Climate Strategy & Performance Lead

Unilever; Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames; Hybrid; GBP 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Unilever plc in London seeks a Climate Strategy & Performance Lead to own the global procurement climate roadmap. You will coordinate with R&D, Supply Chain, Finance and markets to translate climate commitments into a measurable, business-owned transition plan and lead governance for climate-related reporting.

Applicants should have deep experience in corporate climate strategy, GHG accounting and cross-functional leadership within global supply chains.

Qualifications

• Significant experience in corporate climate strategy, Scope 3 decarbonisation, sustainability performance management or related field.
• Strong knowledge of GHG accounting, SBTi-aligned target setting, FLAG and energy-and-industrial emissions.
• Ability to translate climate evidence into prioritised business roadmaps and governance.
• Proven cross-functional leadership across Procurement, R&D, Finance, Supply Chain and senior leadership.
• Excellent analytical and programme-management skills in fast-moving environments.

Responsibilities

• Own climate strategy and transition planning: develop the climate roadmap and decarbonisation plan.
• Lead performance management, glidepath forecasts and intervention portfolio.
• Govern carbon accounting requirements and climate-related claims.
• Embed climate considerations into sourcing, innovation and portfolio decisions.
• Provide governance and leadership for internal/external reporting on climate.
• Drive standards development and practical application for climate accounting and claims.
• Ensure Day 1 readiness and continuity of climate programmes during transition.

Skills

Cross-functional leadership

GHG accounting

Target setting

Climate strategy

Stakeholder management

Job description

Earlier this year, Unilever announced an agreement to combine its Foods business with McCormick & Company, creating a scaled global flavour powerhouse. The proposed combination would bring together iconic Foods brands, including Hellmann's and Knorr, with McCormick's portfolio to create a global leader across spices, seasonings, condiments and complementary food categories, supported by strong retail and foodservice platforms. McCormick brings more than 135 years of heritage, a presence in 150+ countries and territories, and a portfolio of trusted brands. The transaction remains subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, with completion estimated for mid-2027. Job Title Climate Strategy & Performance Lead Function Global Procurement Centre of Excellence - Sustainability Reports to End-to-End Procurement Sustainability Director Scope Global Country Location and Worksite Details London, United Kingdom; hybrid working in line with local policy JOB PURPOSE This role exists to lead the global Procurement climate strategy and translate climate commitments into an integrated, measurable and business-owned transition plan. The role will own climate performance management, target delivery, governance and technical coherence for the Procurement-led climate roadmap, while orchestrating alignment with R&D, Supply Chain, Finance, markets and the wider sustainability organisation to ensure an integrated climate transition plan. You'll be part of a team that believes in doing work that matters - for people and the planet.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Own climate strategy and transition planning: develop and maintain the climate strategy, target architecture, costed decarbonisation roadmap and climate transition plan, including integration of legacy Foods and McCormick baselines, methodologies, commitments and delivery pathways.
• Lead performance management and gap closure: establish the carbon budget, glidepath, forecasts and intervention portfolio; track performance, identify delivery risks and opportunities, and drive corrective action and leadership decisions required to remain on course.
• Govern carbon accounting and claims: set requirements for FLAG and energy-and-industrial Scope 3 accounting, emission factors, product carbon footprints, allocation, attribution, traceability, material-flow mapping, MRV, assurance and substantiation of climate claims.
• Embed climate into business decisions: partner with Procurement, R&D, Supply Chain, Finance, brands and markets to integrate climate and resilience into sourcing, innovation, portfolio, capital allocation, risk management and annual planning.
• Provide governance, reporting and expert leadership: coordinate robust climate inputs for internal and external reporting, assurance and leadership forums; interpret evolving standards and regulatory expectations; and represent the Procurement perspective in enterprise climate decisions.
• Drive technical advocacy across key standards organisations: shape the development and practical application of climate accounting, target-setting and claims standards, representing the business perspective and advancing credible, scalable approaches.
• Secure transition readiness: own climate-related Day 1 activities, dependencies, documentation, capability transfer and operating-model alignment, ensuring continuity of critical programmes, data, governance and decision rights through the combination.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Significant experience in corporate climate strategy, Scope 3 decarbonisation, sustainability performance management or a closely related field, ideally in food, agriculture, FMCG or complex global supply chains.
• Strong technical knowledge of GHG accounting, SBTi-aligned target setting, FLAG and energy-and-industrial emissions, product carbon footprints, MRV and assurance.
• Demonstrated ability to translate complex climate evidence into prioritised business roadmaps, investment choices, governance and executive decisions.
• Proven cross-functional leadership and influencing skills, with the credibility to work across Procurement, R&D, Finance, Supply Chain, Legal, Corporate Affairs and senior leadership.
• Excellent analytical, programme-management and communication skills, with sound judgement in ambiguous, fast-moving and commercially sensitive environments.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience with corporate integrations or major operating-model transformations.
• Knowledge of agricultural value chains, regenerative agriculture, land-sector accounting and climate resilience.
• Experience engaging external standard setters, assurance providers, suppliers, investors, customers or industry coalitions.