Cluster Sustainability Lead

**About us**

We're a truly international company, forth largest in our industry and operating across 120 markets. An inclusive, innovative global FMCG business supported by over 27,500 employees. As we embrace a new era of growth, we are transforming. Our ways of working and culture are driven by a challenger mindset, constantly questioning the status quo. Our agility and entrepreneurial spirit, alongside award winning development programmes, enable innovation and success while creating exciting and rewarding career choices.

As we move forward, our customers will be at the heart of what we do, evolving to needs and expectations and committing to a more meaningful contribution to harm reduction by building a successful NGP business. Integral to our long-term success is our sustainability strategy, behaving responsibly and supporting our ambitions, all underpinned by high governance.

Encouraging inclusion at local levels and supporting a developing and robust diversity agenda globally, we’re fully committed to creating and maintaining an environment that celebrates and respects difference.
**The role**

The Cluster Sustainability Lead will act as a leader across the Planning team and cross functionally to create and align the ESG and Sustainability strategy for the cluster and drive portfolio related projects to ensure that Imperial is best in class in this area.

You will ensure that the appropriate resources are allocated by other functions including senior Group stakeholders to drive our strategic agenda and deliver portfolio changes to meet it. You will also create cross functional clarity and collaboration on projects, as well as shaping and helping to deliver our external messaging.

**Key accountabilities**
- Develop cluster ESG and sustainability portfolio strategy for the UKI Cluster, aiming to put ITUK at the forefront of the industry, and influence CLT and key Group stakeholders to to gain buy in.
- Strategic oversight of all new product initiatives including new NGP launches, tobacco NDPs and upgrades and heated tobacco launch to ensure compliance with UK sustainability strategy.
- Influence group ESG strategy to ensure it is aligned with UK commercial, legislative and customer requirements.
- Engage with and influence senior group stakeholders to ensure resources are allocated to projects required by the cluster and that our strategy is aligned to key strategic projects within product and packaging development, manufacturing, and supply chain.
- Develop and align clear commercial and ESG KPIs across all sustainability related initiatives.
- Develop a clear narrative, brand and messaging for our sustainability agenda to allow our trade and sales teams to gain buy in from our customers. Support with delivery of our strategic agenda directly to key customer buyers and senior stakeholders.
- Work with product development and sensory teams to assess any impact of proposed initiatives on consumer experience and make recommendations based on cost vs benefit.
- Feed into 12-month initiative calendar with sustainability projects and commercially review to ensure initiative timings are joined up. Create absolute clarity with key trade & I&I management stakeholders by provide up to date planning detail, commercial considerations, and update via presentations in Initiative Alignment meetings and maintaining a 2 weekly change log.
- Coordinate planning team and work directly to ensure key portfolio initiative projects are delivered in line with strategic agenda, and meet time, quality, and cost KPIs.
- Work with respective team members to ensure all key initiatives are properly tracked, ROI / impact assessed, and learnings incorporated into future planning
- Act as a champion of sustainability metrics, ensuring these are embedded in the team and incorporated into initiative planning across all projects.

**Other Responsibilities**
- Work with local and global brand team to ensure sustainability workstreams and projects build brand equity on focus brands wherever possible.
- Be a cluster champion for building business cases.
- ProjectPlace training & governance lead.
- Ownership of Brandbank supplier contract, ensuring it is fit for purpose.
- Create and maintain strategy documentation required for alignment with CLT, Group, Customers and other stakeholders.
- Monitor and benchmark competitor and other relevant manufacturers to ensure Imperial stays ahead of the competition and is positioned as a leader in sustainability with the trade.

**Skills and experience**

**Essential**:

- Project Management
- Previous Brand Marketing, Research or Trade Marketing experience
- Experience working with data
- Creating and delivering strategic presentations
- Aligning strategy with senior stakeholders across a matrix organisation
- Excellent IT skills: PowerPoint, Excel, Word
- Structured thinker and planner
- Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written
- Strong ability to translate concepts into presenta