About the job

At Sanofi, we’re committed to providing the next-gen healthcare that patients and customers need. It’s about harnessing data insights and leveraging AI responsibly to search deeper and solve sooner than ever before. Join our Development Centers as the Head of Compiegne Development Center and you can help make it happen. Your job? This role drives end-to-end product development across a diverse brand portfolio, collaborating with R&D, Marketing, and Manufacturing teams to deliver science-backed, consumer-focused health innovations. Overseeing a team of 50 in Formulation, Analytical Development, and Process Scale-up, the leader fosters a consumer-centric culture aligned with Opella’s vision of being a top Fast Moving Consumer Health company globally. The position also focuses on enhancing the development center's capabilities by integrating unique technologies, new raw materials, and innovative product forms through partnerships. Additionally, it ensures quality and safety standards at the Compiegne Development Center in coordination with Quality and HSE teams.

At Sanofi Consumer Healthcare, we build trusted and loved brands that connect with hundreds of millions of consumers worldwide. Our mission is to enable better self-care for individuals and communities, while also contributing to a healthier planet. We strive to act as a force for good by integrating sustainability along our business and employees’ mission and operate responsibly from both a social and environmental point of view. To achieve this, we need people who can shape the future of our business and help us on our journey to becoming the best fast-moving consumer healthcare company in and for the world.

Main responsibilities

• Line management accountability for Development Center employees across Formulation Development, Analytical Development, Process Scale-up, CMC and Operations.

Ensures that the right talent is in place. This includes recruitment, training and development, retention, and succession planning.

Develops the right culture within de Development Center, so that the teams are highly engaged to deliver the innovation pipeline.

• Delivery of the Innovation pipeline

Ensures delivery of key New Product Development Innovation and Business Protection Projects, for global and regional brands within the OTC medicine category. Anticipates potential technical issues, ensure robust development and scale-up plans, guide teams through trouble shooting when issues occur, and ensures transparency of communication with key stakeholders.

• Develops the vision for the Development Center and the roadmap of Differentiated Capabilities

Develops the vision for the Development Center, and the roadmap to get there. Identifies critical capabilities needed to deliver a superior innovation pipeline and implements them. This might include development and curation of knowledge into Best Practices and Intellectual Property generation, selection and implementation of new equipment/technologies and/or building new systems, procedures and infrastructures.

• Accountable for Quality and Safety

Partners with the Quality and HSE organizations to deliver the right levels of quality for all development programs and safety for all employees. Monitors KPIs, ensures that action plans are in place and that the development center culture reaches the desired quality and HSE maturity.

• Builds an Ecosystem of partners

Develops a network of Academic partners, suppliers, vendors, CDMOs, which can be inspire and support the innovation capabilities of the development center and spark new innovation.

• Represents R&D and Sanofi internally and externally

Compiegne development center is the largest of four development centers and it is expected to deliver the largest part of our innovation portfolio. The Development Center head is a high-profile role, who will be presenting our Innovation Strategy and Science program to senior stakeholders (internal and external) visiting Compiegne. He/She needs to have the right posture to be the face of R&D.

Key Relationships:

• Global and Regional R&D Brand leads.

• Global and Regional Marketing Innovation Leads.

• Global and Regional Project Managers

• R&D Leads including Platforms, Consumer Science, Packaging, Sustainability.

• Manufacturing & Supply Colleagues including local Site Head and Leadership Team.

• Quality and HSE teams.

• External Network of development Partners and Experts

About you

Education and Qualifications

Master or PhD degree in Science (Pharmacy, Chemistry, etc…)

Knowledge and Experience

• Minimum 15 years’ experience in Consumer HealthCare or Fast-Moving Consumers Goods.

• Experience in OTC solutions is desirable.

• Track record of bringing products to market in full and on time.

• Demonstrated experience in identifying consumer’s needs and turning those insights into action.

• Ability to implement change in large organization, and to build new capabilities.

• Experience in leading and developing high performing teams.

• Agility to work in a Matrix environment.

• Autonomy to make daily decisions for a Development Center of ~ 50 colleagues.

• Risk Management ownership, proactive communication and management for formulation and scaleup risks.

Language Skills

English is mandatory, with a high level of French.

Cultural Traits & Behaviors

At Opella, we’re committed to driving the next health revolution and making self-care as easy as it should be. Our culture is the heart of what we do, grounded in the Challenger Mindset—a set of behaviors that pushes us to challenge ourselves and our industry every day:

All in together: Keep each other honest, have each other’s back.

Outcome obsessed: Be personally accountable, driving sustainable impact and results with integrity.

Courageous: Break boundaries, take thoughtful risks with creativity.

Radically Simple: simple for us, simple for consumers, as simple as it should be.

Required Leadership Competencies

• Strategic Thinking: ability to evaluate relevant areas of operation, formulate objectives and set priorities in a contextually relevant way, and develop plans consistent with long term organizational interests.

• Judgement: ability to draw logical conclusions based on acquired information and analytical rigor in problem-solving, and ability to make effective decisions even when information is ambiguous or incomplete.

• Team Leadership: ability to build cohesive, high-performance teams that take accountability and achieve required results.

• Change Leadership: ability to demonstrate support and drive for innovation and organizational transformation.

• Personal Leadership: personal leadership translates into courage, choice, and commitment through the pursuit of excellence, trust and accountability.

Why choose us ?

• Bring the miracles of science to life alongside a supportive, future-focused team.

• Discover endless opportunities to grow your talent and drive your career, whether it’s through a promotion or lateral move, at home or internationally.

• Enjoy a thoughtful, well-crafted rewards package that recognizes your contribution and amplifies your impact.

Opella, the Consumer Healthcare business unit of Sanofi, is the purest and third-largest player globally in the Over-The-Counter (OTC) & Vitamins, Minerals & Supplements (VMS) market.  

We have an unshakable belief in the power of self-care and the role it can play in creating a healthier society and a healthier planet.

That’s why we want to make self-care as simple as it should be by being consumer-led always, with science at our core. 

Through our unique and balanced portfolio of more than 100 loved brands, including 15 global and local high-growth challengers such as Allegra, Dulcolax and Buscopan, we deliver our mission: helping more than half a billion consumers worldwide take their health in their hands.  

This mission is brought to life by an 11,000-strong team, 13 best-in-class manufacturing sites, and 4 specialized science and innovation development centers. 

We are also proud to be the first major fast-moving consumer healthcare company to achieve B Corp certification. 

Join us on our mission. Health. In your hands.