Product Development Manager

Position Title: Manager, Product Development 

Scope / Brands:  Nioxin/Sebastian External Innovation 

Location: Morris Plains, New Jersey 

Reports to:  Director, Product Development Prestige Hair Care

ABOUT THE WELLA COMPANY 

Together, WE enable individuals to look, feel, and be their true selves. 

Wella Company is one of the world’s leading beauty companies, comprised of a family of iconic brands such as Wella Professionals, Clairol, OPI, Nioxin and ghd. With 6,000 employees globally, presence in over 100 countries, Wella Company and its brands enable consumers to look, feel, and be their true selves. As innovators in the hair and nail industry, Wella Company empowers its people to delight consumers, inspire beauty professionals, engage communities, and deliver sustainable growth to its stakeholders. 

For additional information about the Wella Company please visit www.wellacompany.com.  

THE ROLE & KEY RESPONSIBILITIES 

As the Manager R&D, External Innovation (North America Hair Care & Styling), you will be at the forefront of identifying, qualifying, and integrating cutting-edge innovations to maintain the competitive edge of Wella's iconic care and styling brands. This pivotal role involves actively shaping our North American TPM landscape by identifying, evaluating, and qualifying strategic partners, fostering strong relationships, and providing critical insights to fuel our product innovation pipeline in close collaboration with Supply Chain, Procurement, and Product Development teams within R&D. You will develop and refine the technical ways of working processes to qualify external innovations for performance and compliance with speed and accuracy. You will share your insights and evaluations with the Product Development teams to help build the innovation pipelines for Wella’s hair care & styling brands. This role is based in Morris Plains, NJ, with the opportunity to work a hybrid schedule (3 days onsite per week), reporting to the Director R&D Prestige Hair Care & Styling.

Key Responsibilities:

• Drive the NA Hair Care & Styling External Innovation strategy & own technical TPM relationship:
  • Develop and own the comprehensive NA TPM innovation strategy for Hair Care, Styling, and Texturizing, in close partnership with Procurement.
  • Drive the NA TPM selection process with a strong emphasis on innovation capability, leading the thorough R&D assessment of potential new TPM partners.
  • Conduct annual assessment of the NA Care, Styling, and Texturizing TPM landscape against the aligned innovation strategy, proactively identifying gaps and opportunities for optimization and sharing these insights with PD teams.
  • Provide expert NA TPM sourcing guidance, recommendations, and best practices to global Wella Care, Styling, and Texturizing PD teams across all brands.
  • Act as the primary point of contact for NA TPM R&D relationships, defining and driving effective ways of working to maximize collaboration and efficiency.
• Identify & qualify an “always on” pipeline of NA TPM innovations for Wella care & styling brands to move with high speed to market:
  • Proactively source and qualify hair care and styling products from NA TPMs, aligning with global Wella brand innovation needs.
  • Organize and lead regular innovation sessions with key TPMs to gain valuable visibility into their innovation portfolios, strategic directions, and emerging technologies.
  • Coordinate and execute sample screening and initial evaluations. Determine product benefits and performance differences vs existing Wella portfolio. Communicate learnings and feedback internally and with TPMs.
  • Share relevant NA TPM Care, Styling, and Texturizing innovation trends and insightful findings with global PD teams to inform and inspire future product development strategies.
• Develop & refine ways of working for NA External Innovation hair care & styling product development. Manage R&D documentation for TPM initiatives.
  • Collaborate with Global External Innovation Hair Care & Styling team to develop and refine the R&D processes to qualify external innovations for performance and compliance with speed and accuracy.
  • Partner effectively with other crucial R&D sub-functions (Packaging, Formulation, Product Safety & Regulatory Affairs) to ensure robust product development and consistent quality.
  • Manage the technical readiness and TPM documentation preparation process to ensure accuracy and efficiency.
  • Consistently deliver technical information on time to support Product Development teams and maintain initiative timelines.

QUALIFICATIONS 

• Minimum 5 years of experience in Hair or Skin Care R&D.
• Significant record of achievement in the development and commercialization of new products
• Demonstrated ability to effectively influence & and collaborate with Brand Marketing and Supply Chain functions.
• Experience in coaching and developing a small team working for you.
• Experience scouting and qualifying third party partners.
• Experience in modeling/simulation software for product qualification preferred.
• Minimum BS in chemistry, materials science, biology, or related science. Master’s degree preferred.
• Ability to handle multiple priorities effectively.
• Agile Problem Solver.
• Effective oral and written communicator, with ability to manage global relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Open to travel when needed. (expected: ~10-20%)

We disclose the compensation range for positions in compliance with local law. Actual salaries will vary and may be above or below the range based on various factors including but not limited to location, experience, and performance. The range listed is just one component of Wella Company's total rewards package for employees. Pay range: $100,000-$125,000 salary per year. Other rewards may include annual bonus plan or variable pay, depending on the role. In addition, Wella Company provides a rich variety of benefits to employees, including health insurance, life, and disability insurance, 401(k) retirement plan, paid holidays and paid time off (PTO). 

EEO OPPORTUNITIES 

We offer equal employment opportunity to qualified individuals without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, age, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Wella Company with federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact us at: https://www.wellacompany.com/consumer-affairs 

We strongly believe that cultivating a diverse workplace gives a company strength. The combination of unique skills, abilities, experiences and backgrounds creates an environment that produces extraordinary results. EOE Minorities/Females/Protected Veterans/Disabled. 

English - Please click on this link to review the Notification of Equal Opportunity Rights poster 

Español - Por favor, haga un clic en el enlace para revisar el poster de la Ley de los Derechos de Igualdad de Empleo 

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