Job Description:
The Associate Engineer Technical Services serves as a technical resource for Ice Cream manufacturing technologies. This role provides technical leadership across process & packaging to deliver advanced troubleshooting, commercialization, scale-up, manufacturing support, and capability building across the Ice Cream platforms.
The position is responsible for managing packaging escalations, driving continuous improvement initiatives, enabling successful communication cross-functionally, and statistical process control implementation. As part of managing packaging escalations, this role will be required to liaison with both internal partners and external suppliers to resolve out of specifications materials.
This is an on-site, plant-based role which on occasion requires flexibility of working hours to support the needs of the site and business which can minimally include evenings, overnight, or weekend support.
What we are looking for:
Minimum Requirements:
- Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Engineering, or related technical discipline or scientific field
OR
- High School Diploma/GED with 5+ years of technical experience or manufacturing related role
Preferred Qualifications:
- Six Sigma Green Belt or proven experience leading with problem solving tools
- Experience with implementing Statistical Process Control Concepts & Software
- Experience in commercialization, scale-up, manufacturing capability, and data analysis
What will be your key responsibilities?
Technical Support & System Authority
- First point of contact for packaging escalations by leading investigation and troubleshooting.
- Communicate with External Suppliers when materials are outside specifications and follow-through to ensure resolution.
- Own statistical process control system implementation.
- Leverage specifications and standard run conditions to maintain and develop ongoing process verification for key product parameters.
- Ensure monitoring and reporting tools are available to ensure product meets compliance.
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Advanced Problem Solving & Operational Excellence
- Through the application of complex problem-solving techniques, drive continuous quality improvements, efficiency gains, and waste reduction supporting the overall site and business goals.
- Perform trend analysis to identify opportunities for optimization.
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Commercialization, Scale-Up, & Risk Management
- Act as a liaison between R&D, Engineering, and Supply to ensure planning and risk management for initiatives on both existing and new products and processes.
- Lead and Support execution of line trial plans to deliver critical success factors and validate hypothesis on process capability.
- Create and execute data collection sampling plan for validation of design to specification, capturing process parameters to ensure repeated performance.
- Ensure successful start-up of new launches through proper documentation to ensure compliance with Quality & Food Safety, Legal, and Human Safety requirements.
What can you expect from Mars?
- Work with diverse and talented Associates, all guided by The Five Principles.
- Join a purpose driven company, where we’re striving to build the world we want tomorrow, today.
- Best-in-class learning and development support from day one, including access to our in-house Mars University.
- An industry competitive salary and benefits package, including company bonus.
Mars does not sponsor visas for this role.
This position is not eligible for relocation benefits.
The base pay range for this position at commencement of employment is between the range listed below, however, base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including but not limited to job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. The total compensation package for this position will include variable pay, medical and dental benefits, participation in 401k plan, and paid time off benefits. Details of participation in these benefit plans will be provided if an applicant receives an offer of employment.
The pay range listed is applicable to IL:USD 74,511.00 - USD 102,453.00Skills Required
- Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Engineering, a related technical discipline, or a scientific field
- High school diploma or GED with 5+ years of technical or manufacturing-related experience
- Six Sigma Green Belt or demonstrated experience leading problem-solving tools
- Experience implementing Statistical Process Control concepts and software
- Experience with commercialization, scale-up, manufacturing capability, and data analysis
Mars Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Mars and has not been reviewed or approved by Mars.
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Healthcare Strength — The benefits package is positioned as comprehensive, with broad medical coverage and additional protections like life insurance and short- and long-term disability. Mental health support is emphasized, including free mental health services and wellbeing programming under initiatives such as Mars Be Well.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave is highlighted as market-leading in the U.S., with an example of 18 weeks fully paid for both parents. Additional family-related leave types such as sick time for caregiving and bereavement leave are also described as part of the overall package.
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Retirement Support — Retirement offerings are described as strong, including 401(k) matching (with a 6% match cited) and pension plans in some cases. The broader package also references retirement savings options and contributions aligned to local market practice, supporting long-term financial security.
Mars Insights
What We Do
For more than a century, Mars, Incorporated has been driven by the belief that the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today. This idea is at the center of who we have always been as a global, family-owned business. Today, Mars is transforming, innovating and evolving in ways that affirm our commitment to making a positive impact on the world around us. Across our diverse and expanding portfolio of confectionery, food, and petcare products and services, we employ 133,000 dedicated Associates who are all moving in the same direction: forward. With $40 billion in annual sales, we produce some of the world’s best-loved brands including DOVE®, EXTRA®, M&M’s®, MILKY WAY®, SNICKERS®, TWIX®, ORBIT®, PEDIGREE®, ROYAL CANIN®, SKITTLES®, WHISKAS®, COCOAVIA®, and 5™; and take care of half of the world’s pets through our pet health services AniCura, Banfield Pet Hospitals™, BluePearl®, Linnaeus, Pet Partners™, and VCA™. We know we can only be truly successful if our partners and the communities in which we operate prosper as well. The Mars Five Principles – Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom – inspire our Associates to take action every day to help create a world tomorrow in which the planet, its people and pets can thrive.








