Commercial Experience in-Market Operations Director METR & AFRICA at Unilever

Main purpose of job:

The in-Market Operations Director for Commercial Experience team will hold accountabilities for all MET, Nali, Ukraine and Africa markets, covering the end-to-end processes of the service, continuous improvement, driving discipline across the 3 Tiers and driving cost saving projects across P2P, R2R, , and any new service lines that we expand into. The role covers designing & driving the Commercial Experience strategy for the MET, Nali, Ukraine and Africa Clusters reporting to the Head of Global In-Market Operations-ComEx. The role will be directly responsible for a team of ca 50 people based across different locations such as India, Turkey, Egypt, and Ghana covering a geography of 30 countries.

This position provides the leadership, management, and vision to ensure that the MET, Nali, Ukraine and AFRICA Operations have appropriate direction, operational controls, administrative and reporting procedures to effectively manage service delivery across countries in scope.

The role offers a unique opportunity to partner with the senior leaders of Unilever Finance, Procurement and UniOps as a whole. The successful candidate will drive new insights into key financial and operational performance drivers and become a trusted leader within the organization.  

Key accountabilities:

The person is responsible for delivering the ongoing service:

Leading and operational management of the India and Turkey Operating Centres for (P2P, R2R & SCFS) comprising c.50 people. Leading business engagement with Procurement, Finance in MET, NALI, UKRAINE & AFRICA Clusters including being an integral part of the Clusters’ Finance Leadership Teams. Is a member in UniOps in Market (UiM) LT of the cluster, ensuring alignment in communications and quality of delivery when partnering the markets. Drive effective and comprehensive Joint Business Plans between the Cluster and ComEx – including effective delivery and performance management against the same. This will include among others:

• Deployment and delivery of global & local cost reduction and process improvement projects with strong governance.
• Maintaining the controls discipline and hygiene in clusters while supporting Control Services Teams & Corporate Controller teams to improve the country capabilities in terms of risk management & mitigation.
• Integration of the Service Lines to ensure that all global and regional services are delivered to the business in accordance with agreed service levels and performance targets, continuously minimizing the probability and impact of any unplanned service interruption.
• Function as the escalation point for most significant day-to-day issues or problems in the Market Cluster(s)/business area.

 Managing the relations with third party service providers (3PSPs) with the right balance between creating accountability & strong visible partnership whilst ensuring control framework compliance within the region. Building effective ongoing relationships, with key stakeholders in the MCO/business area. Being part of the larger external shared services network in the region. 

The role holder should be passionate about growth, excellence & service and will demonstrate the :

• Ability to define the short term and mid-term strategies which add value to the larger Commercial Experience agenda.
• Ability to identify the improvement opportunities as per business needs & global agenda.
• Ability to create impact with strong governance & communication on inspirational leadership to lead sizeable teams and help people to discover their full potential.
• Strong working knowledge of various business processes & strong finance knowledge.
• Strong risk management and controls knowledge to spot possible risks and proactively mitigate them.
• Effective communication and interpersonal skills to build effective relationships with senior stakeholders, extended teams, and external parties.
• Experience and awareness of working in a global role, demonstrate awareness and empathy to cultural diversity.
• Customer and service centric mind set, placing the user at the heart of the solution.
• Ability to work under pressure and at times in ambiguous situations and speed in decision making.

Experience and qualification required:

• An MBA, CPA, CIMA or equivalent Business Management or Finance degree with minimum 10-12 years of overall experience in Business Partnering, Controllership and Management roles
• Strong knowledge of key financial processes, accounting standards and principles
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills
• Solid people management skills and demonstrated peer leadership.
• Experience in market role (MCO) or a change management role, would be preferred.

Key interfaces

• Cluster/BUs Finance LT
• Commercial Experience extended LT
• UniOps in Market regional LT
• Country Finance Controllers
• Third party business partners
• Other teams - Process Excellence Team, GCAD, Internal Audit, Cluster/Country Tax & Legal teams, Global Performance Management Team, Procurement, etc