Digital Transformation Community Thought Leader Interview: Pete Dulcamara, Chief Scientist & Technical Vice President, Kimberly-Clark

July 2021

Listen as IRI’s Lee Green interviews Kimberly-Clark’s Chief Scientist and Technical Vice President, Pete Dulcamara.  Pete brings a macro viewpoint on the changes that digital transformation can bring to an organization, to what is traditionally thought of as innovation, and to society as a whole.  Learn about humanity-centric innovation, Kimberly-Clark’s goal to improve the lives of a billion people, and the new ways that companies will survive and thrive in the 21st century.

Pete Dulcamara serves as the chief scientist and technical vice president for Kimberly-Clark. In his role, he combines the consumer insights of today with predictive data, trends and habits of the future to uncover new opportunities and innovation for the global consumer goods company as it seeks to connect with consumers through breakthrough essential products, including iconic brands such as Huggies, Cottonelle, Kleenex, Scott, Kotex, Depend and more.  Dulcamara is a challenger, coach and catalyst for the enterprise strategies while fostering a culture of scientific excellence driven through value creation. As a leader of Kimberly-Clark’s research and engineering organization, he has guided advanced scientific research and technology development in the areas of advanced materials, life and analytical sciences, modeling and simulation, technology licensing, and reimaging innovation.  Dulcamara is a passionate proponent of sustainability strategies and the circular economy, using advances in data science, materials science, and artificial intelligence to unlock promising solutions. He regularly represents Kimberly-Clark as a featured speaker at conferences around the world, receiving rave reviews for his “thought-provoking” content, “powerful and innovative” storytelling, and “insightful” applications.  Before joining Kimberly-Clark, Dulcamara spent 18 years with The Dow Chemical Company, where he held various positions for numerous businesses in research and development, new business development, sustainable development, mergers and acquisitions, corporate licensing, and new ventures.  Dulcamara is a member of the Partnership Council for the Toilet Board Coalition, which is a global, business-led alliance of leading companies, government agencies, sanitation experts and nonprofit organizations with the aim to develop commercially sustainable and scalable solutions to the global sanitation crisis.  He serves as an Innovation Fellow at TitleTownTech, a joint venture between Microsoft and the Green Bay Packers to enable and invest in early-stage businesses. In addition, he is on the board of directors for Bassett Mechanical, Void Polymers in the UK, and the Wisconsin Technology Council, which is the science and technology advisor to Wisconsin’s governor and the legislature. He is also an emeritus board member for NEW North, a regional economic development organization for Northeast Wisconsin.  Dulcamara has a Bachelor of Science in chemistry with minors in mathematics and physics from Cameron University, and a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in chemical engineering from Oklahoma State University. He is also an alumnus of The Prince of Wales’s Business & Sustainability Programme through the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership.