Belinda Driscoll has been named the new Managing Director of personal care product manufacturer Kimberly-Clark, becoming the youngest and first female MD in the company’s ANZ region.
Driscoll comes to the leadership role at Kimberly-Clark with extensive experience in the consumer product sector, having spent 17 years at Johnson & Johnson in both international and local leadership roles. Most recently, Driscoll led the largest business unit within Johnson & Johnson Medical, as the Sales and Marketing Lead for Sutures.
Driscoll first joined Kimberly-Clark in 2020, as its Senior Marketing Director. During her time in the role, the business saw a 13 per cent increase in its retail sales value, driven by strong market share results across its Huggies and U by Kotex brands.
Driscoll said she will remain focused on the wellbeing of Kimberly-Clark’s people, its community, and the planet.
“We have a team of very passionate people working hard to reduce our environmental impact every single day, not only because it is crucial to strengthening our portfolio of brands, it’s high on the list of employee expectations too,” Driscoll said in light of her promotion to Managing Director.
“Our focus on building local talent and capability, diversity and inclusion, and our commitment to our communities and reconciliation are also very important to me and our business.
“I believe they are key to building a more positive work culture and greater engagement because they are areas that our people really care about; they provide a strong sense of purpose.”
Based in Sydney, Driscoll officially started in her new role in late 2021, replacing Doug Cunningham.
Her appointment to Managing Director is one of several new appointments at Kimberly-Clark, which has seen a 44 per cent increase in female representation in its leadership team. In 2019, there was 1 woman (out of 9 positions) in leadership at the company – now, there are 5 female leaders.
Driscoll said she is committed to developing further opportunities for staff.
“Our growing team is a reflection of the exceptional talent we have in the ANZ business. We have a number of capability programs running through, and an extensive training ground for our people. In the last year we’ve seen several local and international promotions which is a reflection of the importance of career progression at K-CANZ.”