Innovation Research Lead at Haleon in Shanghai, Shanghai, China

Innovation Research Lead Location: SHANGHAI QIANTAN PLAZA 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. Hello. We’re Haleon. A new world-leading consumer health company. Shaped by all who join us. Together, we’re improving everyday health for billions of people. By growing and innovating our global portfolio of category-leading brands – including Sensodyne, Panadol, Advil, Voltaren, Theraflu, Otrivin, and Centrum – through a unique combination of deep human understanding and trusted science. What’s more, we’re achieving it in a company that we’re in control of. In an environment that we’re co-creating. And a culture that’s uniquely ours. Care to join us. It isn’t a question. With category leading brands such as Sensodyne, Voltaren and Centrum, built on trusted science and human understanding, and combined with our passion, knowledge and expertise, we’re uniquely placed to do this and to grow a strong, successful business. This is an exciting time to join us and help shape the future. It’s an opportunity to be part of something special. The China R&D Innovation Research lead will ·be responsible for leading and driving early stage innovation projects for local star and drive for profit brands ·Ensures that the voice of the consumer is heard and that consumer input drives the initiatives pursued ·Ensures identification of new opportunities in line with innovation strategy and design technical strategy that is viable to lead to a successful launch ·Lead the connection with all R&D,Commercial,and Supply Chain functions to enable the building of a robust project for delivery into the pipeline ·Work directly with external scouting team to identify and evaluate new viable innovation opportunities · IP generation,writes technical papers,presents in external forums to enhance personal, departmental and corporate reputation. KeyResponsibilities Execution Powerhouse ·Establish new technology platforms to fill the wellness pipeline with big bet innovations. ·Deliver qualified(consumer and technical)early stage projects and successfully transitions them into the development pipeline · Identify, assess and drive forward key innovation opportunities ·Provide technical support and project leadership for identified innovation opportunities for the category. Growth Mindset ·Lead cross-functional sharing of scientific or consumer opportunities, breaking down any 'silos' ·Drive and maintain awareness of scientific literature and competitive intelligene to assist work progression and understanding ·Establish supportive, developmental and learning-orientated environment. Consumer and Customer-Obsessed ·Serve as the voice of the consumer when developing early stage opportunities through close interaction with consumer insights and product understanding, driving early consumer input / technical consumer understanind into new innovation ideas. ·Create technical and product understanding research plans to fit overall project objectives Data-Driven ·Perform comprehensive, sophisticated and critical evaluation of internal and external data ·Author technical papers/presentations to enhance personal, departmental and corporate reputation. ·Lead Due Diligence on external innovation opportunities to deliver strong technical recommendations Agile ·Deliver innovative and better ways of doing things; actively look to eliminate non-value-added steps out of processes and procedures ·Mentor and advise colleagues when unexpected results occur or when major changes to project plans are considered Qualifications and skills Essential -Minimum Level of EducationMS degree ， Food science, Nutrition, Pharmacy, Pharmacognosy, traditional Chinese medicine, biology, Medical -10 years(MS);8 years(Ph.D.)in innovation or RD，function of health food or nutrition industry - Must to have end to end nutrition product innovation and development experience, with solid track record of nutrition or health food product delivery. ·Strong learning agility and creativity to explore and deliver innovation platform in new categories, eg OTC as needed. ·Nutrition product innovation and development experience in mobility, MVM is preferred. · Is able to well grasp the challenges associated with the other core areas in order for the incumbent to deal with the technical complexity inherent in the role and to understand the regulatory, quality and safety implications of any decisions made. ·Experience of partnering with Regulatory, Product Development, Supply Chain and Clinical Development on the requirements for product development and an understanding of the  approval processes ·Experience in consumer-focused global healthcare related products /brand management ·Maintains external networks and represents the organization on many topics in the role of Innovation ·Experience of working with External Innovation and the evaluation of external opportunities ·Matrix leadership and experience of working in highly complex matrix organisation; ·Proven ability to solve complex technical and operational problems in a timely manner. ·Good communication in both Chinese and English. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion At Haleon we embrace our diverse workforce by creating an inclusive environment that celebrates our unique perspectives, generates curiosity to create unmatched understanding of each other, and promotes fair and equitable outcomes for everyone. We’re striving to create a climate where we celebrate our diversity in all forms by treating each other with respect, listening to different viewpoints, supporting our communities, and creating a workplace where your authentic self belongs and thrives. We believe in an agile working culture for all our roles. If flexibility is important to you, we encourage you to explore with our hiring team what the opportunities are. Job Posting End Date 2026-05-30 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.