Global Cocoa Sustainability Lead

Mars Incorporated; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 193,000 - 265,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company bonus

Job summary

Mars Incorporated is seeking an Associate Director, Cocoa Sustainability to lead the global social sustainability strategy for Mars Cocoa Enterprise and translate it into practical programs, partnerships and standards that strengthen supply chain resilience while improving cocoa farming households’ outcomes.

The role covers strategy, governance, and execution across living income, human rights and child wellbeing, with global and regional scope and collaboration with Commercial, Procurement,

Qualifications

• 10+ years of relevant experience spanning business, sustainability, international development, agriculture or responsible sourcing.
• Proven ability to set strategy, solve complex problems and translate analysis into clear decisions and executable plans.
• Experience designing, governing or evaluating large-scale social impact or supply chain programs, preferably involving smallholder producers.
• Strong understanding of human rights due diligence, living income, child wellbeing and gender in agricultural value chains.
• Experience managing senior external partnerships and influencing across global, cross-functional organizations.
• Commercial and financial acumen, including investment prioritization, partner performance and return-on-investment thinking.
• Excellent executive communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience in cocoa-producing origins or the cocoa sector preferred, not required.
• Ability to travel internationally, including to cocoa origins, as required.

Responsibilities

• Set and evolve the global Cocoa Thriving People strategy, priorities and roadmap in service of People, Planet and Performance outcomes.
• Translate enterprise ambitions into clear choices, investment priorities, program models and decision frameworks for the cocoa business.
• Integrate social sustainability into sourcing strategy, supplier engagement, origin development and future cocoa supply models.
• Lead the design and continuous improvement of scalable programs focused on living income, human rights, gender equity and farmer household resilience.
• Establish program standards, theories of change, governance, operating models and performance expectations for global and regional delivery.
• Use evidence, implementation learning and independent evaluation to assess effectiveness, improve return on investment and recommend where to scale, adapt or stop.
• Provide strategic and technical leadership on human rights risks , with a focus on salient issues in cocoa.
• Partner with the functional and regional teams , suppliers and other relevant partners to ensure social requirements and due diligence approaches are practical, credible and aligned with Mars expectations.
• Shape and manage strategic partnerships with suppliers, NGOs, research organizations, industry platforms, funders and government stakeholders.
• Represent Mars in selected external forums and help influence industry approaches to living income, human rights and child wellbeing.
• Build coalitions that improve scale, efficiency and shared accountability while protecting Mars decision rights and business interests.
• Own the global Thriving People portfolio, including annual planning, investment recommendations, partner performance and executive reporting.
• Create clear decision rights, governance routines and accountability across global, regional and origin teams.
• Partner closely with Finance, Commercial, Procurement and Legal to ensure disciplined contracting, budgeting, risk management and delivery.
• Act as the global subject matter lead for human rights and social sustainability topics within cocoa, providing strategic counsel to senior leaders and teams.
• Build capability across the organization through practical tools, guidance, coaching and knowledge sharing.
• Lead through influence across a complex global matrix and foster a high-performance culture grounded in clarity, collaboration and accountability.

Skills

Strategy development

Problem solving

Stakeholder management

Executive communication

Human rights due diligence

Living income

Gender in agriculture

Sustainability program design

Partnership management

Financial acumen

Cocoa sector experience

International travel

Education

Bachelor's degree in international development, economics, business, agriculture, public policy, social sciences or a related field

Advanced degree preferred

Job description

Mars Incorporated is seeking an Associate Director, Cocoa Sustainability to lead the global social sustainability strategy for Mars Cocoa Enterprise and translate it into practical programs, partnerships and standards that strengthen supply chain resilience while improving cocoa farming households’ outcomes.

The role covers strategy, governance, and execution across living income, human rights and child wellbeing, with global and regional scope and collaboration with Commercial, Procurement,