Director, Global Learning & Development

Sysco Corp.; Houston (TX); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Sysco Corp. in Houston seeks a Director of Global Learning & Development to lead enterprise L&D strategy, governance and scalable learning solutions across the organisation.

You will partner with Talent & Leadership, HR and business leaders to translate priorities into practical learning programs and platforms. The role requires 7+ years in L&D or related capability disciplines, with a track record of leading global initiatives, driving learning technology, and delivering measurable capability

Qualifications

• Deep understanding of adult learning and capability building.
• Ability to translate business needs into practical learning solutions.
• Experience with learning technologies and platforms.

Responsibilities

• Translate strategic priorities into a global L&D roadmap and execute across Sysco.
• Diagnose capability needs with leaders to deliver scalable learning solutions.
• Design and evolve Sysco's learning ecosystem, pathways, content and standards.
• Lead global compliance and required learning with cross-functional partners.
• Drive learning technologies, AI and digital delivery to improve access and impact.
• Build enterprise partnerships across L&D, Sales and Ops to share solutions.
• Oversee learning investments, external partners and governance.
• Define learning effectiveness metrics and tie outcomes to business results.

Skills

Learning capability expertise

Business orientation

Consulting & diagnostics

Learning design

Learning technology

Innovation & external curiosity

Enterprise collaboration

Operational discipline

Data & insights

Strategy execution

Leadership & team development

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Advanced degree preferred

Job description

Our Global Support Center/ Corporate Office is in the Energy Corridor- off I10 and N Eldridge.

Address: 1390 Enclave Pkwy, Houston, TX 77077

This is a hybrid position requiring an on-site presence 3 to 4 days per week.

Please note that the number of days on-site can increase based on business needs.

The Director, Global Learning & Development leads the translation of Sysco's enterprise and business capability priorities into contemporary, scalable and effective learning solutions, ensuring colleagues have access to the learning and development required to perform today and build capability for the future.

The role leads Sysco's global Learning & Development strategy and ecosystem, including enterprise learning solutions, global compliance and required learning, learning technologies and platforms, external learning partners, learning operations and measurement. The role brings deep Learning & Development expertise and external perspective to continuously evolve how learning is designed, accessed and experienced across Sysco.

Working in close partnership with Talent & Leadership, OD & Change, Human Resources, business and functional leaders and embedded Learning & Development teams, the role diagnoses capability and performance needs and determines where learning can create meaningful impact. The role connects and enables learning activity across Sysco, from a governance, standards and consistency perspective, creating greater coherence, sharing expertise and solutions, reducing unnecessary duplication and enabling the organisation to leverage its learning investment more effectively.

The role serves as Sysco's enterprise Learning & Development expert, bringing emerging thinking, learning science, technology and innovative practice into the organisation and applying these pragmatically to build capability and improve business and colleague outcomes.

Global Learning Strategy & Execution

-15% Translate enterprise strategy, capability priorities and business needs into a clear global Learning & Development strategy and roadmap. Lead execution across Sysco, ensuring learning priorities and investment are focused on building capabilities that create meaningful business and colleague impact.

Enterprise Capability Solutions

-20% Partner with Talent & Leadership, Human Resources and business leaders to diagnose capability and performance needs and translate identified priorities into practical, contemporary and scalable learning and development solutions. Challenge assumptions about when learning is - and is not - the appropriate response and apply effective approaches to build capability and improve performance.

Global Learning Ecosystem & Architecture

-10% Design, integrate and continuously evolve Sysco's global learning ecosystem, creating coherent approaches to learning pathways, content, platforms, methodologies and standards while enabling appropriate flexibility across businesses, functions, markets and geographies. Identify opportunities to connect and leverage learning assets and expertise across Sysco.

Global Compliance & Required Learning

-15% Lead the enterprise approach to global compliance and required learning, partnering with Legal, Risk & Compliance, Human Resources and business stakeholders to ensure learning requirements are effectively governed, delivered, tracked and continuously improved. Ensure regulatory and organisational requirements are met while creating an effective and accessible colleague experience.

Learning Technology, Innovation & Future Practice

-10% Lead the effective use and evolution of learning technologies, digital learning and emerging approaches to capability building. Continuously scan developments in learning science, technology, artificial intelligence and external practice, applying relevant innovation pragmatically to improve the accessibility, personalisation, effectiveness and scalability of learning across Sysco.

Enterprise Learning Partnership & Integration

-10% Build strong partnerships with embedded Learning & Development teams and capability leaders across Sysco, including Sales and Operations Learning & Development, connecting enterprise and business learning activity, sharing expertise and solutions and reducing unnecessary duplication. Enable greater leverage of learning capability and investment while recognising and preserving specialist business and functional expertise.

Learning Operations, Partners & Investment

-10% Ensure effective and efficient delivery of global learning through strong operational disciplines, including learning investment, external partner and vendor management, content and resource management and appropriate governance. Build and manage an external partner ecosystem that provides access to specialist expertise and enables Sysco to scale learning solutions effectively.

Learning Effectiveness, Insight & Continuous Improvement

-10% Define and apply approaches to evaluate learning effectiveness and capability impact, using data, colleague and business insight to understand what is working, continuously improve solutions and inform future learning priorities and investment. Partner with Talent & Leadership and business stakeholders to connect learning outcomes to broader capability, performance and enterprise outcomes.

Education Required

Bachelor's degree or equivalent relevant professional experience in Learning & Development, Human Resources, Organisational Psychology, Education, Business or a related discipline.

Education Preferred

Advanced degree or relevant postgraduate qualification in Learning & Development, Human Resources, Organisational Psychology, Education, Business or a related discipline.

Experience Required

7+ years of progressive experience in Learning & Development or related capability disciplines, including experience designing and implementing learning solutions at scale within complex organisations. Demonstrated experience translating business and capability needs into effective learning solutions, partnering across organisational boundaries and managing multiple learning priorities, partners and stakeholders.

Experience Preferred

Experience operating in global and matrixed organisations; working across multiple businesses, functions or geographies; leading enterprise learning initiatives; managing learning technologies and external partners; and applying emerging learning practices and technologies at scale.

Licences / Certifications Preferred

Relevant professional accreditation or qualification in Learning & Development, adult learning, instructional design, coaching or related disciplines may be advantageous but is not essential.

Technical Skills and Abilities

We believe the successful candidate has these qualifications, experiences and skills:

• Learning & capability expertise - Deep understanding of adult learning, capability building and contemporary Learning & Development practice, with the ability to translate that expertise into practical solutions that improve performance.
• Business and performance orientation - Understands business context and performance needs and starts with the problem to be solved rather than the learning solution to be delivered.
• Consulting and diagnostic capability - Able to diagnose capability and performance needs, ask incisive questions, challenge assumptions and determine when learning is - and is not - an appropriate intervention.
• Learning design and ecosystem thinking - Able to design individual solutions while seeing how content, experiences, technology, platforms, partners and learning pathways connect within a broader learning ecosystem.
• Technology and digital fluency - Strong understanding of learning technologies, digital learning and emerging technology, including the opportunities created by artificial intelligence to evolve how colleagues learn and build capability.
• External curiosity and innovation - Actively scans emerging research, practice and technology, distinguishing meaningful innovation from trend and applying external thinking pragmatically within Sysco's context.
• Enterprise collaboration and influence - Builds strong partnerships across businesses, functions and geographies and can influence without direct authority, balancing enterprise coherence with legitimate local and specialist requirements.
• Operational and commercial discipline - Able to manage complex learning portfolios, investment, external partners, vendors and delivery with strong commercial judgement and accountability for outcomes.
• Data and learning insight - Uses data, evidence and stakeholder insight to evaluate effectiveness, improve solutions, make investment decisions and demonstrate the contribution of learning to capability and performance.
• Strategy through execution - Able to translate strategic priorities into practical roadmaps and deliver high-quality outcomes in a complex, fast-moving organisation.
• Leadership and team capability - Builds high-performing teams, develops specialist expertise and creates an environment of curiosity, experimentation, accountability and continuous improvement.

Additional Requirements:

Travel, physical requirements

Decision Making Authority

• Decisions to be made independently without direction or supervision
• Design and evolution of global Learning & Development methodologies, standards, practices and learning architecture within agreed enterprise strategy and capability priorities.
• Selection of learning approaches, methodologies and delivery mechanisms used to address agreed capability and performance needs, including determining when formal learning is - or is not - the most appropriate response.
• Prioritisation and management of the global learning portfolio within agreed strategic priorities, resources and investment parameters.
• Selection, implementation and continuous improvement of learning technologies, platforms, content and digital learning approaches within agreed enterprise technology architecture and investment parameters.
• Selection and management of external learning partners and vendors within agreed commercial, procurement and investment parameters.
• Design and application of learning effectiveness, evaluation and measurement approaches.
• Prioritisation and deployment of Global Learning & Development team resources against agreed enterprise and business priorities.
• Decisions made with review/approval of other individuals/leadership
• Global Learning & Development strategy, roadmap and significant changes in strategic direction.
• Prioritisation of major enterprise learning initiatives where significant business, colleague, technology or investment implications exist.
• Significant learning technology investments or changes with implications for Sysco's broader technology ecosystem, colleague experience or operating model.
• Material external partnerships, investments and contractual commitments beyond delegated authority.
• Significant changes to the enterprise approach to compliance and required learning, in partnership with relevant Legal, Risk, Human Resources and business stakeholders.
• Major changes to global learning architecture, governance or operating practices with implications for embedded Learning & Development teams, businesses, functions or geographies.

Decision-rights note: The Director owns professional judgement about how learning responds to agreed capability priorities. Talent & Leadership defines and steers enterprise talent, leadership and future capability priorities; relevant enterprise and business leaders approve major priorities and investments. For compliance learning, the relevant Legal, Risk, Human Resources or business owner retains accountability for the underlying requirement and subject-matter accuracy, while Global Learning & Development owns the learning approach, delivery, tracking and experience.