Digital Supply Chain Procurment Manager 

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 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.

Unilever Ice Cream is the world’s leading ice cream company, home to a portfolio of iconic brands like Magnum, Calippo, Solero, Festini, Talenti, and Yasso. We're committed to creating innovative products that bring unforgettable moments to our consumers—because, after all, “Life tastes better with ice cream.”

The Ice Cream division at Unilever is preparing to stand on its own, becoming an independent, EUR 8 billion single-category focused company by the end of 2025. This move reflects our belief in the power of our unique frozen footprint, which we see as having huge potential for growth as a pure-play business. Our focus is all about unlocking that potential, driving value for our consumers, customers, employees, and shareholders.

JOB PURPOSE:

Drive innovation and lead our business to new heights by spearheading the Digital Supply Chain (DSC) team. Collaborate with visionary leaders and diverse colleagues in a global environment, unlocking your full potential.

If you thrive on data and digital transformation, this role is designed for you.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Be a part of the Digital Supply Chain (DSC) team, a new team of 40+ FTE that will be pivotal to the Ice Cream Company’s ambition to be a Digital First company.

• Set up and manage the Procurement Tech vertical of the DSC team. This vertical will lead the digital developments and transformation in the Procurement pillar.

• Bring the “outside in” mindset, share industry best practices and future trends in digital transformation and AI.

• Stay closely connected with the Procurement teams globally, regionally and in the markets and identify used cases for deploying digital transformation and AI in the Procurement vertical.

• Evaluate the feasibility of used cases from both domain (procurement) as well as Tech perspective (available data, data structure, solution integration, current project pipeline, digital & analytical capabilities, etc.).

• Connect with the Procurement as well as IT teams and prepare a viable business case, considering tangible as well as intangible value unlocks, technology development and run costs.

• Prioritize used cases and create a strong project pipeline considering the size of the prize, capability readiness and change management.

• Project manage the initiatives through a close connect with tech team, development partners, UAT, change management, Go Live, hypercare and ensure successful deployment without any service disruption.

• Closely monitor the deployments and ensure value delivery in line with business case. 

• Give the DSC Procurement Tech team a strong identity and make it top-of-mind for all in SC (both global and regional/local) as the “ go to” team for all Procurement technology requests.

• Oversee the correct migration of existing Procurement systems and dashboards from Unilever’s systems into the Ice Cream Co’s own data lake / systems.

• Manage the transition from the existing local-dominated tooling landscape into a centralized landscape, in line with the “Global First, Local by Exception” digital agenda.

• Through an end-to-end view of Procurement technology and strong knowledge of industry best practices of both tech as well as the domain and strong collaboration with procurement team members in the global, regional and market teams, drive continuous improvement as well as “step up” transformation to the Ice Cream Company’s Procurement capabilities.

• Be the face towards the business for all Procurement Tech requests.

• Mentor and develop team members, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.

WHAT YOU NEED TO SUCCEED:

SKILLS:

• Strong leadership skills with the ability to inspire and guide a diverse team.

• Ability to set and execute strategic goals, aligning them with business objectives.

• Excellent communication skills to effectively liaise between IT, SC business, and SC leadership.

• Proficiency in managing complex projects, ensuring timely and successful completion.

• Deep understanding of IT structures, data lakes, digital supply chain technologies, and broad understanding of various aspects of Supply Chain.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills to address complex supply chain challenges.

• Ability to identify and implement innovative solutions to improve supply chain reporting processes.

EXPERIENCES & QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Supply Chain Management, Information Technology, or a related field. 
• Minimum of 7 years of experience in procurement, with at least 3 years in a leadership role. 
• Demonstrated success in managing large-scale digital projects and cross-functional teams. 
• In-depth industry knowledge of supply chain best practices, digital procurement systems, and emerging trends (e.g. AI, IoT) 
• Basic familiarity with Python, SQL, or equivalent 
• Basic familiarity with cloud computing (e.g. Azure)

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.

  • 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.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Unilever embraces diversity and encourages applicants from all walks of life. This means giving full and fair consideration to all applicants and continuing development of all employees regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity. 

Unilever es una organización comprometida con la equidad, la inclusión y la diversidad para impulsar los resultados de nuestro negocio y crear un futuro mejor, cada día, para nuestros diversos empleados, consumidores globales, socios y comunidades. Creemos que una fuerza laboral diversa nos permite igualar nuestras ambiciones de crecimiento e impulsar la inclusión en todo el negocio. ¡En Unilever estamos interesados en que cada individuo traiga su 'Whole Self' al trabajo y esto te incluye a ti! Por lo tanto, si necesita algún requisito de soporte o acceso, le recomendamos que nos avise en el momento de su solicitud para que podamos apoyarle a través de su viaje de reclutamiento.