R&D Senior Coordinator - Fabric Wash Liquids

Role: R&D Senior Coordinator - Fabric Wash Liquids

Work Level: RH5

Reports to: HC Format Manager - Europe

Scope: Europe Business Unit - Home Care

Location: Port Sunlight Research Lab

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CATEGORY/FUNCTION INTRODUCTION

Research & Development – Home Care category - Fabric Wash Liquids – Europe Business Unit.

JOB PURPOSE

Shape the Future of Homecare in Europe

Join the Home Care R&D Europe Business Unit and become a driving force behind some of the most iconic brands in the industry

Persil, Skip, OMO, Surf, Comfort, and SUN. In this role, you’ll be at the forefront of innovation, helping to deliver our bold programme of Big Bet technologies that are transforming the Laundry and Home & Hygiene category across Europe.

You’ll support the business through technical delivery across three key types of projects:

Net Revenue Protection Projects
Safeguard existing product revenue by resolving quality issues, qualifying alternative suppliers, and supporting factory operations during unplanned events (e.g. incorrect dosing, wash water handling, etc.).

Gross Margin Improvement Projects
Drive profitability by optimising formulations, improving processing efficiency, and enabling cost-effective ingredient changes without compromising product performance.

Incremental Revenue Generation Projects
Support new product launches (Big-bets) and flanker variants by developing and scaling up innovative formulations that meet consumer needs and deliver breakthrough benefits.

This is an end-to-end role that blends hands-on lab work, coordination, and scale-up. In the early stages, lab work is intended as a strong focus, but over time, responsibilities may evolve toward project coordination and deployment depending on the candidate’s experience and growth.

WHAT WILL YOUR MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES BE

Job Overview: Innovation & Product Excellence Lead

• Step into a pivotal role where science meets strategy. As a key driver in our innovation and E2E (End-to-End) programmes, you’ll lead the charge in shaping the future of our product portfolio—ensuring every formulation is not only technically sound but also market-ready and competitive.

What You’ll Do

• Technical ownership
  Dependant upon the project, own and orchestrate the technical requirements for deployment, inclusive of lab batches, stability tracking, supporting trials, performance testing, etc.
• Champion Deployment Readiness
  Support technical validations and assessments that pave the way for seamless product launches and supply chain integration. Collaborate with processing engineers to translate lab data into factory-scale implementation.
• Decode the Competition
  Lead competitor benchmarking by coordinating product assessments and transforming data into actionable insight
• Own the Digital Product Journey
  Manage the end-to-end flow of product data across digital platforms like LIMS, SAP PLM, Pharos, SDS/PCN, Blue, and CU-PIRD—ensuring accuracy, compliance, and traceability.
• Lead Regulatory Adaptation
  Take ownership of product changes linked to evolving European regulatory requirements, ensuring timely and compliant updates across your portfolio.
• Land Fragrances Consumers Love
  Work closely with fragrance experts to deliver new scent experiences that resonate with consumer preferences and elevate product appeal.
• Be the Voice of Technical Clarity
  Act as the go-to expert for stakeholders, providing clear updates and guidance on technical matters.
• Collaborate Across Functions
  Partner with Supply Chain, Procurement, and Marketing to ensure the right information reaches the right people at the right time—driving alignment and informed decision-making.
• Factory Interface: Act as a bridge between innovation teams and manufacturing sites, supporting both planned and reactive technical needs.
• Navigate Risk with Confidence
  Lead project and technical risk management, ensuring all technical standards are met at critical milestones.

WHAT YOU NEED TO SUCCEED

Experiences, Skills & Qualifications

• A degree (or equivalent) in a Science or Engineering discipline. Degree in Chemistry or Chemical Engineering.
• You should have some previous product development experience.  Prior experience in detergent formulation and lab work is highly desirable.
• Experience and/or sound knowledge of working in a laboratory as your work will require you to prepare product, conduct relevant assessments and monitor/ resolves issues as they arise
• Flexibility: Willingness to work hands-on in the lab and evolve into coordination and technical project management roles.
• You should be proficient in the digital skills and tools that are needed to support the development, compliance and deployment of the products in your portfolio : SAP PLM , Pharos , Artwork , CU-PIRD, briefing for SDS/PCN (not an exhaustive list). You should also have the curiosity and ability to learn new tools as we continue to improve our systems and data quality
• You should be able to interpret the data you generate in the laboratory , pull out insights and present information to support the technical decision making or issue resolution in your projects
• You should be proactive with a problem solver mindset , bringing your ideas and suggestions to your projects as your strive to develop & deploy the best product experiences for our consumers
•  You should be a team player who collaborates with others in the team and communicates well to ensure information/knowledge sharing , creative resolution of problems and constructive challenge to get to better solutions
• You have Product & Consumer Love, so that you strive to develop superior products for our consumers.

What we offer

Whilst the role is advertised on a full-time basis, we would be happy to discuss possible flexible working options and what this may look like for you. We strive to achieve a family-friendly and inclusive workplace and to, above all, create possibilities for all. 

Diversity at Unilever is about inclusion, embracing differences, creating possibilities and growing together for better business performance. We embrace diversity in our workforce. This means giving full and fair consideration to all applicants and continuing development of all employees regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity. We are also more than happy to provide reasonable adjustments during our application and interview process to enable you to be present your best self. To find out more, including about our Employee Resource Groups, please click here Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (unilever.com).