Senior Product Development Manager – PNDS BG Design

ABOUT UNILEVER:

Be part of the world’s most successful, purpose-led business. Work with brands that are well-loved around the world, that strive to improve the lives of our consumers and the communities around us every day. Every day, nine out of ten Indian households use our products to feel good, look good and get more out of life – giving us a unique opportunity to build a brighter future. We promote innovation, big and small, to make our business win and grow; and we believe in business as a force for good. Our brilliant business leaders and colleagues provide mentorship and inspiration, so you can be at your best.

At HUL, we believe that every individual irrespective of their race, colour, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, nationality, caste, disability or marital status can bring their purpose to life. So apply to us, to unleash your curiosity, challenge ideas and disrupt processes; use your energy to make the world a better place. As you work to make a real impact on the business and the world, we’ll work to help you become a better you!

We are looking to hire a Senior Product Development Manager in our Ponds team based in Mumbai:

Background and Scope

Pond’s is one of the biggest Unilever skin care brands globally, and being one of few face care brands, contributing significantly within Skin Care Category globally. Pond’s has its footprint in South Asia, Africa, SEA, North Asia and LATAM. And the ambition is to build Pond’s the leading brand for category preimmunization, with strong technical & product pipeline to support.

Purpose & Context:

• This position is for Senior Product Development Manager(2c) for PNDS BG Design team in Mumbai, reporting into PNDS BG R&D Director.
• The incumbent will partner the BG brand team as well as the BU brand team to deliver the ambitious & challenging agenda of growth for PNDS in South Asia, from end to end.
• The primary task will be to deliver the innovation pipeline for PNDS in South Asia, addressing the unique consumer needs and business ambitions, to help to transform the brand as a future fit engine for the category.
• The incumbent will also help to shape the long-term brand technology strategy, claims & technology roadmap for PNDS, partnering with cross function BG teams based in other sites, including S&T, SEAC, Regulatory and legal teams.
• This role will also take the leadership to consolidate BG R&D cross function teams based in Mumbai, building the right level of capabilities, for speed & excellence.

Deliverables of work:

Drive PNDS BG innovation projects Technical Project Leader and work seamlessly with BU teams, supply chain & marketing organizations, to deliver the project with high qualities.Drive the holistic superiority targets for PNDS and land the consumer preferred winning mixes.Help to land the BG targets on 5S and people/planet positive for PNDS in South AsiaCollaborate with Science & Technology to ensure delivery of brand technology roadmap.Manage interdependencies, risks and trade-offs across functions / stakeholders.Work seamlessly with BU teams to improve the efficiencies & speed of responses.Coach / mentor key R&D team members (both BG & BU) and work closely with other senior R&D WL2s to build and retain key talent. Ensure compliance to Internal Unilever protocols, External regulatory environment while developing product solutions with respect to commitment to safety, environment, claim support, specification management etc. Lead work on understanding competitor formulation strategy, with a focus on South Asia and develop insights for us to derive competitive advantages.

Required Skill Sets:

Key Experience

• Experience in leading multi-country/cluster projects in any category (preferred within BPC and preferred in Skin Care) and landing with impact especially on large projects is a MUST.
• Strong experience in BPC formulations, with proven in-market delivery of new technologies and innovations along with claims creation and defense is highly desirable.
• Solid understanding of skin care benefits, claims, and strategy
• Cross Category or Cross functional experiences and exposure to various functions is desirable.
• Clear evidence of leading and driving R&D’s contribution to category growth agenda
• Evidence for managing and developing of both WL1 and WL 2 talent and strong stakeholder management skills.
• Multiple stakeholder management and strong networking skills

Key Skills:

• Cross Category (BPC) Technology development expertise. Skin Care experience is preferred.
• M pharm, PhD. Chemistry/Chemical Engineering background with strong Processing and formulation understanding and expertise.
• Strong Claims creation and defence strategy skills
• Communication, mentoring and training skills.
• Open Innovation and Partnerships
• Excellent influencing ability, both internal as well as external
• Ability to actively drive R&D agenda within a complex Unilever context.
• Strong networking, organization, planning skills and information management.