Sustainability + Circularity Technical Manager

Avery Dennison (NYSE: AVY) is a global materials science company specializing in the design and manufacture of a wide variety of labeling and functional materials. The company’s products, which are used in nearly every major industry, include pressure-sensitive materials for labels and graphic applications; tapes and other bonding solutions for industrial, medical, and retail applications; tags, labels and embellishments for apparel; and radio frequency identification (RFID) solutions serving retail apparel and other markets. Headquartered in Glendale, California, the company employs more than 32,000 employees in more than 50 countries. Reported sales in 2020 were $7.0 billion. Learn more at www.averydennison.com.  

POSITION OVERVIEW:

Avery Dennison was created to make a difference. Our founder, Stan Avery, believed that a values-driven company could be both a profitable enterprise and a force for good.

As a global materials science company, inventing materials, improving how they’re made, and expanding what they can do, is how we make a difference in the world. On any given day, hundreds of millions of people are touched by a product, process, or experience made possible by the things we make.  We’re  making a difference by delivering innovations that advance the circular economy, reducing our environmental impact, and being a force for good, adding value for all our stakeholders.

If you want to make a difference and help build the future, we are seeking a Sustainability & Circularity Technical Manager to join our team.  The primary objectives of this newly created role is to develop deep technical expertise in sustainability and recycling, specifically label by-product waste of matrix and release liners and leveraging that expertise to develop and manage a network of key recycling associations and intersecting regulatory bodies, playing an active role in the technical workstreams to lead and influence. This role would also provide guidance and support to converters and brands on technical questions in designing for sustainability, recyclability, and related certifications, being a key voice in developing the near and long term direction of sustainability efforts in North America. 

This unique and critical role will also focus on growing, leveraging and educating strategic partners in the value chain to uncover innovative opportunities that advance the circular economy and sharing that knowledge throughout our technical communities and commercial teams with the aim to deliver more value to our converters and their brands as the industry leader in sustainable solutions.  

Key responsibilities of this role:

• As the technical expert, actively engage with associations, leveraging knowledge and relationships to influence and educate both internally and externally 

• Monitor and understand packaging and sustainability trends 

• Collaborating with regional R&D, provide technical project leadership in external association  initiatives such as the Association of Plastics Recyclers (APR) PP recycling, metal sortation, and flex pack

• Monitor regulatory bodies (national/state), leveraging technical expertise to influence as the technical expert

• Monitor and understand packaging recycling regulatory impacts to the pressure sensitive label (PSL) industry, sharing that knowledge internally as the NA representative in the global Government Affairs team and externally as needed 

• Provide technical consultation to converters and brands to better understand their processes and pain points specific to label by-product waste

• Provide technical support on product sustainability and recycling

• Provide technical consultation for sustainable certifications and standards (including FSC, APR, How2Recycle)

• Support the adoption of EcoDesign, our internal sustainability design scoring system, increasing R&D and marketing engagement

• Support  Product Carbon Footprinting Tool implementation, providing technical support of data translations

• Build the framework for effective collaboration between global and regional teams to advance from technical concept to business case to tangible deliverables 

• Collaborate with other regions for global harmonization across associations such as APR + EPBP/Recyclass/EPR

• Be an active participant in the newly created global Recycling Community of Practice (CoP)

• BS Engineering, preferably Packaging, Chemical, or Polymer Science, with experience and understanding of technical packaging recycling/sustainability, or BS Environmental Sciences/Ecology or demonstrated relevant experience

• Preferably 8+ years of relevant job experience in the fields of engineering and sustainability with demonstrated project management skills 

• Be a strategic thinker, tactical executioner, and a role model for sustainable change with a penchant to go-figure-it-out

• High energy, passion for excellence, bias for action

• Demonstrated ability to effectively lead and sustain change, influence others  

• Effective oral and written communication skills; ability to effectively present complex technical topics in a concise manner across various audiences  

• Effective interpersonal skills dealing with people at various levels and in a variety of functions

• Creativity, out of the norm thinking around what is possible

• Self-driven and ability to rapidly adapt and respond to changes in environment and priorities

• A passion for solving problems that get in the way of building the future

• Willingness to travel up to ~25%

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status or other protected status. EEOE/M/F/Vet/Disabled. All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

If you require accommodations to view or apply for a job, alternative methods are available to submit an application. Please contact 440.534.6080 or [email protected] to discuss reasonable accommodations.