NA Brand R&D Lead - Topical Pain

About the job

• Lead initiatives that advance our brands and strengthen our reputation worldwide.
• Mentor and uplift emerging talent while pushing your own growth and influence.
• Put purpose into practice — embedding sustainability, access and social impact into every decision.
• Model the challenger mindset: question complexity, act with integrity and make things radically simple.
• Help shape a culture that’s ambitious, collaborative and serious about recognition and belonging.
• Lead the end-to-end R&D strategy, innovation pipeline, and execution for North America Topical Pain brands by translating science and technology into consumer-focused products, partnering with Marketing, Sales, Regulatory, and Medical to drive business growth and successful product launches.
• Develop and execute a long-term innovation and portfolio strategy (1–5 years), leveraging consumer insights, scientific expertise, external partnerships, and patent strategies to deliver differentiated products, ensure on-time project execution, support regulatory and sustainability objectives, and strengthen the brand's competitive position.

Main responsibilities

• Lead the R&D innovation pipeline for assigned brands, delivering new products and innovations that achieve growth and sales objectives while ensuring consistent execution and sharing best practices across the portfolio.
• Drive short-, medium-, and long-term R&D projects, including new formulations, product claims, clinical studies, packaging innovations, and sustainability initiatives, while accelerating decision-making and project delivery.
• Partner closely with Marketing, Sales, Consumer Science, and Project Management to develop larger, consumer-driven innovation programs and ensure projects are completed on time and in full.
• Develop and execute patent strategies while leveraging external technology partnerships and scientific expertise to create differentiated products and strengthen the innovation pipeline.
• Collaborate with Brand Leadership, Development, Packaging, Finance, and other cross-functional teams to build strong business cases, manage project risks, and deliver high-impact innovation.
• Prioritize and lead base business protection initiatives to maintain product quality, regulatory compliance, and supply continuity while balancing business risks.
• Provide inspiring leadership by fostering collaboration, encouraging bold decision-making, and driving accountability to deliver innovative solutions and long-term business growth.

About you

• Bachelor's degree in a scientific discipline required; Master's or Ph.D. preferred, with 5+ years of R&D experience leading innovation pipelines and delivering successful product development for consumer health brands.
• Proven experience developing OTC and NDA products, supporting FDA submissions, and managing multiple brands across various regulatory pathways while driving innovation and business growth.
• Strong ability to translate consumer insights into brand strategies, communicate complex scientific concepts to technical and business stakeholders, and identify opportunities for portfolio growth.
• Demonstrated leadership in coaching cross-functional technical teams, allocating resources, managing budgets, assessing project risks, and leading innovation programs from concept through commercial launch.
• Experience building and leveraging external partnerships with suppliers, research organizations, and key opinion leaders while identifying emerging industry trends, novel ingredients, formulation technologies, and sustainable solutions.
• Proven ability to manage a broad innovation portfolio, including business development opportunities, new product development, clinical programs, product claims, and commercialization activities in partnership with Project Management.
• Fluent in written and spoken English, with strong collaboration and influencing skills across R&D, Regulatory, Marketing, Commercial, and executive leadership teams.