Search for your next opportunity

Head of Food Strategy

Our client, a leading food and retail organisation in Ireland, is seeking an experienced Head of Food Stategy to join their senior Commercial team during an exciting period of transformation and growth. This role will suit a strategic, commercially driven leader with a strong passion for food, innovation and consumer insight, and a proven ability to deliver large-scale change across complex organisations. Cork or Dublin-based, with hybrid working.

Benefits

• Competitive salary
• Bonus
• Pension
• Healthcare
• Hybrid working model
• Strong career development opportunities
• Collaborative, values-led culture

Responsibilities of this Head of Food Strategy role include:

• Playing a key role in shaping and delivering a long-term food strategy aligned with overall business and sustainability objectives.
• Driving a food-first culture across the business, ensuring food leadership is a clear point of differentiation in the market.
• Working closely with senior leadership to define the roadmap for food and beverage development through to 2030.
• Using data, consumer insight and market intelligence to inform innovation and future-facing concepts.
• Leading cross-functional collaboration to deliver end-to-end execution from concept development to in-store activation.
• Championing new food concepts that drive consumer satisfaction and profitable sales growth.
• Managing food leadership budgets and ensuring strong governance and financial control.
• Developing and rolling out annual commercial and food leadership plans across the business.
• Acting as a key point of contact for internal workstream leads and senior stakeholders.
• Building strong relationships with retail partners and leading engagement at store and group level.
• Working closely with Retail Trading, Retail Operations and Supply Chain to ensure aligned delivery.
• Establishing, tracking and reporting KPIs in partnership with Finance to measure progress against strategic goals.
• Providing clear updates on food strategy and performance to Management, Executive and Board teams.

Experience required for this Head of Food Strategy role include:

• Minimum 5+ years’ experience in a senior leadership role within retail or FMCG.
• Strong understanding of the Irish food retail market, consumer behaviour and competitive landscape.
• Proven experience developing and delivering commercial and food strategies with measurable results.
• Demonstrated success leading complex transformation or change programmes.
• Highly commercial, with the ability to translate consumer insight into compelling, differentiated propositions.
• Excellent leadership, influencing and stakeholder management skills at Executive level.
• Strong analytical capability with the ability to track performance and turn insight into action.
• Experience working within commercial planning processes is highly desirable.
• Excellent communication, planning and organisational skills.

Aoife Clarke is handling the recruitment for this role in complete confidentiality. Please upload your CV below and she will be in touch should you have the correct experience for the position. For more jobs like this, please visit the Excel Recruitment website. Unfortunately, due to volume only suitable applicants can be contacted.

#AISAOI