At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead IT Portfolio Management for Supply Chain and R&D, ensuring tech investments drive business success.
- Company: Join a leading FMCG company focused on innovation and technology.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, career growth, and opportunities to work with cutting-edge technology.
- Other info: Collaborative culture with a focus on mentoring and high performance.
- Why this job: Make a real impact by shaping technology strategies in a dynamic environment.
- Qualifications: 10+ years in Supply Chain or Technology roles, with strong leadership experience.
The predicted salary is between 90000 - 120000 ÂŁ per year.
We are seeking an experienced IT Portfolio Director to lead on IT Portfolio Management and operate as a Programme Director across our Supply Chain and R&D domains, ensuring that technology investments deliver desired business outcomes across Discovery to Launch, Planning, Manufacturing, Logistics, Procurement, and Order-to-Cash processes. This position combines strong business partnership, delivery assurance, financial acumen and functional expertise to drive the execution of our strategy and delivery of technology solutions. The Director plays a pivotal role in assessing, shaping, initiating and overseeing the Supply Chain and R&D project roadmaps, influencing technology investment decisions; and developing our project, programme and portfolio management capabilities and teams.
Key Responsibilities
- Portfolio Leadership & Programme Delivery
- Oversee delivery of Supply Chain and R&D technology project and programmes, ensuring on‑time, in‑scope, and on‑budget completion.
- Define and evolve the Project, Programme and Portfolio Management Approaches across the Supply Chain and R&D Portfolio in alignment with the Change Delivery Framework and IT‑wide governance processes.
- Manage demand intake, prioritization, and sequencing of initiatives in line with business strategy and available capacity.
- Manage major programme‑level risks and dependencies.
- Manage financials and overall cost management across the portfolio.
- Provide portfolio visibility and reporting to senior stakeholders and governance forums.
- Ensure effective collaboration with architecture, platform, data, and infrastructure teams for cross‑domain project delivery.
- Business Partnership & Strategic Alignment
- Build strong business partnership across Wella's extended Supply Chain and R&D leadership teams; managing key stakeholders and supporting them in delivering against our business strategy.
- Support the definition of our business technology strategy and multi‑year roadmaps.
- Partner with Finance, Planning, Procurement, Manufacturing, Logistics, and Regional Supply Chain teams to identify digital enablers that improve operational performance and cost efficiency.
- Ensure all initiatives align with enterprise architecture, data strategy, and technology guardrails.
- Drive business case development, value realization, and benefits reporting for Supply Chain and R&D technology programmes.
- Work collaboratively with platform, data, architecture, and cybersecurity teams, as well as external partners, to ensure seamless technology delivery and operational excellence across the value chain.
- Solution Leadership & Functional Expertise
- Leverage functional and change expertise across Supply Chain and R&D investments to ensure they deliver against our strategy and realise key benefits.
- Partner with the Functional Experts and AMS teams to resolve critical system issues, review proposed changes, and ensure long‑term sustainability of solutions.
- Support decision‑making across solution design, testing, and release management.
- Governance, Risk & Vendor Management
- Embed strong governance discipline across all technology delivery activities in the Supply Chain and R&D domains.
- Oversee vendor performance, ensuring external partners meet contractual obligations and quality standards.
- Ensure compliance with internal audit, data protection, and cybersecurity frameworks.
- Define and monitor KPIs to drive continuous improvement.
- People & Capability Leadership
- Provide leadership to project, programme and delivery leads across the Supply Chain and R&D team.
- Foster a high‑performance culture through mentoring, collaboration, and accountability.
- Build functional capability and ensure succession readiness for critical SAP and digital roles.
- Promote cross‑functional knowledge sharing across business and technology teams.
Key Skills & Competencies
- Project Delivery Discipline – Experience in structured delivery methodologies (e.g., agile, hybrid and waterfall), particularly for R&D systems requiring high stability and regulatory adherence.
- Business Partnership & Stakeholder Management – Proven ability to serve as a strategic interface and thought leader to the business, translating platform capabilities into actionable outcomes for Supply Chain leaders.
- Problem Solving – Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills.
- Vendor & Contract Management – Experience managing vendor performance and ensuring delivery quality across distributed teams.
- Functional Expertise – Strong functional expertise in Supply Chain and/or R&D.
- Enterprise Architecture Acumen – Understanding of structured, scalable enterprise systems architecture, including cloud‑readiness and data integration across systems and domains.
Qualifications & Experience
- Bachelor's degree.
- PMP or APM certification advantageous.
- ITIL certification advantageous.
- TOGAF and/or SAP SD/MM certification or relevant process domain certification advantageous.
- MBA advantageous.
- 10+ years of experience in Supply Chain or Technology roles, with at least 5 years in leadership or business partnering positions.
- Proven track record leading technology portfolios or major transformation programmes within FMCG or manufacturing industries.
- Strong SAP functional background, ideally across ECC and/or S/4HANA.
- Experience managing global teams, external vendors, and multi‑country deployments.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
- Portfolio Delivery: % of projects and initiatives delivered on time, within scope, and within budget.
- Business Satisfaction: NPS or qualitative feedback from Supply Chain and R&D leadership.
- Value Realisation: % projects delivering against business case; %ROI delivered for financial business cases.
- Governance Compliance: Adherence to project governance, architecture standards, and risk frameworks.
- Vendor Performance: SLA adherence and quality scores across AMS and external delivery partners.
- Process Efficiency: % improvement in cycle times and automation within O2C and P2P value streams.
Director, IT Portfolio - Supply Chain And R&D in London employer: Wella Company
Contact Detail:
Wella Company Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land Director, IT Portfolio - Supply Chain And R&D in London
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Get out there and connect with people in the industry. Attend events, join online forums, and don’t be shy about reaching out on LinkedIn. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings or can put in a good word for you.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for interviews by researching the company and its culture. Understand their Supply Chain and R&D processes, and think about how your experience aligns with their needs. This will help you stand out and show that you’re genuinely interested in the role.
✨Tip Number 3
Practice your pitch! Be ready to explain how your skills and experiences make you the perfect fit for the Director role. Focus on your leadership experience and how you've successfully managed technology portfolios in the past.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen by the right people. Plus, it shows you’re serious about joining our team and contributing to our success in Supply Chain and R&D.
We think you need these skills to ace Director, IT Portfolio - Supply Chain And R&D in London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your CV: Make sure your CV speaks directly to the job description. Highlight your experience in IT portfolio management and any relevant projects you've led in Supply Chain or R&D. We want to see how your skills align with what we're looking for!
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter: Your cover letter is your chance to shine! Use it to explain why you're the perfect fit for the Director role. Share specific examples of how you've driven technology investments and delivered business outcomes in previous roles.
Showcase Your Leadership Skills: As a Director, you'll need to demonstrate strong leadership capabilities. In your application, mention instances where you've led teams or managed cross-functional projects. We love seeing how you foster collaboration and drive results!
Apply Through Our Website: Don't forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you’re considered for the role. Plus, it shows you’re keen on joining the StudySmarter team!
How to prepare for a job interview at Wella Company
✨Know Your Portfolio Inside Out
Before the interview, dive deep into your past experiences with IT portfolio management. Be ready to discuss specific projects you've led, focusing on how you ensured they were delivered on time and within budget. Highlight your strategic alignment with business goals, especially in Supply Chain and R&D.
✨Showcase Your Stakeholder Management Skills
Prepare examples that demonstrate your ability to build strong partnerships with key stakeholders. Discuss how you've translated technical capabilities into actionable outcomes for business leaders, and be ready to explain how you manage expectations and foster collaboration across teams.
✨Demonstrate Financial Acumen
Since financial management is crucial for this role, come equipped with examples of how you've managed project budgets and ensured cost efficiency. Be prepared to discuss your approach to developing business cases and reporting on value realisation, as this will show your understanding of the financial aspects of technology investments.
✨Emphasise Governance and Risk Management
Highlight your experience with governance frameworks and risk management in technology delivery. Prepare to discuss how you've ensured compliance with internal audits and data protection standards, and share examples of how you've monitored KPIs to drive continuous improvement in your previous roles.