KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Innovation Pipeline & Delivery:

- Own and manage the end-to-end innovation pipeline for the textiles portfolio bath, bed, flooring, and advanced/technical textiles ensuring a healthy funnel across horizon 1 (core renovation), horizon 2 (adjacent), and horizon 3 (breakthrough) innovation.

- Translate the Head Innovation & strategic priorities into project charters, timelines, resourcing plans, and stage-gate milestones; track progress and unblock delivery risks proactively.

- Drive new product development (NPD) projects from concept through fiber/yarn/fabric development, trials, testing, and handover to manufacturing, coordinating closely with R&D, Design, and Plant Operations.

- Institutionalize stage-gate / phase-review discipline for innovation projects, ensuring go/no-go decisions are data-backed and documented.

2. Technology & Product Development:

- Lead evaluation of emerging textile technologies, sustainable fibers, smart/functional finishes, and material science advances relevant to home and technical textiles.

- Partner with global sourcing, mills, and technology partners to pilot new raw materials, finishes, and construction techniques.

- Oversee lab-to-plant scale-up of innovations, working with plant technical teams at Anjar and Vapi to validate manufacturability, cost, and quality at scale.

3. Intellectual Property & Technology Management:

- Identify and protect proprietary innovations through patents, trade secrets, and other IP mechanisms.

- Track emerging textile and materials technologies globally, evaluating build vs. partner vs. license options.

- Maintain a technology roadmap that aligns the innovation pipeline with medium- and long-term business strategy.

4. Collaborative Innovation:

- Partner with external research institutes, universities, and technology providers to co-develop breakthrough textile technologies.

- Engage with suppliers to explore new material and process capabilities.

- Represent global trade shows, textile forums, and technical conferences.

5. Sustainability & Responsible Innovation:

- Embed sustainability criteria (circularity, recycled/organic content, water and chemical & energy footprint) into the innovation evaluation framework, aligned to sustainability commitments.

- Track and report innovation contribution to sustainable product mix and ESG-linked product goals.

6. Stakeholder & Cross-Functional Management:

- Serve as the primary innovation interface for Sales, Marketing, Design, Sourcing, Manufacturing, and Quality teams, ensuring innovation output is commercially and operationally viable.

- Represent the innovation function in cross-functional and leadership forums when the Head Innovation is unavailable, including MD/CHRO-level reviews as required.

- Manage relationships with external innovation partners academic institutions, technology start-ups, textile research bodies, and key customers on co-development projects.

KEY RESULT AREAS (KRAS):

- Number of new products/innovations moved from concept to commercial launch per year.

- Innovation pipeline health funnel volume, stage-gate conversion rate, and cycle time (concept to launch).

- Revenue / margin contribution from products launched in the last 24 months (new-product vitality index).

- Sustainable/circular product mix as a % of innovation output.

- Patents filed / IP protected per year.

- Stakeholder satisfaction (Sales, Manufacturing, Design) with innovation support and hand-off quality.