Richemont Research & Innovation Project Manager — Precious Materials
- Location
- Seniority
- Mid-Level
- Industry
- High Jewelry
- Posted
- Apr 23, 2026
About Richemont
Richemont is a Swiss-based luxury goods group that owns and manages a portfolio of prestigious maisons across jewellery, watchmaking and accessories. The group combines a long heritage of artisanal craft with global retail and wholesale operations and invests in technical innovation to preserve and advance maison savoir-faire.
Richemont seeks a Research & Innovation Project Manager — Precious Materials in Delémont, Switzerland to lead materials development for high-jewellery and watchmaking.
Role & Responsibilities
- Lead end-to-end R&I projects focused on precious metals, alloys and related materials from concept through industrialisation and introduction to production.
- Define technical specifications, project plans, budgets and milestones; ensure on-time delivery against KPIs.
- Coordinate cross-functional teams including design, manufacturing, quality, procurement and suppliers to translate design intent into manufacturable solutions.
- Develop and validate new material formulations, surface treatments and finishing processes; supervise laboratory testing and prototype iterations.
- Manage supplier selection, qualification and technical audits for specialised material and processing partners.
- Oversee scale-up activities and transfer of processes to production, including process documentation and control plans.
- Ensure compliance with regulatory, environmental and sustainability requirements relevant to precious materials (e.g., responsible sourcing standards).
- Prepare technical reports and present project outcomes to senior stakeholders; protect intellectual property and support patent filing where relevant.
Qualifications
- Master's degree in Materials Science, Metallurgy, Chemical Engineering, Jewellery Technology or equivalent; PhD advantageous.
- Demonstrable expertise in precious metals, alloys, or related material sciences, preferably within jewellery, watchmaking or high-end metalworking.
- Proven track record managing cross-disciplinary R&D or product-development projects, including supplier qualification and production transfer.
- Strong understanding of material characterisation methods and laboratory techniques.
- Excellent stakeholder management, communication and technical reporting skills.
- Fluency in project-management methodologies; experience with stage-gate or comparable product-development processes.
Skills
Experience
Minimum five years of progressive experience in materials R&D, product development or engineering roles with hands-on exposure to precious metals or high-end metal components; experience in luxury jewellery or watchmaking environments strongly preferred.
Education
Master's degree in Materials Science, Metallurgy, Chemical Engineering, Jewellery Technology or equivalent; PhD or advanced research experience is a plus.
Workplace
This position is based in Delémont, Jura, Switzerland, within easy reach of Basel.
Culture
Richemont blends respect for artisanal heritage with rigorous technical innovation. Teams operate in a collaborative, cross-disciplinary environment that values craftsmanship, long-term quality and responsible sourcing. The organisation fosters international collaboration across maisons while maintaining close ties to manufacturing and atelier partners.
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 Richemont, 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 «R&I Project Manager, Precious Metals», «Materials Innovation Project Lead», «Precious Materials Development Manager», «Project Manager — Materials & Metallurgy», and other variations. Our sophisticated search architecture anticipates these variations, ensuring that inquiries using related terms will seamlessly yield the exact roles you desire.