JOB TITLE: Senior Research Executive/ Assistant Research Scientist- NetZero & Ecosystems
JOB FUNCTION: Research & Development
SCOPE: Global
WORK LOCATION: Unilever R&D Bangalore
REPORTS TO: Home Care S&T Platform leader – Bright Future, Advanced Materials and Surface Science.
ABOUT UNILEVER
With 3.4 billion people in over 190 countries using our products every day, Unilever is a business that makes a real impact on the world. Work on brands that are loved and improve the lives of our consumers and the communities around us. We are driven by our purpose to: Brighten everyday life for all, and it is our belief that doing business the right way drives superior performance. At the heart of what we do is our people – we believe that when our people work with purpose, we will create a better business and a better world.
At Unilever, your career will be a unique journey, grounded in our inclusive, collaborative, and flexible working environment. We don’t believe in the ‘one size fits all’ approach and instead we will equip you with the tools you need to shape your own future.
CATEGORY OR FUNCTION INTRODUCTION:
Home Care 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 organized 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.
JOB PURPOSE
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. As a researcher in the Advanced Materials team, you can bring leading edge science to the innovation of our next generation of Bright Future products.
This mission is the promise we make to lead a transformation of the home care industry by setting new standards in product superiority and sustainability for the benefit of our consumers, our partners and Unilever too.
WHAT WILL YOUR MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES BE
Chemical Expertise: Maintain comprehensive knowledge of ingredients, their performance, carbon footprint and supply chain/ cost, with relevance to the formulations/ products of interest. Stay updated with the latest research and advancements in materials chemistry and process engineering for sustainable materials. Hypothesis Development: Alongside other scientists propose/ interrogate the substitution of novel ingredients and processes in formulation of products and its impact on performance, sustainability and value, and test hypotheses. Design and conduct experiments to gain insights and inform detergent formulation and materials development. Data Analysis, Technical writing and Presentation: Gather material, process, performance, sustainability and cost data, perform relevant experiments/ simulations. Analyse outcomes against hypothesis, to create and table proposals, positions with benefit/risk. Conversant with use of Digital models and tools, well beyond excel, word and PowerPoint. Collaboration: Work collaboratively with internal and external partners, and stakeholders, to advance ideas to adoption and create business value.
WHAT YOU NEED TO SUCCEED
Qualifications and Experience:
A degree in Chemical Engineering or master’s in physics/ chemistry with 3-5 years’ experience in materials and formulations in Home Care or adjoining sectors, either in academia or industry. Experience using this knowledge to help develop solutions that elevate performance while being sustainable and create a new value proposition for the customers and consumers, would be preferred.
Developing NetZero materials and ecosystem in Unilever Home Care requires playing a crucial role in developing and optimizing feedstock and processing path aligned with current and future sustainable scalable industrial pathways, working with the industry ecosystem, for products like laundry detergents and cleaning agents. Experience in one or more of the following areas in expected.
Domain knowledge in sustainability science, with relevance to Home Care chemicals and ingredients, including but not restricted to surfactants, polymers, enzymes and fragrance. Understanding of how current and future sustainable ingredients interact with each other and how this can impact performance, sustainability and value.
Working with internal and external partners, building and managing relationships and crafting win-win solutions for all partners in the ecosystem. Assisting in building a sustainable future value propositions for materials, via strategic forecasting, assessing risk-benefits across levers of performance, cost and sustainability. Work with adjacent teams to assess and build relevance for a transformation via product design and assessment.
Understanding renewable & sustainable materials, processes and supply chains, with working knowledge of assessment tools, such as, open LCA, SimaPro, Ecochain etc.
Scientific and technical papers, reports, reviews, as evidence of technical writing skills, presenting analyses and expressing positions via peer reviewed publications.
This role is integral to Unilever’s mission of delivering superior and sustainable products that deliver great value for consumers worldwide.
Additional Skills:
Project Management: Skills in managing projects, timelines, and resources effectively.
Digital Literacy: Proficiency in using advanced digital tools and software beyond Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.
Innovation and Creativity: Ability to think creatively and innovate in product development.
Communication Skills: Strong verbal and written communication skills to articulate ideas and collaborate with teams.
Problem-Solving: Ability to identify issues and develop effective solutions.
Adaptability: Flexibility to adapt to changing environments and new challenges.
Leadership
You are energized by delivering fantastic results. You are an example to others – both your results and your resilience. You are constantly on the lookout for better ways to do things, engaging and collaborating with others along the way.
As an individual you are the one responsible for your own wellbeing and delivering high standards of work. You must also focus on the Consumer and what they need. You are humble and have your head up, looking around to interpret evidence and data smartly, spot issues and opportunities to make things better.
Critical SOL (Standards of Leadership) Behaviours
DELIVER WITH EXCELLENCE: Takes pride in our execution, develops breakthrough solutions, best in reality execution.
STAY THREE STEPS AHEAD: Builds plan for long term AND delivers towards requirements of today, resolves to think big, simplify, and committed to make it happen.
FOCUS ON WHAT COUNTS: Focuses on fewer, but bigger things and deliver them to conclusion, challenges and debates on the right choices.
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.