Fantastic opportunity ahead to drive our Mars Food purpose “Better Food Today. Better World Tomorrow." in the role of a Global Commercial Strategic Sourcing Head! As a member of the Global Food EM Value Chain team you will lead  the global external manufacturing commercial & procurement excellence for all Raws & Pack globally, develop the sourcing strategy to maximize value creation, and protect the supply chain, ensuring continuous and responsible supply and leveraging external capabilities. On top, as the team leader, you actively drive the Talent agenda and build a capable, engaged and effective team. Your Line Manager and partner in this journey will be Julia Gorchakova, Global Commercial Director Mars Food.

What are we looking for?

• Minimum 7+ years of experience in Commercial (Procurement) related fields and at least 3+ years of people management experience
• In-depth sourcing experience in external manufacturing (co-manufacturing) category
• Food industry experience is strongly preferred
• Proven results in category management, strategic sourcing, and E2E savings/value delivery to the business
• Demonstrable leadership of building, maintaining and growing key supplier relationships
• Exceptionally strong change management credentials, ability to develop a compelling vision & execute the strategy with excellence
• Strong business acumen, analytical & quantitative skills
• Ability to build and develop a team, drive for results in the pursuit of challenging stretch goals
• Track record of improvement in working capital
• Proven ability to make sound decisions in complex and/or ambiguous business environments
• History of building internal and external relationships and interaction with management at all levels
• Working in complex internal organization setting – partnering and influencing across functions and markets and between supply and demand sides of the business
• Experience of building, implementing or maintaining Procurement Excellence capabilities is a plus

What will be your key responsibilities?

• As a member of the Global EM Value Chain Team, you contribute strongly to the development & implementation of the Global External Manufacturing Commercial’s goals and strategies.
• You lead the development & delivery of Global Commercial External Manufacturing objectives & sourcing strategies ensuring the alignment to the business needs and Commercial’s overall objectives and strategies and you supervise the Raws&Pack regional Commercial teams in Europe and North America for the regionally managed scope (excluding globally managed categories).  On top, you are accountable for the delivery of the agreed business financial objectives and key performance indicators.
• You effectively manage up to $300M of spend by developing and delivering robust category strategies and optimal contracts, achieve competitive value and cost advantage through the implementation of appropriate and effective risk management techniques and through driving in-depth market knowledge.
• Great Line Management (line management responsibility for 5 direct reports): You demonstrate visible and inspiring leadership, create a sense of motivation, belonging and engagement for the associates. You create a results-oriented, high performing and energizing culture, attract, retain and develop commercial associates and deliver succession plans that enable Commercial value delivery.
• You ensure alignment of the capabilities and responsiveness of suppliers with business objectives, accelerate innovation by partnering with demand and supply to identify new opportunities and mobilize suppliers and external market resources.
• You ensure that the team is giving the right level of support and responsiveness on issues related to quality and services from the suppliers.
• You act as a Key Business Partner from Procurement for all direct materials scope (Raws & Pack, External Manufacturing) for the North America region to ensure proximity to the regional stakeholders.
• You deliver a robust Enterprise Wide Value Leadership program including the delivery of Productivity (Value Leadership) and Inflation management program to ensure quality compliance and continuous improvement across the external and internal manufacturing supplier base in the assigned scope.
• You shape and develop relationship with suppliers
• You establish and lead procurement excellence processes to measure strategic sourcing performance across all Global Food Commercial Direct materials scope (Raws & Packaging, External Manufacturing), including but not limited to capturing category value delivery, forecast of inflation, risks & opportunities pipeline & net impact in the P&L.

• Mars Leadership Competencies

Managing Vision & Purpose                Strategic Agility                                       

Building Effective Teams                      Perspective                              

Organizational Agility                             Standing Alone                                        

Mars Functional Capabilities

Commercial Operational Excellence                                    Stakeholder and Business Partnering

Category Leadership                                                                  Supplier Performance Management

Supplier Relationship Management                                    Supplier Enabled Innovation Management

What can you expect from Mars?

• Work with over 130,000 like-minded and talented Associates, all guided by The Five Principles.
• Join a purpose driven company, where we’re striving to build the world we want tomorrow, today.
• Best-in-class learning and development support from day one, including access to our in-house Mars University.
• An industry competitive salary and benefits package, including company bonus.

About Mars:
Mars is a family-owned business with more than $35 billion in global sales. We produce some of the world’s best-loved brands: M&M’s®, SNICKERS®, TWIX®, MILKY WAY®, DOVE®, PEDIGREE®, ROYAL CANIN®, WHISKAS®, EXTRA®, ORBIT®, 5â„¢, SKITTLES®, BEN’S ORIGINAL® and COCOAVIA®. Alongside our consumer brands, we proudly take care of half of the world’s pets through our nutrition, health and services businesses such as Banfield Pet Hospitalsâ„¢, BluePearl®, Linnaeus, AniCura, VCAâ„¢ and Pet Partnersâ„¢. Headquartered in McLean, VA, Mars operates in more than 80 countries. The Mars Five Principles – Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom – inspire our 130,000 Associates into taking action every day towards creating the world we want tomorrow.

Disclaimer:
Mars is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the application process because of a disability, it is available upon request. The company is pleased to provide such assistance, and no applicant will be penalized as a result of such a request.​​​​​​​

Note to Search Firms/Agencies:
Mars, Incorporated and its subsidiaries and affiliates (Mars) do not compensate search firms for unsolicited assistance unless they have a written search agreement with Mars and the requisition is position-specific.  Any resumes, curriculum vitae, and other unsolicited assistance from search firms that do not have a written search agreement or position-specific requisition submitted to any Associate of Mars will be deemed the sole property of Mars and no fee will be paid in the event the candidate is hired by Mars.