DR. LUCY GILDEA

CHIEF INNOVATION OFFICER, PRODUCT AND SCIENCE 

Dr. Lucy Gildea has over 20 years of experience in global product development across numerous product categories. As Chief Innovation Officer, Dr. Lucy Gildea stands at the forefront of cutting-edge scientific research. Since joining Mary Kay Inc. in 2017, she has helped secure its status as a leading skincare and nutrition innovator in the direct selling and cosmetics industries. 

With more than 1,600 patents for products, technologies, and packaging designs in its global portfolio, Dr. Gildea leads the company’s Global Research and Development, Product Portfolio Strategy and Planning functions to create new Mary Kay products and their Innovation Pipeline for the future. 

Prior to joining Mary Kay, Dr. Gildea excelled during a 15-year career at Procter & Gamble. Working primarily in beauty technology and beauty/skin product development she also held senior roles where she managed the global research and development teams for upstream technology, product development, and measurement sciences across formulated consumer product categories. During her tenure at P&G, Dr. Gildea lived in Singapore, advancing her experience with international markets. 

A graduate of Georgetown College in Georgetown, Kentucky. Dr. Gildea earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology. She continued her education at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine where she earned a Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology, Immunology, and Infectious Diseases. Her academic career also included a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Immunology in a joint appointment with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and the University of Cincinnati Department of Immunology. 

Since 2019, Dr. Gildea has been serving on the Baylor Scott & White Dallas Foundation Board, the Baylor Scott & White Charles A. Sammons Cancer Center Board of Advisors as well as the Board of Directors for Cancer Support Community North Texas.