North America Sustainability Manager

OFI is hiring a North America Sustainability Manager in Fresno, CA, responsible for guiding sustainability initiatives in the Nuts and Spices sector. The role involves customer engagement, developing sustainability plans, and collaborating with sales and marketing teams to meet sustainability goals. The manager will also participate in discussions with stakeholders to enhance OFI's sustainability strategy and drive sustainable sales growth.
Description

We are a global leader in food & beverage ingredients. Pioneers at heart, we operate at the forefront of consumer trends to provide food & beverage manufacturers with products and ingredients that will delight their consumers. Making a positive impact on people and planet is all part of the delight. With a deep-rooted presence in the countries where our ingredients are grown, we are closer to farmers, enabling better quality, and more reliable, traceable and transparent supply. Supplying products and ingredients at scale is just the start. We add value through our unique, complementary portfolio of natural, delicious and nutritious products. With our fresh thinking, we help our customers unleash the sensory and functional attributes of cocoa, coffee, dairy, nuts and spices so they can create naturally good food & beverage products that meet consumer expectations. And whoever we’re with, whatever we’re doing, we always make it real.

Position Summary:

This regional role in North America for both Nuts and Spices business has dual reporting to the Head of Sustainability for Nuts and Head of Sustainability for Spices. The role is focused on playing the sustainability functional partner to the sales and marketing team in North America. The position offers strategic guidance on sustainability-related topics, such as developing global strategic alliances and communicating with international donors, Nuts and Spices customers, and stakeholders to advance ofi sustainability strategy Choices for Change as well as individual product sustainability strategies such as Spices Sustainability Strategy, Cashew Trail and Almond Trail. It also provides crucial direction on customer communication, and aligning customer sustainability demands with ofi sustainability vision. The role involves collaborating with origins and the North America marketing offices to boost sales of sustainable nuts and spices.

Position Responsibilities:

Customer Engagement in North America
• Serve as a trusted advisor to customers, providing expert guidance on sustainability initiatives.
• Develop and implement systematic sustainability plans with key customers in NA. Co-Create customer led sustainability programs together with the Customer sustainability teams and internal program execution teams.
• Act as a primary point of contact for sustainability-related matters.
• Drive sustainable sales growth, by aligning customer needs with our Nuts and Spices strategy.
• Provide strategic recommendations based on North American client requirements to enhance our sustainability approach.
• Liaise among Customer, Sales/Marketing, and Sustainability execution internal teams to push for sustainable commercial initiatives aligned with ofi’s framework/targets
• Identify sustainability needs from customers and determine portfolio of solutions which ofi can use to commercialize
• Develop and update, in collaboration with relevant teams, ofi marketing / sales “toolkit” regarding sustainability (customer presentations, marketing materials, etc.)
• Develop and implement systems to track and report “value” over time
• Define standards to maintain and report ofi overview of commercialization of sustainable products to customers

Stakeholder Engagement:
• Participate in strategic discussions with influential stakeholders, including industry associations, NGOs, and government agencies, aiming to leverage additional resources to finance sustainability activities.
• Map and maintain relationships with key stakeholders such as donors, funding institutions.
• Maintain the relationship with multi-stakeholder platforms in North America.
• Represent ofi in conferences, international panels and expert meetings about sustainability in Nuts and Spices in North America.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Position Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science, Business Management, Environmental Health Sciences, Sustainability Management, or related field is required

• 5 years of sustainability and/or commercialization experience required

• 3 years' experience in the Agricultural industry strongly desired

• Relevant knowledge on priority sustainability areas like human rights, livelihoods, climate and regenerative agriculture, as well as knowledge around preconditions to drive impact like traceability, supplier engagement and data/insights.

• A deep and broad understanding of delivering on sustainability strategy within a high-growth business-oriented environment

• Have solid ESG and sustainability networks and know when and how to access external and specialist expertise

• Have a good understanding of communicating and engaging internal and external stakeholders on sustainability activities

• Experience in engaging with internal and external stakeholders, at different levels is key.

• Experience in building solid relationships with major global donors

• Highly skilled in sustainability project writeup

• Hands-on and pro-active mentality. Good organizational skills, with focus on delivery.

• Experience working in complex, matrix organizations.

• Outstanding program management and organizational skills, including a high level of team management and goal-setting, team skills development, workflow and budget management, and a focus on delivery.

The pay for this role in the state of California ranges from $101,000 - 130,000 and is based on the position responsibilities and geographic location. Actual pay within this range may be determined based on candidate’s experience, qualifications and/or other determining factors.

Note: This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive. Employee may perform other related duties as negotiated to meet the ongoing needs of the organization.

ofi provides equality of opportunity for all persons with respect to hiring without discrimination on the grounds of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, age, disability, veteran status, or sexual orientation. All employment will be decided on the basis of qualifications, merit and business need. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, you may contact us for support at: US-Talent.Acquisition@ofi.com

At ofi, we celebrate our diversity. Olam Americas LLC is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace.