R&D Change & Capability Lead – Material Risk & Specification Management

Job Title:  R&D Change & Capability Lead – Material Risk & Specification Management

Location: Mumbai HURC, India

ABOUT UNILEVER:

Established over 100 years ago, we are one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies. We are known for our great brands and our belief that doing business the right way drives superior performance. We believe that the winning businesses of tomorrow will be those which anticipate and respond to the huge changes shaping people’s lives across the world. We are more certain than ever that it is the right time to focus our sustainability efforts on the four key priorities where we are best placed to drive impact: climate, nature, plastics and livelihoods.

About Homecare:
HomeCare is a global business with leading household cleaning and laundry brands such as OMO, Sunlight and Comfort. Our aim is to offer products that are unmissably superior, sustainable and great value. We are organised to deliver growth and margin across three core categories: Fabric Cleaning, Fabric Enhancer, and Home & Hygiene. We have a portfolio of strong global brands, and a global geographical footprint. Our strength is in emerging markets where we lead the industry through market development. Within R&D, our team of world-leading scientists, researchers and professionals creates innovations that drive growth for our business and deliver positive impacts for people, society and our planet. For more than 100 years, we have been using our differentiated science and technology to create the superior products and experiences our consumers love.

Role Overview:
Unilever is the place where you can bring your purpose to life with the work that you do – creating a better business and a better world. If you are passionate about the materials we use, ensuring we have a material risk management strategy in place to mitigate external factors, and have an interest in data leading to product manufacturing in our supply chain to make our superior products, then this role is just for you!
As Change & Capability Lead, you will play a pivotal role in driving the transformation of our ingredient risk and specification management practices. You will lead the adoption of new ways of working, embed governance structures, and build long-term capability across teams. A high visibility role delivering benefits into our margin enhancement plans, our digital strategy and our compliance program.

Key Responsibilities:
• Lead Change Management for the relaunch and adoption of the Ingredient Specific Standard across the business.
• Drive the Specification and materials expert community capability building through training programs, digital integration, and stakeholder engagement.
• Embed Governance Structures within the newly proposed Materials & Specifications Centre of Excellence (CoE) focusing on material derisking plans and ingredient specification compliance.
• Collaborate Cross-Functionally with Ingredient Specification and Material Domain Leads, regulatory experts, safety function and procurement to ensure consistent quality and compliance of the new standards and ingredients.
• Champion Risk Management by identifying critical gaps, mitigating external risks, and ensuring robust specification practices.
• Support Digital Transformation by integrating tools and systems that enhance visibility and responsiveness in specification management.

Qualifications & Experience:
• Proven experience in change management, preferably within R&D, supply chain, or regulatory environments.
• Strong scientific background with expertise in materials / ingredients used in FMCG’s, preferably expertise of ingredients used in Homecare.
• Bachelors degree and relevant advanced education in science
• Familiarity with digital tools and systems for specification (SAP PLM) and compliance management.
• Excellent communication and leadership skills, with the ability to work and influence across functions.
• An understanding of how regulations can influence ingredient choices, specification limitations

Why Join Us?
• Be part of a world-class R&D team driving innovation and sustainability.
• Lead a strategic transformation that restores our competitive edge.
• Work in a dynamic, purpose-driven environment where your contributions make a real impact.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity & Inclusion 

Unilever embraces diversity and encourages applicants from all walks of life! 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. 

"All official offers from Unilever are issued only via our Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Offers from individuals or unofficial sources may be fraudulent—please verify before proceeding."