Mollie Gibson

6.00 AM

I usually wake up and head off for a run up Mount Eden, it’s nice to get some fresh air and catch the sunrise, setting myself up for a good day!

7.15 AM

I’m out the door & start the commute to work. It usually takes about 25 minutes to get to the office. We have flexible working arrangements, but we have anchor days in the office on Tuesday’s and Thursday’s, where we are encouraged to come in to keep the team connection! We are able to work from home a couple of days a week. When I get to the office, I’ll have some breakfast at my desk while I check my emails. I’ll reply to anything urgent, check my calendar and add anything I need to my to-do list for the day.

8.30 AM

I’m ready for a coffee, so I’ll either head to the café across the road with a friend or to the coffee lab to make a coffee. Within our R&D lab, we have a coffee lab (it is separated so that the aroma doesn’t affect other lab work), and people often bring in different beans & blends, so we always mix up what coffee we are trying!

8.45 AM

Back to my desk to crack into some work. Everyday is really different, and depending on which department I am in, I have different projects I’ll be working on. Each project will have a project team made up of people across all the different required functions, so you get to work with lots of different people across the business.

10.00 AM

As part of the R&D team, we are all sensory trained, so we complete tests when necessary for Product Development. It is usually blind tasting, where we don’t know the difference and the objective is to see if it is detectable. Even tiny changes can have a big impact on the taste of our beverages – so we have to make sure we keep our consumers happy!

10.30 AM

Today we are confirming new product formulations to see if they have passed shelf-life testing! I started this project in the Product Development team, where I got to help create the liquid and flavours, and today I found out one of my flavours will be used in launch! I have been able to follow this project through my rotations in the Science and Regulatory team, and the Packaging team as we are closer to first production and launch of the new product! This is one of the awesome parts of the graduate program, it allows you the opportunity to understand NPD projects from all different lens, and work on it from ideation stage to launch!

11.00 AM

We have a fortnightly meeting where we connect as a team and discuss any business updates, projects that are coming through, and any support the team needs from each other. One of our favourite parts of this the meeting is “cool new stuff’ – where people bring in new products they have seen in the market – to spark curiosity, creativity and ensure we keep up to date with the market trends.

12.00 PM

Whenever we launch a new product, the brand teams host a launch party to recognise everyone’s efforts on the project! There is usually a quick presentation, and then time for connection & of course, food!

12.00 PM

Each week I have catch ups with my rotation manager & overall manager, which is a chance to discuss any support I need, any upcoming work, my also any IDP (Individual Development Plan) advances, so the leadership team are aware of my career goals and we can set out the right pathways to achieve these.

1.00 PM

When we are creating new products, we make lots of samples to send across to our Australian based team, and to use in consumer research! We have a pilot plant in the R&D department, which allows us to produce factory quality samples on a small scale. One team one dream, so we all take shifts filling cans, I’ll spend about 45 minutes helping out!

2.00 PM

Often our suppliers will come onsite to for meetings, tastings, or presentations. Today we had a new supplier come and visit, and as a grad I often take people on factory tours, which is both great for the suppliers understanding of our capabilities, but also reinforces my knowledge by sharing the different processes with others!

3.00 PM

With a team of foodies, there aren’t many days where we aren’t eating good food in the office! We have a tradition where any new starters have to bring in baking for the team, and today was one of those days!

3.15 PM

Tasks day to day change depending on the stages of different projects, but today I was updating some documentation for the factory around specifications for a new product we will be running in the factory for the first time soon! It is always exciting to see months of hard work coming to life on the manufacturing lines!

4.00 PM

Once a month we have a knowledge sharing session, where someone from the team will do a presentation to those who are interested, this might be a recent trip or conference they have attended, a topic relevant to our work, or someone from another function sharing something that will benefit the R&D team. Today was about a new platform we can use to track our NPD & sales performance.

4.30 PM

I’ll finish off anything outstanding for the day and plan out what I need to do the following day, and then head off once this is all done! Auckland traffic isn’t much fun, but it’s always a good time to call my family and friends, listen to podcasts or blast some tunes.

6.00 PM

I play in an Indoor Netball social league with a group of friends – it’s always a good laugh & a fun way to burn some energy after a day in the office.

7.30 PM

My flatmates & I get My Food Bag for dinner, so we whip up a meal & debrief our days.

9.00 PM

I head to bed, read my book & off to sleep!

Thinking of experiencing life as a Suntory Oceania Graduate? Sign up to Prosple to receive job alerts.