sector
End-to-End NPD Ownership: Full accountability for NPD roadmap, innovation pipeline, commercialization and P&L — one of the most commercially comprehensive and professionally rewarding product development leadership scopes available in Abu Dhabi’s food and beverage industry
Strategic Partnership Building: Building relationships with suppliers, co-manufacturers, innovation institutes and universities — rare, externally-facing innovation ecosystem leadership that accelerates career profile within UAE’s food technology community
Abu Dhabi Vision Alignment: Food innovation, beverage product development and R&D leadership are strategically important under Abu Dhabi’s economic diversification and food security agenda — positioning this role as a long-term career investment in the UAE’s fastest-growing food manufacturing sector
Position Overview
The Product Development Manager at Agthia Abu Dhabi leads the company’s full product development strategy — managing the R&D team, driving NPD from concept through commercialization, building a robust innovation pipeline aligned with business priorities, and making informed decisions grounded in product P&L and speed-to-market requirements. Working closely with cross-functional Business Unit managers, marketing, supply chain and operations teams, this leader ensures development projects are completed on time and within budget — while building strategic external partnerships with suppliers, co-manufacturers, innovation institutes, universities and technology partners that accelerate Agthia’s innovation capability and market competitiveness across the GCC.
 Why This Role Matters: At Agthia, the Product Development Manager is the architect of the company’s innovation future — the person whose NPD roadmap defines which new products reach GCC consumers, whose R&D team leadership determines how fast those products go from concept to shelf, and whose P&L discipline ensures those innovations actually create commercial value. In the UAE’s highly competitive food and beverage market, where consumer preferences evolve rapidly and competitive pressure is intense, the quality of Agthia’s innovation pipeline is a direct competitive differentiator — and the Product Development Manager in this role is the person most responsible for building and sustaining that edge.
 Key Responsibilities
New Product Development Strategy & Roadmap
- Develop and implement a comprehensive NPD (New Product Development) roadmap — defining the strategic direction for Agthia’s product innovation portfolio across beverage categories, aligned with business unit priorities, consumer insights and GCC market opportunity.
- Collaborate with multiple BU-led managers to fully develop NPD business plans — ensuring each new product development initiative is supported by a robust commercial case that connects consumer need, competitive opportunity and Agthia’s manufacturing and commercial capabilities.
- Oversee the launch of new products — coordinating cross-functional resources across R&D, marketing, operations and supply chain to ensure that every new product reaches the market on time, on brief and with the quality and commercial positioning to succeed.
- Identify market trends and emerging ingredients that can drive product innovation at Agthia — maintaining an active, externally-oriented market intelligence practice that keeps the NPD pipeline fresh, relevant and commercially potent.
- Manage the product development pipeline comprehensively — tracking all active NPD projects against milestones, budgets and commercial targets, intervening proactively when projects fall behind and reallocating resources to protect the highest-priority launches.
Innovation Strategy & Pipeline Management
- Build and manage a robust, multi-stage innovation pipeline aligned with Agthia’s strategic business priorities — ensuring the pipeline contains a healthy balance of short-term, mid-term and long-term innovation initiatives across beverage and food product categories.
- Prioritize innovation projects based on market potential, technical feasibility, strategic fit and return on investment — making disciplined resource allocation decisions that focus the R&D team’s efforts on the highest-value opportunities for Agthia.
- Monitor competitor products and industry developments across the GCC food and beverage market — identifying white space opportunities, competitive threats and category innovation trends that inform the direction and pace of Agthia’s NPD activities.
R&D Team Leadership, Coaching & Development
- Inspire and develop the R&D team by fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, accountability, agility and a strong sense of urgency — creating an environment where scientific excellence and commercial focus coexist and reinforce each other.
- Mentor and guide individual R&D team members — actively supporting each person in defining their growth agenda, identifying development opportunities and building the technical and commercial skills that enable them to realize their full professional potential.
- Conduct periodic performance reviews and provide developmental inputs — maintaining a consistent, honest and constructive performance management approach that drives individual and team excellence across Agthia’s R&D function.
P&L Management & Budget Accountability
- Combine scientific expertise with commercial P&L acumen — making informed product development decisions that balance technical quality and innovation ambition with profitability, speed to market and resource efficiency.
- Prepare and present category and project budget inputs — articulating resource requirements clearly and managing the overall financial performance of R&D activities by monitoring actual costs against approved budgets throughout the year.
Qualifications & Requirements
Education & Experience
- Master’s degree in Food Science or Food Technology — the mandatory educational qualification for this senior Product Development Manager role at Agthia, providing the advanced scientific foundation required for technical leadership at this level.
- Minimum 8 years of professional experience in food and beverage product development or R&D — including at least 2 years in a leadership or managerial capacity within the beverage manufacturing industry specifically.
- Minimum 2 years of direct experience within the beverage industry — with strong background in beverage manufacturing operations and product development as a specific and non-negotiable requirement of this role.
- Minimum 5 years of broader food and beverage manufacturing experience — demonstrating depth of technical and commercial knowledge across the food and beverage manufacturing value chain.
Key Skills & Competencies
NPD Strategy & RoadmapInnovation Pipeline MgmtBeverage FormulationCommercializationP&L AccountabilityR&D Team LeadershipStage-Gate ProcessSpeed to MarketPartner ManagementCross-Functional CollabCoaching & Mentoring
 About Agthia Group
Agthia Group is one of the UAE’s most established and respected food and beverage companies — with a portfolio of trusted consumer brands and manufacturing operations anchored at its Al Wathba, Abu Dhabi facility. Agthia serves millions of consumers across the UAE and GCC with a diverse range of food and beverage products, built on a foundation of quality, innovation and consumer trust. As part of Abu Dhabi’s broader food security and economic diversification agenda, Agthia plays a strategically important role in the UAE’s food manufacturing landscape — making its R&D and product development function a critical competitive asset.
For a Master’s-qualified food science professional with serious beverage industry NPD leadership credentials, this Product Development Manager role at Agthia represents one of the most commercially compelling and professionally enriching opportunities in the UAE food and beverage sector in 2026.
 Who Should Apply?
- Senior R&D / NPD Managers from UAE or GCC Beverage Companies: With a Master’s in Food Science or Food Technology, 8+ years of food and beverage experience including 2+ years in beverage manufacturing leadership — ready to lead Agthia’s full NPD strategy and R&D team in Abu Dhabi.
- Beverage Innovation Leaders with Full P&L Accountability Experience: Who have managed NPD from concept through commercial launch in a beverage manufacturing environment — with demonstrated ability to balance scientific excellence with commercial P&L discipline and speed-to-market requirements.
- Food Science MSc Graduates with Advanced Beverage R&D Leadership: Holding a Master’s in Food Science or Food Technology with extensive post-graduate R&D career progression into beverage innovation management — ready to lead an ambitious, cross-functional product development function at Agthia Group.
- Innovation Pipeline Architects from FMCG Food & Beverage Companies: Who have built and managed multi-stage innovation pipelines — prioritizing projects by market potential, ROI and strategic fit, measuring innovation performance through pipeline health KPIs and successfully launching commercially significant new products.
- People-First R&D Leaders Who Build High-Performance Innovation Teams: Who lead with coaching, mentoring and genuine investment in individual team member growth — creating R&D cultures defined by collaboration, accountability, agility and a shared urgency to get high-quality innovations to market faster.
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