Vice President, Corporate Transformation

The Vice President Corporate Transformation, reporting to the Chief Transformation Officer, is responsible for leading and overseeing SGS & Co transformation initiatives. This is a hybrid role tied to our Chicago office.

Overview

SGS & Co is a collective of companies, expertise, and talent assembled specifically to help brands own every possible moment, both in the physical world and in the digital world, when a consumer’s desire can be converted into action. With 5,000 employees and offices in the UK, Europe, North America and Asia, SGS&CO boasts a diverse client base consisting of many well-known global brands.  We work collaboratively to exceed client expectations today and anticipate how we will need to pivot together to win tomorrow. We take pride in our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion along with our ambition to lead the industry to a more sustainable future to drive a positive impact on our clients, our people, and our planet.

The Role – VP Corporate Transformation

The Vice President Corporate Transformation, reporting to the Chief Transformation Officer, is responsible for leading and overseeing SGS & Co transformation initiatives.

The Vice President Corporate Transformation shall support cross-functional improvement for the “most important things” facing the company.  Areas of transformation include but are not limited to: sales force enablement, operational transformation (six sigma quality and on-time delivery), back office transformation (Finance, HR, IT), and game changing technology adoption. The individual shall play two role in orchestrating the other ELT-level executives and functional areas to achieve these transformations:

• Smart PMO. Will establish a company-wide project management office, with an emphasis on accountability and support rather than “traditional PMO tracking”.  Focus on outputs will be choosing the right KPIs to drive value for the business, holding owners accountable for achieving them, and offering support and corrective action when they miss KPIs.  Focus on inputs will be ensuring rigorous thinking about workplans and timelines to be reasonably aggressive in transformation timelines.
• Problem Solving Support. Will co-own initiatives with line leaders to drive through the change leadership process.  This will include structuring of ambiguous problems, organizing teams to execute, enabling change leadership throughout the organization, and “marching the ball down the field” to get results.

In the day-to-day execution of these roles, the individual:

• Develops and executes comprehensive corporate transformation initiative strategy in collaboration with key stakeholders across the organization.
• Builds and manages a high-performing transformation team to support design, orchestration, & activation of the transformation strategy.
• Develops transformation best practices, consistency in initiative structure, tooling, and governance, conducive to speed and agility, across all transformation initiatives.
• Ensures strategic alignment, feedback, and continuous improvement.
• Ensures team and stakeholder accountability against transformation charter to ensure transformations are scoped and delivered end-to-end, have the right level of transparency to the right stakeholders, and designed to optimize pace balanced with effective adoption.
• Partners with executive sponsors and business leaders to identify and prioritize opportunities to improve the organization's approach in alignment with company priorities.
• Ensures effective communication and collaboration across all stakeholders, including executive leadership, functional teams, and external partners.
• Monitor and reports on the progress of all transformation initiatives, including key metrics, risks, and issues, and proactively involve relevant transformation support teams, cross-functional and executive leaders.
• Seeks and takes council from senior leaders and subject matter experts to analyze complex problems, assess options and develop recommended action.
• Provide guidance and support to team members on financial and business-related matters to foster a culture of business acumen.

Candidate Experience & Skills Requirements

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in business-related discipline or equivalent
• Minimum of 10-15 years relevant experience experience in problem solving leadership and complex programmatic change leadership, with the ability to run multiple transformational programs simultaneously and deliver high-quality results and business value
• Proven ability to lead high-performing teams and drive successful outcomes through effective collaboration and leadership
• Demonstrated ability to develop and execute complex strategic initiatives, including change management and stakeholder engagement
• Preferable to have a professional qualification in Program Management
• Ability to think strategically and create a corporate transformation roadmap
• Experience leading transformational change and be able to effectively communicate the vision and goals of the transformation to stakeholders
• Able to lead a team and work collaboratively with cross-functional teams to drive change and achieve business objectives
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal, to effectively communicate regularly with senior executives, stakeholders, and employees across the organization
• Able to identify and solve complex problems and make data-driven decisions
• Passion for innovation and the ability to identify new opportunities for growth and improvement
• Results-oriented, with a focus on achieving business objectives and driving revenue growth through the transformation initiatives