Associate Brand Manager, Upstream Marketing & Innovation

Job Summary: The Associate Brand Manager, Upstream Marketing & Innovation serves as a key partner to the Executive Director and broader Upstream Marketing and Innovation team, supporting the development and execution of innovation initiatives across new and existing product portfolios. This role plays an integral part in enabling innovation efforts through project coordination, competitive intelligence, product development support, and cross-functional collaboration. The individual will help drive operational excellence while identifying insights and opportunities that inform future product strategies and innovation pipelines. This role offers broad exposure across innovation, product development, consumer insights, and brand strategy, and is ideal for an organized, proactive, and analytically curious professional with a passion for beauty and emerging trends. Reporting to: Executive Director, Therapeutic Marketing Location: Johnson City, TN - onsite Responsibilities/Essential Duties: New Product Development (NPD) & Innovation Support: Support innovation initiatives across all phases of the new product development lifecycle, partnering closely with cross-functional teams to help drive execution. Coordinate global and product submission mailings to support development initiatives and stakeholder engagement. Support clinical testing and claims development processes, including product ordering, organization of before-and-after presentations, and maintenance of master claims documentation. Manage certification and clean compliance requirements for both new and existing product launches. Lead meeting documentation, action item tracking, and follow-up management for recurring cross-functional project meetings. Develop project-specific competitive analyses and presentations focused on claims, positioning, textures, and innovation benchmarking. Support project timeline management and milestone tracking to ensure initiatives remain on schedule. Competitive Intelligence & Market Insights: Purchase, organize, and distribute competitive product launches to key internal stakeholders for evaluation. Maintain and evolve skincare architecture frameworks and competitive landscapes to identify whitespace opportunities. Monitor and track monthly competitive launches and emerging market activity to identify relevant trends and implications. Conduct ongoing research across social platforms, retailers, and competitor activity to identify innovation opportunities and emerging consumer behaviors. Leverage market research resources, including Circana and Mintel, to gather and synthesize data supporting product development and business recommendations. Translate findings into insights and summaries that support innovation planning and strategic discussions. Team Operations & Executive Support: Provide operational support to the Executive Director and team through coordination of meetings, team sessions, and innovation workshops. Manage team logistics including scheduling, room coordination, and meeting preparation as needed. Maintain and organize department resources, project files, and shared materials to ensure accessibility and consistency. Support ad-hoc requests, project coordination efforts, and team priorities as needed. Identify opportunities to improve processes and create efficiencies across team workflows. Basic Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree & 3+ years’ directly related experience. Preferred Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Business, Communication, or a related field. 3+ years of experience in brand marketing, product development, innovation, consumer products, beauty, or related field. Strong project management and organizational skills, with attention to detail. Advanced proficiency in PowerPoint and Excel. Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Ability to manage multiple projects and shifting priorities in a fast-paced environment. Experience within Beauty, Skincare, Personal Care, or Consumer Packaged Goods