Cosmetic Chemist Jobs in Decatur, GA (NOW HIRING)

Job ID: 16599
Alternate Locations: United States-Massachusetts-Whately
Newell Brands is a leading consumer products company with a portfolio of iconic brands like Graco®, Coleman®, Oster®, Rubbermaid®, Sharpie® and Yankee Candle® - and 24,000 talented teammates around the world. Our culture is built on values in action: Integrity, Teamwork, Passion for Winning, Ownership, and Leadership. We work together to win, grow, and make a real impact-supported by a high-performing, inclusive, and collaborative environment where you can be your best, every day.
Job Summary:
The Sr. Lead, Segment Ingetration - Candles (Home & Fragrance) is a central, capability-focused role responsible for driving integration and synergy of the Candle manufacturing capability across Newell's plants - the wax and fragrance formulation and dosing, pouring and filling, wick technology, curing and decoration that produce candles and home-fragrance products (Home & Fragrance segment). Traveling across plants, the SPI harmonizes candle standards, formulation and process practices, drives cross-plant synergies (common wax and fragrance systems, wicks, containers, filling and decoration standards, suppliers), and feeds capability intelligence back into the MDC / NPC and ERA / DFM organizations.
This is an influence-and-integration role: the SPI does not hold change-control authority, but instead aligns, recommends and coordinates to keep the Candle capability consistent, modern and cost-effective across sites. Reporting directly to the MDC Director. The SPI acts as the connective tissue between plants, NPC design, ERA / DFM and formulation / filling / sourcing, capturing synergy opportunities and ensuring that standards, technology and learnings flow across the network.
Job Duties:
Cross-Plant Candle Integration & Synergy
• Drive synergy of the Candle capability across plants - common wax and fragrance systems, wicks, containers / jars, filling and decoration standards, and suppliers.
• Identify, quantify and champion synergy and cost-reduction opportunities (wax / fragrance harmonization, wick and container commonality, filling automation, scrap and yield improvement).
• Harmonize candle standards, formulations and process practices across sites.
• Share and scale best practices, lessons learned and proven solutions across the network.
Candle Standards & Process Consistency
• Ensure candle standards, specs and process / burn-quality requirements are consistently understood and applied across plants - without owning change control.
• Provide candle manufacturing expertise (wax and fragrance, pouring / filling, wick setting, curing, decoration) to plant teams.
• Flag process gaps, quality and safety risks and deviations to the relevant owners (plant / NPI / ERA-DFM) and support resolution.
Wax, Fragrance & Filling Technology
• Support harmonization of wax / fragrance formulation and dosing, filling / pouring and decoration technology across plants.
• Promote adoption of advanced filling automation, process control and burn-quality improvements.
• Partner with wax, fragrance, wick and container suppliers on standards, feasibility and cost.
Capability Intelligence & DFM Linkage
• Capture candle capability intelligence (yield, scrap, burn quality, scent throw, line performance) and feed it back into NPC design and ERA / DFM.
• Ensure new product designs leverage the network's candle capabilities and standards (design for filling and burn performance).
• Maintain a capability-level view of candles across the network.
Cost & VAVE Synergy Support
• Support cost analyses and VAVE by surfacing candle commonality and synergy (wax and fragrance, wicks, containers, filling).
• Partner with Cost Engineering, sourcing and the laboratory on should-cost, benchmarking and cost-reduction that scales across sites.
Key Deliverables:
• Cross-plant Candle synergy and commonality pipeline
• Harmonized candle standards, formulations and process practices
• Candle capability intelligence feedback to NPC / DFM
• Best-practice and lessons-learned playbooks
• Synergy / cost-reduction results (influenced across the network)
Minimum Qualifications:
• Bachelor's Degree in Engineering or Chemistry (Chemical, Materials, Manufacturing, Mechanical or related).
• Strong experience in candle, fragrance / cosmetics, filling or formulation manufacturing (or closely related high-volume filling / formulation production).
• Understanding of wax / fragrance formulation and dosing, filling processes, wick technology and burn / product quality.
• Proven ability to influence and drive alignment across teams and plants without direct authority.
• Advanced English (written and spoken).
• Willingness and ability to travel extensively across plants.
Preferred Qualifications:
• Experience working across multiple plants, sites or regions.
• Candle / home-fragrance experience (wax, fragrance, wicks, containers, burn performance), including candle safety standards (e.g., ASTM F2417).
• Knowledge of filling automation, DFM, VAVE and tooling / equipment cost.
• Lean Six Sigma and/or project management background.
• Spanish and/or Portuguese.
Skills & Abilities:
• Deep candle / formulation and filling manufacturing expertise.
• Strong influence, collaboration and stakeholder management across sites and cultures.
• Ability to see the big picture across a capability and connect the dots between plants.
• Comfortable operating without formal authority - leading through expertise and relationships.
• Self-directed and mobile; analytical, cost-aware problem solver.
Travel:
• Extensive travel plants, with periodic global travel, is a core requirement of this role.
"The base pay range for this position is from $111,200 to $152,900. Salary will be based on prior experience related to the skills required for this position."
Newell Brands (NASDAQ: NWL) is a leading global consumer goods company with a strong portfolio of well-known brands, including Rubbermaid, Sharpie, Graco, Coleman, Rubbermaid Commercial Products, Yankee Candle, Paper Mate, FoodSaver, Dymo, EXPO, Elmer's, Oster, NUK, Spontex and Campingaz. We are focused on delighting consumers by lighting up everyday moments. Newell Brands and its subsidiaries are Equal Opportunity Employers and comply with applicable employment laws. EOE/M/F/Vet/Disabled are encouraged to apply.
Date Posted: Aug 7, 2026