BU Innovation Quality Specialist

Unilever Brazil; Leeds; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading multinational consumer goods company in Leeds is seeking a BU Innovation Quality Specialist. This role focuses on ensuring quality in product innovations in the Personal Care and Beauty and Wellbeing sectors. Responsibilities include collaborating with R&D and brand teams to drive consumer insights and manage quality KPIs effectively. Ideal candidates will possess a technical degree and demonstrate strong analytical and communication skills, with an emphasis on quality management expertise and consumer understanding.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Annual bonus

Free gym

Discounted staff shop

Shares

Qualifications

• Strong consumer understanding to influence team decisions.
• Experience in cross-functional partnerships.
• Ability to utilize data analysis tools to monitor quality.

Responsibilities

• Support governance to compliance of products in innovation.
• Partner with R&D and Brand for consumer insights.
• Deliver BU quality innovation KPI.

Skills

Consumer understanding

Analytical skills

Communication skills

Problem-solving abilities

Quality management expertise

Education

Technical related degree

Job description

Job Title: BU Innovation Quality Specialist

Business Function: Quality – Supply Chain

Location: Leeds - UK

JOB PURPOSE

Quality is a key driver of competitive advantage in the Personal Care and Beauty and Wellbeing business. The BU Quality Innovation Specialist plays a crucial role supporting the business partner in delivering growth via innovation. The role drives a culture of consumer obsession, learning from insights and driving superior products. The role demands business strategy, prioritising design cells and cross‑functional collaboration ensuring products deliver the best consumer experience. This role champions product safety and superior quality, leading teams with passion and precision to uphold the highest standards.

The Quality specialist will support and lead respective category Quality for products PC & BW in Europe with a turnover of >2.5 billion Euros. The role will be responsible for deploying and leading where required Quality strategy, governance and goals that directly impact marketplace success, our credibility with customers, consumer safety and on‑shelf quality of our products in the marketplace. This, in turn, impacts Unilever reputation and brand equity in ensuring quality for making brands unmissable superior.

The role will predominantly focus on the Deodorant category; however, it will partner with the BU Quality Organization team and other categories (Skin Cleansing, Oral Care, Hair Care or Skin Care).

Because here, we don’t just hire for jobs. We invite you to be part of something bigger.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Supporting governance to compliance of the products by design and delivery as part of the innovation process
• Partnering R&D, Brand, SC and factories to bring consumer insights for innovations, following process to enable risk mitigation and safe product with early product quality standards
• Support or lead as responsible for superior quality for innovation through continuous evolution with business expectations
• Work as part of BU quality team to ensure suppliers, CM, manufacturing are geared up and able to develop capability inline with innovation and changes being made
• Member of the Europe PC & BW Quality Team, representing BU team in innovation and change projects
• Deliver BU quality innovation KPI, measures and improvements
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams, suppliers, and external stakeholders to deliver safe and superior quality First Time Right
• Work with the innovations and operations team on consumer complaints, insights and feedback for business UBS conversations
• Raise risk in technical steercom or IB to make informed decisions with the business team
• Stay informed about industry trends, emerging technologies, and regulatory changes to ensure the company remains compliant and competitive in the market
• Support BU teams to enable them to develop and implement the Quality Management System (QMS) linked to landing innovations first time right which are compliant and safe
• Support in developing new capabilities as well as improvements in current/new manufacturing site to land innovations and big 5s changes
• Maintain an effective Change Management system to ensure business changes are landed first time right
• Deploy a digital Quality transformation program
• Support in the BU E2E Culture Quality Transformation Program
• Be the voice of quality in cross‑functional team and influence right choices for consumers even if it means challenging norms and developing new standards/methods across functions to land safe and superior products

ALL ABOUT YOU

• Strong consumer understanding and ability to bring in insights and influence team making right choices to win competitively
• Understanding of global and operational business strategy and challenges
• Cross‑functional partnership in a project or programme, ideally with R&D, Marketing and Supply Chain
• Analytical skills: Utilizing data analysis tools to monitor quality metrics, identify trends, and implement corrective actions to improve overall product quality
• Communication skills: Collaborating with cross‑functional teams, suppliers, and regulatory agencies to learn and develop new platforms for innovations as needed and drive change
• Problem‑solving abilities: Investigating consumer complaints, and implementing change for 5S, innovations and any transformation program
• Experience in virtual teamwork
• Quality management expertise: Developing and implementing quality control procedures, conducting audits, and managing quality assurance programmes to maintain product safety and consistency for launching new innovations and change in market
• Track record of delivering quality performance improvement within multiple large to small manufacturing sites
• Clear understanding and ability to assess and act upon product safety, quality, efficacy, and compliance risks
• Proactive approach: Anticipating potential quality issues, implementing preventive measures, and continuously seeking opportunities for improvement

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Proven experience in Consumer goods industry
• Technical related degree or university degree preferable

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Office based with Unilever hybrid/remote work policies.

Role includes travel to suppliers, manufacturing sites and meetings in Europe (around 15 to 20% travel)

What We Offer

Not only do we offer a competitive salary and pension scheme, we also offer an annual bonus, free gym, a discounted staff shop and shares. You’ll have the opportunity to work directly with our renowned and exciting brands in a flexible and hybrid working environment.

Whilst the role is advertised on a full‑time basis, we would be happy to discuss possible flexible working options and what this may look like for you. We are a key advocate of wellbeing and offer a variety of support for our people including hubs, programmes and development opportunities. We strive to achieve a family‑friendly and inclusive workplace and, above all, create possibilities for all.

Diversity at Unilever is about inclusion, embracing differences, creating possibilities and growing together for better business performance. We embrace diversity in our workforce. 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. We are also more than happy to provide reasonable adjustments during our application and interview process to enable you to present your best self. To find out more, click here: Equity, Diversity & Inclusion.

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