Director, Product Stewardship & Regulatory Programs

This is where your work makes a difference. At Baxter, we believe every person—regardless of who they are or where they are from—deserves a chance to live a healthy life. It was our founding belief in 1931 and continues to be our guiding principle. We are redefining healthcare delivery to make a greater impact today, tomorrow, and beyond. Our Baxter colleagues are united by our Mission to Save and Sustain Lives. Together, our community is driven by a culture of courage, trust, and collaboration. Every individual is empowered to take ownership and make a meaningful impact. We strive for efficient and effective operations, and we hold each other accountable for delivering exceptional results. Here, you will find more than just a job—you will find purpose and pride. Your Role at Baxter Baxter is seeking an experienced leader to oversee Product Stewardship and the execution of environmental and social product-related regulatory programs across the enterprise. This role is responsible for monitoring emerging regulations, assessing business applicability, establishing implementation roadmaps, and driving cross-functional execution to ensure compliance across Baxter's global portfolio. The leader will work closely with business segments, drive collaboration with other functions such as R&D, Regulatory Affairs, Quality, and Legal, and Operations teams to translate evolving requirements into practical and timely actions. Success in this role requires exceptional program management, organizational leadership, and execution capabilities. The individual must be skilled at coordinating complex initiatives across multiple stakeholders, driving accountability, and ensuring that Baxter remains ahead of regulatory requirements while proactively identifying opportunities to develop products and solutions that meet future market needs. The role serves as a critical connection point between regulatory developments and commercial opportunity. By helping the business understand where regulations are heading, this leader will enable segments to make informed product, packaging, materials, and portfolio decisions that strengthen Baxter's competitive edge and support evolving customer expectations. What you'll be doing Regulatory Monitoring and Business Impact Assessment Lead Baxter's global monitoring and assessment of environmental, product, packaging, chemical, circular economy, and social regulatory developments. Establish structured processes for evaluating applicability across business segments, product categories, and geographic markets. Develop risk assessments and implementation plans for emerging regulations. Maintain an enterprise regulatory roadmap and prioritization framework. Provide actionable recommendations to segment leaders regarding potential business impacts and required actions. Enterprise Compliance Program Leadership Lead execution of product stewardship programs addressing chemicals compliance, packaging regulations, extended producer responsibility requirements, product environmental requirements, human rights due diligence, and other emerging obligations. Establish governance, timelines, milestones, and accountability mechanisms to ensure on-time implementation. Drive enterprise-wide readiness activities and compliance programs. Track progress, escalate risks, and ensure effective issue resolution. Develop and oversee internal reporting mechanisms for compliance status, milestones, and program performance. Regulatory Readiness and Market Leadership Partner with business segments to identify areas where Baxter can proactively address future regulatory requirements. Translate regulatory trends into opportunities for product and portfolio innovation. Support the development of sustainable product, packaging, and material solutions that position Baxter ahead of future requirements. Enable "first-to-market" approaches where emerging regulatory trends create opportunities for competitive differentiation. Ensure product stewardship considerations are incorporated into new product development and lifecycle management processes. Cross-Functional Execution and Program Management Lead large-scale, cross-functional initiatives involving R&D, Quality, Regulatory Affairs, Legal, Procurement, Supply Chain, Operations, and Commercial teams. Establish clear ownership, decision-making structures, and implementation plans. Drive execution through disciplined project management practices. Remove barriers, resolve conflicts, and maintain momentum across multiple concurrent programs. Build repeatable processes and operating mechanisms to scale regulatory compliance efforts across Baxter. Commercial and Customer Enablement Partner with Commercial Sustainability and segment leadership teams to understand evolving customer requirements and market expectations. Provide regulatory and product sustainability expertise to support customer tenders, audits, questionnaires, and product inquiries. Help commercial teams understand how regulatory trends may influence future purchasing decisions and customer expectations. Support development of product-level sustainability information and compliance documentation needed for customers and health systems. Leadership and Governance Lead the Product Stewardship function and associated governance forums. Provide regular updates to the Sustainability Leadership Team and executive leadership. Build strong partnerships across business segments and functional organizations. Foster a culture of accountability, execution excellence, and proactive problem solving. What you'll bring Required Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Chemistry, Environmental Science, Regulatory Affairs, Life Sciences, Business, or related field. 10+ years of experience in product stewardship, regulatory affairs, environmental compliance, product compliance, quality systems, or related disciplines. Demonstrated experience leading complex global compliance or regulatory implementation programs. Strong understanding of environmental and social regulations impacting products, packaging, chemicals, materials, and supply chains. Exceptional project management and execution skills. Proven ability to lead large cross-functional initiatives and drive organizational accountability. Strong business acumen and ability to translate regulatory developments into practical business actions. Preferred Medical device, pharmaceutical, healthcare, or other highly regulated industry experience. Experience with REACH, RoHS, PFAS regulations, Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), conflict minerals, and human rights due diligence requirements. Experience working directly with product development, R&D, quality, and regulatory teams. Program Management Professional (PMP) certification or equivalent project management experience. Experience supporting customer sustainability requests, tenders, or product-level regulatory disclosures. We understand compensation is an important factor as you consider the next step in your career. At Baxter, we are committed to equitable pay for all employees, and we strive to be more transparent with our pay pract