PMO LEAD – BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION

Symega Food Ingredients Ltd.; Ernakulam; On-site; INR 2,600,000 - 4,200,000; Full time

Job summary

Symega Food Ingredients Ltd. is seeking an experienced PMO Lead to connect transformation strategy with day-to-day delivery across the organization.

Based in Kochi, this full-time role involves driving end-to-end tracking, coordinating with operations, supply chain, and finance, and removing blockers to keep initiatives on schedule. The ideal candidate has 8+ years in PMO/transformation within manufacturing, an MBA (top-tier or XLRI/XIMB), and strong analytical and communication skills to engage

Qualifications

• 8+ years of PMO or transformation office experience in manufacturing.
• MBA from a top-tier institute, or XLRI/XIMB.
• Led a workstream or small team with credibility to engage senior stakeholders.
• Strong analytical and structured problem-solving skills; comfortable with ambiguity.
• Excellent communication skills for leadership discussions.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end tracking of timelines, milestones, and deliverables across all transformation workstreams.
• Act as the primary link between the external transformation office and internal business teams, ensuring alignment and momentum between strategy sessions.
• Proactively identify risks and blockers across workstreams and elevate with clear context and recommended options.
• Run regular stakeholder syncs with business unit heads, operations, supply chain, and finance leaders.
• Prepare status reports and dashboards for leadership, translating progress into clear, decision-ready updates.
• Engage directly with the operational complexity of initiatives to understand issues beyond simple reporting.
• Partner with business teams on problem-solving for specific transformation initiatives.

Skills

PMO leadership

Stakeholder management

Analytical thinking

Communication skills

Education

MBA

Job description

Symega is undertaking a company-wide business transformation program, guided by a leading global strategy firm's blueprint to significantly scale the business over the next five years. To drive execution, we are hiring a full-time PMO Lead to be the connective tissue between the transformation strategy and day-to-day delivery across the organization.

This is not a reporting or coordination-only role. The PMO Lead will work closely with business unit heads, operations, supply chain, and finance teams to understand the real complexity behind transformation initiatives, identify blockers, and actively contribute to solving them — while keeping the program on track against timelines and milestones.

Reporting Structure

Primary reporting line: External Transformation Office Lead (engaged consultant, on-site 3–4 days/month, daily availability via email/calls)

Dotted line: Director responsible for the Transformation program

This structure ensures the PMO Lead is guided by proven transformation expertise while staying closely connected to the operating rhythm of the business.

Key Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end tracking of timelines, milestones, and deliverables across all transformation workstreams.
• Act as the primary link between the external transformation office and internal business teams, ensuring alignment and momentum between strategy sessions.
• Proactively identify risks and blockers across workstreams and elevate with clear context and recommended options.
• Run regular stakeholder syncs with business unit heads, operations, supply chain, and finance leaders.
• Prepare status reports and dashboards for leadership, translating progress into clear, decision-ready updates.
• Engage directly with the operational complexity of initiatives — supply chain alignment, capacity expansion, and similar decisions — to genuinely understand issues rather than simply report on them.
• Partner with business teams on problem-solving for specific transformation initiatives, contributing analysis and options, not just tracking status.

Candidate Profile

• 8+ years of experience, with meaningful exposure to PMO or transformation office roles within a manufacturing organization.
• MBA from a top-tier institute, or a well-regarded Indian institute (e.g., XLRI, XIMB).
• Strong understanding of how manufacturing businesses operate — candidates from pure services backgrounds are not the fit for this role.
• Prior experience at the PMO Manager / Senior Manager level, having led a workstream or small team, with the credibility to engage senior stakeholders.
• Strong analytical and structured problem-solving skills, with comfort operating in ambiguity.
• Excellent communication skills — able to synthesize complexity for leadership and hold their own in operational discussions.

This role is structured as a 2–3 year engagement tied to the transformation program, giving the incoming candidate a clear mandate and defined purpose. Strong performers who deliver results during this period will be considered for leadership roles within the businesses that emerge from the transformation — offering a genuine path beyond the program itself.

Location

Kochi, Kerala — based full-time at Symega, with travel as required across manufacturing sites.