Head of Industrials Innovation

Interested in a career that matters?

Interested in a career that matters?

Are you passionate about turning biotechnology and scientific innovation into solutions that create measurable value for customers and industry?

As Head of Industrials Innovation, MEIA, you will lead our regional innovation agenda for industrial biosolutions. You will work at the intersection of science, industrial processes, customer needs and commercial opportunity, leading a team of scientists to identify new applications, accelerate technology adoption and turn promising technical concepts into validated, scalable commercial opportunities.

The Role & Your Impact

You will shape and drive the Industrials innovation pipeline across MEIA, connecting scientific capabilities with customer challenges and growth opportunities across BioEnergy, Grain and Sugar Processing, Oils and Fats, and other industrial segments.

Your key responsibilities will be to:

• Lead and develop a high-performing team of scientists, setting clear priorities, coaching talent and strengthening scientific, customer and commercial capabilities.
• Build a strong innovation culture that encourages curiosity, collaboration, ownership and disciplined execution.
• Lead the regional Industrials innovation pipeline, identifying, assessing and prioritizing new applications and growth opportunities.
• Accelerate new technologies from concept to commercial scale, spanning application development, customer validation and value demonstration.
• Connect technical performance with customer value, translating scientific outcomes into process improvements, economic impact and compelling commercial opportunities.
• Strengthen collaboration and knowledge sharing across customers, R&D, Technical Services, Marketing, Sales and global teams, while building reusable capabilities that advance innovation across MEIA.

What You’ll Need to Be Successful

To succeed in this role, you will bring:

• A Master’s degree or PhD in biotechnology, microbiology, biochemical or chemical engineering, or a related discipline.
• Around 10+ years of relevant experience in industrial biotechnology or process industries.
• Demonstrated experience leading and developing technical or scientific teams.
• The ability to combine people leadership, technical depth and commercial thinking.
• Experience leading cross-functional innovation or technology programs.
• Strong customer orientation and stakeholder management skills.

Above all, you are a leader who brings out the best in people while connecting science, customer needs and business opportunities to create scalable growth.

Additional Skills & Interests We Value

Experience in one or more of the following areas would be an advantage:

• Biofuels or biogas
• Sugar or grain processing
• Oils and fats
• Biomass processing
• Related industrial biotechnology applications.

What We Offer

This is an opportunity to lead a regional scientific team and shape how industrial biosolutions move from promising ideas to customer-validated opportunities. You will collaborate across technical, commercial and global teams while building capabilities and knowledge that strengthen innovation across MEIA.

Our purpose guides the way

In Novonesis, we know that solutions rooted in biology can help solve humanity’s biggest challenges. Since we began more than a century ago, this has been our guide. It’s how we've gotten so far. And it’s how we'll impact the future. Now, more than ever, the world needs change. And with biosolutions, the possibilities for transformation are endless. If our purpose resonates with you, we encourage you to apply.

Opportunities for everyone

We are committed to an inclusive recruitment process and equal opportunity for all applicants. Therefore we ask you to apply without a cover letter or photo and instead include a few sentences in your CV explaining your motivation for applying.

We make all employment decisions based on business needs and welcome candidates with a wide range of backgrounds, including ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, or veteran status.

Explore other openings

If this position isn’t the right fit, you may still find other opportunities with us. You’re welcome to explore open roles or create a job agent to stay connected with future opportunities at novonesis.com/Career