About Estée Lauder Companies
The Estée Lauder Companies is a global leader in prestige beauty, founded in 1946 by Estée and Joseph Lauder and built on an enduring belief in creativity, high-touch service, and entrepreneurial spirit. As an employer, the Group offers talent the scale of an international house with the energy of distinctive brands across skincare, makeup, fragrance, and hair care. Its culture values innovation, inclusion, learning, and responsible growth, inviting professionals to shape consumer experiences from laboratory to counter, digital platform to boardroom. Employees join a purpose-led organization where heritage, artistry, and scientific excellence meet to define the future of luxury beauty.
The Associate Director, Technical Project Management leads the end-to-end technical execution of new product launches and strategic innovation initiatives across the development lifecycle for Estée Lauder Companies. This role serves as the central technical integration point across research and development, packaging, manufacturing, supply chain, engineering, quality, and brand teams—translating business objectives into executable technical plans, managing risks proactively, and ensuring on-time, high-quality product commercialization. The position partners with R&D leadership and brand teams to establish development strategies, facilitate cross-functional decision-making, and drive continuous improvement in speed-to-market and project execution efficiency.
Role & Responsibilities
- Lead end-to-end technical execution of new product launches from concept through commercialization, serving as the single technical integration point for cross-functional alignment
- Develop and maintain integrated project timelines, milestones, critical paths, and technical learning plans; drive project governance processes and stage-gate reviews
- Partner with brand, innovation, and technical leaders to establish development strategies and coordinate activities across functions
- Identify technical, operational, supply chain, and timing risks; lead mitigation planning and contingency development
- Facilitate cross-functional project meetings, decision-making forums, and technical reviews to align stakeholders on priorities, deliverables, and timelines
- Translate technical challenges into actionable recommendations for business and functional leaders
- Support early-stage innovation efforts by assessing technical requirements, risks, and feasibility
- Develop and implement best practices, processes, and tools that improve project execution efficiency and accelerate development timelines
- Build strong collaborative relationships across global and regional organizations and promote a culture of accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement
Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Science, Engineering, Chemistry, Product Development, or related technical field
- 5+ years of experience in technical project management, R&D, product development, program management, or related functions
- Proven success leading complex, cross-functional new product development programs
- Advanced project and portfolio management expertise
- Strong cross-functional leadership and stakeholder management skills
- Exceptional strategic thinking and organizational skills
- Expertise in risk identification, mitigation, and issue resolution
- Strong communication, facilitation, and executive presentation capabilities
Skills
Experience
5+ years of experience in technical project management, R&D, product development, program management, or related functions within the beauty, consumer products, personal care, pharmaceutical, or related industries. Demonstrated ability to influence without direct authority and manage multiple high-priority initiatives simultaneously.
Education
Bachelor's degree in Science, Engineering, Chemistry, Product Development, or related technical field required; advanced degree preferred.
Workplace
This position is based in Melville, New York, USA, within easy reach of New York.
Explore jobs in the USA.
Compensation
The base compensation for this position ranges from USD 102,400 to USD 168,750 per annum.
Benefits
Health insurance coverage (medical, dental, and vision insurance), wellness and family support programs, life and disability insurance, retirement savings plans, paid leave programs, education-related programs, paid holidays and vacation time, competitive bonus program with potential for overachievement, share incentive plan.
Culture
The Estée Lauder Companies fosters a collaborative, inclusive workplace where creativity, entrepreneurial thinking, and a passion for prestige beauty are deeply valued. As a global house of distinctive brands, it offers employees an environment that encourages innovation, professional growth, and a shared commitment to excellence and consumer inspiration.
About Cerulean
Cerulean is the definitive career portal for the global luxury industry. We match exceptional professionals with exclusive opportunities at the world's most prestigious brands. From haute couture and fine watchmaking to prestige beauty, hospitality, and boutique retail, Cerulean centralises luxury employment to help you find the career for which you were destined.
Frequently Asked Questions
The luxury industry is characterised by a diverse and nuanced nomenclature. Esteemed houses frequently employ proprietary terminology, and even within a single organisation like Estée Lauder Companies, titles may vary across global markets to reflect local conventions. To ensure absolute clarity, Cerulean assigns a standardised, industry-coherent canonical title to every listing. However, it is worth noting that this role is functionally synonymous with «Senior Technical Project Manager», «Director of R&D Project Execution», «Technical Program Lead, Product Innovation», «New Product Launch Director», «Cross-Functional Innovation Project Director», and other variations. Our sophisticated search architecture anticipates these variations, ensuring that inquiries using related terms will seamlessly yield the exact roles you desire.