Director of Sustainability at The Coca-Cola Company

Position Overview:

As Coca-Cola Africa’s Director of Sustainability, you bring extensive experience and leadership to guide our ambitious sustainability agenda. Reporting into the Senior Director of Sustainability in Africa, you'll support in paving the way in implementing wide-ranging initiatives focused on water security, waste management, climate resilience, and economic empowerment. From overseeing projects to maintaining key stakeholder relationships, this position offers you the rare opportunity to make a lasting impact on the planet and its people.

What You will Do:

• Strategic Leadership: Develop and execute forward-thinking sustainability strategies that drive innovation and ensure alignment with our business objectives and global sustainability commitments focusing on areas such as water security, waste management, climate resilience, and economic empowerment.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Leverage strong networking skills to build meaningful relationships with various internal departments, NGOs, government agencies, industry leaders, and other external partners. These partnerships should advance our sustainability objectives and foster an environment of shared knowledge and collaborative action.
• Program Innovation: Identify and promote innovative solutions within our sustainability initiatives. Oversee their effective integration into our operations and monitor the outcomes to ensure alignment with our strategic objectives.
• Advocacy and Thought Leadership: Encourage a culture of sustainability within and outside the organization, utilizing your influence to advocate for best practices and generate momentum towards achieving our sustainability goals.
• Reporting and Communication: Implement strong communication strategies that effectively articulate our sustainability progress and initiatives. Use data-driven insights to illustrate our dedication to sustainability and inspire others to join our cause.
• Industry Awareness and Agility: Act as a key expert in the field of sustainability, keeping abreast of emerging trends, technologies, and responsible practices in the industry. Demonstrate agility in integrating contemporary concepts into our sustainability strategies for a high measure of impact and success.

Education Requirements:

• Master’s degree in Environmental science, Sustainability Management, Business Management, or related field.
• Advanced qualifications like ISSP, IEMA, Certified Sustainability Professional, or PMP are advantageous.
• Extended studies in Climate Studies, Social Entrepreneurship, Environmental Law, or Carbon Management highly regarded..

Related Work Experience:

• Demonstrable leadership experience in the field of sustainability. You should have at least 10 years of executive level experience, and a record of success in managing extensive, high-impact sustainability projects. Your professional trajectory may span multiple sectors such as management consultancy, NGOs, impact investing firms, or global corporates.
• Exceptional strategic capabilities, evidenced by past roles in which you made significant contributions to environmental sustainability, waste management, and water stewardship. Your experience should illustrate in-depth understanding of these areas and the ability to drive meaningful change.
• Concrete expertise in steering policy development, corporate social responsibility initiatives, climate change response, and community development, ideally gained within multinational corporations, international agencies, or renowned NGOs.
• Extensive collaboration history and wide network within a wide array of organizations that includes NGOs, government agencies, private sector companies, or impact investors, showcasing your capacity for fostering partnerships to achieve sustainability goals.
• Past involvement in creating, implementing, and monitoring sustainability reporting procedures, standards, and guidelines. This should illustrate your adeptness in data interpretation and your ability to effectively measure performance and draw actionable insights for continuous sustainability improvement.

Functional Skills:

• Broad experience in project and program management.
• Strong financial acumen and understanding of community relations.
• Prior experience in social investing and impact investment & assessment.
• Proficiency in MS Office suite, with exceptional skills in strategic thinking and problem-solving within the sustainability realm.
• Extensive experience with statistical and sustainability software tools, sustainability regulations, and industry standards.
• Proven ability to drive change and innovation in sustainability practices.
• Superior negotiation skills and budget management abilities.
• Strong organizational and project management skills.