HRBP Global R&D

England, United Kingdom

Professional seated at a conference table with laptops and a presentation screen in a modern office setting

Job ID:: R-1173247
Date posted:: 01/20/2026
Job Type:: Full time
Job Category:: Human Resources

Job Title: HRBP Global R&D
Location: UK (Flexible)

You will be required to attend our R&D site in Colworth, Bedford, twice a month. Function: Human Resources
Reports to: Beth Farrar - Head of HR R&D / B&W Global Functions

WHAT’S IN FOR YOU

With around 5,000 world-leading experts, including more than 500 PhDs, R&D are trailblazers in scientific research for our 30 Power Brands, which are trusted and loved across the world. Our R&D teams are responsible for pushing the boundaries of science, leading the future of innovation and doing both whilst ensuring the safety of our consumers, setting new industry standards.

Our Global R&D team is made up of SERS (Safety, Environmental and Regulatory Science), Packaging, Digital and 1UL. Our SERS, Digital and Packaging teams work across our Business Group R&D teams, providing depth of expertise critical to our R&D agenda. 1UL is a standalone business, with over 250 scientists supporting our markets that sit outside of the Top 24 Markets. Our 1UL Market structure is critical to enabling efficiency, speed and in market delivery.

This role will work alongside the Head of HR for R&D, partnering our Global R&D teams as well as supporting the broader functional agenda. The role can be based in 100VE or Port Sunlight but will require regular travel to Colworth to partner SERS.

MAIN ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Partner with the Head of HR R&D to shape and deliver the People Strategy, with a focus on Talent, Skills, and Organisation for R&D Function
• Strategic HR Business Partner for Global R&D and 1UL (1x WL5 + 2x WL4)
• Drive organisational effectiveness by supporting data-led decision-making across organisation design, change management, and overheads optimisation. Own all FTE / Overheads management for Global R&D and ensure data is maintained to a high standard
• Support Global R&D Leaders in the execution of the R&D People Strategy within their teams.
• Proactive Talent Management for critical and hard to recruit areas of R&D (e.g. Digital, Packaging) ensuring that we have strong internal and external pipeline for Key Roles.
• Work with 1UL HR network to deliver R&D agenda and continue to build operational effectiveness for 1UL
• Lead capability transformation across priority skill areas such as Desire at Scale, Digital Transformation, and Packaging Innovation, ensuring future-fit capabilities are embedded across the organisation.
• Contribute to organisational design and implementation, ensuring structures are aligned with business strategy and enable agility and growth.
• Collaborate across the global HR network to land enterprise-wide initiatives with impact, proactively addressing challenges and enabling best practice sharing.
• Leverage people analytics and insights to inform strategic decisions, track progress on key initiatives, and identify emerging organisational needs.
• Act as a trusted advisor to senior leaders, providing thought leadership on organisational effectiveness, leadership development, and change management.
• Drive employee engagement and experience, ensuring that feedback loops (e.g. UniVoice) are actioned and embedded into continuous improvement efforts.
• Support succession planning and leadership pipeline development, ensuring a strong bench of diverse, future-ready talent across critical roles.

KEY COMPETENCIES

• HR experience, demonstrating a proven track record of delivery across organisational development and change, talent management, performance management and reward
• Comfortable working autonomously and dealing with ambiguity
• Have the adaptability and resilience to balance short-term and long-term priorities
• Strong relationship building skills and a flexibility of approach to coach and become a trusted partner to multiple VPs and their teams
• Strong networking skills, able to deliver through others, working through HR colleagues across the globe
• Able to use data and insight to unlock new opportunities that generate value
• Customer focus and proactive to self-start on various issues
• A change agent who can support transformation of both organisation and culture
• Self-aware, and focussed on their own development

NOTES

Location

In September 2020, Unilever announced the intention to build a new sustainable campus site in Kingston, London. This site will house some employees who currently work in 100 Victoria Embankment in Blackfriars together with colleagues who are currentlylocatedin Lever House in Kingston. We are excited to be creating our own Unilever sustainable, agile work environment. The campus is due to be completed in 2026.

What We Offer

Not only do we offer a competitive salary and pension scheme,wealso offer an annual bonus,subsidised gym membership, a discounted staff shop and shares.You’llhave 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,programmesand development opportunities. We strive to achieve a family-friendly and inclusive workplace andto, above all, createpossibilities for all.

Diversity at Unilever is about inclusion, embracing differences, creatingpossibilitiesand 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 be present your best self. To find out more, including about our Employee Resource Groups,please click hereEquity, Diversity & Inclusion at Unilever | Unilever.

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