Pet Parent Program Leader, Global Innovation

Key Responsibilities

Primary responsibilities include:

• Accountable for assisting in the development and alignment of the 2-6 year strategic innovation pipeline for Global Pet Nutrition’s innovation platforms (i.e. Care, Nourish, Connect).
• Leads a broad cross-functional team to identify, develop and launch strategic innovation projects in the aligned time frame to support business objectives.
• Delivers long-term innovation sufficiency (financials and KPIs) for specific innovation territories within the IVCP process.
• Collaborates with the Director Global Innovation and VP Global Innovation to align assigned innovation pipeline across all three innovation delivery systems (incremental, core, breakthrough).
• Leverages foresight to identify future growth programs, emerging macro trends, market and category white spaces, and translates these insights into validated product and beyond product innovation projects that can be actioned.
• Responsible for execution of assigned innovation projects to enable delivery of Mars Pet Nutrition’s IVCP plan growth objectives (share gaining growth).
• Prepares materials and participates in governance forums as required.
• Collaborates with global brand teams and key regional teams to ensure flawless execution of innovations in applicable markets.
• Embodies the principles of “agile,” champions progress before perfection, leads and inspires dynamic resourcing recommendations over the lifecycle of assigned projects.
• Partners with regional and global insights teams to track and measure performance to continuously review and evolve innovation project plans.

Context and Scope

• This role reports to the Director Global Innovation and works closely with both Global and Regional growth teams. The job holder has responsibility for assigned innovation projects in terms of strategic fit, geographic deployment, sufficiency and financial potential and will be held accountable to delivering innovation as approved by the governing group and in accordance with IVCP growth targets.
• This role requires the ability to demonstrate flexibility and enterprise perspective, championing business before self and the necessity of making tough trade-offs between projects. It will also require capability to liaise with a variety of stakeholders across all functional areas of expertise, e.g. Project Management / Supply / R&D / Finance / Digital COE / External Partners, and the Global Marketing teams to ensure project delivery remains fit for purpose over the course of time.
• This role will interact closely with the global brand teams and regions to identify consumer and customer problems and solutions which stretch across the portfolio and translate these opportunities into actionable innovation projects. Upon project approval, this role will lead the agile global teams through the milestones (including desirability, viability and feasibility) and delivery of these projects.

Job Specifications/Qualifications

• MBA or similar advanced business degree
• 5+ years experience in Brand Management and/or Innovation.
• Experience managing cross-functional teams.
• Future oriented with demonstrated ability to make tough decisions and understand second and third order effects.
• Strong communication skills, including ability to make effective presentations to all levels of management.
• International experience in working in teams across geographies and functions.