Job Title: Head of Medical Nutrition Innovation
City, Country: Kaiseraugst, Switzerland
Hybrid/Remote/On Site: Hybrid


Health, Nutrition & Care is a business group focused on developing and supplying health, nutrition & care solutions for multiple customers. Innovation leadership, product quality, supply reliability & flexibility to meet customer demands are key success factors to reach our HNC business objectives.


Within HNC, accelerating Innovation has been identified as one of the must-win priorities and key enablers for growth. Our goal is to develop new solutions for our customers that leverage our unique ingredient portfolio and science capabilities.


This position leads innovation for Medical Nutrition (MN), acting as owner for the entire MN innovation & science agenda.


DEI Statement
At dsm-firmenich, being a force for good is not optional. Diversity, Equity & Inclusion is a shared responsibility woven into our daily work to not only benefit our People, Customers & Communities but also drive business value. Equal access to opportunities is a given, belonging is a shared feeling, authenticity is celebrated.


Your key responsibilities

• End-to-end leadership & accountability for the MN Innovation pipeline for the HNC business group. This role is accountable for the delivery of the MN science and launch pipeline. The role has an end-to-end responsibility: from ideation, to conduction of preclinical and human clinical research over concept creation & science translation, to customer engagement & market launch.
• Pipeline governance and project management: this role is responsible for moving innovation projects into the IRT framework and driving progress along the defined deliverables and manage resource assignment. This role is responsible for maintaining transparency and clarity on pipeline status and making sure projects are launched in line with the agreed resource allocation, deliverables and timelines. This includes maintaining an appropriate balance between disruptive and incremental launches and between short and longer term launches.
• Research: this role is responsible to oversee all research activities for the MN segment, both our internally conducted research as well as research with academia, external partners and our customers. Design and oversee preclinical research and human clinical research with the aim to support evidence creation and strengthen the value proposition of our MN solutions.
• Strategic shaping: Segment Marketing Lead Counterpart: works in partnership with the Global MN Commercial Segment lead to co-shape and build the Segment strategic plan and pipeline. Engages with the regions to understand market needs & pain points and develop the right technical solutions and science support for regional needs.
• External engagement with customers and partners: this role is responsible for engaging with our customers to understand their strategic pipeline needs and to make sure the MN pipeline is aligned to our customer’s needs. This role frequently engages with customers in strategic innovation sessions. This role is also responsible for maintaining a network of key opinion leaders through the team in the MN space and for engaging with relevant bodies such as trade or industry associations.
• Driving collaboration: Coordinating Innovation activities for MN across departments: this role will work with various other departments to meet the deliverables of the MN pipeline, examples (not exhaustive) include: work with the Application scientists to develop prototypes of new concepts, work with formulation scientists to develop new forms, work with Data Scientists to shape the analysis of our data into meaningful conclusions, etc
• Meeting our commercial objectives: The role is responsible for driving alignment between the ongoing scientific & clinical activities and the MN segment Commercial priorities & priorities assigned through IRT.
• People management: This role is managing directly a team of 2-3 scientists and innovation managers allocated to the MN segment. The role has to drive proper resource allocation to meet our commercial deliverables & timelines for innovation & science.

We bring

• An opportunity to contribute to meaningful innovative solutions in the Medical Nutrition Space
• A rich history and a promising future of bold scientific innovation and passionate creation with our customers
• A flexible work environment that empowers people to take accountability for their work and own the outcome;
• Dedication to creating better futures for customers, communities, people, and the planet
• An eagerness to be one team and learn from each other to bring progress to life and create a better future;
• A space to grow by encouraging and supporting curiosity and an open mindset

You bring

• >10 Years of experience in the Nutrition & Life Sciences industry, of which at least 5 years of experience in Innovation Management & R&D and at least 5 years of experience in Medical Nutrition.
• A team player with the ability to collaborate across business groups, regions and departments and to establish strong relationships with key internal and external stakeholders. A proven ability to influence without authority.
• Proven capability to work transversally and independently and deliver product launches and exercise business impact, resulting in measurable top and bottom line growth.
• Strong network within dsm-firmenich beyond the HNC business group.
• Proven people management skills.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Strong technical and commercial acumen. The ability to translate customer and region needs into scientific projects and workplans. The ability to understand pro-actively market trends and to leverage science to shape a distinctive value proposition of HNC versus competitors. Profound understanding of the products on shelf, their claims, positioning and how the portfolio of our customers can be extended to fuel growth.
• The ability to both exert strategic shaping, drive prioritization but at the same time a proven ability to work solution-oriented and have a hands-on mentality resulting in tangible outcomes and clear actions & deliverables across activities.

Equal opportunities commitment
dsm-firmenich is fully dedicated to inclusion because when people feel engaged and empowered, their creativity and innovation drives unprecedented progress. We aim to build a workplace where opportunity really is equal, so everyone can thrive. We do not discriminate: there’s a place for everyone at dsm-firmenich.
As a committed equal opportunity employer, we ensure our recruitment practices are inclusive and fair. We encourage the recruitment of a diverse workforce, representative of the communities in which we work, by using inclusive language, diverse interview panels, diversified sourcing strategies. Selection is based on qualifications, competency, experience, performance history and fit with the team to advance fair and equitable opportunity.
Employment decisions are based upon job-related reasons regardless of an applicant's race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, backgrounds, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other status protected by law.
We are committed to providing reasonable support for disabled applicants in our recruiting process. Should you need assistance, and are comfortable to share this, please let us know.


About DSM-Firmenich
As innovators in nutrition, health, and beauty, dsm-firmenich reinvents, manufactures, and combines vital nutrients, flavors, and fragrances for the world’s growing population to thrive. With our comprehensive range of solutions, with natural and renewable ingredients and renowned science and technology capabilities, we work to create what is essential for life, desirable for consumers, and more sustainable for the planet. dsm-firmenich is a Swiss-Dutch company, listed on the Euronext Amsterdam, with operations in almost 60 countries and revenues of more than €12 billion. With a diverse, worldwide team of nearly 30,000 employees, we bring progress to life™ every day, everywhere, for billions of people.


Agency statement
Please note this is a direct search led by dsm-firmenich. We only accept applications from candidates, not from agencies nor subject to agency’s fees, percentages or similar.