Principal Data Science Lead

Welcome to Haleon. We’re a purpose-driven, world-class consumer company putting everyday health in the hands of millions. In just three years since our launch, we’ve grown, evolved and are now entering an exciting new chapter – one filled with bold ambitions and enormous opportunity.

Our trusted portfolio of brands – including Sensodyne®, Panadol®, Advil®, Voltaren®, Theraflu®, Otrivin®, and Centrum® – lead in resilient and growing categories. What sets us apart is our unique blend of deep human understanding and trusted science.

Now it’s time to fully realise the full potential of our business and our people. We do this through our Win as One strategy. It puts our purpose – to deliver better everyday health with humanity – at the heart of everything we do. It unites us, inspires us, and challenges us to be better every day, driven by our agile, performance-focused culture.

About the role

The Principal Data Science Lead is a senior, enterprise‑level role accountable for shaping, scaling and maturing Haleon’s global Data Science capability, aligned to Haleon’s Data & AI strategy.

This role sits at the intersection of advanced analytics, AI, product leadership and business value realisation. The Principal Data Science Lead provides leadership across complex, high impact Data Science initiatives, ensuring that solutions are outcome‑led, scalable and trusted, and that Data Science becomes a sustained driver of commercial value across Haleon.

This is a unique opportunity to grow and lead a global team of highly skilled Data Scientists, influence senior stakeholders, and embed a product and value‑led mindset across the organisation. The role requires a leader who combines deep scientific credibility with strong business orientation and enterprise thinking.

The role is part of the Data Science team in the Data & AI Office and will report to the Head of Data Science. The job holder will be based in Bangalore.

Key responsibilities

Enterprise & Capability Leadership:

• Shape and evolve Haleon’s global Data Science capability, aligned to the Data & AI strategy.

• Set clear standards for Data Science delivery, reuse and governance to enable scale and trust.

• Act as a senior thought leader and trusted advisor to business, data and technology leaders.

Portfolio & Value Delivery:

• Provide oversight across a portfolio of high‑impact Data Science initiatives, prioritised by business value.

• Ensure Data Science products are outcome‑led, with clear KPIs, value tracking and accountability.

• Embed agile, hypothesis‑driven ways of working across teams.

Technical & Scientific Leadership:

• Lead the design and application of advanced analytics, machine learning and AI solutions.

• Guide teams on modelling approaches, data quality, model performance and lifecycle management.

• Ensure solutions are scalable, robust and fit for enterprise deployment.

Innovation & Thought Leadership:

• Stay current on Data Science and AI trends, translating relevant advances into business opportunities.

• Shape the Data Science innovation agenda, balancing experimentation with scalability and governance.

• Ensure promising ideas move efficiently from proof‑of‑concept to enterprise deployment.

• Bring external thinking and best practices into Haleon to strengthen the Data Science capability.

People & Talent Leadership:

• Build, inspire and develop a high‑performing global team of Data Scientists.

• Coach and mentor senior Data Scientists and people managers.

• Foster a culture of technical excellence, continuous learning and commercial focus.

Domain & Platform Expertise

You will bring:

• Advanced knowledge of modern Data Science and AI toolsets.

• Experience operating in cloud‑based and big‑data environments.

• The ability to shape and optimise Data Science technology environments.

• Deep expertise in at least one core Data Science specialism, with sufficient breadth to guide multidisciplinary teams.

Qualifications and skills

• MSc or PhD in Data Science, Computer Science, Applied Mathematics, Statistics or a related discipline.

• Significant experience leading enterprise‑scale Data Science teams and initiatives.

• Proven ability to operate at Principal/ enterprise level, influencing senior stakeholders.

• Strong strategic and commercial mindset, with the ability to identify, assess and prioritise value.

• Experience delivering Data Science solutions through agile, product‑centric delivery models.

• Recognised thought leadership in your scientific or technical discipline.

 Job Posting End Date

Equal Opportunities

Haleon are committed to mobilising our purpose in a way that represents the diverse consumers and communities who rely on our brands every day. It guides us in creating an inclusive culture, where different backgrounds and views are valued and respected – all in support of understanding and best serving the needs of our consumers and unleashing the full potential of our people. It’s important to us that Haleon is a place where all our employees feel they truly belong.

During the application process, we may ask you to share some personal information, which is entirely voluntary. This information ensures we meet certain regulatory and reporting obligations and supports the development, refinement, and execution of our inclusion and belonging programmes that are open to all Haleon employees. 

The personal information you provide will be kept confidential, used only for legitimate business purposes, and will never be used in making any employment decisions, including hiring decisions.

Adjustment or Accommodations Request

If you require a reasonable adjustment or accommodation or other assistance to apply for a job at Haleon at any stage of the application process, please let your recruiter know by providing them with a description of specific adjustments you are requesting. We’ll provide all reasonable adjustments to support you throughout the recruitment process and treat all information you provide us in confidence. 

Note to candidates

The Haleon recruitment team will contact you using a Haleon email account (@haleon.com). If you are not sure whether the email you received is from Haleon, please get in touch.