Dr. Iris V. Schumacher is the R&D Manager for Global Product Development at Kimberly-Clark Professional.  She is responsible for the leadership of a global team that drives end-to-end innovation for the critical hygiene categories of skincare, wipers, and towel/bath tissue supporting the Kleenex®, Cottonelle®, Scott®, and WypAll® brands. Iris has an incredible passion for building exceptional teams by fostering a team culture that enables people to bring their best selves to their work and cultivates excitement to drive results.  She enjoys the opportunity to bring her technical, innovation, and marketing background to inspire and direct the development of the next era of breakthrough hygiene products for Kimberly-Clark Professional. 

In her most recent role as the R&E Manager for Absorbency Technologies within the Global Nonwovens sector of Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Iris developed an absorbency technology strategy that enabled her team to exceed on commercialization and front-end innovation plans. In addition, she positioned her team to deliver on multimillion-dollar cost savings and nonwoven technology capital appropriation programs.

Iris has held several marketing leadership positions at Kimberly-Clark which include her role as the Global Healthcare Segment Marketing Leader for Kimberly-Clark Professional.  In this role, she achieved several firsts for the healthcare segment.  These included the creation of the first global strategic business plan which strengthened Kimberly-Clark Professional’s global position in the healthcare market; the development and launch of the first healthcare commercial program, “Healing Home”, which enabled partnerships within the healthcare industry; and the development of the first globally aligned strategic innovation pathways positioning the segment for regional growth.

Iris holds a Ph.D. in Materials Science & Engineering specializing in biomaterials, biopolymers, and drug delivery systems and a B.S. in Materials Science & Engineering specializing in medical plastics from the University of Florida.