Head of R&D

Job Description

Job Description

Why We Exist and What We Do :

At Dr. Squatch ( we're raising the bar on men's personal care with our line of natural, high-performance products. We're on a high-growth, fast-moving ride, continually introducing new product categories, launching into retailers nationwide, and growing internationally. We have been recognized and certified by Great Place to Work® multiple times, and we achieved status as a certified B Corp in 2023. We are looking for passionate, talented people who want to join us in our mission to inspire and educate men to be happier and healthier!

About the Role:

Dr. Squatch is seeking a Head of R&D to lead the next phase of technical and product innovation across the organization. We are seeking a hands-on technical leader who can help scale and evolve the organization's product development capabilities while navigating the increasing operational complexity that comes with rapid growth across retail and omnichannel channels.

The ideal candidate combines deep formulation expertise with strong operational judgment and an entrepreneurial mindset. This person should be equally comfortable evaluating ingredient systems, troubleshooting manufacturing realities, influencing executive stakeholders, and making practical decisions in fast-moving environments. Success in the role will require balancing speed, scalability, quality, cost, and formulation integrity without creating unnecessary process or bureaucracy.

Reporting into executive leadership, the Head of R&D will oversee a multidisciplinary technical organization spanning formulation, product development, and manufacturing/process engineering. They will serve as a key strategic and technical partner internally and with Unilever stakeholders as the company continues expanding across categories and channels. The mandate is not simply to support the current business — it is to help build the technical foundation, team, and operating capabilities needed for the next stage of growth.

This is a full-time, hybrid role with company benefits, based in Marina Del Rey, CA, that requires 3 days per week at Dr. Squatch HQ.

What You'll Do:

• Technical Development & Formulation Leadership
  • Own technical strategy and decision-making across the full product development lifecycle
  • Lead formulation development across soaps, deodorants, body care, hair care, skincare, and adjacent categories
  • Evaluate ingredient systems, raw materials, and manufacturing processes to ensure product performance, scalability, and brand alignment
  • Serve as the company's senior technical authority across formulation, quality, and product performance discussions
  • Translate complex scientific concepts into clear, actionable recommendations for commercial and executive stakeholders
  • Ensure speed-to-market without compromising formulation integrity, product quality, or technical rigor
• Innovation & Pipeline Leadership
  • Lead the innovation pipeline from concept through commercialization across new products, reformulations, and adjacent category expansion
  • Partner cross-functionally to identify whitespace opportunities and prioritize future growth platforms
  • Drive a consumer- and insight-led innovation agenda while balancing operational feasibility and regulatory considerations
  • Build scalable development processes and ways of working that improve agility, execution, and cross-functional collaboration
  • Help evolve the organization's long-term R&D and innovation capabilities as the business continues to scale
• Manufacturing & External Partnerships
  • Lead technical relationships with contract manufacturers, raw material suppliers, and external development partners
  • Oversee manufacturing scale-up and troubleshooting activities across co-manufacturing networks
  • Support cost optimization and continuous improvement initiatives without compromising consumer experience or product quality
  • Navigate technical tradeoffs and stakeholder alignment with strong judgment and influence
• Team Leadership
  • Lead, mentor, and develop a team spanning formulation, product development, and manufacturing/process engineering
  • Foster a culture of accountability, technical excellence, curiosity, and collaboration
  • Help attract, develop, and retain high-potential technical talent
  • Operate as a player-coach leader capable of moving fluidly between strategic leadership and hands-on problem solving

About You:

• Required Experience
  • 10+ years of progressive R&D leadership experience within personal care, beauty, or adjacent consumer products categories
  • Deep hands-on formulation experience; candidates must have meaningful time spent "at the bench," not solely in oversight positions
  • Proven experience scaling formulations through external manufacturing partners and co-manufacturers
  • Demonstrated success leading and developing technical teams
  • Strong ability to communicate effectively with executive, commercial, and technical stakeholders
  • Experience operating effectively in high-growth, fast-paced environments
  • Bachelor's degree in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related scientific discipline; advanced degree preferred
  • Willingness to relocate to or work in the Los Angeles area on a hybrid basis
• Strongly Preferred
  • Experience within natural, naturally derived, or clean formulation systems
  • Familiarity with standards such as ISO 16128
  • Experience operating within a founder-led or entrepreneurial brand that later scaled within a larger enterprise environment
  • OTC or sunscreen category experience
  • Exposure to cost optimization and margin improvement initiatives
  • Experience balancing innovation speed with technical rigor and operational scalability

#LI-TC1 #LI-HYBRID #LI-FULLTIME

Who We Are:

Our core values come naturally and make us a better, more whole, and unique team. We are Bold & Innovative - we are creative, rethink how things are done, and find a way. We Play to Win - we have high standards, we encourage ownership of work, we are scrappy, we act with urgency, and we invest in the outcome of our work. We are  Team Squatch - we are humble, help others outside our own wheelhouse, stay positive, have fun, and have approachable and transparent leadership.

We offer a competitive salary in a growth-focused & collaborative team environment. Benefits include medical, dental, vision, 401k with Squatch match, and PTO. We also have great perks like healthy snacks, frequent company events, and of course, free products!

For Applicants with Disabilities.  Reasonable accommodation will be made so that qualified applicants with disabilities may participate in the application process. If you need any accommodations during the hiring process, please let us know when you submit your application and we'll do our very best to adjust as needed.

For Information regarding Data Privacy , please review  

Unsolicited Resume Policy. Dr. Squatch ("DRSQ") employs an internal Talent Acquisition department. Exceptionally, DRSQ may choose to supplement that internal team with support from temporary staffing agencies, placement services, and/or recruiting agencies ("Agency"). Agencies are hereby specifically directed NOT to contact DRSQ employees directly in an attempt to present candidates. DRSQ's Talent Acquisition team is responsible for all candidate presentations to our hiring managers.

To protect the interests of all parties, Dr. Squatch will not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than directly from a candidate. Any unsolicited resumes sent to DRSQ, including unsolicited resumes sent to a DRSQ email address or mailing address, directly to DRSQ employees, or to DRSQ's resume database will be considered property of Dr. Squatch.

DRSQ will not pay a placement, service or other fee for any placement resulting from the receipt of an unsolicited resume .  This also includes partial resumes, LinkedIn profiles, general candidate profiles, and/or candidate details or information. DRSQ will consider any candidate for whom an Agency has submitted an unsolicited resume to have been referred by the Agency free of any charges or fees.

DRSQ's Talent Acquisition team must provide advance written approval to an Agency to submit resumes and/or profiles for a specific job-opening, and the approval must be in conjunction with a valid fully executed staffing, placement or other service agreement. DRSQ will not pay a fee to any Agency that does not have a fully executed agreement in place prior to submission, receipt and placement of candidates.