Global Snacking – Innovation Marketing Intern

Job Description

Global Snacking – Innovation Marketing Intern | McCain Foods USA, Inc.

The Tone:
This is a Temporary – Full-Time internship at McCain Foods USA, Inc., located in Oakbrook Terrace, IL, with a hybrid schedule requiring 3 days/week onsite. McCain is a global, family-owned company that prioritizes creating exceptional work experiences and strives to be an employer of choice in diverse communities. This role supports the Global Snacking Innovation Marketing team by helping to identify innovation white space opportunities in the retail channel across the globe. The position aims to translate data into actionable insights, ultimately helping McCain differentiate, grow, and win with consumers and customers.

The TL;DR
• Role: Internship
• Type: Temporary – Full-Time
• Location: Hybrid: Oakbrook Terrace, IL
• Pay: $23–$26 hourly
• Team: Global Snacking Innovation team (65 professionals in US and Canada, leading disruptive innovation and global pipeline architecture)
• Mission: Identify innovation white space opportunities in the retail channel globally by turning data into insights and insights into “jobs to be done.”
• Tech Stack: NPD, IRI

What You’ll Actually Do
• Innovation Support: Support the team in diving into McCain’s Global Snacking Innovation pipeline architecture, with a focus on the Tastiez/Pickers platform, and explore Better-for-You (BFY) trends, Ethnic flavors, formats, and pack-size innovation to unlock new opportunities.
• Insight Translation: Translate consumer, shopper, and operator data into actionable insights and “jobs to be done” that inform future innovation and renovation strategies for the global retail channel.
• Retail Analysis: Develop a strong understanding of how insights drive strategy across retail channels by analyzing how innovation appears at shelf and on menu, linking consumer needs to retail execution.
• Data Analytics: Build data analytics skills using external data sources such as NPD and IRI, mining insights from McCain’s Demand Landscape and Sub-Spaces to inform innovation priorities.
• Strategic Contribution: Own real-world initiatives that evolve into strategies executed in the marketplace, participating in the creation and presentation of key insights and strategic recommendations to cross-functional partners.

The Must-Haves
• Background: Currently working toward a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing or Business Strategy.
• Skills: Strong curiosity for consumer behavior and future trends, an analytical mindset with a love for digging into data, strong interpersonal and communication skills, a self-starter comfortable working independently and collaboratively, and the ability to commute to the Oakbrook Terrace, IL office for a hybrid schedule.
• Bonus: Interest in food, food culture, and emerging food trends, alongside a passion for innovation, retail strategy, and future-forward thinking.