CMI Growth Partner HC SnA & CMI SnA Lead

Unilever is currently hiring for a CMI GROWTH PARTNER HOMECARE SNA & CMI LEAD SNA

Work Level:  2C

Reports to: 1UL Head of CMI (with a dotted line to GM for SnA)

Scope: Homecare SnA and SnA Business

Location: South Africa (Johannesburg or Durban)

Terms & Conditions: Full time, local terms, no relocation

With 3.4 billion people in over 190 countries using our products every day, Unilever is a business that makes a real impact on the world. Work on brands that are loved and improve the lives of our consumers and the communities around us. We are driven by our purpose: to make sustainable living commonplace, and it is our belief that doing business the right way drives superior performance. At the heart of what we do is our people – we believe that when our people work with purpose, we will create a better business and a better world. 

At Unilever, your career will be a unique journey, grounded in our inclusive, collaborative, and flexible working environment. We don’t believe in the ‘one size fits all’ approach and instead we will equip you with the tools you need to shape your own future.

ABOUT THE CONSUMER & MARKET INSIGHTS FUNCTION (CMI)

CMI is Unilever’s insights & growth engine, fueling the business with data, analytics & insights that help us to build & execute our brands with excellence. Beyond simply providing data & insights, our focus is to generate growth ideas that deliver business impact. We do this through analytical integration of multiple data sets – both internal & external. As well as through leading primary research with consumers & shoppers. We primarily partner marketing/brand and CSP, as well as country GMs, and have a seat at key leadership tables.

JOB PURPOSE

If you are curious by nature, energized by connecting the dots, and uncovering growth opportunities within complex data & research, then this job is for you. In CMI, you have the opportunity to be a master storyteller and influencer, and to use data & insights to solve some of the businesses biggest problems. We are in service of consumers & shoppers and have a responsibility to represent them as an objective, fact-based voice in the business.

WHAT WILL YOUR MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES BE

CMI Growth Partners are BG/brand/strategic priority experts who lead the function regionally within the respective BG, with a seat at the LT table, and a responsibility to lead the CMI BG agenda.  

• This role is an integrated role with a focus on Homecare SnA as well as a BG-agnostic CMI leadership role for SnA partnering the CDLT. However, all CMI roles are expected to flow-to-value, and so there may be times you step beyond this scope (only with approval from CMI Head).

• The goals & workplan will be aligned to Homecare SnA and the CDLT.

• The role will sit on LTs for both HC SnA and the SnA CDLT, and there may also be operational SnA LTs that you will be part of (e.g. quarterly S&OP).

• Partner HC marketing & CDLT on Power Brands & 1UL strategic priorities in Homecare SnA

Homecare SnA responsibilities:

• Identify growth opportunities & drive these into the business, using a variety of data sources - continuous market data (e.g. Nielsen, Scan, Panel, Brand Health etc.), primary & secondary research, custom ad hoc research, pricing analytics, NRM L0-L3 etc. (supported by CMI CD & Perform specialists)

• Strategic partners for the future (e.g. vision, strategic, portfolio choices) – lead strategic research : e.g. L&R, Growth drivers, Pain points, Segmentation, White space, M&A, Competitor Reviews, Demand Spaces etc.

• Advise and challenge the business on innovation strategy creation and execution, as well as on innovation choices, M&A and investment decisions.

• Deliver mix development research (supported by CMI Brand Building specialists)

• Category deep dives of opportunity and performance, Market & category development, 6P & UBS analysis support and diagnostic deep dives.

• Work closely with CMI Head and other CMI members in the MCO/BG to land insights and growth opportunities.

SnA CMI Lead responsibilities:

• Partners SnA GM & SnA CD Head to identify pan-BG / pan-brand growth opportunities (e.g. at channel/retailer level)

• Retailer-facing – leverages performance data, shopping insights and channel insights to strengthen strategic retailer partnerships

• Lead continuous data tracking strategy & implementation, ensuring local team has the right data to power the business. Includes supporting CMI Head to lead local agency partnerships.

• Note: there will be no mundane reporting or L1/L2 data pull requests in this role. All reports should be automated and access to these reports democratised.   

WHAT YOU WILL NEED TO SUCCEED

Experiences & Qualifications

• Minimum bachelor’s degree in social sciences / marketing / business etc.

• 6+ years of experience in CMI, CD, Brand

• Leading & delivering via collaboration

• Experience of creating partnerships with local teams like CD, DMC and marketing and also CMI BG teams. Experience of delivering through others including external partners. Experience in being part of LTs.

• Operational excellence

• Experience in pricing, ranging, in store activation, media etc. Experience in leading innovation development and landing innovation in market

• Business growth opportunity

• Experience of identifying deaveraged opportunities for growth across the 6Ps and market development

• Strategy

• Experience of using available information to create a vision for the future market and make choices of where to play and how to win

• Navigating the organisation

• Experience of limiting duplication and driving best practice in a large organisation.

• Experience in being able to anticipate business needs even before they are clearly articulated through understanding of business priorities and ways of working

Skills

• Marketing & 6P acumen

• Market research & insight generation

• Strong organisation awareness & business acumen  

• Ability to think strategically –design, develop and land country and cross-category level work

• High numeracy. Adept at data synthesis and storytelling

• Creative problem solving & ability to deploy pragmatic & innovative solutions 

Leadership

• Business partnering – foster relationships with & effectively influence senior stakeholders in the business.

• Ability to work collaboratively with & deliver through different teams & agency partners, without having direct reporting lines, inside and outside of the country

• Work autonomously & make decisions independently

• Work flexibly – responds well to change, and able to learn and unlearn 

• You are an inclusive motivator of people. Your team deliver with real passion, growing and learning from each other whilst delivering quick wins.

• You are still responsible for your own results and as a manager, you also need to motivate others to deliver with passion, creating an inclusive and engaging climate around you. You can balance challenge with support and coaching. You understand the wider business context and you are emotionally intelligent enough to motivate people to deliver what is needed.

• 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.

  • TALENT CATALYST: Invests in people – coaches individuals and teams to realize their full potential. Creates an inclusive climate, empowering everyone to be at their best.

  • PURPOSE & SERVICE: Has humility, understanding that leadership is service to others, inside and outside Unilever.

  • 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 equal opportunities employer and committed to diversity and inclusivity in the workplace. We are intentional in employing the best talent that reflects the demographics of our country and which will help build representation of currently under-represented groups. We therefore invite applications from all candidates representing diversity of age, sex, disability, sexual orientation, race, religion or belief. When appointing potential candidates, the South African Employment Equity and Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Legislation will be considered.  

We are required by law to verify your ability to work lawfully in South Africa. If you are applying as a foreign national, please note that you may be requested to provide supporting documents supporting this. 

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.