Exploration Lead

Job Description

WHAT YOU WILL DO

At H&M Group, we’re rethinking the future of fashion – and the role it plays in people’s lives and the world around us.

The Innovation & Exploration team sits at the center of this ambition and we are a central function responsible for shaping and driving the group’s innovation and exploration portfolio. We turn emerging signals, technologies and strategic questions into tangible bets that shape real business decisions.

As an Exploration Lead, you take ideas from ambiguity to evidence. You lead hands-on exploration that influences what we build, scale or leave behind. This is not a pure strategy role. The core of the role is execution in real contexts, where learning is generated through doing.

You will typically start with a focus in one of two ways of driving innovation.

Embedded Exploration (Core Integration)

You work closely with the core business, translating strategic priorities into experiments, pilots and prototypes in real operational environments. You collaborate directly with business teams to generate evidence and help move validated initiatives toward integration, scaling or clear stop decisions.

Independent Exploration

You operate more autonomously to explore opportunities beyond today’s business. You shape and test new concepts, products or business models in a more independent setup, working fast, iterating quickly and building early evidence to support investment, scaling or stopping.

Across both, you will:

• Design and run experiments, pilots and prototypes in real-world contexts
• Turn opportunities into testable initiatives that generate decision-relevant evidence
• Drive work through clear decision points: continue, pivot, scale or stop
• Navigate complexity and align stakeholders to enable progress
• Contribute to investment decisions by assessing risk, potential and outcomes

Over time, you will work across both modes and contribute to the full exploration portfolio.

WHO YOU WILL WORK WITH

You will work at the intersection of strategy, innovation and business, collaborating closely with senior leaders and teams across H&M Group. The role involves partnering with strategy and business leadership, innovation and venture teams and functional experts to shape and progress exploration initiatives. You will engage with finance and investment stakeholders to support evidence‑based decisions and, where relevant, work with external partners, startups and ecosystems. The role operates across functions and geographies and requires confidence navigating senior stakeholders in early‑stage and ambiguous contexts.

WHO YOU ARE

You are motivated by turning uncertainty into progress and ideas into tangible outcomes. You take ownership in complex, ambiguous environments and are comfortable making decisions when not everything is defined. You combine curiosity with strong execution capability and are driven by creating real business impact.

Across both focus areas, you bring:

• Experience from innovation, strategy, venture building, entrepreneurship, consulting or cross‑functional leadership environments
• A track record of working with exploration, experimentation or early‑stage initiatives in uncertain contexts
• Solid business and commercial judgement, including the ability to assess risk, potential and trade‑offs
• Experience navigating senior stakeholders and complex organisations
• The ability to structure ambiguous problems and translate opportunities into actionable initiatives
• High ownership and accountability, with the ability to drive progress with incomplete information
• Fluency in English, spoken and written

We are looking for senior profiles with demonstrated impact. Typically, this means around 8+ years of relevant experience in core business contexts or 5–10+ years in venture, startup or entrepreneurial environments. If you recognise yourself in the role and bring strong delivery experience, we encourage you to apply regardless of how your career path looks.

You are likely to recognise yourself more strongly in one of the following backgrounds. You have led cross-functional initiatives within established organisations and worked with experimentation or structured innovation close to operations and existing business models. Alternatively, you have built or helped build new products, services or businesses from scratch, or worked in environments where rapid testing and validation are central. Over time, you are expected to broaden your experience across both.

WHO WE ARE

H&M Group is a global company of strong fashion brands and ventures. Our goal is to prove that there is no compromise between exceptional design, affordable prices and sustainable solutions. We want to liberate fashion for the many and our customers are at the heart of every decision we make.

We are made up of thousands of passionate and talented colleagues united by our shared culture and values. Together we want to use our power, our scale and our knowledge to push the fashion industry towards a more inclusive and sustainable future. Read more about us here

WHY YOU’LL LOVE WORKING HERE

At H&M Group we are proud to be a vibrant and welcoming company. We offer our employees attractive benefits with extensive development opportunities around the globe.

An example of our benefits:

• 25% Staff discount on all our H&M Group brands both in stores and online (H&M, COS, Weekday, Monki, H&M HOME, & Other Stories and ARKET).
• H&M Incentive Programme – HIP. Learn more about the programme here.

JOIN US

Our uniqueness comes from a combination of many things – our inclusive and collaborative culture, our strong values, and opportunities for growth. But most of all, it’s our people who make us who we are.

Take the next step in your career together with us. The journey starts here.

This is a permanent position based in Stockholm, please send your CV in English as soon as possible.

*We are committed to a recruitment process that is fair, equitable, and based on competency. We therefore kindly ask you to not attach a cover letter in your application.