Innovation Manager

​​The Innovation Manager will develop and lead the execution of the Innovation Process, have an end-to-end view over all initiatives within each strategic pillar, and will be accountable for tracking and reporting of deliveries as governance of the Innovation funnel and process, ensuring these are on budget, time, quality and scope. Furthermore, the Innovation Manager will organize and lead the conduction of internal and external Hackathons, from problem statement development, through the prototyping and MVP phase, to the development, roll-out and scale of solutions to strategic challenges within the Asia and Africa region. The role will work closely with Director Innovation Portfolio, Global Innovation, Sustainability and New Business as well as other verticals within Innovation & Impact team. The Innovation Manager will monitor and provide regular portfolio reports to stakeholders playing an active role in driving the company's long-term innovation strategy.

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RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Develop the strategy and lead the execution of the Innovation Process

• Take ownership and coordinate with global counterparts the development of the Innovation Process tool for progress tracking

• Consolidate and manage the Innovation Portfolio for Africa and Asia

• Manage in collaboration with Product and Project Owners Project the individual innovation initiatives

• Consolidate relevant information and guarantee transparency in project reporting and management

• Standardize and harmonize the way of working with Global Innovation

• Facilitate meetings, run retrospectives, and conduct lessons-learned sessions using agile methodology and tools within the departments under her/his responsibility

• Spot synergies between projects/departments and unlock their full potential

• Foment a cross-functional way of working in relevant projects and initiatives not only between the departments in Global Innovation but also between central and regional/local teams

• Touch base with Global Innovation’s Performance Management and act as a facilitator/expert in the capital allocation process for relevant projects and initiatives

• Lead the conduction of internal and external Hackathons.

• Directly manage the team processes which includes but not limited to budget tracking and reports, new launch processes, legal status tracking

• Manage the day-to-day operations of the Innovation Hub– Budgets, bookings and co-ordination of events in collaboration with extended team (Marketing, Digital, Agronomy and Sustainability)

• Consolidation and facilitation of key showcases / show & tell sessions across portfolio, across regions

• Facilitates Innovation process, acting as the lead for the team responsible for ensuring all ideas go through necessary approvals before being submitted to product teams

• Identify and manage cross-team interdependencies; facilitate cross-functional alignment to drive progress against goals and objectives, establish clear next steps and owners, and resolve blockers that impede progress

• Build standardization amongst tools, processes and approach to streamline and optimize intake approach for Africa Asia Innovation and Impact

• Outcome and Metrics Tracking/Reporting: Work closely with initiative owners across the organization to develop goals, Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) for ongoing value tracking

• Develop systems for managing performance against those goals; ensure that our key efforts and initiatives are aligned to our strategic priorities

• Continuously collaborate across regional organization to generate pipeline coordination of new initiatives ahead of organizational cadence

• Aligning agile activities and develop the overall Agile knowledge base of the team through competency programs, talent development and inclusivity programs. As there are many teams looking at Agile within the company, peer collaboration across the business is key for this

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REQUIRED PROFILE:

• Master’s in Business, Economics, and/or relevant experience

• 10+ years of work experience in strategy consulting or similar and relevant roles

• Experience in project management, change & stakeholder management

• Strong experience in Business Development

• Experience working with cross-functional teams and reporting that work

• Effective communication, problem-solving, and interpersonal skills

• Humble, collaborative, team player, willing to step up and lead and mentor colleagues

• Highly structured and methodic

• Fluency in English

• Strong working experience in global organizations

• Exhibits knowledge and skillset of servant leadership, facilitation, situational awareness, conflict resolution, continual improvement, empowerment, decentralized decision making and increasing transparency in teams.