Sr. Director, Strategic Product Initiatives, Marketing & Brands Enablement

Loblaw Companies Limited; Brampton; On-site; CAD 100,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading Canadian grocery retailer is seeking a Senior Director of Strategic Product Initiatives. This role involves leading product initiatives, managing a team of experts, and collaborating with stakeholders to drive innovations across a portfolio of brands. The ideal candidate will have strong experience in product management and project execution, with a focus on sustainability and industry leadership. This role offers opportunities for significant impact in Canada's retail landscape.

Benefits

Comprehensive training

Competitive benefits

Flexibility in work environment

Qualifications

• 4-5+ years of product management or equivalent experience.
• Exceptional decision-making skills.
• Adaptive prioritization of tasks and workload.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage critical, multi-year, cross-functional projects.
• Execute significant category-wide product modifications.
• Collaborate on next-level product and brand platforms.

Skills

Industry knowledge of sustainability

Product management and merchandising

Project management

Critical thinking

Strong communication skills

Education

University degree in Business, Marketing or Merchandising

Tools

Advanced computer skills

Job description

Overview

Come make your difference in communities across Canada, where authenticity, trust and making connections is valued – as we shape the future of Canadian retail, together. Our unique position as one of the country's largest employers, coupled with our commitment to positively impact the lives of all Canadians, provides our colleagues a range of opportunities and experiences to help Canadians Live Life Well®. At Loblaw Companies Limited, we succeed through collaboration and commitment and set a high bar for ourselves and those around us. Whether you are just starting your career, re-entering the workforce, or looking for a new job, this is where you belong.

As Canada’s food and pharmacy leader, we play an important role in bringing about positive environmental and social change – both nationally and in the communities we serve. We aspire to lead change where it matters most, and we are proud to share with our stakeholders the actions we are taking to address some of the pressing challenges facing Canadians and our business.

With a passion for sustainability and creative thinking, you will work closely as a member of the Loblaw Marketing and Brands Enablement Team as the Senior Director of Strategic Product Initiatives to drive the overall planning and implementation of large-scale product initiatives across our portfolio of brands that include President’s Choice, PC, No Name, Blue Menu, Farmers Market, Club Pack, PC Organics, Life Brand and Life at Home.

Your Impact

As the leader for the Strategic Initiatives team, you’ll collaborate with a wide range of senior-level stakeholders and Product leads to build the vision, ideate new initiatives and set the path for the next 3-5 years of portfolio futureproofing. Your team will be responsible for executing a pipeline of work that combines non-negotiable regulatory initiatives and visionary ideas to take Canada’s leading brands to the next level. You will inspire a team of Product experts to execute big ideas and build the bench of top-talent and future leaders.

What You Bring

• Industry knowledge of sustainability and strategy application and execution
• Experience building and managing product teams, and an ability to execute in large matrix organizations with cross-functional teams
• A unique talent for navigating ambiguity, and an ability to bring teams together to deliver big ideas
• Strong influencing and effective communication skills
• Critical thinking and ability to think outside the box
• An ability to build compelling narratives to articulate new opportunities
• A proven track record of growing top-talent and leading large cross-functional teams

What You’ll Do

• Lead and manage critical, multi-year, cross-functional projects that influence Canada's largest brands, implementing rigorous governance frameworks to achieve on-time and high-quality deliverables from diverse teams
• Ensure flawless execution of significant category-wide product modifications, directing a specialized team in implementing strategic product updates (including regulatory compliance, claims re-evaluation, brand renewals, etc.) that extend beyond routine project scopes
• Collaborate on next-level product and brand platforms with product innovation teams, identify future-focused opportunities and evaluate new ideas for implementation, and gain alignment with senior leadership
• Champion sustainability across Canada’s largest brand portfolio via a long-term roadmap strategy spanning commodities, carbon, and packaging innovation, and embed within the larger enterprise and external industry associations
• Grow and manage a large team of product and project experts, build and evolve operating models and processes to align with the needs of new initiatives, and build a pipeline of top-talent

Job Qualifications

• University degree in Business, Marketing or Merchandising preferred
• 4-5+ years of product management, merchandising or equivalent experience
• Excellent project management experience, and experience in the packaging or printing industry is an asset
• Advanced level of initiative and judgment is required to organize and prioritize tasks, workload, and multiple projects
• Exceptional decision-making skills required to achieve organizational objectives with an understanding and consideration to the impact on other work groups
• Highly adaptable to set and prioritize work with varying exceptions
• Diplomacy, constructive thinking, and innovative approach to drive solutions
• Advanced understanding of marketing, merchandising practices and procedures
• Strong analytical and interpersonal skills
• Advanced computer skills to produce effective reports, documents, spreadsheets and presentations
• Communicate with clarity in all situations including written, verbal and group settings

Additional Information

Our commitment to Sustainability and Social Impact is an essential part of the way we do business, and we focus our attention on areas where we can have the greatest impact. Our approach to sustainability and social impact is based on three pillars – Environment, Sourcing and Community – and we are constantly looking for ways to demonstrate leadership in these important areas. Our CORE Values – Care, Ownership, Respect and Excellence – guide all our decision-making and come to life through our Blue Culture. We offer our colleagues progressive careers, comprehensive training, flexibility, and other competitive benefits – these are some of the many reasons why we are one of Canada’s Top Employers, Canada’s Best Diversity Employers, Canada’s Greenest Employers & Canada’s Top Employers for Young People.

If you are unsure whether your experience matches every requirement above, we encourage you to apply anyway. We are looking for varied perspectives which include diverse experiences that we can add to our team.

We have a long-standing focus on diversity, equity and inclusion because we know it will make our company a better place to work and shop. We are committed to creating accessible environments for our colleagues, candidates and customers. Requests for accommodation due to a disability (which may be visible or invisible, temporary or permanent) can be made at any stage of application and employment. We encourage candidates to make their accommodation needs known so that we can provide equitable opportunities.

Please Note: Cand idates who are 18 years or older are required to complete a criminal background check. Details will be provided through the application process.