NPD Innovation Lead – OTC & Oral Health

Welcome to Haleon. We’re a purpose-driven, world-class consumer company putting everyday health in the hands of millions. In just three years since our launch, we’ve grown, evolved and are now entering an exciting new chapter – one filled with bold ambitions and enormous opportunity.

Our trusted portfolio of brands – including Sensodyne®, Panadol®, Advil®, Voltaren®, Theraflu®, Otrivin®, and Centrum® – lead in resilient and growing categories. What sets us apart is our unique blend of deep human understanding and trusted science.

Now it’s time to fully realise the full potential of our business and our people. We do this through our Win as One strategy. It puts our purpose – to deliver better everyday health with humanity – at the heart of everything we do. It unites us, inspires us, and challenges us to be better every day, driven by our agile, performance-focused culture.

About the Role

To lead scientific innovation and development of new consumer health products, driving ideation, formulation, and scale-up through rigorous scientific methods and cross-functional collaboration. This role is pivotal in shaping the early-stage pipeline and ensuring consumer-relevant, scientifically differentiated innovations reach proof of concept and commercialization.

Key Responsibilities

• Innovation Leadership: Identify and assess new product opportunities aligned with unmet consumer needs and strategic business goals.
• Scientific Excellence: Lead formulation and analytical development, ensuring stability, efficacy, and safety of new products.
• Cross-functional Collaboration: Partner with Regulatory, Marketing, Packaging, Design, and Supply teams to enable robust pipeline development.
• Incubation & Scale-up: Oversee product prototyping, concept testing, and industrial scale-up in collaboration with CDMOs and CROs.
• Strategic Influence: Drive the vision for NPD, influence senior stakeholders, and foster a culture of innovation and scientific rigor.
• Compliance & Quality: Ensure all development activities meet regulatory standards and internal quality benchmarks

Why you?

Basic Qualification:

• 17+ years in FMCG, Consumer Health, or Pharmaceutical R&D
• Proven track record in leading NPD projects from concept to launch
• Experience in sensory sciences, consumer research, and claims substantiation
• Strong leadership and stakeholder management capabilities
• Familiarity with QbD principles and stage-gate processes

Preferred Qualification:

• PhD or Master’s in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chemistry, or related field
• Certifications: PMP, Six Sigma, or equivalent (preferred)
• Strategic thinking and analytical acumen
• Scientific depth in formulation and analytical methods
• Excellent communication and influencing skills
• Commercial awareness and innovation mindset
• Ability to lead change and inspire cross-functional teams

 

 

 

 Job Posting End Date

 

 

2026-07-04

 

 

 

Equal Opportunities

Haleon are committed to mobilising our purpose in a way that represents the diverse consumers and communities who rely on our brands every day. It guides us in creating an inclusive culture, where different backgrounds and views are valued and respected – all in support of understanding and best serving the needs of our consumers and unleashing the full potential of our people. It’s important to us that Haleon is a place where all our employees feel they truly belong.

During the application process, we may ask you to share some personal information, which is entirely voluntary. This information ensures we meet certain regulatory and reporting obligations and supports the development, refinement, and execution of our inclusion and belonging programmes that are open to all Haleon employees. 

The personal information you provide will be kept confidential, used only for legitimate business purposes, and will never be used in making any employment decisions, including hiring decisions.

 

 

 

Adjustment or Accommodations Request

If you require a reasonable adjustment or accommodation or other assistance to apply for a job at Haleon at any stage of the application process, please let your recruiter know by providing them with a description of specific adjustments you are requesting. We’ll provide all reasonable adjustments to support you throughout the recruitment process and treat all information you provide us in confidence. 

 

 

 

Note to candidates

The Haleon recruitment team will contact you using a Haleon email account (@haleon.com). If you are not sure whether the email you received is from Haleon, please get in touch.