Scope:Global, Full time
Reports to: CTIO
Location:Americas, preferred Mexico,
If you are in the Unilever Ice Cream business or consider choosing to work for the Unilever Ice Cream business, you will work for the Global, leading Ice Cream player with €7.9bn Turn Over in 2023. The Ice Cream business is operating in a highly attractive category, as we are part of the 1 trillion snacking and refreshment industry, growing consistently at high pace. We have strong brands equities: 5 of top 10 selling brands including Wall’s, Magnum, Ben &Jerry’s. We are investing to unlock the full growth potential of Ice Cream as a standalone entity, once we separate from Unilever, which is planned to happen by November 2025.
Ice Cream has distinct characteristics from Unilever’s other operating businesses and the growth potential of Ice Cream will be better delivered under a different ownership structure. As Ice Cream company we are committed to developing and nurturing talent within our Ice Cream company. You will have ample options for career growth and exploration, allowing you for you to explore roles and opportunities across the new organisation. Your career development will be a priority for us, and we are dedicated to supporting your growth journey within the new company.We hope that you will want to build the new chapter of our Ice Cream history together with us.
ABOUT ICE CREAM: Life Tastes Better With Ice Cream
Unilever Ice Cream is the largest global Ice Cream Company in the world, with over 100 years of experience delivering a diverse range of indulgent, yet responsible, craft food experiences and treats delighting consumers. Committed to innovation, quality, and sustainability we have 35 brands, including 3 one billion Euro brands (Magnum, Wall’s, Ben & Jerry’s), a strong presence in over 60 countries, generating annual revenue of over $8 billion. All brands are driven to transform moments into memories through indulgent yet responsibly made and marketed products. We have a well-developed strategy to deliver growth and value creation which is clear on where to play and how to win.
We turn the ordinary into the extraordinary by designing unique and innovative Ice Cream experiences that make life taste better, creating joyful experiences. In our Ice Cream business, we’re crafting the future through innovation and imaginative minds, creating unique products. We spark moments of happiness for people and within the communities where we operate. However, it is not as simple as it may seem. As Ice Cream makers we are serious about happiness. With warm hearts, we create the coolest products.
JOB PURPOSE:
As part of our growth strategy, we are seeking a dynamic highly skilledIT Business Demand/Engagement Lead for Americas region to join our dynamic team and lead the implementation of all required technology application and datacapabilities for Ice Cream in this region.
The newly created Ice Cream Technology function will drive the technology set-up, standalone design and implementation of all required technology capabilities to enable Unilever’s Ice Cream business to become a fully functioning standalone company, separate from Unilever.
The IT Business Demand/Engagement Lead Americasisresponsible forsupporting the design of global templated solutions, lead the implementation, and ensuring ongoing management of technology applications across theAmericasorganisation including the roll outs oftech and data capabilities in this region. This role is crucial for driving the digital transformation strategy on the ground and ensuring that all applications meet the evolving needs of the business, support operational efficiency, and enable strategic growth while meeting expected performance standards. The IT Business Demand/Engagement Lead Americas will collaborate with stakeholders across the organisation in the region to deploy and run enterprise technology solutions end to end and ensure the company is equipped to handle future technological challenges. This role will work closely with the tech Establishment Programme Lead,other technology teams, Establishment team and functions/stakeholder in the region for the Ice Cream business and collaborate with UniOps to support the overall set up of a future-fit IT function for the standalone Ice Cream organisation.
The candidate comes with a strong ability to understand complex business processes and business requirements in the Americas region and translate them into technical solutions to deliver on those requirements.Therefore,excellent understanding of the interactions between people, processes and technology is key to succeed as well as up-to-date knowledge of best practice applications design and experience of complex applications development projects.
The IT Business Demand/Engagement Lead Americas oversees sequencing of product launch and inter-dependencies with other products in the region.
This role will also support technology roadmap discussions and design of templated solutions for the region.
The successful candidate will be one that has significant IT expertise with a proven record of leading large-scale technology transformation and has a passion for building world class technology and a desire to make a meaningful impact. Post establishment this role will continue to business partner key senior stakeholders, capture business demands and strategy within the region and drive the technology roadmap on a continuous basis with global tech teams and Leadership team.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:
The IT Business Demand/Engagement LeadAmericasisresponsible for leading planning, implementation, and ongoing management of technology applications across the Americas organisation. This role will report to the CTIO (until all tech Leadership roles are filled) and indirectly to the tech Establishment lead (for the Establishment Programme).
Strategic Leadership:
Support to develop a strategic portfolio of tech capabilities, data strategy and emerging tech for Americas region
Lead the assessmentand implementation of new technology applications to support business processes and objectives in Americas region
Stay ahead of emerging technology trends to identify opportunities for innovation and efficiency improvements.
Lead and oversee the technology transformation governance for the region and own and manage the overall technology & D&A Risks as we transition to the Ice Cream Technology end state
Lead overall technology governance for projects and services for the region in end state
Product / Project Management & Delivery
Oversee the full lifecycle of application deployments in Americas - from requirements gathering, design, E2E planning to implementation and post-deployment continuous improvement and run.
Partner and work closely with other tech and transformation teams to ensure E2E tech deployments land successfully in Americas.
Ensure projects are delivered on time, within scope, and within budget, while meeting quality and performance standards.
Implement best practices for project management, including risk management, resource allocation, and stakeholder communication.
Driving a stop, start, continue approach to D&A and support the deployment of new needs for Ice Cream
Team Leadership & Development:
Help build and lead a high-performing team of business partners and analysts in the region
Foster a culture of collaboration, continuous learning, and innovation within the team and partnership ecosystem.
Provide mentorship and professional development opportunities to ensure the team remains aligned with business needs and technology advancements.
Stakeholder Engagement:
Serve as the primary point of contact between IT, the functions and business units for all matters in the respective region.
Work closely with business leaders to understand their needs and translate them into technical requirements.
Communicate effectively with all levels of the organisation to ensure alignment on project goals, progress, and challenges.
Capture and prioritize business demands, support with business case creations
Application Management & Support:
Ensure the ongoing maintenance, support, and enhancement of existing applications.
Develop and enforce application governance policies, standards, and procedures.
Ensuring service levels are met and value is delivered in the region
Monitoring and governing the TSA for the region
Act as a point of escalation to key stakeholders in the region for any service issues
Budgeting & Financial Management:
Develop and manage the Operational and Project budget for the region, ensuring efficient allocation of resources.
Critically evaluate and track financial investments in new applications, upgrades, and ongoing maintenance.
Innovation & Future-readiness:
Champion the adoption of new technologies and practices that will future-proof the organisation.
Work with other tech teams on initiatives that explore and exploit new technology trends and innovations, such as cloud, AI/ML, GenAI and data analytics.
Work on business demands and technology/data strategy and roadmap for the region
WHAT YOU NEED TO SUCCEED:
The preferred candidate would have 10+ years of IT experience, including deployments of larger scale transformation and complex application programmes. Following key skills:
Proven track record of leading large-scale technology projects and managing enterprise application portfolios.
Deep knowledge of application lifecycle management, software development methodologies, and IT service management. With significant experience of cloud-based solutions
Deep knowledge of emerging technologies, including cloud, AI/ML, GenAI and data
A deep understanding of the businessand levers to pull, engaging others to prioritise and pursue opportunities that deliver significant growth for Unilever/IC and have a positive impact on the world.
Ability to cope with uncertainty and drive through change
Good prioritisation skills
Owner’s mindset: Using financial acumen, data, and insights to inform their thinking that both makes the complex simple for others, creating a sense of urgency with a business edge and can show how those insights have created impact and delivered business value.
Functional, Business and Commercial Acumen: Understanding of various business and functional models, industry dynamics, and market trends is crucial, combined with a deep understanding of how Unilever Ice Cream serves consumers and correlatedly creating an IT function poised to create a sustainable competitive and effective operation.
Change Leadership and Communication prowess. Leading and landing transformative change, comfortable experimenting with innovative approaches, pushing themselves and others to achieve outstanding outcomes. Crafting communication narrative that is inspiring and compelling to drive change.
Analytical and problem-solving Expertise: Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a proactive approach to identifying and addressing risks, issues and dependencies.
Stakeholder Management skills
LEADERSHIP:
Critical SOL (Standards of Leadership) Behaviors
PERSONAL MASTERY: Sets high standards for themselves. Has emotional intelligence to take feedback, manage mood and motivations, and build empathy for others.
PASSION FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE: Generates intensity and focus to motivate people to deliver results at speed. Takes personal responsibility and accountability for execution and results.
CONSUMER LOVE: Invests time inside and outside to understand the needs of consumers.
BUSINESS ACUMEN: Creates sustainable growth with purpose, engaging different partners across the system for change.
Unilever is an organisation committed to equity, inclusion and diversity to drive our business results and create a better future, every day, for our diverse employees, global consumers, partners, and communities. We believe a diverse workforce allows us to match our growth ambitions and drive inclusion across the business. At Unilever we are interested in every individual bringing their ‘Whole Self’ to work and this includes you! Thus if you require any support or access requirements, we encourage you to advise us at the time of your application so that we can support you through your recruitment journey.
Related content
Connect with us
We’re always looking to connect with those who share an interest in a sustainable future.
Contact us
Get in touch with Unilever PLC and specialist teams in our headquarters, or find contacts around the world.
Contact us