NBD & Licensing Director

Haleon plc.; Greater London; On-site; GBP 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Haleon plc in the United Kingdom seeks a NBD & Licensing Director to lead all deal activity within its Advanced Research Group, shaping licensing, co-development and strategic partnerships that unlock Haleon’s breakthrough innovation pipeline.

Reporting to CSO – Head of ART with a matrix to Corporate Development Licensing, this player-coach role blends hands-on deal leadership with team leadership across high-value transactions, engaging Finance M&A, Legal, IP and R&D.

Qualifications

• Experience structuring and negotiating complex partnerships in consumer health, life sciences, or related sectors.
• Ability to assess risk, build business cases and navigate governance processes.
• Understanding of IP, licensing and deal terms to protect value while enabling innovation.
• Proven track record influencing senior stakeholders and leading cross-functional teams.
• Strong communication and negotiation skills with startups, universities and industry partners.
• People leadership with hands-on deal execution in a fast-moving environment.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end deal execution across licensing, co-development, and partnerships.
• Shape partnership strategies and select deal models based on maturity and strategic fit.
• Coordinate due diligence with Legal, IP, Finance M&A, and R&D teams.
• Negotiate and close agreements protecting IP and data rights while delivering long-term value.
• Present investment cases to senior governance forums with clarity.
• Lead and develop a high-performing deal team while contributing to priority transactions.

Skills

Deal negotiation

Strategic partnerships

Financial acumen

Governance navigation

Leadership

Communication

Industry knowledge

Education

Degree in law, business, finance, or life sciences

MBA, LLM, or MSc (preferred)

Job description

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.

About the Role

This is a new role, created as part of the establishment of Haleon's Advanced Research Group (ART). This role leads all deal activity within ART that enable and protect Haleon's breakthrough innovation pipeline.

The NBD & Licensing Director leads formal deal activity for the ART, shaping and executing the partnerships that enable access to external science, technology and manufacturing capabilities. This role owns the structuring, negotiation and delivery of licensing agreements, commercial partnerships and selected strategic equity transactions that support Haleon’s breakthrough innovation pipeline.

This role has a matrix reporting line to the Chief Science Officer – Head of Advanced Research Group and, Corporate Development Licensing with close alignment to Finance M&A, this is a player-coach role combining hands‑on deal leadership with leadership of a team of deal execution specialists.

Role Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end deal execution across licensing, co-development, academic collaboration, commercial partnerships and selected strategic equity opportunities.
• Shape partnership strategies and recommend the most effective deal model for each opportunity based on scientific maturity, commercial potential, intellectual property position and strategic fit.
• Coordinate cross-functional due diligence with Legal, IP, Finance M&A, Category R&D and commercial teams to build robust business cases and secure timely approvals.
• Negotiate and close agreements that protect Haleon’s intellectual property, data rights and commercial interests while delivering strong long‑term value.
• Present recommendations and investment cases to senior governance forums, including Innovation Board and executive stakeholders, with clarity and credibility.
• Lead and develop a high-performing team while also contributing directly to priority transactions.

Qualifications & Experience

• Demonstratable experience structuring and negotiating complex partnerships in consumer health, life sciences or a closely related sector.
• Commercial and financial acumen, with the ability to assess risk, build compelling business cases and navigate complex governance processes.
• Sound understanding of intellectual property, licensing and deal terms, with the judgement to protect business value while enabling innovation at pace.
• Track record of influencing senior stakeholders and leading cross-functional teams through complex, high-value decisions.
• Confident communicator and negotiator, able to build credibility internally and externally with startups, universities and industry partners.
• A collaborative people leader who can coach a small expert team while remaining hands‑on in a fast-moving, deal-driven environment.
• Senior experience in business development, licensing, M&A or strategic partnerships in consumer health, pharma, biotech or CPG (Preferred), with a demonstratable track record of closing complex deals.

Qualification & Education

Minimum Education

Degree in law, business, finance, or life sciences

Preferred Education

Advanced degree (MBA, LLM, or MSc in a scientific discipline)

Job Posting End Date 2026-11-06

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.