Senior Manager, Strategy & Planning in St Albans

At Costa Coffee, we’re on a mission to reimagine coffee experiences across the globe. From bustling cities to local communities, we’re creating meaningful coffee moments, powered by innovation and driven by purpose. As a proud part of the Coca-Cola system and working hand in hand with our pioneering partners, we’re in over 50 countries and counting. Whether it's served in-store, from a machine, at home, or on the go, every cup is thoughtfully crafted by our passionate teams who put heart into every moment. Our teams truly make a difference.

This new role within Group Strategy is the operational engine of the Strategic Planning workstream, turning strategic choices into a connected planning rhythm and decision‑ready outputs. It owns multi‑horizon portfolio visibility, drives closed‑loop performance discipline, and systematises how external signals feed early‑stage innovation. Sitting at the centre of cross‑functional engagement, it partners with senior leaders across CMO, Supply Chain, Commercial, Finance and Insights to strengthen the organisation’s strategic execution muscle. We value curiosity, inclusivity, and a problem‑solving mindset.

What you’ll do:

• Operate the integrated planning cadence. Run the LRP‑to‑ABP cycle end‑to‑end, coordinate cross‑functional inputs, and deliver consistent, decision‑ready outputs to senior leadership.
• Build multi‑horizon portfolio visibility. Maintain the live 18–36‑month portfolio dashboard as the single source of truth, surfacing risks and trade‑offs early.
• Translate Group strategy into platform roadmaps. Convert strategic choices into sequenced, time‑bound platform plans with clear ownership and long‑lead enabler triggers.
• Track strategic assumptions and breakpoints. Own the assumption register, define thresholds with Finance and Insights, and flag divergence early enough to act before performance shifts.
• Establish the horizon‑to‑action pipeline. Systematise trend‑scanning with Insights and CMO so external signals feed pre‑Gate 0 triage in time to shape the planning cycle.

Who you are:

• Strategic planning expertise. Proven experience running integrated / End to End planning cycles (LRP/ABP or equivalent) in a multi‑function organisation.
• Commercial and category awareness. Strong understanding of CPG / FMCG, retail or food service dynamics, with the ability to translate market context into planning implications.
• Process design capability. Skilled at designing or evolving planning processes, frameworks and playbooks; comfortable creating new standards from scratch.
• Analytical and communication strength. Advanced Excel and portfolio tooling capability, exceptional narrative writing and presentation skills, and the ability to surface risks and trade‑offs through structured analysis.
• Senior‑level credibility and collaboration. Articulate, detail‑driven and able to build durable cross‑functional partnerships, establishing trust quickly with VPs and senior leaders in a complex matrix environment.

So, why Costa?

We didn’t become a global coffee brand by sitting back. When you work here, you join a community that values passion, progression, and integrity—with some brilliant perks to sweeten the deal. We work in a hybrid environment, giving us the flexibility to balance life while still spending meaningful time together and building strong connections:

• Own a piece of Costa’s success by becoming a share owner in Coca-Cola with our Share Investment Plan (SIP).
• An annual discretionary bonus scheme, based on business results and individual contribution.
• A smart pension that saves you money on tax and national insurance, and matches your contributions up to 10%.
• The Costa Financial Support Fund, supporting team members who find themselves in unexpected financial pressure.
• 50% discount in all Costa-owned stores, and 25% off in other participating stores.
• Private medical cover thanks to our Private Healthcare scheme.

Location - Where you’ll work: Right now, our Support Centre teams work flexibly, blending home working with in‑person time whenever it matters most – whether that’s a team moment, a creative session, or simply coming together to share ideas. We’re excited to be moving into a new home for our brand in St Albans in January 2027 – an inspiring space from which our Support Centre teams will work three days a week to connect and collaborate in‑person to bring our bold ambition to life.