Director Of Innovation

Job Title: Director of Innovation

Job Description

The Director of Innovation leads the Research & Development (R&D) organization and the New Product Launch (NPL) team within a fast-paced contract development and manufacturing environment focused on beauty and personal care. This role owns the full product lifecycle from concept through commercialization, combining scientific leadership with disciplined, cross-functional execution. The Director translates customer needs and innovation strategy into scalable, manufacturable products and ensures launches are delivered with speed, quality, and consistency. By integrating formulation development with structured launch management, this position drives speed-to-market, right-first-time execution, and a best-in-class customer experience while upholding high standards of quality, compliance, and sustainability.

Responsibilities

• Spearhead formulation and innovation strategy across skin, hair, oral care, and personal care categories.
• Identify white space and category opportunities by leveraging trend analysis, ingredient scouting, and consumer insights.
• Develop and continuously evolve a robust product chassis library to accelerate responses to customer briefs and support rapid new launches.
• Execute the R&D sustainability strategy for new product development, including raw material sourcing, application of green chemistry principles, packaging compatibility, and lifecycle considerations.
• Own the New Product Launch (NPL) strategy and operating model, establishing clear stage gates, timelines, and accountability from concept through commercialization.
• Lead innovation and launch gate reviews, ensuring projects meet defined technical, timing, cost, and quality criteria before advancing to the next phase.
• Partner with Commercial, Marketing, and Operations teams to align the innovation pipeline with business priorities, capacity, and growth targets.
• Serve as a strategic thought partner to Sales and Marketing in client engagement, concept development, and pipeline expansion.
• Oversee all phases of product development and launch, including concept, lab batching, scale-up, pilot runs, stability testing, regulatory review, validation, and commercialization.
• Lead cross-functional execution of new product launches, ensuring alignment across R&D, Operations, Quality, Regulatory, Supply Chain, and Customer Experience teams.
• Establish and enforce standardized NPL processes, including detailed timelines, critical path management, risk identification, and escalation protocols.
• Guide formulation optimization to balance cost, efficacy, environmental impact, manufacturability, and launch readiness.
• Ensure launches are right-first-time, minimizing rework, delays, and cost overruns.
• Collaborate with Operations and Supply Chain to secure raw material readiness, confirm scale-up feasibility, and align production scheduling.
• Drive continuous improvement in speed-to-market, launch success rates, and development cycle times.
• Lead, coach, and mentor a high-performing R&D team, including lab management and technical staff, as well as the New Product Launch team, including product launch managers and specialists.
• Build a high-accountability culture focused on execution excellence, collaboration, and measurable results.
• Define clear roles, responsibilities, and KPIs across R&D and NPL functions to ensure clarity and alignment.
• Ensure strong coordination and communication between technical development teams and project execution teams.
• Oversee department performance, budgeting, and resource planning across both R&D and NPL functions.
• Foster a culture of curiosity, agility, and continuous improvement within the innovation and launch teams.
• Ensure laboratory and development environments comply with all safety requirements, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and applicable regulatory standards.
• Serve as the technical and execution lead in customer-facing engagements related to innovation and product launches.
• Translate customer needs and briefs into clear technical strategies, launch plans, and executable timelines.
• Provide clear, proactive communication on project status, risks, and timelines to internal stakeholders and external customers.
• Partner with Customer Experience and Commercial teams to ensure a seamless handoff from business development to execution.
• Support key customer milestones, including project kickoffs, technical reviews, pilot approvals, and first production runs.
• Develop and present technical data, innovation roadmaps, and launch plans to internal leadership and external partners.

Essential Skills

• B.S. or M.S. in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Biology, or a related scientific discipline.
• Minimum of 10 years of experience in formulation development and scale-up within personal care, over-the-counter (OTC), cosmetic, or medical device industries.
• Proven track record as an innovation leader who identifies emerging trends and translates them into differentiated, market-leading products that address meaningful consumer needs.
• Experience leading end-to-end product development and commercialization or launch processes in a highly cross-functional environment, ideally within a CDMO setting.
• Strong working knowledge of multiple formulation types, including emulsions, suspensions, gels, serums, and related systems.
• Deep understanding of ingredient functionality and its impact on product performance, stability, and consumer experience.
• Strong familiarity with regulatory landscapes relevant to personal care and OTC products, including FDA and related guidelines.
• Experience in designing and executing stability, safety, efficacy, and performance testing for formulated products.
• Solid understanding of product lifecycle management and stage-gate processes for innovation and new product launches.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and project management tools to manage timelines, resources, and cross-functional communication.
• Ability to lead, mentor, and develop technical and project-focused teams while building a culture of accountability and collaboration.
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to present technical information and launch plans clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Experience working within a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) or similarly complex, cross-functional environment is strongly preferred.
• Experience managing both R&D and New Product Launch teams, including resource planning, budgeting, and performance management.
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain a product chassis library to support rapid innovation and customer responsiveness.
• Experience implementing and refining standardized NPL processes, including stage gates, risk management, and escalation protocols.
• Understanding of sustainability principles, including green chemistry and lifecycle thinking, in the context of beauty and personal care product development.
• Familiarity with clean beauty standards and their impact on formulation strategy is a plus.
• Experience collaborating closely with Commercial, Marketing, Sales, Operations, Quality, Regulatory, Supply Chain, and Customer Experience teams.
• Proficiency with formulation databases and digital tools that support formulation work and documentation.
• Ability to use trend analysis, ingredient scouting, and consumer insights to identify white space and category growth opportunities.
• Strong customer-facing skills, with experience supporting technical reviews, pilot approvals, and first production milestones.
• Comfort presenting innovation roadmaps, technical data, and launch strategies to internal leadership and external partners.

Work Environment

The role operates within a fast-paced contract development and manufacturing environment dedicated to beauty and personal care products, where multiple projects run concurrently across skin, hair, oral care, and personal care categories. The Director works closely with laboratory-based R&D teams and cross-functional partners in Operations, Quality, Regulatory, Supply Chain, Commercial, Marketing, Sales, and Customer Experience. The work involves overseeing laboratory activities such as formulation, lab batching, and stability testing, as well as coordinating pilot runs, scale-up, validation, and full-scale production on manufacturing lines. Standard tools and technologies include formulation databases, Microsoft Office, and project management platforms to manage stage-gate processes, timelines, and critical paths. The environment emphasizes safety, adherence to SOPs, and compliance with regulatory standards, with a strong focus on speed-to-market, high-quality execution, and continuous improvement. The culture encourages curiosity, agility, collaboration, and accountability while providing the opportunity to build and shape the innovation and launch functions for long-term success.

Job Type & Location

This is a Permanent position based out of Mainland, PA.

Pay and Benefits

The pay range for this position is $181000.00 - $230000.00/yr.

Aetna Medical, dental and vision - 401K with match and pet insurance PTO (negotiable at this level) plus company paid holidays

Workplace Type

This is a fully onsite position in Mainland,PA.

Application Deadline

This position is anticipated to close on Jul 13, 2026.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation and speed to market. With a network of almost 20,000 consultants and 5,000 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be an Engineering News-Record (ENR) Top 500 Design Firm for our engineering design services and a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing winner for both client and talent service.

The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications without regard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protected by law.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification or adjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability, please email actalentaccommodation@actalentservices.com for other accommodation options.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance: Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in the city and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Massachusetts Lie Detector: It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI): We may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support parts of our hiring process, including sourcing, screening, and evaluating candidates. AI helps assess applications and qualifications, but final decisions are made by our hiring team. By applying, you acknowledge and agree that your application may be reviewed using AI tools.